Thread: What are you working on?

Well this one was even dumber. The pin bent and I was trying to realign the scales slightly shifting one side of the pin. I have done it many times with horn, wood and synthetic scales but I should have known better with bone. Should have just unpinned and replaced the pin to begin with. I wound up sleeving it the second time.

That's what it all about Paul! We know what we should do, but we think "nah I can fix that and all of a sudden......And that's the rest of the story!

Pinning up a razor today that I've been working on off and on for a while. I got collars picked out, decided to go with nickel silver pins, got the wedge end pinned up only to realize that the one remaining peice of n/s pin I had was just barely too short. CRAP! Now I'm bummed because I stoked to get it back together and am stalled half way through pinning. I did have plenty of brass pin but that would look stupid to have one pinned with brass and the other n/s. I guess I have to order more pin stock but that really stinks that I have to wait. Then the wheels start turning and I said to myself, "Self, you have time on your hands and you have buckets of n/s scrap keys. Hmmmm."

You can see where this is going right?

First attemp:




Cut the bottom rib off an old key, hammered it to square, put it in the drill chuck and spun it while hammering it to roundish. It actually worked but the folding created a fault which snapped while pinning.

Back to the drawing board.




Took a different key and ground it round, put it in the drill and ran it while holding the pin against the belt until it was the right diameter. That took a little doing but it worked. I wound up getting the razor pinned up and finished as I had hoped.

I will say that this was not an efficient use of time or resources and the better route would have been to just buy some pin rod BUT, in a pinch it worked, got me finished and none would ever be the wiser.

I have seen many finished with nails etc.

You use what you have

Originally Posted by PaulFLUS

Pinning up a razor today that I've been working on off and on for a while. I got collars picked out, decided to go with nickel silver pins, got the wedge end pinned up only to realize that the one remaining peice of n/s pin I had was just barely too short. CRAP! Now I'm bummed because I stoked to get it back together and am stalled half way through pinning. I did have plenty of brass pin but that would look stupid to have one pinned with brass and the other n/s. I guess I have to order more pin stock but that really stinks that I have to wait. Then the wheels start turning and I said to myself, "Self, you have time on your hands and you have buckets of n/s scrap keys. Hmmmm."

You can see where this is going right?

First attemp:




Cut the bottom rib off an old key, hammered it to square, put it in the drill chuck and spun it while hammering it to roundish. It actually worked but the folding created a fault which snapped while pinning.

Back to the drawing board.




Took a different key and ground it round, put it in the drill and ran it while holding the pin against the belt until it was the right diameter. That took a little doing but it worked. I wound up getting the razor pinned up and finished as I had hoped.

I will say that this was not an efficient use of time or resources and the better route would have been to just buy some pin rod BUT, in a pinch it worked, got me finished and none would ever be the wiser.

Maybe not efficient but industrious.

I've been working on a razor a bit at a time for my boy since he was born lol he's 7. Got a few years before he needs it.

Got all the bits just need to fettle and assemble now ��

Geek

Maybe it needs to be annealed first. Keys are pretty had compared to pins.

Well, that was also a Sargent key and theirs are exceptionally hard comparatively.

Edit: the one that broke that is.

1/16" nickel/silver brazing rods work okay. A single 36" piece will pin quite a few razors. I bought a tube of 5 pieces a long time ago but I wasted them on brazing stuff instead of pinning razors.

Why would you ever use brazing rod for brazing?

Originally Posted by PaulFLUS

Why would you ever use brazing rod for brazing?

When I don't need it for hanging fresh tobacco for curing due to being out of coathangers or aluminum electrical fence wire, or don't know when I will get around to rescaling the razors in my junk or fix-someday pile, and something metal needs to be stuck together by the use of something intermediate between welding and duct tape.