I've been making scales for a couple of years now and thought I had it down pretty well - however, just lately I've had a few blades that don't centre properly, and they all veered towards the show side. Initially I just thought this was a run of bad luck but have since re-considered just how I go about shaping the scales and at what stage I drill the pivot and wedge holes.
My normal method is to take a single piece of material down to size, cut down the middle then use double sided tape before cutting and sanding to outline shape. I then start the body shaping and when happy that this is looking OK - that's when I drill. The reason I leave until this stage is in case I decide to adjust the profile - I don't want the pin holes off centre.
The problem seems to have co-incided with a period where I've been shaping both the pivot and wedge ends quite severely - that is, sloping the scales so that the ends are slim. Despite being careful to have the scales flat when drilling I guess that even a slight rocking will mean the the hole is not at 90 degrees and could be causing the problem.
Does anyone have any comments or tips?
Thanks, Rob