Thread: My 2rd attempt at a resto

This blade only needed a minor clean up. So I decided to try my hand at bone scales, mistake!
You guys make this look so easy! My first mistake was buying 1/16" pinning rod from the
hardware store. It was hard as nails but it was all I had to work with, as a result, the pins look awful.
I will redo them later. Another lesson learned, I know what I'm not going to do, next time I'm
cutting, shaping and polishing bone. The next set of bone scales I do will be a little less time consuming.
This has been an real eye opener for me. Hats off to you guys who make works off art out of these materials.

Dont worry I think your luthier skills will translate quite nicely to razor restoration. One day you may present fantastic scales with swanky pearl inlay you just have to get comfy with the methods and materials. Just go for it.

I get my pinning rod at Hobby Lobby.

I do not have any rod for pinning with. Mine is in a roll and is sold as wire. I would like to tell you more about it it but it was a gift from Raol who picked it up at a jewelry makers supply in Cow Town. It is nice and soft and work like a charm. I did have some rod from a hobby store once that was as hard as nails. It looked like brass but was the hardest brass I have ever seen. As for your project, we tend to judge our own work more harshly than anyone. It las very nice to me. I am quite intrigued with the color variegation in the bone. I think most of use started with a clean and polish and a fresh set of scales. Like most thing, it does take a little practice to feel comfortable with the job. I'm sure as a luthier you will find your groove quite quickly.

I see nothing wrong with them.
They look really nice!
As for the pins, you could anneal them to make them "softer"

Yup, nothing wrong with them.

Anneal the pins once cut, to soften the brass, and make your holes a bit larger than 1/16 in or taper them with a tapered, diamond jewelry file to prevent cracking. Practice pinning on popsicle sticks, they crack easy.

You can polish the pins smooth, once pinned with a 4 inch piece of bamboo chopstick, with a dimple drilled on the end. Chucked in a drill press, dab of rubbing, polishing compound or diamond paste, finish with a dab of metal polish, you can polish them smooth and gleaming.

Also doming the collar, makes for a nice finished look and adds pressure to the pin and not the hole to keep it tight.

A simple domming block can be made from a block of wood and dowel or from metal, or relatively inexpensively purchased.

Make a mask by punching a hole the size of your pin or collar to protect the scale.

When first making scales it is best to use the old scales as a template or guide, they really did know what they were doing in their design and did so for a purpose. You may find the wider scale material at the pin difficult to strop.

When trying out a new design I use wooden paint stir stick for a mock up, if it works, keep them as templates. Try them in the hand for feel and ease of use. You can mock up a wooden blade and wedge as well and practice your pinning or just glue them up.

Nice work, what did you dye them with?

Ahhhhhhh Ummmmm if it was hard to peen , how hard do you think it's going to be getting them out ? :<0) Leave them and maybe clean them up some if they bother you. The whole job looks good to me.

I buy nickle and brass rod at knife making supply stores.

Doesn't look like the pins are bent and of it opens and closes right you got the important part.

10 Pups,
Yeah, that's some hard brass. I'll leave it be. Buying pining rod from a knife supply is a good idea. I'm already working on my next set, this time I'm using Maple, stay tuned!
Thanks, Freddie

Originally Posted by MisterClean

10 Pups,
Yeah, that's some hard brass. I'll leave it be. Buying pining rod from a knife supply is a good idea. I'm already working on my next set, this time I'm using Maple, stay tuned!
Thanks, Freddie

While I may be wrong I believe what you may have picked up was some 1/16" bronze rod/not brass.

It looks nice to me & you will get a lot faster at it the more you do it. You can only get better!