Thread: Hinge Holes

I did kind of mention it in "what have you got in the mail" but I have ordered enough silver rod and washers to do 10 razors and some pre made scales.

The cheap pre made scales are for my first attempt at pinning, I have a blade that needs something.

What is the easiest and most idiot proof way to figure out where to put the hinge hole and to make sure it's straight.

I have a little pin vice drill, it's very small and hand held.

Other than that it's a 1oz ball pein and a ful size DeWalt battery drill/screwdriver, no drill press of any kind.

When I get making the holes and pinning down pat I'll get some blanks and have a go at making some scales.

Sounds like a good start.

I’ve been using some pre-shaped plastic and horn scales until I feel confident enough and have the time to try to shape my own. Next up is forming a proper wedge and shaping scales from a blank.

The best advice I was given about striking with the hammer was to hit yourself on the fingernail with it - that’s the proper force to use. So lots of light weight strikes all around the head of the pin. Peening just takes patience and a light hand.

Getting the first head formed on the pin is the most challenging part for me. Some folks suggest putting the rod in a drill head or vise to hold it and form the peen on one end before pushing it through. Others have a pre-drilled divot in their anvil to hold it in place while they form the head.

Pivot pin hole and wedge pin hole should be about the same distance from the ends of the scales. And I like to put them around 5/8" from the ends as a starting point. So you need to lay it out on a table with wedge and blade and scales and see what looks good and works right keeping this info in mind. JMO.

Drilling holes is best on a drill press and with scales taped together so they can not possibly move. Drilling both scales as one. This is why i drill holes while my scales are still flat pieces of material. Before shping but after making the proper thickness.

So if your scales are rounded/shaped you need to find a way to hold them flat while being taped together. Then drill as straight as you possibly can with a drill. Doing it by hand with a pin vise is going to give you too much chance of making holes crooked and not straight. So your in a tight spot. They do make tiny drill presses that you can buy for little money. Like only 12" tall. This would be a good way to do this without takinh a lot of space or money.

Good luck. BTW, I bet we have info on making, drilling and shaping scales in our library.

Maybe look for a drill holder that turns your drill into a drill press as straight holes are very important!

A compass will put it where you want it, and correlate the wedge

Originally Posted by outback

A compass will put it where you want it, and correlate the wedge

Thats excellent info and It sounds like it'll help me a lot when I start to try and make my own scales Mike.

The thing is that bought these cheap plastic scales because firstly I have a blade that needs to be scaled and secondly it will give me a chance to try pinning.

The scales are already pre made and joined at the wedge so all I have to do is drill the hinge hole and pin.

Because they're pre made and joined at the factory I'm not sure how to get the hole for the hinge in the right place. By that I mean more like in the center of the scale and also make the hole straight on both sides of these premade and joined scales.

I haven't got them yet of course but maybe they will be thin and flexible enough that I can tape the hinge end together, that would probably help with a straight hole but I still have to make sure the hole is in the middle of the scales.

How do you make sure your hole is in the dead center of your scales at the hinge?

It looks like there are 3 scales in the pic but that's just to show the variations, there's actually only one scale and its already joined at the wedge end so just needs the hinge to be drilled and pinned.

His scales are already shaped and it looks like molded at the wedge end rather than pinned.

Using a compass would be helpful to find the place to put the hole. Since you have no drill press and since they are already formed I think your best results will come from careful measuring, drilling toward the center from both sides and joining the holes with the drill bit (routing the holes) once the second side is drilled.

Originally Posted by PaulFLUS

His scales are already shaped and it looks like molded at the wedge end rather than pinned.

Using a compass would be helpful to find the place to put the hole. Since you have no drill press and since they are already formed I think your best results will come from careful measuring, drilling toward the center from both sides and joining the holes with the drill bit (routing the holes) once the second side is drilled.

You're right Paul, they're moulded not pinned at the wedge end. Drilling from both side in sound a bit tricky for a first try,

I've drilled many, by hand. Typically I open the holes bigger than 1/16" so there's room to adjust for center.

If you measure and mark where you want the pin, it shouldn't be a problem... Unless your blade is warped.

Lay the razor on top of the scales Mark the distance so it sits correctly inside of the wedge end..

Eyeball the center, trust me on this, your Mk1 Eyeball will center better than any measurement will

The hole size is a 5/64 bit if you are using 1/16 rod, this does two things, it allows for small adjustments and protects you against "Percussion Bulge" and splitting the scales

here is an visual on how to lay it out



note the Sharpie dot for the distance, I will then use the drill bit and my eye to get it centered, note that the dot is slightly off center when I marked for distance...

You also have to watch the way the tail fits, with the scales

ps BEFORE you drill

What Mike mentioned about warped

Check each razor BEFORE Drilling and Pinning so if you have an issue you can adjust it first


Place the razor on a flat surface press down on the pin hole and LOOK at the deflection from the front to the back of the razor


here





By doing that first, you can work to make it center when closed much easier