Thread: Removing MOP tang

The pins are not 'un-peened'. The holes in the mop are slightly larger than the pins, and most likely flared a little (wider at the face side than on the side up agaist the tang). This allows the pin to expand a bit during peening.

It is a very tricky job to get right. You slightly peen one side of the pins, put them through the mop and tail, slip on the second mop panel, cut the pins to length (a little proud of the mop) anb gently peen the pins over the other mop panel.

The mop is ultra brittle and liable to crack, so it is best to anneal the pins again after flaring one end to ensure the brass is soft.

You stop when the panels are sufficiently tight, then file the ends of the pins flush and polish the whole lot up. The friction of the pins in the flared holes in the mop keep the mop in place.

The ones I have taken apart appear not to have been glued, or the glue has broken down over the years. Once you have cleanecd the tang - it will be corroded, I have found it best to use some sort of epoxy, putting eveything back together temorarily including the pins and taping it up. That stops everything flapping about, fills gaps (watch the colour of the adhesive) and hopefully stops future water ingress. It also makes it difficult to remove the mop panel you have just cracked and chipped.

Wood is very tricky too. Unless it is very close grained it tends to split both when you are shaping that tiny tang/tail, and close grained or not it tends to split during pinning - there just isnt enough meat behind it, especially around the pivot hole.

For these reasons a non-brittle plastic would be my choice. Either that or the one-piece tang covering you sometimes see on old ivory scaled razors where the blade tang is ground thin and the curved tail ground off, the stub then being fitted into a slot cut in the ivory tang/tail piece. Takes a bit of precise measuring, though!

Regards,
Neil