Thread: Brass Sheet Source, Ugly Pivot Hole Help!

I like the JB Weld idea . You can find sheet brass , etc. at www.knifemaking.com

Originally Posted by HNSB

There's lots of ways to skin cats.

I've been hoping for a thread about skinning cats for some time now.

i recently plugged an oversized hole with jb weld and it worked fine. i've also done it with 5 minute epoxy. i found the trouble with bushing the hole is that the steel is hardened and i couldn't drill it or ream it. i get brass tubing and rods at a hobby shop, but the have to be available online.
i don't know where the thread is but i also wanted to line some scales with brass and the more knowledgeable people here gave me all sorts of caveats about how to do it, because of the flexing issue the brass is apparently liable to pop loose unless a way is found to key it in somehow. i didn't try it, yet.

Originally Posted by Noisykids

i recently plugged an oversized hole with jb weld and it worked fine. i've also done it with 5 minute epoxy. i found the trouble with bushing the hole is that the steel is hardened and i couldn't drill it or ream it. i get brass tubing and rods at a hobby shop, but the have to be available online.
i don't know where the thread is but i also wanted to line some scales with brass and the more knowledgeable people here gave me all sorts of caveats about how to do it, because of the flexing issue the brass is apparently liable to pop loose unless a way is found to key it in somehow. i didn't try it, yet.

I've pretty much decided on J-B Weld to fill the hole, then drilled out with a 1/16th bit and go from there. I think the J-B Weld will wear at about the same rate the steel did, which is plenty long enough for me. I still have to find the 1/16th brass rod, though I may make use of 1/16th brass tube. That would look interesting. Would make for easy peening, but don't know how long the tubing would hold up.

There is one hobby/toy shop here in town that I haven't made it to. I highly doubt they'll have anything as they're a tiny downtown shop; still worth a look see though.

If I were still living in the KC area none of this would be an issue, but having just moved to NW Iowa I haven't a clue where stuff is, hence the hardware store debacle.

First, look for HOBBY stores. Any store that sells stuff to make wooden model airplaine and RC stuff will have sheet, rod, and tubing.

I would buy very thin sheet, maybe 20ga. some 1/8" tubeing and some 1/16 rod.

Drill the blade pivoit out to 1/8" One little trick I use is to jam wood (like maybe a round tooth pick) into the hole and then cut it off flush. The gives the point of the drill just a little bit of support.

now sleve the blade with the 1/8 tubing- and epoxie will hole it in. Then file it flush.

a short cut on your scales, if you have a scaner, is to just lay the old scale on the scanner and make a copy of it. Make any changes to that and cut it out as a pattern.

Your going to fine thin sheet is hard to cut without distorting it. you have the perfect answer. Simply make a stack. First scale, then both sheets of brass, then the other scale, then the pattern. I use double sided tape to put them together.

cut the whole stack at one time. I use a scroll saw, but you can use a fine coping saw just as well.

When it comes time to split them apart, hit the stack with a hair dryer on the highest setting to soften the glue first.

a slightly different way would be to glue the brass sheet to the wood first and do the same thing.

hope this gives you some ideas

I had an idea or two myself, but that gives me some more to work with. I don't have a scroll saw...yet. But I do have a coping saw, and was planning on making use of that.

Thanks for the input!