Help making a plastic wedge?
- Thread starter Friedramen
- Start date
Take your scale and use it as a template for the wedge, basicaly copy the original shape and size wedge....then use your dremel or better yet, sand paper on a flat surface, to put a matching taper in it. The idea is to copy the original.
As for material...anything you like can work....a piece of wood, a piece of plastic off an old toy, you could even layer up and glue then shape the plastic from laundry detergent bottles (or the like).
Shoot for an angle of around 7.5 degrees. Without tools It will probably be easiest to sand the end of a longish strip with a sanding block, then cut the end off to match the thickest part of the existing wedge.
You might consider putting in a pin with a blushing that catches the shank near the shoulder. It also *"seems" to make the scales more rigid.
* I one have one with and one without.
My blue diamond was constructed that way.
* I one have one with and one without.
My blue diamond was constructed that way.
Does your third pin actually contact the shank? All that I have seen do not. The reason that I have heard for the third pin was to stabilize the scales. Oddly some of the most warped scales that I have seen are Double Ducks with third pins.
I have noticed that my Satinedge dont touch the middle pin it dont even come close to it
You made me jump through hoops. As far as I can tell, the shank seems to contact the bushing at the same time as the increasing width of the spine starts pushing against the scales. The toe has about 1/2 cm clearance from the wedge at the end. I don't have any high end measuring tools. @Luecke2326, you didn't happen to notice this did you?
The Dubl-Duck I am using, with just two pins, I've slightly damaged the edge while closing and the edge hitting a scale.
I think a lot of 3rd pin scales were made so the shank was close to, but not exactly on, that 3rd pin. But over time things wear and settle in and then the shank winds up on the pin at the same time the toe nestles into the scales.
Somewhere in the archives, there is a post from, I think, Legion, about using a craft type of plastic clay stuff that you bake to make a wedge. @Legion - perhaps he'll remember.
Otherwise, you can buy wedges from WCS I think. Or maybe on an auction site. Or you can make one by gluing sandpaper to a flat thing and then running a 1x1" piece of whatever - plastic, wood, etc, over it. Just be sure to focus pressure on one edge. You can use two-sided tape to keep the material 'stuck' to your finger. This works on a belt sander too, but be careful. Start with 1/16" stock, see if that works.
Somewhere in the archives, there is a post from, I think, Legion, about using a craft type of plastic clay stuff that you bake to make a wedge. @Legion - perhaps he'll remember.
Otherwise, you can buy wedges from WCS I think. Or maybe on an auction site. Or you can make one by gluing sandpaper to a flat thing and then running a 1x1" piece of whatever - plastic, wood, etc, over it. Just be sure to focus pressure on one edge. You can use two-sided tape to keep the material 'stuck' to your finger. This works on a belt sander too, but be careful. Start with 1/16" stock, see if that works.
Good memory. Yeah, I tried that bake hard modeling clay. It works.
I also sanded the tips of my fingers off trying to do the two sided tape thing on a belt grinder, so take my advise with a grain of salt.
I use a 1/4 x 3/4 x 8 inch piece of wood or plastic thin the end on the belt sander then cut off the piece I need it gives you something to hold on to and saves fingers
Lol - sorry, I actually have done this on a few types of sanders and It worked out ok. But yeah, it's definitely a bit on the 'Primitive Pete' side of things.
A belt sander is ok, especially one with a worn belt. I did it with belt grinder, which makes me a bloody idiot.
Ahh - yeah, that's another ball of wax then......
Great tips. What would any and all advise to use to remove a glued on wedge? I am unsure what to use because I don’t want to damage the (plastic) scales as they are ornate and in great condition, but I need to remove it and replace it with a thicker wedge.
Is it glued to both scales or only one? If only one, I might try to gently get a knife edge under it. Failing that, it might be best to just sand it off. If it is glued on both sides I would consider parting the scales with a thin saw.
Glued on both sides. No front pin either. I’ll have to give that a try thanks
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