Bryanxwhite's Home Brew
I have finally found time to make a few picks. The short hook is ine and the other is for a friend. I used .030 Starret feeler gauge and some square brass stock as suggested by Kokomolock. It's 3\16 X 3\8". I spent quite a few hours figuring out the best way to secure the pick into the handle. JB Weld works wonders. The second pick is based off of Southord's Max #10. I told him I would do the best to replicate it. I think it turned out fairly well. Hope you guys like them.
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Last edited by Bryanxwhite on Sun Jun 19, 2011 1:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Those are some damn fine looking picks. How do they feel in use?
Naaapaalm...sticks to kids...it sticks to the belly and it sticks to the ribs...
See those kids standing by the lake...drop some napalm and watch them bake.
Naaapaalm...sticks to kids...it sticks to the belly and it sticks to the ribs.
See those kids standing by the lake...drop some napalm and watch them bake.
Naaapaalm...sticks to kids...it sticks to the belly and it sticks to the ribs.
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
I love the short hook/gem profile you got goin on in the first pick.. And I also love the offset half diamond as one of my favorite profiles of all time.. Well executed and great pictures too. Great job on those picks man. Keep it up.
Whizdumb81 wrote:You can't handle the DCAP
xe0 wrote:how about a peterson gov steel baseball bat so i can thwap motherfuckers
ecksdee wrote:To learn to pick locks is to learn how to speak a language spoken only in whispers and riddles.
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Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Really great looking picks. Where did you get the square brass for the handles?
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
chriswingate wrote:Those are some damn fine looking picks. How do they feel in use?
Thank you! They feel great. I based the short hook off of modifying my Southord Max #8 when I was trying to beat my first m3. Turns out I have come to love that style short hook. They don't flex under heavy load at all. .030 is thicker than what the other guys make they're pick out of but I also thinned mine out a bit by sanding and polishing. It's around .025 which works great with heavily warded locks. I would like to make more but I hate having to wait on the JB weld to set.
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
As far as a mechanical joining of the pick to the handle, might I suggest rather than JB, size the pick so that it will be a good friction fit then sweat solder/braze it in.
Nothing wrong with .030, it is much more forgiving of stray tooling marks and whatnot as you can sand right through them and still have a very usable pick. I've had many picks where the dremel slipped and left an ugly mark that was too deep to sand out using thinner stock, didn't hurt the usability in any way; however, it did make the end pick not as nice looking as it could have been. With the .030, which I have used (thanks JR!) you can just rip right through it and keep it looking awesome, and still have a quite thick pick. The most recent pick I made was a postal and I made it from starrett .020 and it wound up at .017 after sanding and polishing (no uglies on that one thank god) and it is amazingly strong! I have to use it some more, but I'm already getting the impression that it's stronger than the govt steel slenders (which claim to be .015, but are usually between .016 and .017)
[edit] Holy shit! I got all that in there and forgot to say, nice job man!
-Elbow
Nothing wrong with .030, it is much more forgiving of stray tooling marks and whatnot as you can sand right through them and still have a very usable pick. I've had many picks where the dremel slipped and left an ugly mark that was too deep to sand out using thinner stock, didn't hurt the usability in any way; however, it did make the end pick not as nice looking as it could have been. With the .030, which I have used (thanks JR!) you can just rip right through it and keep it looking awesome, and still have a quite thick pick. The most recent pick I made was a postal and I made it from starrett .020 and it wound up at .017 after sanding and polishing (no uglies on that one thank god) and it is amazingly strong! I have to use it some more, but I'm already getting the impression that it's stronger than the govt steel slenders (which claim to be .015, but are usually between .016 and .017)
[edit] Holy shit! I got all that in there and forgot to say, nice job man!
-Elbow
"Cave ab homine unius libri" - Beware of anyone who has just one book
(2014.02.09 - 23:26:03) huxleypig: i freaking love cream
(2014.02.09 - 23:27:11) huxleypig: hey, come on, cream is nice
(2014.02.09 - 23:27:37) huxleypig: aww, i suddenly feel very sick
(23:37:46) LocksmithArmy: you should see my school girl outfit
(23:37:50) LocksmithArmy: wait... what
(13:19:50) xeo: that chick will never be satisfied by a real dick
(13:19:54) NNFAK: I would man...
(22:59:49) PhoneMan: how do you let a forum die if users keep using it? kill the servers?
May those who love us, love us; and those who don't love us, may God turn their hearts; and if He doesn't turn their hearts, may he turn their ankles so we'll know them by their limping
If someone had prince albert in a can, does that mean they'd have a killer codpiece?
(00:52:02) WolfSpring: elbow could sell a sandbox to an egyptian
(2014.02.09 - 23:26:03) huxleypig: i freaking love cream
(2014.02.09 - 23:27:11) huxleypig: hey, come on, cream is nice
(2014.02.09 - 23:27:37) huxleypig: aww, i suddenly feel very sick
(23:37:46) LocksmithArmy: you should see my school girl outfit
(23:37:50) LocksmithArmy: wait... what
(13:19:50) xeo: that chick will never be satisfied by a real dick
(13:19:54) NNFAK: I would man...
(22:59:49) PhoneMan: how do you let a forum die if users keep using it? kill the servers?
May those who love us, love us; and those who don't love us, may God turn their hearts; and if He doesn't turn their hearts, may he turn their ankles so we'll know them by their limping
If someone had prince albert in a can, does that mean they'd have a killer codpiece?
(00:52:02) WolfSpring: elbow could sell a sandbox to an egyptian
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Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
They both look great man, excellent job!!!!
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Beautiful!!
femurat: They're called restricted for a reason...
Innerpicked: The more keys you carry, the more important you look
GWiens2001: Great video! Learned a lot about what fun can be had with a forklift and a chainsaw.
pmaxey83: but i first have to submit the proper forms for a new hobby to my wife
Innerpicked: The more keys you carry, the more important you look
GWiens2001: Great video! Learned a lot about what fun can be had with a forklift and a chainsaw.
pmaxey83: but i first have to submit the proper forms for a new hobby to my wife
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Indypicks wrote:Really great looking picks. Where did you get the square brass for the handles?
Towerhobbies.com . I would have ordered it from the place that Kokomolock suggested but they were on backorder. Shipping was quick, but keep in mind that price for a pack of them is only for 4. I thought I was ordering 12 of them but I was mistaken. Along with the JB weld I use another of Kokomolock's suggestions and used wiper inserts as shims to hold it tightly in the tube. The JB weld is more for looks than securing the pick to the handle.
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
As far as a mechanical joining of the pick to the handle, might I suggest rather than JB, size the pick so that it will be a good friction fit then sweat solder/braze it in.
that sounds like a fantastic idea. i wonder if the jb weld dampens the vibration from the steel to the brass, the solder/braze would be a better conduate of vibration i would imagine.
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
very well made and the transition from the pick to the handle looks quit clean
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Hmmm, Me likes them also. Classic (styled) looking picks...
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Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Nice looking picks Bryan!
"An honest man is one who knows that he can't consume more than he has produced."
Re: My homebrew picks...finally!
Thank you everyone for the kind words! I hope to try some different styles. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
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