Advice on bale installation

K

KnifeHunter010

Joined
Jun 23, 2014
Messages
2
Hello,

I'm about to repair my first knife which involves a blade replacement on an old Imperial Scout knife, equipped with a bale. I understand the basic process involved but would like some advice on the process of re-installing the bale and how to set and hammer the pin. I haven't taken it apart yet, perhaps doing so will clear up some questions I have, but in general....
- Is the process of setting the pin the same as without a bale?
- Are the blade clearances used with a bale in the assembly the same?
- How do you set the pin so that the bale isn't actually so tight it won't pivot and tear up the bolster? On some knives I have there seems to be a slight gap between the bale and the bolster. I'm not sure how this achieved, where the knife is tight and the bale is free to rotate.

I'm assuming that there is a single pin that passes straight through all the components in the stack-up, although I have seen some old knives that are missing bales that look like they have holes drilled partial depth into them on both sides, holes which are off-center from the main pin which the blades pivot on. So this is a little confusing to me.

Any advice, input, instruction would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Ted
 
Well, unless there is a 100 pound chunk of hay attached to the knife, it is probably the bail you want to remove :)

Remove it by filing off the peened heads. When replacing the pins and bail, you want an amount of extra pin length equal to twice the pin thickness (one thickness on each side). Make a peening block from a bar/block of metal. Drill a shallow depression and round it with a ball burr the size of the desired head. It should only be half as deep as wide. Using a small ball peen hammer, start peening on one side and then flip to the other. Set the pin in the depression on the block. Work from side to side and switch from peen to flat as needed on the hammer. Check regularly for tightness, and rotate the bail back and forth to prevent binding. A drop of lube applied when starting is a good idea. When all is right sand the peened head or use a cup burr or head spinner to make it smooth and round. These tools are invaluable if you plan on doing a lot of domed head pins and rivets.

Some makers place a very thin shim under the bail to assure it won't get peened too tight to move. (obviously, remove the shim after peening)
With practice, you can peen the pins and wiggle the bail back and forth to get a smooth and tight assembly without the shim.
 
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