Anyone use aluminum thong tube?

C

CShepherd

Joined
Feb 27, 2006
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Hello all,

Going to start putting some thong tubes into my handles. I've found brass tubing locally at Ace Hardware and others but haven't been able to find nickel silver tubing. Does anyone use aluminum? I can find that.

I know I can mail order it but was hoping to find it locally.

Thank you,

Charles
 
Part of the problem using tubing (brass) you can find locally is it's generally pretty thin walled which doesn't look as nice on the handle. If you want nickle silver tubing I think you'd have little choice but to order it from a knife supply house. In my opinion there is no reason not to use aluminum though if that's what you want to use and it compliments the handle material and general feel of the knife.
 
Aluminum should be fine, but I prefer stainless tubing. I bought a few sticks from Pop's Knife Supply and it should last me quite some time.

Erik
 
I agree with TekSek about stainless. It is probably easier to work than N/S and is tougher and I think it looks better.

You don't want something that will ding up easily and make sharp edges. I will usually use the same material for the thong tube as I use for the pins though. If something seems to call for brass then brass for the tube as well.

I have heard of guys using SS brake line aquired from local auto supplies but I have never verified that personally. Maybe someone else can shed some light on that as a possible source.
 
Yes use the SS brake line. I have not measured it against what the supply houses carry but it looks the same to me. You can also get it in 3/16- 1/4- 5/16 for a different look. Ebay has it all the time .
 
Stainless steel like argel55 said, McMaster Carr carries tubing of various variaties. If you want to use Titanium, or carbon fiber, try old arrow shafts. Yea new ones will work too.

JIM Arbuckle
 
I've used aluminum before and it works nicely. Some of it is very thin walled, but I like that.
 
Oh Yes. Am currently using up an old arrow shaft with ou problem. The nice thing about aluminum is that it isn't that much harder than the wood, and doesn't prove problematic when sanding and smoothing the area.

Jim L.
 
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