Pivot Length?

L6steel

L6steel

Joined
Sep 23, 1999
Messages
5,855
I finally figured out how to attach my dial indicator to my lathe so I can cut my pivots to precise lengths. Now the question is how many thousandths under the total of the blade plus the washers plus the liners do I need to cut them?
How much shorter do you folks cut your pivots?
Thanks for any help you can give me!!

Michael
 
Its very possible i'm just a hack but all i do is tighten the one screw all the way in then back it off about 1/2-3/4 of a turn and grind down the other side flush with the liners. I guess i'd like to hear more bout your way, if someone wants to fill me in on the importance of precise cutting of pivot pins, I'm all ears.

Les
 
Now I'm still very new to folders but the last two (of three in total) have worked out quite well. I took the pivot pins down to about 3 thous less than the total width you are talking about. This seemed to work quite well. I also did this to the stop pin.

Hope that helps.

Sean
 
Hi Folks,
The length will depend on the screw that you are using. Some will thread all the way inside the pivot and others will not. So the shortened length will vary between a few thou to .03 or so. Chamfering the inside of the pivot after cutting helps the screw engage all the way into the pivot also.
 
Thanks Darrell!!!
I musta pissed the rest of the forumites off some how.
Oh well!
 
Michael,

I've not made but half a dozen, but have read and asked a lot of questions. This is one question I've not asked, but do find as Darryl notes, the pivots bolts I have don't thread all the way to the head.

I've been making the pivots slightly undersized in length to allow for break in of the washers. I stop when the bolts are tightened to the best folding friction, then work the pivot in. This certainly isn't a chore as I simply carry the blade around for a couple of days (to show off) and get quite a bit of folding done. The bolts are set with loctite and reset after break in.

Sorry, not measured. I've just used 'slighly undersized', 'a tad', 'a scosh', 'an rch'....

May not be the right or best method, but seems to work quite well. I've not heard or read any info on this in the past.

Dan
 
Mike,

I use my surface grinder to grind my pivots to the exact size needed. I take the size of the backbar plus the thickness of the washers and grind the pivot to that number. This way I can tighten the screws down and eliminate the need for loctite. I always have to relieve the threads of the pivot to ensure the screws seat 100%.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top