Pantograph?

Wed, Aug 29, 2007, 4:15am (EDT-3) [email protected] (jdarylh1) doth
sayeth:
<snip> I want to get there as fast and easily as possible. That's why I
have nail guns, cordless drills and power saws. <snip>
I can probably make one without a duplicator, but after making a test
version out of pine, I started thinking that there had to be a faster,
easier way. My clay model is really precise in terms of fit, and to
exactly (or close) duplicate that in wood has been a slow, tedious
process. The pine grip wasn't all that successful, but it was my first.
The next one will be better but I'm looking for a better way to transfer
the dimensions and rough it in other than trace, measure, get the
calipers, etc.

Yeah, I've got power tools, but sometimes it's more relaxing to
just do something by hand.

Well, you could make a pair of grips like I did, with wood filler,
and mold it. I used saran wrap around the revolver grip area, packed on
filler, set some saran wrap on that, then fit my hand on it, and
squeezed. When it dried, sanded it, tried it, added filler, repeat.
Took a couple or three days to finish, but wound up with totally custom
gps, with finger grooves, and thumb rest. Completely form fitting. As
a house gun it would aim exactly where I pointed my hand, didn't need to
use sights. That's one way.

Or, you could cave balsa, that'd go fast, and soak it with epoxy
when done But If I was doing it, and had hard clay molds I wanted to
copy, I'd make a simple duplicator, with a Dremel type tool. Fix it and
a pinin a fixture, suspend that from a frame with springs (maybe hinges
on the back side, and two springs in the front), and have the frame on
casters (Hell, you could even cut hollows, and roll it on marbles), so
it could move. Have the model, and piece to be carved fastened from
below, so they won't shift. I'd rough cut excess of the piece to be
carved. Then just lower the fixture, so a guide pin can go over the
model, and have the Dremel spaced so it will go over the piece to be
carved. That should rough cut well enough. For a one-time thing
anyway. I'd still just prefer the filler method, unless you want pretty
wood, to show off.

I was gonna mold a woodfiller cheeck rest for my squirrel rifle,
but wound up laminating one instead. But I'll probably mold one for a
scoped air rifle..



JOAT
What is life without challenge and a constant stream of new
humiliations?
- Peter Egan

Wed, Aug 29, 2007, 4:15am (EDT-3) [email protected] (jdarylh1) doth
sayeth:
<snip> I'm looking for a better way to transfer the dimensions and
rough it in other than trace, measure, get the calipers, etc.

I forgot to ask before I pished send. Are these going to be target
grips? That would be the only reason for being as precise as you seem
to be wanting. Target grips for competition that is. For day-to-day
use I'd say forget target grips. And regular grips don't need to be
that precise, just comfortable. Actually, even target grips are not
normally as precise as seems to be you're wanting. The top of the line
grips are adjustable tho. I'd say forget the precise measurements, get
a rough wood rasp, and go to it. Won't take long with one of those. My
old man made a nice pair of walnut revolver grips with a pocket knife,
and somepaper.



JOAT
What is life without challenge and a constant stream of new
humiliations?
- Peter Egan

>Are these going to be target
> grips? That would be the only reason for being as precise as you seem
> to be wanting. Target grips for competition that is.

Yep, these are target grips but also the feel of custom grips just
can't be beat. I like your idea of the wood filler, that's pretty
cool. What brand did you use? I'll have to try it sometime. I wanted
this set to be fancy wood though. Also putting together a quick frame
for a Dremel sounds good. I'll put some thought to that. Seems
quicker and less complicated than the Copycarver I mentioned in my
previous posting.

The Copycarver would be much better, but for a one time use, the
Dremel would probably serve. Maybe I'll rough out some with my
bandsaw, then chuck a rasp in my die grinder, knock off more, then put
it on the Dremel concoction and finish it off. Or if I'm lucky and
don't screw up, maybe the die grinder will get it close enough to the
sanding stage where I won't have to do anything more.

The part that has me most worried is the inside where it has to be a
dead fit to the pistol skeleton. How good the fit is, determines if
the grip's going to move around. The single screw only holds the two
halves together. That's where the Dremel thing would work really
well. I could trace around the inside of the old grip and the Dremel
would duplicate that on the inside of the new ones.

I wish someone made carbide router bits that fit a Dremel. HSS
doesn't hold up at all and I'll probably have to go through a few of
them before the job's done.

> One other thing you might look at is thermoset plastic putty like Fimo or
> Sculpy.

That's actually what I used to make the original form. Was really
easy to get a great fit. But I really want to transfer that to wood,
much cooler looking if it's done right. I put some thought into JT's
comments about an easily made 3D carver and I've come up with an idea
that should work awesome and it just uses scraps I have lying around.
If it works like I think it will, I should post photos so someone else
could make one if they needed it. I decided to power it by my Rotozip
instead of my Dremel. Much beefier and more selection of carbide bits
for it. It'll be a while before I get it made though...it's really
easy to build but I've got other stuff going on so I have to work this
in as I can.

One other thing you might look at is thermoset plastic putty like Fimo or
Sculpy. I've made grips from Sculpy and they work quite well. This is a
plastic putty that can be cured or set in an oven @ 275 for 15 minutes per
1/4" of material. I've also carved grips "freehand" with a Dremel using a
router base to keep the cuts perpendicular. Just go slow, work from the
center out, and know which side of the line to stop on. 1911-style grips
are a piece of cake once you get/make a few tools. I've made a jig to get
the screw holes the proper distance apart, a jig for the bandsaw that uses
these holes (jig rides in miter saw slot) that uses these holes and cuts
outline, and to sand to shape, I've got a piece of 1" mild steel tubing
that I have grip bushings mounted on - I screw the grip blank into this and
sand to shape w/belt sander.

Sun, Aug 26, 2007, 10:31pm (EDT+4) [email protected] (Nova) doth
query:
By chance was it "Durham's Rock Hard Water Putty"?
http://www.waterputty.com/

Dunno, been a few years. The stuff I used, you could add some, and
it would adhere perfectly, and when you sanded it couldn't even tell
where it was added. If this stuff will do that, it might be what I
used.



JOAT
I do things I don't know how to do, so that I might learn how to do
them.
- Picasso

Sun, Aug 26, 2007, 10:31pm (EDT+4) [email protected] (Nova) did quey
thusly:
By chance was it "Durham's Rock Hard Water Putty"?

Now that I've though more on it, I don't think so. This stuff came
in a can, pre-mixed, and I recall the can clearly had the word 'wood' on
it, nothing about water. I didn't buy it, given to me, so I don't know
where it came from, and didn't pay much attention to the label. I've
tried several woofillers since, none even come close to this stuff. Now
that I would like to get more, they've probably discontinued it -
they've done that before..



JOAT
What is life without challenge and a constant stream of new
humiliations?
- Peter Egan