Dayziro's Wire Lock Pick Handle How-To

[Squelchtone]

Where can i find the 1000 - 2000 grit sandpaper never heard of it...Awesome looking tools !!!!

visit the auto repair store and ask for wet sand paper or 3M wetordry.

http://www.amazon.com/3M-03006-Wetordry-Automotive-Sandpaper/dp/B005JPGTNI

Sometimes Walmart or Home Depot may have it, but Auto Zone, Pep Boys, Consumer Auto Parts, should have it.

Squelchtone

[fogcreature]

Those handles are beautiful man! Very creative and a fine finishing touch to any home made pick! A trick I use making knives is to take my 1000 grit sandpaper, apply light baby oil to the metal while sanding. This will extend the life of the paper and give a satin finish the the pick. If you want a mirror finish, sand with 2000 grit until the grit is gone.

[IndigoChild]

dls: Having no Irish in me, I had to google what King Crisps were. I had an American equivalent

There is no equivalent to King Crisps!
Great handles, full marks for very clever thinking in your selection of materials. Very creative.

Munchos...





Anyways I wanted to throw in my 3 cents. (due to inflation of the us currency) I use jewlers wire. You can buy it at any hobby shop by the spool. no worries about kinks, gouges or slices. You can buy it in all sorts of colors. You can also get colored shrink tubing. Find a safety store or a home improvement store for those. If you dont have a heat gun a lighter does the trick but you might have to buff the tips again to get the silt off of it. Thank you so much for posting this idea though. my picks wrapped in antique silver looks beautiful. I am wondering what would happen if I dunk them in oxy clean. They would sparkle. (my picks are wrapped in real silver. its a low grade though and thus affordable. 10 bucks a spool. I use it cause I dont like the smell of other metals.

[Luissen]

A creative way to design a handle. I must try it now

[JrLocksmith]

Where can i find the 1000 - 2000 grit sandpaper never heard of it...Awesome looking tools !!!!

Try an automotive shop, and I've occasionally seen them at the DIY/auto section of Wal-Mart, of all places. Sandpaper that high is used for restoring the shine on car paint, and letting you see your face in a homemade bogota

[Jakoblivion]

Those turned out fantastic, DayZiro! I think I just might have to try them out!

Keep it up,
cheers!
jakoblivion

[gunny]

Dayziro, May I inquire about your source of the steel?

[yonatron829]

these are really intricate picks! i am very impressed.

[bmc1284]

Wow, are those SHARP looking! I have an old Student LAB set I was going to chuck because they had no handles, but am unraveling my Cat-5 as we speak!

Of course, now I have a reason to buy a dremel tool. My wife is gonna love you!

[annavictoriajohn]

That's a useful guide. Thanks for adding so many pics with the guide. It makes understanding really easy.

[bmc1284]

Well, here is my 1st attempt!



I definitely recommend using a heat gun, as a hair dryer didn't seal the shrink tube completely.

As you can see I double wrapped most of the picks (love the stripe effect) and even triple wrapped one!

I love the texture and feedback of the handles, but definitely need more practice making them!

[ice_man]

wow they look very nice but that last part i may have to try that a few times to get it right haha

[Forestfire1776]

Thanks for the How-To, it was very informative and well laid out. I have been thinking of ways wrapping handles and this is perfect. Best of all I have most of the components laying around the house.

[Tighran]

Wonderful handle idea and well written, thanks a ton. Unwrapping the CAT5 is a pain, but it really makes a fine looking pick. I did this on my first test pick, just a low hook, and it it looks great (though I should have wrapped the coils a bit tighter.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/418 ... G_2589.jpg

One thing I would add is that if you use hacksaw blades or feeler gauge, depending on how much you cut it down or grind it, 1/4" tubing will not fit. 3/8" works perfectly if you keep the height of just grinding the teeth off.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/418 ... G_2590.jpg

Also I unwrapped some CAT6 as well, and found that the UTP was twisted at a much higher rate and so the corkscrew shape remains more prevalent even when unwound. I haven't tried wrapping with it yet, but I'll update with results. I don't know if this is a change in the standard or just specific to the manufacturer, but I thought I'd point it out.

[nathan007007]

Good Job