let's talk about coining

Travis Fry

Well-Known Member
I've been planning my next project, and it involves coined spacers and liners to set off my blued steel frame handle and fittings. There are several ways to do it, I know, but I'd like to know how the real pros go about this. Checkering file? Knurling wheel? File and eyeball? Related: assuming one of the first two methods, what TPI do you like and why? I am not committed to any method, but am interested in finding the best one.

Please weigh in, and please add pics where possible. Just to kick things off, here's one I dredged up from an old thread of Ken Erickson's using a knurling wheel:

IMGP9836_edited-1.jpg
 
Curious, cant wait to see what others post. Would love to do this to the spine of my knives. Looks fantastic!
 
Todd Davison told me elsewhere that he eyeballs his and does it by hand. I guess some folks can get away with that. I'm not one of them. Here is an example from earlier today:

1240659_10200996795935742_625729991_n.jpg
 
Wow that is some impressive eyeball filing ( did that come out right?:les:)
I use a 20 LPI checkering file to do my jimping.
 
I've never tried it, but I've thought about it a lot.... :) (take this with a huge grain of salt)

2-5 razor saw blades (or for that matter hacksaw blades would work) glued or clamped or bolted together with spacers between...
It should work, in theory...

I like that knurling wheel, it seems like it would only work on relatively soft metals. A checkering file might be the simplest/most-readily-available way, for mostly flat surfaces anyway.
 
A checkering file works great you can get them at any gunsmith supply house.

Lots of different lines per inch, get a variety.

One thing I have done make a three piece spacer, take it apart (use alignment pins) coin the center piece.

Use two .20 black G -10 spacers on either side of the coined piece.

Put it al together with black tinted epoxy, let the epoxy fill the coining.

Sand and polish.

It looks very cool.

Greg
 
Check out the latest WIP by Bruce bump. He explains at the end how he does it and the tools he uses to make it perfectly spaced.
 
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