Dental picks

[GL49]

One really useful tool I keep on my reloading/gun cleaning bench are dental picks. First tried them about 5 years ago when a friend brought about 100 of them to work to give away, his neighbor is a dental hygienist.
The next time you go to the dentist, ask if they have any old ones they are going to get rid of, they'll have an assortment of blunt ones, sharp ones, angled ones, etc. You'll find a thousand uses for them, and they're free. I've read the posts about scribing the vent lines on moulds - the sharp ones work great! You've got to be careful with them cleaning the crevices on your firearms, be aware they are HARD and they WILL scratch gunmetal and they will break if used as a miniature pry bar.
They have 1001 uses outside of the dentist's office.

[williamwaco]

DITTO.

Been using them since God was a teenager.


.

[Longwood]

My old ones are all toast.
I have to go to the dentist Monday.
I am going to ask him if he has one of those binocular thingies they use that he mght sell me.
The ones on ebay are a little bit out of my price range.
I am going to ask about xray foils and now dental picks.

:hijack:I see the little white stones for ceramic s on ebay.
Have any of you used them, or are they worthless on metal.

[Calamity Jake]

DITTO.

Been using them since God was a teenager.


.

He was in his 20s when I started!!!!

[shaune509]

They work great to remove O-rings in hydrolic systems and other repairs also.
Great to have friend that works in the Oral torture industry.
Shaune509

[GP100man]

You bet ya hind quarters that I`ll never be with out picks & pipe cleaners !!!

http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx110/GP100man/ScatteredGP.jpg

[Longwood]

[QUOTE=GP100man;1647032]You bet ya hind quarters that I`ll never be with out picks & pipe cleaners !!!

QUOTE]

Getting some of those tiny spring and pins in the correct place can be almost impossible without sometimes a thin feeler gage blade and dental picks.
They also work really good for getting stuckcrap that is jambed between my teeth.
Jerky anyone.
Walmart sells a little one that looks sort of like a fountain pin.
It is the one I always pick when I am rumaging in the drawer for a pen but can't find when I am looking for it.:confused:

[Calamity Jake]

You bet ya hind quarters that I`ll never be with out picks & pipe cleaners !!!

http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx110/GP100man/ScatteredGP.jpg

Not to change the subject, but I have 2 of the above, I've head them apart many times, what are the two shims for there under the hammer?

[Longwood]

Yeah, I sort of suspected the loupes were expensive enough to send in for repair if the got damaged.
I have seen cheap ($250 range) ones on ebay but am a little leary of them.
I have several magnifying glasses, bags of reading glasses and I often stack them too see closer. I had three pair of two power on to see the hundredth marks on my pocket scale yesterday.
It seems like yesterday that I could read one with no glasses.:roll:

I also have a pretty nice little Panasonic folding pocket microscope and a couple of tiny ones that are lit that I got from China on ebay but I have to hold them, they are usually too powerful, no field of vision and only one eye. I do use them quite a bit though and they are very cheap.
Most magnifying glasses are a pain to use.

[GP100man]

To shim the hammer to center of the frame so ya don`t have hammer drag.

Shimming also makes the SA/DA alot more consistent & crisper in most instances.

I shim both hammer & trigger.

Here`s a link to http://triggershims.com/ they have kits taylored for Ruger Revolvers & others , good people & prices for quality products that will fit !!

[ksriverrat]

what are the two shims for there under the hammer?

There is absolutely no way to do a proper action job with out the use of some type of shims on most Ruger Revolvers!
Same goes for most all others. Especially if they have seen much use.

[zuke]

Princess Auto sell's the dental pic's up here

[blackthorn]

Longwood--For magnifying aids, try a safety supply outlet, they should have the type that are held on your head using an adjustable strap arangement. The other possibility would be an outlet that specializes in stuff to assist the visually impaired. Here in Canada that would be the Canadian Institute for the Blind. Years ago I bought a 10 power monocular from them that fits in my shirt pocket for when equipment weight for a day's hunt is important.

[GL49]

I've never heard of trigger/hammer shims. I just watched the video, can you really tell a difference once they are installed? Looks like another use for dental picks to align the shims.

[Norbrat]

I have seen cheap ($250 range) ones on ebay but am a little leary of them.

I bought a cheap head band magnifier at the local $2 shop (well, it cost $5, but... whatever...). It even has multiple lenses which fold down and clip into position as required for greater magnification.

It works well enough for my purposes and the price was right.

The proper magnifiers the dentists use would be great, but I can't possibly justify those kinds of prices for the few times I need to squint at something on the workbench.

[ksriverrat]

I've never heard of trigger/hammer shims. I just watched the video, can you really tell a difference once they are installed? Looks like another use for dental picks to align the shims.

If you have ever stroked the trigger on a revolver with a great trigger job, shims are usually part of what makes that happen.
They help tighten tolerances, reducing drag & help keep the trigger consistant in single & double action.

I use them in most all the revolver work I do. No, I am not tooting my own horn!
I am not taking on any more revolver work right now. I have enough & will not be hurried through it.