Pinning

If you remember back a bit on this blog, I had a problem with this:

The bows on the Ever Present Glory archers are fragile. That is now fixed, and below are the steps I took to repair it.

You will need a couple of tools to pin your mini:

1. A suitably thin piece of wire - I typically use brass, but steel is fine; even a paper clip will work.

2. Wire cutters, to trim your piece of wire to size.

3. A drill bit, just larger than the thickness of the wire.

Here is everything laid out (except the cutters, hmmm):

My secret weapon is there on the right. That is no ordinary drill bit - that is a high-speed bit salvaged from the recycle pile at one of the circuit board shops that I once worked at. They are sharper that the typical bit, and the 1/8" shank makes them easier to handle - I do not use a pin vise to use these bits; the shank is big enough to use by itself. The number on the collet - 74 - refers to the diameter, which in this case is 0.0225". I have seen these bits on sale at various hardware stores, so keep an eye out for them!

The drilling process underway - slow and steady is all you need with these sharp bits. The metal Eureka uses is soft, which helps the process. You should stop every couple of turns to clean out the bit. You do not need to go far, a millimeter or so is enough - make sure to drill both pieces!

Once you have the holes drilled, then you need to cut your wire to size. I found out the hard way that small pieces of wire can go flying, so I cut the wire over a small cup or container, to make sure that I do not lose the pieces.

And the completed mini. I use super glue on both ends of the break to secure the wire and broken part in place.

Now, I can get back to paint... um, no - just broke another one!

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