Tue Jan 22, 2013 6:43 pm
Different options of pick handles
Pick Handle Guide
(If I've missed any handle types, let me know and I'll add them. I thought it would be nice to have all the different options in one spot!)
So I decided to make a guide with the different types of handles for picks that I could think of. I wasn't able to try all of the methods listed, but I did as much as I could to give reviews. I will be adding to this hopefully as time goes by and I'm able to do more of these.
1. Ratyoke's: http://keypicking.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=627 Aluminum handle.
2. Josh66's: http://keypicking.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=7211 Aluminum handle.
3. AtticRR's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=55427 Wooden handle.
4. Geardog32's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=47446 Clay is fired in the desired shape.
5. Wizwazzle's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU6stIPCsc4 Heat shrink tubing is used.
6. Darkhorse's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sm6hAG-OpA Milk and vinegar are mixed to make a hard plastic.
7. Stasterisk's on Instructables: http://www.instructables.com/id/HomemadePlastic/ Plastic bags are melted down.
8. Instamorph: http://www.instamorph.com/ Same as simple plastic, missing link, shape lock, and others. A hand moldable plastic that's hard under 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
9. Dayziro's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=51452 Wire is taken apart and used to cover the pick handle. Looks neat.
10. Aedalas gave me this idea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R8n85QgRH4 Acetone is used to melt down styrofoam which is left to harden around the handle of the pick.
These are the handle types that I was able to try and replicate.
#5 : I basically did what he showed in the video and took two pieces of metal the same width as the pick and the same length as what I wanted the handle to be and sandwiched the pick in between them. Then I covered that with heat shrink tubing and added another layer of heat shrink tubing at the top of the handle to help hold it together better. It feels solid in my hand and the feedback is great!
I recommend this type of handle to use!
Pro's: Great feedback.
Solid feel.
Fast and cheap to make.
Con's: None that I can think of.
#6: I followed the instructions in the video by heating milk up until it's very hot but not boiling and then added vinegar. This creates a certain type of plastic called casein. I did some research and some testing and found that the amount of vinegar to milk should be a bit less than 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 1 cup of milk. I used 7 tablespoons of vinegar and 9 cups of milk. I strained out the solution and semi-dried it. If it's too dry, it will just crumble and if it's too wet, it's hard to work with. I worked mine around the middle of a double ended pick with notches cut into the metal for something that the handle can grab onto to keep the pick form slipping.
I let the casein sit for about 5 days and it was a hard plastic after it was done. I used a dremel to get it into the shape I wanted and too smooth it out. The part where the handle ends on each end didn't look too pretty so I wanted to put heat shrink on each end in order to make it have a smoother transition from the handle to the pick. But in order to get the right size tubing for the handle, it was too big to shrink and wrap around the pick so that's where some of my excess Instamorph came it. I put heat shrink tubing around each end and filled it with Instamorph and then heated it up. The heat shrink shrank and the heat let me mold the Instamorph into a shape that the heat shrink could wrap around.
I would not recommend this way of making a handle unless you have no other way.....
Pro's: Unique way of making a pick.
Pretty good foodback.
Can be shaped after cured.
Con's: You have to wait a while for it to cure.
You'll wake up one morning and pour cereal before remembering you ran out of milk the night before trying to get the ratio of milk to vinegar correctly. Then you're left with a bowl of dry cereal.
It stinks ......that's an understatement. And it makes your house smell while making it too.
If you smell it a couple weeks after you make it, it'll still smell bad.
#8: So I ordered the brand Instamorph. It came in a resealable bag as a lot of tiny pellets which I dropped into hot but not boiling water. The pellets became clear and stuck together into a malleable clay like material. The hotter the water, the easier it is to use. I formed it onto a half diamond and the overall quality was alright. Notches need to be cut into the pick to keep the handle from sliding. My artistic sculpting skills aren't the best but if you are better in that department then this is a good material for you I would say. I could've sanded and dremeled it into a better shape but that loses material and I wanted to keep all of my Instamorph.
It needs to be put on in a thin layer on the pick since the material is naturally thicker and will feel too bulky if you use too much. A 6 oz bag should make about 5 handles. The cooled down and hardened form was a bit slick but didn't make too much of a difference in picking and still provided decent feedback. A quick reheat of the handle and have metal mesh pressed into it would help with the slick feeling of the handle.
This is something I would recommend to be used as a handle.
Pro's: Handle can be custom to your exact hand specifications.
Decent feedback.
Can be remade as many times as you want.
Relatively inexpensive.
Quick to make a handle with.
Can be cut, dremeled, and worked with after it cools down.
Con's: A bit hard to mold into a good looking handle. Won't look as professional.
#10: Using nail polish remover that's 100% pure acetone from my local CVS, I put styrofoam peanuts in and they dissolved. Not all types of styrofoam will dissolve so you have to see which are ones that will work and which are ones that won't. It's best to use all of the same color or you'll end up with this weird yucky color. If you dissolve white peanuts like I did, it will turn out greenish colored. Make sure you have enough peanuts too since they shrink down quite a bit. I couldn't get a picture for this one since I used the body of a pen for a mold and scooped the goop up into there and then stuck the pick in. But that didn't let it be exposed to air to dry out and the smell was too strong for me to try to make another one. You have to have a lot of air for it to breathe in order for it to dry. I would recommend pouring it into a cardboard mold like in the video but with the pick in there and cut it to size afterwards.
It's really gooey so you won't be able to sculpt a handle with it but you can definitely pour it into a mold. After you make the handle you can let it just sit out for a day or put it in the freezer to speed up the process to several hours. Also, make sure to wash your hands often during this or wear protective gloves! It tends to burn the skin. I didn't have gloves so I just washed my hands a lot while doing this. It's also good to have ventilation while doing this, you don't want to inhale too much of the fumes.
I would not recommend this since the smell is really bad (for me at least, one of my friends like the smell) and I literally smelled it for days afterwards.
Pro's: Get rids of all those pesky packing peanuts.
It's fun watching the peanuts disappear in the acetone.
Very light material (as in, not heavy).
Con's: Strong smell and it stays with you.
I really wanted to try #7 and melt down plastic bags but sadly the house belongs to my parents and they're not too fond of melting plastic in their house, even though it's perfectly safe. If anyone wants to try this, I would greatly appreciate having another review to add of these handle ideas!
(If I've missed any handle types, let me know and I'll add them. I thought it would be nice to have all the different options in one spot!)
So I decided to make a guide with the different types of handles for picks that I could think of. I wasn't able to try all of the methods listed, but I did as much as I could to give reviews. I will be adding to this hopefully as time goes by and I'm able to do more of these.
1. Ratyoke's: http://keypicking.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=627 Aluminum handle.
2. Josh66's: http://keypicking.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=7211 Aluminum handle.
3. AtticRR's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=55427 Wooden handle.
4. Geardog32's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=47446 Clay is fired in the desired shape.
5. Wizwazzle's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU6stIPCsc4 Heat shrink tubing is used.
6. Darkhorse's: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sm6hAG-OpA Milk and vinegar are mixed to make a hard plastic.
7. Stasterisk's on Instructables: http://www.instructables.com/id/HomemadePlastic/ Plastic bags are melted down.
8. Instamorph: http://www.instamorph.com/ Same as simple plastic, missing link, shape lock, and others. A hand moldable plastic that's hard under 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
9. Dayziro's: http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=51452 Wire is taken apart and used to cover the pick handle. Looks neat.
10. Aedalas gave me this idea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R8n85QgRH4 Acetone is used to melt down styrofoam which is left to harden around the handle of the pick.
These are the handle types that I was able to try and replicate.
#5 : I basically did what he showed in the video and took two pieces of metal the same width as the pick and the same length as what I wanted the handle to be and sandwiched the pick in between them. Then I covered that with heat shrink tubing and added another layer of heat shrink tubing at the top of the handle to help hold it together better. It feels solid in my hand and the feedback is great!
I recommend this type of handle to use!
Pro's: Great feedback.
Solid feel.
Fast and cheap to make.
Con's: None that I can think of.
#6: I followed the instructions in the video by heating milk up until it's very hot but not boiling and then added vinegar. This creates a certain type of plastic called casein. I did some research and some testing and found that the amount of vinegar to milk should be a bit less than 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 1 cup of milk. I used 7 tablespoons of vinegar and 9 cups of milk. I strained out the solution and semi-dried it. If it's too dry, it will just crumble and if it's too wet, it's hard to work with. I worked mine around the middle of a double ended pick with notches cut into the metal for something that the handle can grab onto to keep the pick form slipping.
I let the casein sit for about 5 days and it was a hard plastic after it was done. I used a dremel to get it into the shape I wanted and too smooth it out. The part where the handle ends on each end didn't look too pretty so I wanted to put heat shrink on each end in order to make it have a smoother transition from the handle to the pick. But in order to get the right size tubing for the handle, it was too big to shrink and wrap around the pick so that's where some of my excess Instamorph came it. I put heat shrink tubing around each end and filled it with Instamorph and then heated it up. The heat shrink shrank and the heat let me mold the Instamorph into a shape that the heat shrink could wrap around.
I would not recommend this way of making a handle unless you have no other way.....
Pro's: Unique way of making a pick.
Pretty good foodback.
Can be shaped after cured.
Con's: You have to wait a while for it to cure.
You'll wake up one morning and pour cereal before remembering you ran out of milk the night before trying to get the ratio of milk to vinegar correctly. Then you're left with a bowl of dry cereal.
It stinks ......that's an understatement. And it makes your house smell while making it too.
If you smell it a couple weeks after you make it, it'll still smell bad.
#8: So I ordered the brand Instamorph. It came in a resealable bag as a lot of tiny pellets which I dropped into hot but not boiling water. The pellets became clear and stuck together into a malleable clay like material. The hotter the water, the easier it is to use. I formed it onto a half diamond and the overall quality was alright. Notches need to be cut into the pick to keep the handle from sliding. My artistic sculpting skills aren't the best but if you are better in that department then this is a good material for you I would say. I could've sanded and dremeled it into a better shape but that loses material and I wanted to keep all of my Instamorph.
It needs to be put on in a thin layer on the pick since the material is naturally thicker and will feel too bulky if you use too much. A 6 oz bag should make about 5 handles. The cooled down and hardened form was a bit slick but didn't make too much of a difference in picking and still provided decent feedback. A quick reheat of the handle and have metal mesh pressed into it would help with the slick feeling of the handle.
This is something I would recommend to be used as a handle.
Pro's: Handle can be custom to your exact hand specifications.
Decent feedback.
Can be remade as many times as you want.
Relatively inexpensive.
Quick to make a handle with.
Can be cut, dremeled, and worked with after it cools down.
Con's: A bit hard to mold into a good looking handle. Won't look as professional.
#10: Using nail polish remover that's 100% pure acetone from my local CVS, I put styrofoam peanuts in and they dissolved. Not all types of styrofoam will dissolve so you have to see which are ones that will work and which are ones that won't. It's best to use all of the same color or you'll end up with this weird yucky color. If you dissolve white peanuts like I did, it will turn out greenish colored. Make sure you have enough peanuts too since they shrink down quite a bit. I couldn't get a picture for this one since I used the body of a pen for a mold and scooped the goop up into there and then stuck the pick in. But that didn't let it be exposed to air to dry out and the smell was too strong for me to try to make another one. You have to have a lot of air for it to breathe in order for it to dry. I would recommend pouring it into a cardboard mold like in the video but with the pick in there and cut it to size afterwards.
It's really gooey so you won't be able to sculpt a handle with it but you can definitely pour it into a mold. After you make the handle you can let it just sit out for a day or put it in the freezer to speed up the process to several hours. Also, make sure to wash your hands often during this or wear protective gloves! It tends to burn the skin. I didn't have gloves so I just washed my hands a lot while doing this. It's also good to have ventilation while doing this, you don't want to inhale too much of the fumes.
I would not recommend this since the smell is really bad (for me at least, one of my friends like the smell) and I literally smelled it for days afterwards.
Pro's: Get rids of all those pesky packing peanuts.
It's fun watching the peanuts disappear in the acetone.
Very light material (as in, not heavy).
Con's: Strong smell and it stays with you.
I really wanted to try #7 and melt down plastic bags but sadly the house belongs to my parents and they're not too fond of melting plastic in their house, even though it's perfectly safe. If anyone wants to try this, I would greatly appreciate having another review to add of these handle ideas!
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