how to sharpen mini dike cutters, nipper cutters?

A

Alan Horowitz

Guest
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
 
"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
Hard cone-shaped grinder head for Dremel tool.
 
I have used a very thin file to touch up these tools . it takes a bit of
skill to hold the file steady but it can be done .

If you can set the tool in a vice you can also use a dremel tool with a
cut off wheel . The cut off wheel is super thin but once again it takes
good skill to set the spinning wheel on the blade & get it streight .
Dont draw the wheel across the blade .. lay it fully on the blade and
hold it so it does the entire blade edge in one shot .
 
"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
Do you have a friend that works in a machine shop?...No problem for those
guys. I had a friend at one company I worked that was a tool and die man. He
could put an awesome edge on them. Some of the finer cutters are pretty
expensive and are worth sharpening, if not, I might recommend
http://www.mcmaster.com/ . They are a pretty good deal for cutters!
 
Alan Horowitz wrote:
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
One properly buys quality tooling and replaces the carbide inserts as
necessary.

--
Uncle Al
http://www.mazepath.com/uncleal/qz.pdf
http://www.mazepath.com/uncleal/eotvos.htm
(Do something naughty to physics)
 
On 28 Dec 2003 09:44:43 -0800, the renowned alanh_27@yahoo.com (Alan
Horowitz) wrote:

how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
The ones we use (Xcelite microshears, made in the US) are cheap enough
($5-$6 US in small quantities, probably half that for a production
shop) to be considered disposable. Biggest problem is with people that
try to cut hard stuff (nick the blades) or stuff that's too large
diameter with them (snap the blade off).

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
speff@interlog.com Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com
 
Richard Henry wrote:

"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.

Hard cone-shaped grinder head for Dremel tool.
Click to expand...
You've got a steadier hand and better eye than me, Richard...

Whenever I've tried that I've screwed up the parallelism of the blades and
they don't touch completely along their full length.

It's not just piano wire and other hard stuff that takes its toll on the
blades. I've got what's now a "spare pair' I've had since a kid with a
pretty good "war wound" in 'em from the time I forgot which end was up and
cut through a lamp cord while it was still plugged into an outlet. (But,
they still work great if I'm careful about where I place the wire. <G>)

Happy Holidays,

Jeff

Jeff Wisnia (W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)

"If you can smile when things are going wrong, you've thought of someone to
blame it on."
 
On 28 Dec 2003 09:44:43 -0800, alanh_27@yahoo.com (Alan Horowitz)
wrote:

how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
If you're handy with tools and have some ingenuity, you could use a
Click to expand...
Dremel with the thin cutoff wheel. BUT you would have to clamp the
Dremel and then secure the dikes at the proper angle so you could
slide the blade along the cutoff wheel, being sure the edge was in the
plane of the wheel. The grinding would be done with the face of the
wheel. There ought to be enough room to let the wheel in.
Anything less than that and your dikes will be ruined due to lack of
parallelism.
 
If you buy a top quality cutter, and keep a cheaper pair for piano wire the
good pair will last several years of use, and occasionally you will have to
throw away the cheaper cutter.
Compound leaver types generally have blades which are less sharp and
withstand abuse better than normal cutters so use this type for the piano
wire.

It's not normally worth the effort to do a proper job of re-sharpening,
cheaper to buy a new pair if you value time.

Jonathan

Barnes's theorem; for every foolproof device
there is a fool greater than the proof.

To reply remove AT


"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
 
"Jeff Wisnia" <jwisnia@conversent.net> wrote in message
news:3FEF42FA.4E0675B5@conversent.net...
Richard Henry wrote:

"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.

Hard cone-shaped grinder head for Dremel tool.

You've got a steadier hand and better eye than me, Richard...
Click to expand...
Good point. Anyone else remember the TV miniseries Twin Peaks, where the
opening sequence showed an automated sawmill-blade-sharpening machine?

A true story: I bought my first pair of cutters when I was working summers
as an apprentice electrician. Sometime during the second summer, I cut a
live cable, which burned a notch in the blades just perfect for stripping
#14 wire.

A couple of years back, I changed jobs, so I was retrieving my tools from
the R&D lab. I saw a pair of notched-blade cutters just like I remembered.
After a brief discussion with one of the lab techs, who said they were his
and had a story similar to mine. I thought that was too much of a
coincidence, so I stuck them in my toolbox.

Last month, I was cleaning out my garage and found two pairs of
notched-blade cutters.
 
alanh_27@yahoo.com (Alan Horowitz) wrote in message news:<1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com>...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.
Click to expand...
I sharpen for a living.
My advice is to do them by hand with a diamond file such as an ez-lap
Grinding takes off too much material too quickly and you never get
them to meet just right.
 
My brother has a pair too.
Karl

"Richard Henry" <rphenry@home.com> wrote in message
news:lpLHb.15683$7D3.7081@fed1read02...
"Jeff Wisnia" <jwisnia@conversent.net> wrote in message
news:3FEF42FA.4E0675B5@conversent.net...


Richard Henry wrote:

"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even
open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.

Hard cone-shaped grinder head for Dremel tool.

You've got a steadier hand and better eye than me, Richard...

Good point. Anyone else remember the TV miniseries Twin Peaks, where the
opening sequence showed an automated sawmill-blade-sharpening machine?

A true story: I bought my first pair of cutters when I was working
summers
as an apprentice electrician. Sometime during the second summer, I cut a
live cable, which burned a notch in the blades just perfect for stripping
#14 wire.

A couple of years back, I changed jobs, so I was retrieving my tools from
the R&D lab. I saw a pair of notched-blade cutters just like I
remembered.
After a brief discussion with one of the lab techs, who said they were his
and had a story similar to mine. I thought that was too much of a
coincidence, so I stuck them in my toolbox.

Last month, I was cleaning out my garage and found two pairs of
notched-blade cutters.
Click to expand...
 
I have had very good results by grinding across the flat closed face of the
cutters.
If you look at the construction of the closed jaws, you'll probably see that
they form a relatively flat face on the outside, with a vee-shaped profile
on the inside. Also, if you hold the cutters up to a light with the jaws
closed and the flat face towards you, you can easily see any places where
the jaws are 'dinged'.
Now take the cutters over to a grinder or belt sander and, keeping the jaws
closed, grind the flat face away uniformly. As you remove face material,
you'll see that the jaws take on a very sharp new edge and there will be
less light leakage through the closed jaws. Make sure you don't use a
grinding wheel or sanding belt that is too coarse for this operation. For
the final step, lap the newly ground closed face with a finer abrasive.
While at the grinder, I also like to form a nice sharp peak at the tip of
the jaws so I can get into small places and cut fine things (like one leg of
an IC).

You can get a uniform, razor-sharp cutting edge with this technique. It's
good for a couple of re-sharpenings, then you should discard them.

Joe
W3JDR

"Karl Vorwerk" <kfvorwerk@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:6tTHb.253725$Ec1.8786620@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
My brother has a pair too.
Karl

"Richard Henry" <rphenry@home.com> wrote in message
news:lpLHb.15683$7D3.7081@fed1read02...

"Jeff Wisnia" <jwisnia@conversent.net> wrote in message
news:3FEF42FA.4E0675B5@conversent.net...


Richard Henry wrote:

"Alan Horowitz" <alanh_27@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even
open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.

Hard cone-shaped grinder head for Dremel tool.

You've got a steadier hand and better eye than me, Richard...

Good point. Anyone else remember the TV miniseries Twin Peaks, where
the
opening sequence showed an automated sawmill-blade-sharpening machine?

A true story: I bought my first pair of cutters when I was working
summers
as an apprentice electrician. Sometime during the second summer, I cut
a
live cable, which burned a notch in the blades just perfect for
stripping
#14 wire.

A couple of years back, I changed jobs, so I was retrieving my tools
from
the R&D lab. I saw a pair of notched-blade cutters just like I
remembered.
After a brief discussion with one of the lab techs, who said they were
his
and had a story similar to mine. I thought that was too much of a
coincidence, so I stuck them in my toolbox.

Last month, I was cleaning out my garage and found two pairs of
notched-blade cutters.
Click to expand...
 
"Beecrofter" <bamboo@localnet.com> wrote in message
news:23e8adb1.0312281803.25325838@posting.google.com...
alanh_27@yahoo.com (Alan Horowitz) wrote in message
news:<1e3670a7.0312280944.21212553@posting.google.com>...
how to sharpen the mini dike cutters and nipper cutters used in
electrical & electronic work?

They're too small to handle with jigs, and the blades don't even open
very widely. Yet, their utility is directly proportional to how
recently they've been sharpened/honed.

I sharpen for a living.
My advice is to do them by hand with a diamond file such as an ez-lap
Grinding takes off too much material too quickly and you never get
them to meet just right.
Click to expand...
Grinding won't take off too much unless you do just that! I watched a tool
and die man sharpen a pair of flush cut dikes to like new on a special
grinder used in that industry.
The big catch is..."do you have a friend in the machining biz"!
 
Beecrofter wrote:

My advice is to do them by hand with a diamond file such as an ez-lap
Grinding takes off too much material too quickly and you never get
them to meet just right.
Click to expand...
I agree 100%. I used to work in the tool crib for a company that made cable
assemblies and wiring harnesses. We needed sharp dikes for cutting small
wires and deflashing overmolded connectors. I used a diamond file (DMT
Duofold), or a bit of fine sandpaper held against a 6" steel rule. You
need to be careful not to round over the tips of the blades.

Good quality small dikes are expensive. I think we paid about $35 for
Lindstroms, and around $50 for Swanstrom. These cutters can last for
several years of heavy use if they're taken care of and not abused. Cutting
hard wire or dropping them point first on a hard concrete floor can ruin
them instantly.

Swanstrom offers a reconditioning service for dikes, but they have a minimum
order of $75. <http://www.swanstromtools.com/recon.htm>

--
--
Steve
 
A couple of years back, I changed jobs, so I was retrieving my tools from
the R&D lab. I saw a pair of notched-blade cutters just like I remembered.
After a brief discussion with one of the lab techs, who said they were his
and had a story similar to mine. I thought that was too much of a
coincidence, so I stuck them in my toolbox.

Last month, I was cleaning out my garage and found two pairs of
notched-blade cutters.
Click to expand...
 
the R&D lab. I saw a pair of notched-blade cutters just like I remembered.
After a brief discussion with one of the lab techs, who said they were his
and had a story similar to mine. I thought that was too much of a
coincidence, so I stuck them in my toolbox.

Last month, I was cleaning out my garage and found two pairs of
notched-blade cutters.
reminds me back in 1993 we just bought a new 93 taurus, silver/blue...
Click to expand...
no tags on car yet... went to check on something at college with the
whole family... it was hot as hell out there... going back to the car
the wife say, "for christ sakes dont just stand there, open it up and
start up the air." I look inside and see a box of tissues on the
seat... ask the wife did she leave them there.. she says no.. i said
then this is not our car( an exact copy of it though).. ours was on the
next row... back in 1956 as i kid i remeber a story a friend told me:
his uncle had just bought a 1956 ford, victoria, convertible, black and
yellow(with a black rag top)... pretty nice looking car back then.. the
uncle and his wife go the the supermaket, park the car in the lot(big
lot) and buy the groceries and come out and open up the car and then
open the trunk... the uncle ask the wife if she put all these clothes in
the trunk... she says NO.. they then figure it is not their car........
they look all over and cannot find their car anywhere... they call the
police... the police then check out the car and find out where it was
sold and the vin. number... they contact the dealership and find out who
bought it.. an old man who lived in the neighborhood... they drove over
to his house and find that he drove off in his uncle's car and put it
into his garage...... so with a pair of pliers i guess it can happen....
 
"jim" <jim@noname.com> wrote in message news:3FF032D6.1EEF@noname.com...
Alan Horowitz wrote:

how to sharpen the mini dike

mess with thier girl
Click to expand...
***PLONK***
 
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