Second hand, loose fit.

[Davey57]

I ordered a couple of seconds hands from cousins to fit the Pallas that I recently finished. Having tried one of .21 diameter that was too small, I ordered a .23 and a .25 to be on the safe side. The .23 is visibly too small and the .25 drops on with ease. Maybe the sizes are off but it seems kind of weird. What would be the best way to slightly crimp the tube of the .25 so that it just gets a hold?

[watchweasol]

Hi Dave   put it in a pin vise and tighten up, not too much and re try untill you get a fit,  Easy on the Spinach though. Be gentle

[TheFixer]

Might be a good idea to insert a pin to prevent it from getting crushed, then tighten with a pin vise.

[Davey57]

Brilliant!  Yes I’ll give it a go tomorrow.

Thank you both.

[praezis]

You can use both, too tight and too loose hands.

Tighten as advised above. Or open the hole with a small broach.
Both are every day tasks when changing second hands, even with the right size.

Frank

[Davey57]

Glad to hear it’s not just my poor measuring skills!  I have managed to get the hand to fit. My pin vise was very tight as it got to the point where it would nip the pipe and I could not gauge how much pressure I was applying. So I placed the pipe in  the fixed end of a pair of my tweezers and gave it a tiny squeeze then spun it around a bit and squeezed some more. Maybe I was lucky but it was first time lucky and the hand went on nicely. I’m now looking for a way to blacken the stainless steel hand to match the colour of the other hands. Not keen on painting it though.