Best way to shorten a seconds hand

[steve1811uk]

Hi, I need to take 2mm off the length of this seconds hand. Any tips on how to do that? How to hold the hand without bending it or damaging the lume? Thanks in advance, Steve.

[bklake]

I've use finger nail clippers for this.  It never looks right under magnification but acceptable at arm's length. 

[dadistic]

These are some of the tools that I use for working on hands.

I'll often set hands on the anvil, and hold them with a bit of pegwood. Setting the pipe of the seconds hand in the closest fitting hole helps to keep it from moving around. The nice thing about the anvil is that it is useful for a lot of things, and can be found for very little money.

The little circular tool is spring loaded, and is meant to hold hands for broaching the hole, but it would certainly work when cutting a second hand. 

I use the flush cutters a lot, but nail clippers would certainly work. If I wanted to dress the end  of a seconds hand, I might poke it through a piece of pithwood to hold it, and then take it too a very fine stone. Haven't done this myself, but that's the way I'd try it.

Maybe others have more suggestions!

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by dadistic

[steve1811uk]

51 minutes ago, dadistic said:

These are some of the tools that I use for working on hands.

I'll often set hands on the anvil, and hold them with a bit of pegwood. Setting the pipe of the seconds hand in the closest fitting hole helps to keep it from moving around. The nice thing about the anvil is that it is useful for a lot of things, and can be found for very little money.

The little circular tool is spring loaded, and is meant to hold hands for broaching the hole, but it would certainly work when cutting a second hand. 

I use the flush cutters a lot, but nail clippers would certainly work. If I wanted to dress the end  of a seconds hand, I might poke it through a piece of pithwood to hold it, and then take it too a very fine stone. Haven't done this myself, but that's the way I'd try it.

Maybe others have more suggestions!

 

Thanks guys, interesting spring loaded tool. I've not seen one of those. In the end I took the plunge and things worked out ok. I held the seconds hand between finger a thumb while still inside it's little poly bag. I then cut the end off with small nail scissors. Still holding it via the poly bag I rubbed the end a touch with 3000 grit paper just to take off the sharp corners. Steve.

[Waggy]

I use nail clipper for this as well as for springs that I make/modify