TOOL TIME - Tweezers (Types, Care, and restoring the tips)

[Heavens Eagle]

I am reworking this thread to get the Pooterbucket links gone and make it easier to deal with. I am also moving the photos up to this first post rather than halfway down the page.

The links to outside sources for tweezers have been removed. If you would like me to find you some decent looking tweezers that are a reasonable price, please PM me and I will glad to help.

Also the video I uploaded to Utube ages ago is down or gone. I am not going to re-upload it. It really needs to be edited and redone to make it more presentable and I am not going to get in to that at this time. In addition with all the CENSORing going on with Utube and social media from the nitwits I am avoiding social media as much as possible. I just suggest do some diligent research and look into Newsmax and Epoch times for your news sources. You might get a Paul Harvey moment when you start hearing and seeing "The Rest of the Story".

August 20, 2021

Paul

If you have a need for some special tweezers, please PM me for some suggestions. Also PM me if you are interested in trying to obtain some watchmaker style/quality tweezers and I will do some searches and supply some links.


The Dumont tweezers are some of the best you can buy, and are a bit pricey. There are also have some tweezers from other sources that can be found in the $5 - $10 range if you are interested. I don't know what the quality on the cheaper tweezers are, but I have been using some of the Dumont tweezers for years and they are worth what you pay for them.

For hobby work I would recommend the #2 style as a good all around tweezer. A #3 or #3c would be good for really small parts handling. Then there are some others that work well with PE.

 

[moon puppy]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

Neat, thanks Paul.

 

[jknaus]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

Thanks Now to start saving.
James

 

[Gator]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

Very cool. I have a set of quality tweezers for working with sign vinyl.

 

[sharkman]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

Thanks very much for that Paul!

I think those might be the same tweezers we use for micro samples in our lab at work. Might have to check!

 

[Heavens Eagle]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

Thanks very much for that Paul!

I think those might be the same tweezers we use for micro samples in our lab at work. Might have to check!

Good possibility of that. In looking at the actual Dumont site, they have some tweezers that are the same size as the ones I use but have ribs machined into the sides to give a little grip. Would be nice, but not really neccessary.

Let me throw out some things here folks, you don't have to spend $25 to $40 bucks for a pair of tweezers to get some good ones. There are some decent ones on Ebay for just a couple of bucks that are probably made in China, but are very close to the Dumont ones quality wise. You have to be a little picky with which ones you choose but you can get some decent tweezers for about $10 with shipping, or several types for under $20.

The trick is to buy the ones that show good photos and call them out by the Dumont sizes.

Here is something else to be aware of, the size 5 and 5a are really long thin and sharp. This also means they will not hold up to anything but light use. They are meant for working with watch hairsprings. It can be nice to have them though if you do have something light and touchy to work with.

The #2 size I suggested is a good strong pair that shouldn't tend to launch parts (unless you have the bonecrusher grip). Size 3 and 3c are a little lighter and also quite sharp but will need a little lighter touch.

Any tweezer if squeezed too hard will flex and can launch a part.

I have a lot of pics I am trying to get together in some semblence of reason, including a short video showing me picking up a flat .005" thick piece of brass sheet with a resharpened pair, rolling it 360 degrees in my fingers and setting it right back where I picked it up. BY THE EDGES! Can't do that with buggered tips. Takes 2 fingers and your thumb to do it. That control comes with holding tweezers correctly and practice. I am going to try to convert the video to an animated GIF file as it is fairly short. If that doesn't work I will just make a simple video file on Utube again.

Time to hit the sack, if you have any questions, now is a good time to ask. Might help make the stuff I am working on to post a littl bit better.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

While I still have my usual pictures with explanations coming, I have made a quick video showing how to hold and use some tweezers with good tips. The particular tweezers I am using in the video are a pair that I used to show how to resharpen and clean up the tips.

The thin brass part is .005 of an inch thick, or about the thickness of most PE. Enjoy!

 

[Hippy Ed]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers

:hmmm very interesting And, informative. Thanks for sharing this! I'ma gonna try this... Hold my beer

 

[Heavens Eagle]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers (video on handling tweezers!)

I still need to get the part put together on the different tweezers and how to sharpen them.
If the tips aren't in good shape it won't matter how you hold the tweezers, they won't be able to hold the part.

 

[SA Dave]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers (video on handling tweezers!)

Thanks mate that shows me how I have been doing it wrong.
Still wayting on your video on sharpening the tweezers

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Post removed and photos placed in first post in thread.

 

[Hippy Ed]

TOOL TIME - Tweezers (video on handling tweezers!)

Way Kewl! Thanks for sharing!! :drinks

 

[Duke Maddog]

This is fantastic! I have to study this a lot and see if I can give a seminar on using and fixing tweezers for my IPMS and AMPS clubs. Although I'd have to mention diamond hones in passing as I can't afford to get any right now. Maybe when the next job gets approved I'll set aside a little for a set. Wow, this is spectacular!

 

[Heavens Eagle]

This is fantastic! I have to study this a lot and see if I can give a seminar on using and fixing tweezers for my IPMS and AMPS clubs. Although I'd have to mention diamond hones in passing as I can't afford to get any right now. Maybe when the next job gets approved I'll set aside a little for a set. Wow, this is spectacular!

I gave one to my local club a couple of months ago and they couldn't stop talking about it after the meeting. As to the diamond hones, you can find them for less than that online. I found some credit card sized plates (like the ones in my picture) at Wholesale Tool for about $10 each. If you use them to resharpen X-acto blades they will save you money over time. There are 3 types of blades in my knives, New for really fine stuff, resharpened for most everything else, and steel scrap.

The lesson here is you can have some $50 tweezers with damaged tips and $10 Chinese copies with nice tips and the cheap ones will work better. Once you learn how to revamp the tips though, the expensive ones become your "go to" tool. Even the inexpensive tweezers can become decent to use if retipped correctly.

If you run into any problems be sure to PM me and ask.



Hi Stan! :Hiay

 

[Hippy Ed]

Kewl Beans!! Man, I needta gather up all my tweezers& take a look& see how they compare with yours. :hmmm Most of mine I picked up from hospital/Dr. visits...

 

[Prop Duster]

Paul: Thank You for a very excellent tutorial. You have solved a problem I didn't realize I had. And, have shown me that just because they sell it in a hobby shop/web site doesn't mean it's an especially quality item for modeling.

Also thanks for the repair/sharping part. I know now, how to rehab mine to be, within their limitations, as effective as possible.

.....................

[sup]Now this finger goes here and this finger tucks under..... :idonno

 

[ausf]

Excellent, thank you.

I have some Avens which do the job if kept maintained. I ordered a pair of Erems a while back from Amazon (I think it was around $25) but what I received was a Pakistani copy. Even the 'Swiss' stamp was crooked and not well impressed.

I'm definitely going to grab some diamond hones. I go through a lot of blades, so if I could maintain an edge and point longer, they'll pay for themselves quickly.

 

[chukw]

Ever-so-helpful, Paul- cheers! :dude

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Thanks Chuck, I wish you well on your move! Be sure to keep us informed on the adventure!

Ausf I am not familiar with those brands, but then again on ebay it is a bit of buyer beware. As to the hones, the finest I have is 1200 which is 9 micron. I have some diamond sheets that stick down to a glass plate that are 3 micron and 0.5 micron respectively. Those put the shiney mirror edge on things. On knife blades, once you have a bit of an edge from the 1200, you draw the edge to get it razor sharp. I also tend to work mine at a steep angle to the edge which seems to help make a better edge.

I like to be able to shave plastic. Takes less pressure, you can do a better job, and since I don't have to press hard, it usualy doesn't slip where I get cut.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

I have also been meaning to add that I have been thinking of some more little tweaks on the tweezer tips. That will be coming up in another post soon. Since it will be super small details there will be mostly drawings to illustrate what I will be explaning.