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Soldering Clamps from Cotter Pins with a Screw-Coil Ring (Boy Mechanic, 1913)
Tiny spring clamps for holding small parts while soldering: a cotter pin bent so its legs bow and pinch together, with a coil of fine wire that screws up the legs like a nut for a firmer grip.
Beginner
Ten minutes each
Instructions
1
1
Read the Boy Mechanic
Read the Boy Mechanic
"Take a cotter pin and bend it over a small rod to bring the points together."
2
2
Wind the coil
Wind the coil
Wind wire 1/32 in thick round a wire a little thicker than the cotter pin, right-handed, to make a short coil. Slip it over the cotter pin down to the ring end.
Materials for this step:
Iron Wire1 pieceTools needed:
Flat-Nose Pliers3
3
Bow the legs
Bow the legs
Bend the cotter pin's legs over a small rod so they bow apart and their points meet.
Materials for this step:
Split Pin1 pieceTools needed:
Flat-Nose Pliers
Bench Vise4
4
Smoke the legs
Smoke the legs
Hold the legs in a smoky flame until well blackened so solder will not stick to them.
Materials for this step:
Candle1 piece5
5
Use it
Use it
Open the clamp by pushing a scriber between the legs at the bow, slip it over the parts and let it close. To tighten, push the coil up toward the bow and twist it like a nut.
Tools needed:
Scriber6
6
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
Cotter clamp troubleshooting.
Flow
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7
7
History and honest limits
History and honest limits
From **The Boy Mechanic, Book 1** (Popular Mechanics, 1913), p. 137 (checked on the archive.org scan boymechanic0000unse_n5a8). Wire type and the candle for smoking are ours.
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