Several years ago, I came across some Sanding Sticks at the local woodworking store.
They had some which were 1/4 inch wide and some 1/2 inch wide ones.
These are one of the neat things you can buy that really help when inletting locks, triggers, barrels and breech plug tangs.
For those who haven't seen them, you might want to follow this link:
SANDING STICK
The price in the above link is outrageous and I am not suggesting you buy from them, but they do show what I'm talking about rather well.
I think several companys make these Sticks because mine are no where as fancy as the ones shown in the link. Mine only cost a few bucks each too but mine aren't "Hexagonel with finger rests".
I googled using woodwork+sanding+stick and got 160,000 hits so there are a bunch of places that have them (plus a lot of non productive hits).
The little sanding belts are fairly cheap and come in several different grits.
To use these, you push the back end forward and install the belt. Then sand. When the belt at the tip becomes worn, push the back forward and move the belt a little way forward. :grin:
Where these really come in handy is when there is a tight spot between the wood and the edge of a lock plate and you don't want to risk using a hobby knife to shave the few thousanths of wood off. Another place I found them handy was sanding the bottom of the mortice for my 6 inch long barrel tang. Yes, I know, a sharp chisel will do it too, but this sanding stick blends and fairs the wood into the adjacent wood so nicely it ends up looking like the builder knew what he was doing. :grin:
If you have a store in your area that specializes in woodworking, give them a call. They may have some of these things at a cheap price like the ones I found.
They had some which were 1/4 inch wide and some 1/2 inch wide ones.
These are one of the neat things you can buy that really help when inletting locks, triggers, barrels and breech plug tangs.
For those who haven't seen them, you might want to follow this link:
SANDING STICK
The price in the above link is outrageous and I am not suggesting you buy from them, but they do show what I'm talking about rather well.
I think several companys make these Sticks because mine are no where as fancy as the ones shown in the link. Mine only cost a few bucks each too but mine aren't "Hexagonel with finger rests".
I googled using woodwork+sanding+stick and got 160,000 hits so there are a bunch of places that have them (plus a lot of non productive hits).
The little sanding belts are fairly cheap and come in several different grits.
To use these, you push the back end forward and install the belt. Then sand. When the belt at the tip becomes worn, push the back forward and move the belt a little way forward. :grin:
Where these really come in handy is when there is a tight spot between the wood and the edge of a lock plate and you don't want to risk using a hobby knife to shave the few thousanths of wood off. Another place I found them handy was sanding the bottom of the mortice for my 6 inch long barrel tang. Yes, I know, a sharp chisel will do it too, but this sanding stick blends and fairs the wood into the adjacent wood so nicely it ends up looking like the builder knew what he was doing. :grin:
If you have a store in your area that specializes in woodworking, give them a call. They may have some of these things at a cheap price like the ones I found.
