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adatesman
Mar 13, 2010, 8:22 PM
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angry
Mar 13, 2010, 11:07 PM
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Cool!
I bought a mini nicopress tool and have repaired lots of cams with it. Too bad I left it in America, since salt water fishing shops abound here.
So for most cams I use paper clips. They aren't nearly as good as the wire that came with the cams.
For Aliens, I haven't found a good substitute. I've got some baling wire that fits but it's way softer than what CCH used.
For the cable itself, I actually ordered a little thin wire with my tool. I don't know what I'd replace it with, it's more flexible and thinner than shifting or brake cable for bikes.
Ideas?
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adatesman
Mar 13, 2010, 11:17 PM
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angry
Mar 13, 2010, 11:40 PM
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Well, here's your authority from someone who's actually used straight pins on aliens. Remember, I worked there 10 years ago.
They only use them on Black aliens. The rest of the sizes are some stiff thin wire.
When I heated up and quenched paper clips or bailing wire it did stiffen them but nothing to the level CCH used. Spring wire is probably it. Do you have a source, I had some other ideas for spring wire too.
Ideally something you'd be able to find in Bermuda (A do it best hardware store, a knick knack shop or 50, and fishing and sailing shops).
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adatesman
Mar 13, 2010, 11:51 PM
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joe-d
Mar 14, 2010, 11:45 AM
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I had a spot of luck with this a couple of months ago. Sifting through the sheds at a scrap metal / warehouse clearance merchant, I was chuffed to find a pair of Hellermann crimping pliers. Cost me all of £5 (c. $8) for some 1.2Kg worth of pliers.*
I've picked up some copper ferrules and stainless wire rope from online, pretty cheap - as ever with things like this the postage is a major part of the cost.
Working on another cam idea (as per last year, inspired by the competition), was wondering what to use for the rigid part of the trigger wire - well, I'm using wire from an egg whisk**! Admittedly I've not finished yet, but I have experimented with 'boshing' the end of a length to give it a fat end and it seems that it will work fine. It did need heating red hot and cooling naturally as it didn't squash well otherwise.
**Different sized whisks gave wire of 1.25 or 1.5mm diameter, same as the 1.5mm size on the cam I took apart for the axle and stem and trigger. Think the wire rope on the trigger is 1mm, so am anticipating that a ferrule for 2x 1.5mm wire will be fine.
*As it happened, I also picked up four walking axes for £2.50 each! Two of these now have bent shafts and DMM technical picks, serving me well for my first season of Scottish Mixed at total cost of I think about £60 (oh, plus some ridiculous number of hours).
(This post was edited by joe-d on Mar 14, 2010, 11:53 AM)
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the_climber
Mar 14, 2010, 5:44 PM
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adatesman wrote: Ooo.... Mini nicopress sounds like the proper tool; probably something I'll need to pick up at some point. My electrical crimper worked fine, but isn't quite as wide as the fitting so required 2 crimps.
Aric, this is the one I have.
It's made by Loos & co
will handle 1/32", 3/64" and 1/16" oval sleeves.
I think they retail for around $50, but I'm not sure. Got mine used at a garage sale for $5. Though I don't have the go/no go gauge you get if you buy retail... no that you need it for cam trigger repair, just nice to have.
Most cams over #1.5 Friend (or so) are 1/16" sleeves. Only had to use the 3/64th once, but that was more to due with the cable we had for free.
Works great for cam repair.
For heads, rivet hangers, and the like... my partner has a hand nicopress.
(This post was edited by the_climber on Mar 14, 2010, 5:48 PM)
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gunkiemike
Mar 15, 2010, 2:13 AM
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Find a guitar or electric bass player. Steel strings are crazy stiff.
$0.02 comment - by the time you're done assembling your wires and crimps and balls and tool, you'd be better off buying the Cam Doctor repair kit. At something like $28, it will repair dozens of cams.
But I understand the satisfaction of DIY.
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kiwiprincess
Mar 15, 2010, 3:19 AM
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I got the wire from a local engineers. They ordered it in overnight, but didn't have a small enough crimp tool do do it for me.
Crimps, and tool from the fishing shop.
I have not noticed it in action so must be OK.
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adatesman
Mar 15, 2010, 2:06 PM
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cracklover
Mar 15, 2010, 4:04 PM
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adatesman wrote: gunkiemike wrote: $0.02 comment - by the time you're done assembling your wires and crimps and balls and tool, you'd be better off buying the Cam Doctor repair kit. At something like $28, it will repair dozens of cams. But I understand the satisfaction of DIY. Very true. Then again, I'd think most DIY'er will likely have an electrical crimper around, so in that case $8 for a package of fittings is a better deal. And if you cut off the old swage with a nips or dremel, there's no need to replace the wires. 
And if you do have an electrical crimper around, this is especially a better deal, since the crimp tool in the Cam Doctor is barely functional.
GO
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ptlong
Mar 16, 2010, 11:20 PM
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gunkiemike wrote: $0.02 comment - by the time you're done assembling your wires and crimps and balls and tool, you'd be better off buying the Cam Doctor repair kit. At something like $28, it will repair dozens of cams.
Well I didn't spend very much money but it did take me some time to figure it out for myself. I was actually going to buy a Cam Doctor kit but it only comes with "small swages and fine cable for one alien cam" and no advertised way to just buy materials. So what, if I want to repair two Aliens I need to spend another $40 on a whole kit?
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gunkiemike
Mar 17, 2010, 2:13 AM
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I haven't fixed any Aliens with my kit yet, but there's 20-30" of several different size wires in there. I have done my Camalots, and there's enough swages and cable there for at least 20 trigger repairs.
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potreroed
Mar 17, 2010, 3:13 AM
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You can skip all this wire and crimping business and repair your cams with some heavy nylon fishing line-- just cut to size and burn the ends. It's a hell of a lot easier and works great.
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moose_droppings
Mar 17, 2010, 6:32 AM
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potreroed wrote: You can skip all this wire and crimping business and repair your cams with some heavy nylon fishing line-- just cut to size and burn the ends. It's a hell of a lot easier and works great.
Weed whacker line works too. Comes in a lot of different sizes.
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