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Old 04-29-2007, 08:15 AM
Steve Ellsworth's Avatar
Steve Ellsworth Steve Ellsworth is offline
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Highlands Ranch Colorado
Posts: 784
Default Re: The Coin Collet! Interested?

I wannnnn it I waannnnn it


I have one quite similar Dave London milled out for me
I can see where it might need a little modification

Heck i checked your site - yousa wizard so
here's my thoughts

Keep in mind I don't know much about the material you are using and I am not a machinst.

All nickels are not the same size
Some of them are round some are not - I have tried making similar gadgets out of steel wigets supplied by various vise makers - i think they refer to them as button holders. Current vise came with a set machined to fit a nickel. But not all nickels and unfortunately not covering the entire circumference as your device..
The rim height varies

Working around or over a rim is a pain in the ass. Some employ a washer or a piece of wire bent to a ring to rest the graver on. I tried it but it's a pain too. Better to learn to be careful. But considering the varience in the thickness of the coins - what potential for a table within a sleeve that could be adjusted for height. Gee I think I have reinvented the push up opsicle. Anyway same concept. It would be nice to drop the coin into a recess for some things , flush for others.

The hardness of the coin varies. Hence the issue of slippage and shavings. If crud gets in between and you tighten the coin up those shavings would naturally have to be imbedded in one thing or another. Usually the coin rim as it's going to be the softer of the two.


The use of aluminum on a nickel makes me sweat.

If it slips on the coin and it might - transfer of any aluminum or any metal gall to a buffalo nickel rim or other coin would be an issue. 2005's no big deal.

The blued steel makes good sense. I have seen some in brass. Steel would be nice aside from the varience in diameters but with a disposable inner liner or inner ring of some kind in varying sizes might make sense too. Then you could bore out one big vice with capabilites for differnt ssize coins ranging from penny to morgan silver dollar and if it gets crapped out replace it with a new one.

The backside of the coin is worth more than the front. Any dings scraps scratches or pressure marks there destroy the job

Threading a hex bolt into aluminum - I could see myself stripping that very soon. Lot's of nickel shavings do nasty wonders to the threads of my vise jaws. I would imagine they would trash the bolt soon as they worked their way into the threads.

So some different way of applying compression. Either all the way through without threading. An aircraft nut on a curved washer?

Experience has proven to me the holding power of the V notch for a round widget is not great.
Making the lower half square or triangular would be more solid and prevent rotation of the assembly.

If you consider the force of the dead blow tungsten piston mod hitting a nickel - it's a hell of a whop. More so on a morgan.


There is nickel carving and then there is Nickel carving. Newbies will be using off the wall coins and will be a bigger market and who knows what that would mean. Too many nickel carvers and the market will die.

Top cutters don't use cheap coins. Neither do they cut just the common coins you see on the net. The price range for nickels varies widely. But it is not rare to start with a 300 dollar nickel and it can go higher. Other coins higher yet. So you can see why the concern for solid holding.

Each coin is it's own little pain in the ass with variences.

It would be wonderful if you could come up with something that would allow safe holding while working on the edge of the rim. (we do get neurotic cutting these things at times

NOw if you wanted to go severly off the deep end
make o set of vise table tops to do the same thing. Then they could be dropped in the pin holes and be a no brainer for someone dumb like me who can't tell one hex wrench from another.

But in general we cut nickels but not all flavors of them - wheat pennies - morgans - gold pieces - copper silver gold rounds (blanks) and prestruck coins

if you could get this whipped by tomorrow I will put up an alter in my studio and burn incense to a picture of you every day. And I would order one too!!!


(feel free to yell scream and jump up and down now)

Cant wait to see what you come up with.

Can you hand one of those turbine engines you build on my classic so it will go faster?

Damn must be nice to be a machinist
You could call it a CCCC
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Last edited by Steve Ellsworth; 04-29-2007 at 10:32 AM.
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