attaching silver coins to the grips on some guns...

M

Magnum Wheel Man

New member
I'm looking at attaching some silver coins to a couple things a couple revolver grip frames, that I use for cowboy shooting, & off topic, but I also want to put a 1900 Lafayette dollar inset into my shifter knob on my 38 Nash Lafayette

... I plan on machining a recess in the grips ( & shift knob ) the size of the coin, & using some sort of "glue" to stick the coin into the recess

any ideas on what to use for the "glue" that can stand up to the oils associated with shooting, yet could be cleaned off the coins without "damaging" the silver coins ??? not worried about chemically polishing the back side of the coin, but wouldn't want to use something that could not be removed, in case some year silver goes up to the price of gold today, & I decide I want to part with the guns
 
Epoxy. About as chemically inert as you can get and you can take it apart with a heat gun on the coin.
 
thanks guys... just thinking about adding some 1 gram .999 silver coins ( like the size of a dime... maybe smaller )... about the same size as a S&W medallion or so... I've added some medallions S&W & others in the past, but they had studs added to them... didn't know how the coin would stay if it were only "glued" in... as long as I machine my spot tight on the coin, that should help though
 
Most inlays are a press fit but a coin is a little beefier, so I would add the epoxy. I've been thinking about inlaying an 1850's dime in the grips of my 51 Navy.
 
one of the coins I've been thinking about is the .999 silver Buffalo nickel replicas...

I also have some little 1 gram .999 prospector struck silver pieces that might look nice
 
The more I think about it, carving out the buffalo and an Indian head would make great inlays for the grips. You'll need a jeweler's saw to do that.

You can make inletting tools from hacksaw blades. Take a 1-1/2" length of blade and grind down an end until you get a 1/32" or smaller chisel point. Scratch the outline of the coin on the grip and then chisel straight down. Use another chisel to remove the material. It'll take about an hour's time per inlay.
 
GARY... while that sounds cool... it scares the crab out of me... I doubt I'd be up for that anytime soon... the right size bit gets me a round hole the size of the coin... as long as they are gram sized coins, they'd look like regular ( maybe slightly larger ) medallions

a bigger sized ( quarter or so ) coin might look nice if it would fit in the grip correctly

but I'd admit a silver dollar sized coin emblem cut out for an inlay would look pretty sweet...

my Montados have plastic grips... I'd bet that would be harder to inlay than a wood grip ???
 
something like this might look nice... 1/2 oz... probably between a quarter & 1/2 dollar in size...

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One tip is that you can mix the epoxy with sanding dust from the base material. Use 100 grit or finer dust & mix it up to peanut butter consistency. This will color the glue like the base material--covering minor fitting sins.
 
GARY... while that sounds cool... it scares the crab out of me... I doubt I'd be up for that anytime soon... the right size bit gets me a round hole the size of the coin... as long as they are gram sized coins, they'd look like regular ( maybe slightly larger ) medallions

a bigger sized ( quarter or so ) coin might look nice if it would fit in the grip correctly

but I'd admit a silver dollar sized coin emblem cut out for an inlay would look pretty sweet...

my Montados have plastic grips... I'd bet that would be harder to inlay than a wood grip ???
Click to expand...

You want to use a end mill to cut for round inlays. You get any size you want or have one "sharpened" to any size. Evil bay is a great source for used cutters, very cheap.
 
Sharp tools are the key to good inlay work. Practice on scrap hard wood first.

If I had to have plastic grips, I'd cast it with the inlays such that they're set in the plastic. I never tried to inlay into plastic so I can't tell you how that goes. Depending on the plastic, it can be very brittle. Go to Tap Plastics for info on casting plastic.
 
The plastic grips I have cut have cut well using a end mill cutter. I've cut bone with a end mill cutter also. Keep the speed down and a slow feed.

A pair of faux pearl grips I cut.
grip1.jpg
 
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