Perfect screwdriver redo

[Old tool guy]

Need a little advice on this screwdriver. I want to replace the wood cheeks on the handle ... no problem there. Need help with the rivets.

One thought i had was a flat head bolt grind the head enough to remove the groove. Then cut to length and peen the end over, into a countersunk hole. A second thought is copper rivets, like for leather work.

 

[ararat]

I made some little dowels and glued them into new walnut cheeks when I repaired one. It's on light duty but has been fine for years.

 

[Farmer J.]

I made some little dowels and glued them into new walnut cheeks when I repaired one. It's on light duty but has been fine for years.

Neatly done.

 

[d42jeep]

I wanted to transfer some ink marked handles from a 9-1/2” screwdriver blade to an 11” blade. I carefully drove out the rivets with a small drift doing as little damage as possible. Once I had one handle off, I filed off the edges of the smaller peened rivet ends. After I transferred the handles onto the blade, I tapped the original rivets back into place and carefully re-peened the original rivets enough to keep the handles in place. Unfortunately, I noticed that the handles were slightly narrower from the shorter driver so the experiment was a failure.
-Don

 

[Old tool guy]

Neatly done.

It does look good. But the rivets are wood, i want metal.

 

[FourthQuarter]

It does look good. But the rivets are wood, i want metal.

Try knife making hobby web sites.

I dropped a kitchen knife a couple of years ago and one side of the handle popped off. A perfectly good piece of steel so figured I try.

The hardest part is finding the rivet you like and fits. It took me two purchases but I don't mind having extra hardware around.

A piece of walnut from my scrap pail lives on.

 

[RTM]

Knife Rivets have been suggested by friends, as have peening over a piece of brass rod.

Brass Rivets - Lee Valley Tools

www.leevalley.com

An expert's method

Perfect Handle Scratch Awl

 

[Old tool guy]

I had not thought about knife rivets. That could work.
And thanks for the link, that was helpful.

 

[leg17]

........... Unfortunately, I noticed that the handles were slightly narrower from the shorter driver so the experiment was a failure.
..........

Those might have had the final sanding with handles in place. No two alike possibly.

 

[d42jeep]

Those might have had the final sanding with handles in place. No two alike possibly.

Since that project in 2017, I’ve accumulated quite a few other examples including some NOS ones and there is a consistent slight difference in the width of the handles between the extra heavy duty 9-1/2” drivers and the heavy duty 11” examples. What initially fooled me is that the handle length is the same so I assumed that the width would be the same as well. Live and learn.
-Don