[sdiy] special tightening tools?

[Byron G. Jacquot]

>All the pots I buy come with a plain washer which is just a little bigger
>than the nut, and the nutdriver (which has a fairly smooth, rounded edge in
>any case) actually seats against the washer, thus protecting whatever is
>underneath.  I would think that one would always want to use a washer.
>Otherwise, the nut itself will dig into the panel, regardless of whether the
>nutdriver touches the panel or not.
>
>Don't the knobs cover all this up anyway?

I take the component I want to tighten to a pawn shop, and dig through the bins of sockets until I find one that fits the nut in question, and is deep enough to accomodate the shaft/lever, etc.

I buy it and take it home and check that the end of it isn't sharp - often, the chrome plating on a socket has a seam right on the end of the cylinder.  I'll file & buff it until the seam is gone, so there's no sharp end do do any damage.

I also have a little shim that I use to help protect the panel.  It a piece of thin plastic that was used for the "hang tag" on a pair of scissors - it feels like really thin lexan, thin strong ans slightly textured.  I cut a notch that accomodates the nut in the plastic, and I place it over the post when I tigeten it.  On some pot/knob combos, I use the same shim when I install the knobs, to give them a consistent panel clearance, about 1/16".

Byron Jacquot