Info How to make a double hook pick

[rsingler]

As many of you know, I find the steel double hook pick to be one of the most useful picks in my shop. It's mandatory for my Seminars.
How to use a Double Hook Pick

Much more dangerous than a brass pick, it can nonetheless remove the oring from a bcd hose end without scratching the groove to the point that the connection always leaks a little.

It's invaluable for servicing Mk10's with their stiff HP shaft oring deep in the bore of the body.
And for the legion of Deep6/Apeks/HOG/Dive Rite diaphragm divers out there, it's magical for removing the tiny, stiff o-ring that's the critical HP poppet shaft seal in the balance chamber.

Though available from Scubatools

O'ring Pick, Double Hook, Blue Plastic Handle

The o'ring picks utilize a stainless steel probe molded into a plastic handle. The pick ends have been formed into several useful shapes for removing o' rings efficiently. Caution: these picks are very sharp, use care when handling and using these picks.

www.scubatools.com

and Piranha for a nominal sum, I still get queries from European divers who just can't find it. The owner of Scubagaskets has started carrying one, but the custom made tool is €20!

Stainless Steel Double-Hook O-Ring Pick Scuba Tool - Scuba Gaskets

Scuba Gaskets - Stainless Steel Double-Hook O-Ring Pick Scuba Tool. flat end, oring pick tool.

scubagaskets.com

I've recently found a second European source through Cressi, which they call a "Spiral punch":

Punzón ESPIRAL EXTRACCIÓN TÓRICAS - Material de buceo, apnea, snorkeling y natación

Acero inoxidable de baja rigidez | Punzón multiuso para todo tipo de operaciones.

cressi.es

Alas, it's only sold to dealers.

 

[rsingler]

But one pick is ubiquitous: the steel Pakistani or Chinese dental pick sets.

Someone asked if they could make a double hook pick from it, and to my surprise, it works!

Start by bending it a bit with pliers until it will fit in your vise.

Then clamp the pick until it's "sort of straight".

Work it some more with pliers until it's almost straight,

and then hammer it until the shaft is long, and as close to straight as you can get. You can leave the last little angle bent, as long as it's not more than 8mm long.

KEY FIRST STEP: Now find a nail, or a thin 2.5mm rod and clamp the bent end of the pick in the vise next to the rod.

 

[rsingler]

With a small hammer, or a larger hammer and a punch, tap gently until the angle is curved around the rod. Getting the last little bit curved can be a challenge, mounting the pick in the vise so the tip is accessible.

But your objective is this: an almost 180° hook of no more than 5mm diameter.

Once you have that, it's a simple matter of clamping that hook in the vise and hammering the shaft over at a right angle.
IMPORTANT: Make sure to make your bend no more than 3mm from the end of the straight portion of the shaft. That will yield about a 4mm drop from the top of the shaft.
And while you're at it, add a 10° twist to the right angle, so that when you use the tool, it's easier to go from front to back in the o-ring groove.

This is what you're after:

 

[rsingler]

Fortunately, those cheap pick sets come in fives, so you'll have more than one chance if your ending hook is too shallow or too much of a circle:

The center one is what you want.

Have fun, and enjoy using the best specialty scuba pick out there!

 

[tursiops]

Besides, you have fun doing it!

 

[ps444mike]

i would think they would snap.. cool little project thanks for sharing

 

[tursiops]

i would think they would snap.. cool little project thanks for sharing

Yeah. I wonder if heating the metal with a torch to make it a bit more ductile would help before bending it?

 

[Bigbella]

Have fun, and enjoy using the best specialty scuba pick out there!

While certainly not as nuanced as your solution, we took to grinding, bending and tweaking scalpel handles, while South of the Border; couldn't find brass picks, at the time, to save our lives.

Sadly, I could no longer find the one tightly curved, much like yours . . .

 

[rsingler]

i would think they would snap.. cool little project thanks for sharing

Yeah. I wonder if heating the metal with a torch to make it a bit more ductile would help before bending it?

That's one advantage of "imported" inexpensive tools. The steel quality is cheap enough that it's quite malleable. I expected the shaft to break during all my manipulations. But it did just fine.
And it's clearly stronger than brass, which is why you'll never find a brass double hook. Brass will bend before that stiff old piston shaft o-ring ever comes out of the groove.