Going for my Hacker badge...

[TennTexan]

Many people the world over collect the little red-handled wonders we affectionately call "SAKs."  But how many go a step further and actually craft their own knife with the toolset they desire?  I think we would all agree that the Compact manages to pack an impressive complement of tools into a tote-able, two-layer package.  One thing has always bothered me about this model, however--its lack of Phillips driver.  "But what about the Duke?" I hear you say... Yes, yes, the Duke of Edinburgh Pocket Tool is pretty much a Compact with a Phillips instead of a corkscrew.  There are some problems with the Duke as I see it, not the least of which are the neutered "butter knife" blade and the fact that it's damn near impossible to obtain on my side of the pond. 

And so I find myself diving headlong into the world of modding on a quest to swap the corkscrew on a Compact for a Phillips.  Not just any Phillips, mind you, but a square, can key one "borrowed" from an older, no-hook Super Tinker.  So join me now as I share my experience with this mod.  It's still a work-in-progress while I await the arrival of some properly-sized brass rods.  In the meantime, I've managed to free both the corkscrew and Phillips from their respective, former homes using little more than the file and pliers on my Swisstool.

[TennTexan]

Here we see our donor Super Tinker divested of its scales and Phillips driver.  I began filing away at the smaller of the two ends of the center pin.  When I'd removed enough brass that I was starting to bite into the aluminum liner, I grabbed the other end with my pliers and carefully worked the pin out far enough to remove the driver.  It was easier than I expected.

In the other picture you can see the donor knife next to the Compact with its scales removed.  On to Round 2...

[TennTexan]

It wound up being harder to convince the Compact to give up its corkscrew...  I was able to file off the small end of the center pin easily enough, but because the other end was much more rounded, it was very hard to get a grip on it with my pliers.  As you can see in the pics, I wound up having to put the Compact on a bench block I use when working on my pistols.  Because I was too lazy to go downstairs and find my punches, I wound up using a spare mini screwdriver as a makeshift punch.  A quick tap with the side of my Swisstool was all it took to drive the pin out far enough to grab it with the pliers.  In the last pic you can see a mockup of the square driver in the Compact.  It should look nice once it's finished.  I'll post pics of the final assembly once the brass rod arrives in the mail.

[jaya_man]

Looking good so far...


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[magentus]

Sweet! Nice work so far TT 

[Don Pablo]

 

[Poncho65]

Nice so far Good luck with the rest of the process

[Wspeed]

That's staring to look good 

[TennTexan]

This evening I finally got around to finishing the project.  Here you can see the 2.2mm brass rod in my vice with the cut end filed flat so that I can peen it.  The second picture is the end result.  It’s not pretty, but it works.

[TennTexan]

With one of the ends peened, I used my file to taper the opposite end a little.  Then, I put the knife in the vice and tapped the rod all the way in as far as it would go.  I then cut the long end leaving roughly 1.5mm and filed that end flat to peen.  I clamped an AR-15 fore end wrench into my vice to give me something to put the other end of the rod against while I hammered.

[TennTexan]

Again, the peening may not be pretty but it works...

I pressed on a set of white reverse-shield Plus scales for the finishing touch.  I couldn’t be happier with how this project turned out.  It was surprisingly easy to do.

The most difficult part was getting the knife compressed with the Phillips and hook in place and installing the rod.  The trick I found for the Phillips was to use a scrap piece of the brass rod between the tool and the vice to let me compress the spring enough to get the rod started.

[RF52]

Good job like the result

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[TennTexan]

Good job like the result

Sent fra min FRD-L09 via Tapatalk

Thanks!

[zoidberg]

Nice thread mate, badge awarded.   

From now on though you will need to request them like the pros. https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,59292.0.html   

[Don Pablo]

 

[Poncho65]

Nice thread mate, badge awarded.   

From now on though you will need to request them like the pros. https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,59292.0.html   

 

 

[TennTexan]

From now on though you will need to request them like the pros. https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,59292.0.html   

Thanks, will do!

[Wspeed]

Well deserved badge 
Keep the mods coming well done