Thoughts on making own pry bar/digging tool/splitter

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UKAndyB

Member
Jun 30, 2018
47
23
Flintshire. North Wales
What are peoples thought regarding if a file would be suitable for converting into one of these..

Obviously it would be too brittle unless heat treated (I'm a maintenance engineer, so old files aren't in short supply!)
Or would some tool steel be more suitable (loads of steel stock on ebay)
Basically, want one, but don't 'need' one and dont want to pay a lot for one!!!! haha

Thanks
 

Broch

Life Member
Jan 18, 2009
7,978
7,755
Mid Wales
www.mont-hmg.co.uk
What are peoples thought regarding if a file would be suitable for converting into one of these..

Obviously it would be too brittle unless heat treated (I'm a maintenance engineer, so old files aren't in short supply!)
Or would some tool steel be more suitable (loads of steel stock on ebay)
Basically, want one, but don't 'need' one and dont want to pay a lot for one!!!! haha

Thanks

How does that qualify as a 'pry bar'? It looks more like a combination of a cutting edge and a chisel to me but maybe my experience of 'Military Grade' pry bars is limited :)
 

Jared

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Sep 8, 2005
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Looks like an EOD Robotics Breacher Bar with guard. Originally they were made in 1045, now CountyComm sells them made from titanium.
 

Jared

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Sep 8, 2005
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Ah I still probably wouldn't have cottoned on.

Seems CC still do sell (if in the US) steel ones.
 

TLM

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Nov 16, 2019
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Vantaa, Finland
1045 is probably the cheapest even half way decent material one could make a sharpened pry bar. If I wanted a real one I would make it from a mid alloy "normal" (0.6-0.8) carbon steel, price difference not much but a fair increase in strength.
 

Erbswurst

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Mar 5, 2018
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Berlin
I want this, find it regularly in the shops, did see, that it is pretty cheap, but have unfortunately absolutely no need to get it.

 

MartiniDave

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Aug 29, 2003
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Stew

Bushcrafter through and through
Nov 29, 2003
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stewartjlight-knives.com
I’d be interested to see your take on them, a bit like the OP I don’t know why but I want one!
So I did this.

my start thought was the eod breached bar. I figured that slightly curved handle was better. Rounded end for hitting. Pry tip on the left but cutting edge on the right (thinking how I would use it as a right hander) The junction of the tip and long edge gives a third edge (though the tip is blunt). Two big holes in the tang for cord wrapping if desired. And a bottle opener, just because. Oh and 52100 steel.


01436-BF1-279-B-4126-8524-BF4420202-C05.jpg

753-B7-AB2-1-F43-4541-856-B-EC4-AA07-CA932.jpg

775-DAB73-2-A0-E-41-FA-A198-4-C8-B85-DAEDA0.jpg

8-FBEAB2-D-155-E-4222-BAD5-12-B512-B94234.jpg

A864-C66-A-459-E-4-CBC-AACF-887-F7-AFBB128.jpg


As you can see, mine has had a fair amount of use! Opened lots of paint, cut ‘stuff’, scraped off paint, undone some screws, etc.
 

Wildgoose

Full Member
May 15, 2012
776
429
Middlesex
Looks like a very useful tool you have there.
I did buy a very small pry bar from a diy store but it isn’t up to much, I think I bent it opening a paint tin!
If you ever do a run let me know
 

Jared

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Sep 8, 2005
3,388
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Wales
You never know when you might have to force a door open on the Enterprise!

Indeed...
When Chris Hadfield arrived at the Mir space station via the Atlantis shuttle in November 1995, he and Atlantis commander Ken Cameron couldn’t get the hatch open to let them into the station. The engineers had sealed their doorway too tightly. “So,” says Hadfield in his book, “we did the true space-age thing: we broke into Mir using a Swiss Army knife. Never leave the planet without one.”
Swiss Army knives were part of the Shuttle astronauts personal kit.
 
Last edited:

Van-Wild

Full Member
Feb 17, 2018
1,400
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UK
So I did this.

my start thought was the eod breached bar. I figured that slightly curved handle was better. Rounded end for hitting. Pry tip on the left but cutting edge on the right (thinking how I would use it as a right hander) The junction of the tip and long edge gives a third edge (though the tip is blunt). Two big holes in the tang for cord wrapping if desired. And a bottle opener, just because. Oh and 52100 steel.


01436-BF1-279-B-4126-8524-BF4420202-C05.jpg

753-B7-AB2-1-F43-4541-856-B-EC4-AA07-CA932.jpg

775-DAB73-2-A0-E-41-FA-A198-4-C8-B85-DAEDA0.jpg

8-FBEAB2-D-155-E-4222-BAD5-12-B512-B94234.jpg

A864-C66-A-459-E-4-CBC-AACF-887-F7-AFBB128.jpg


As you can see, mine has had a fair amount of use! Opened lots of paint, cut ‘stuff’, scraped off paint, undone some screws, etc.
That looks very handy indeed!

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