# tiny sockets



## bmwr71 (Jan 30, 2010)

Fellers, here and there in building and modifying G locos and cars, I need some small machine or wood screws. I was really needing some to attach a boiler door casting to the vertical boiler made from plumbing pipe for my Cli-Shay project so I made an order to Micro Fasteners. I saw screw heads as well as hex heads on the tiny screws and decided things would look much more realistic with hex heads. So I got the order and started fooling around and I realized I had no wrenches or sockets tiny enough to fit these screws. So I got on fleabay and bought some ignition wrenches as I knew they are for small hardware. Well they weren't small enough. I guess scale hex heads need scale sockets but I have no idea where to get any tools for anything this small. Any ideas?

Doug


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

look up wiha tools... 

you'll find it...


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## ralphbrades (Jan 3, 2008)

10 BA is the smallest common socket size (1/4 inch drive). You may be forced to buy a "stick pack" of BA sockets of 0 BA to 10 BA. 

regards 

ralph


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

I guess you need to determine if the hex heads are metric or not. 

Ralph, BA seems to be yet another standard... like Whitworth..... is that correct? 

It does seem to be based on inches, not millimeters... but please correct (and edify if you are so inclined) 

Greg


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

Micro Mark has some small ones.


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## Paul Burch (Jan 2, 2008)

You might find what you need here on the wifa website. I think instead of calling them sockets ,nut driver would be a better term. I have the 8 piece set. 3/32 to 1/4 inch. They also make metric. Quality item from Germany. I think the 8 piece set was somewhere around $25.00.

http://www.wihatools.com/200seri/265pico.htm


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## Ger  (Jan 13, 2009)

The British Association, (BA), is metric based.
The 0 BA pitch is 1mm, each higher number is 0.9 X lower number. Therefore, 1 BA has a pitch of.9mm, 2BA is .9x.9= .81mm and so on.
The diameter of the screw is derived from the pitch, the head size is 1.75 the major diameter, however I have found this to vary. I have some purchased 6BA hex head screws with different size heads. I guess it depends on hex stock size currently available.

Wikipedia has a good explanation.

Gerald Pierce


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

I realized I had no wrenches or sockets tiny enough to fit these screws 
Doug, 
The other trick is to take some bolts with hex socket heads ("SOCKET HEAD CAP SCREW") and use them as sockets on your tiny bolts.


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## DKRickman (Mar 25, 2008)

If you only need a socket occasionally, you can sometimes make one. I take a chunk of plastic (styrene tube it handy, but soft, toothbrush handles work well), heat the head of the screw, and press the plastic in place. When it cools, it has a perfect negative impression of the screw head, and makes a decent driver.


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## Naptowneng (Jun 14, 2010)

http://www.mylargescale.com/Communi...fault.aspx 
Be nice if we could link threads


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Or the search function worked well enough that a completely new thread did not need to be started? 

Greg


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