UBB.threads Forums General Interest Restoration, Conservation, and Maintenance Forum Fixing the wire on a grip for an Infantry Officer Degen M89

Just thought I would close the loop on this thread. I finally got around to taking some pictures of the rewiring.

I must have rewired the handle four times until I was satisfied with the results. I bought about 4 different types of wire at different gauges until I had a good match to the orginal stuff. The middle strand is silver-plated copper wire from a local bead store. The outside strands are silvler wire from a craft store in Germany--Just couldn't find anything thin enough locally.

I twisted the wire using a drill. I found keeping the wire tight and the drill on medium speed worked best. Also, keep the wire from kinking as you twist it so it does not prematurely break. One thing I learned the hard way was that to reverse the direction of the twisted wire, you can't just flip the wire upside down. You have to twist the wire the opposite direction in the drill.

A women in the bead store said I could speed up the tarnish of the silver wire by leaving it in the refridgerator with an egg overnight. I didn't try this but thought I would pass it on.

Thanks to all who offered advice on how to fix the wire! Max