605 kit photos & question

flava

flava

Joined
Mar 3, 2000
Messages
2,785
Not as good as other 605 kits I've seen posted here, but THIS ONE IS MINE :D . And it has fat handle slabs. I always wanted a folder with a fat handle.
Assembling was quite easy. Everything fits in place perfectly. For shaping the micarta slabs all you need is a hacksaw and a file.
I still have to take the slabs out and finish them with sandpaper. Here is where I need your advice. What grits should I buy, and is there some trick I should know about sanding linen micarta? I can not buff them, I don't have the equipment.

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Lock the blade open and lightly oil your bolsters. Wipe them off with a rag and tape them up flush with the scales. Use several wraps to make sure you won't sand through the tape.

Line your vice with leather or some other non marring material and clamp the knife into the vice. Get some cloth backed sandpaper or just tape the back side of paper type sandpaper with duct tape. Long strips work best no more than 1" wide. Use the shoeshine method to get a good radius on the scales from the bolsters all the way down to the butt end or pommel. Once the radius lines meet at the same height as the bolsters, move to a soft sided sanding block. I use a small block of wood with a piece of 9 oz. leather glued to one side. You can also use an old chalkboard eraser. Just take the knife out of the vice and work it over till you're happy. It would be a really good idea to tape the blade too at this point. I like to oil it first so the tape won't make a mess or cause staining on the steel. Some folks wrap it with a paper towel or plain paper first. Whatever works for you is what you should do.

As far as grits I would start with 120 grit, then 220, then 360 and on to 600 if you can get it. Follow up with fresh 0000 steel wool for a nice satin finish. This will take some time Flava. Just be patient and I'm sure you'll do fine.
 
Thank you a lot Max! I will follow your advice and I'm sure it will came up fine. I wasn't thinking to finsh the scales attached to the liners. I'll get the sandpaper and start working on those scales this evening.
 
Go easy when you're using the shoeshine method. Your blade will be clamped in the vice and you can put alot of pressure on the pivot point in the action. The knife is tough but just be aware of how much pressure you're applying with the sanding strips. You'll need to clean all the dust from the action once you're finihsed too.

Also, you will most likely scobb the liners along the sides. No big deal. Just follow up with the sanding block working the grits all the way to the steel wool. You will have a fine finish with no scratches if you pay close attention to what you're doing and don't move on to the next finer grit until all the scratches are gone. In that way, your liner and scales will be perfectly matched.

Have fun and be sure to post a pic of the knife when you get it finished.
 
Max, what do you think about clamping the bolster area and not the blade? Or is there a risk of damaging the pivot?
 
flava,
If it's not to difficult to disassemble, you might think about taking out the blade, pivot and spacers (maybe even the bolsters)leave the scales attached to the liners. Then clamp those together and sand.
Regards, Greg

By the way, good job, so far.
 
Flava- how far you go with the different grits depends on whether you want a real shiny finish or not. Sometimes with micarta I'll stop at around 320 or 400. I'd try sanding the assembled knife, that way you won't remove too much material. Good luck and we want pictures of the finished product!:)
 
Well, I managet to get 180 and 360 sand paper and finished the scales yesterday. It is slow, it took me more than three hours with two grits only. Now the scales are smooth and nice, and all the file scratches are gone. I'm quite happy with the result, I don't think I'll go for a finer grit. The scanner somehow alters the colors, the flat parts look different from the rounds of the scales. In reality they are exactly the same. Thank you all for the good advice. :) And belive me, the 605 kit RULES! It has better action, alignement and sharper edge than some production folders that costs three or four time more money. Not to mention the fun.

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You done good Flava! Wasn't that fun? He he. Hand work can be a drudge sometimes but it's important to know how it's done the hard way so you'll appreciate the easy way when it comes. A belt sander would have made quick work of that kit but you can also mess up your work very quickly with a nice fresh sharp belt. With hand work it's almost impossible to have an 'OOPS'. And you left plenty of meat on those scales so that if you decide to thin it down later you can. You can always take some more off but it sure it hard to put it back on! :D
 
Nice work Flava!

I love those 605 knives! I'm sure you are lovin' yours!

Darrel Ralph says that he has more designs on the way....please hurry Darrel!

Thank you for sharing.

Rob
 
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