Another Beginner Question

[neckringer]

I have made a blade out of a file and ordered a few materials to make handle out of.
I bought some nickel silver bar stock and want to make a bolster.
this will be a hidden tang knife.
How do I make the slot in the nickel silver to drop tang through then silver solder on.
I dont know if I should use a smaller diameter drill bit and drill a few holes in a line then get square and to size with a small flat file or what????
thanks

 

[blackwaterkw]

That's the way to do it. Keep the fit as tight as possible for the best solder job and clean the tang and guard with acetone before you solder.
Tom

 

[bindlestitch]

And if you taper your hidden tang to where it gets thicker toward the shoulders you'll save yourself a lot of heartache. That way when you get your guard on your tang and close to the final position you can give it a little push to seat it. When you get close to the seated position file a very little bit in your slot and test to see if you're almost there. It's easy to remove to much material and then you have a sloppy looking joint.
God bless,
Stitch