Attatching scales, as cut or bookmatched?

weo

weo

Joined
Sep 21, 2014
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Hello all. Sorry if the subject/post is worded poorly, but I'm wondering what y'alls opinions are on using scales when cut from a block of wood.

Up until tonight, I've been putting my scales on with the tang/spine where the kerf of the cut would be so that the grain, figuring and spalting lines match up along the spine. This seems natural to me, but oftentimes when looking at the handle from the sides, they don't loo like they match.

Tonight I decided to reverse them so that each of the visible sides are the book matched sides, making the handle look much more symmetrical from the sides, but the grain doesn't match up along the spine.

I'm wondering what all those with more experience than me do? I'm guessing the answer depends on the scales, as the ones I used tonight don't look too off when looking down the spine.

Do you pay attention to how the scales look down the spine or do you pay attention to how the handle looks from the sides, making them as close to mirror images as possible?
I can provide pics if that would help describe what I'm talking about.


as always
peace and love
billyO
 
I don't use much wood but for Damascus bolsters I always do a match. Can be expensive but sure does make a difference. First look maybe not noticed but not much later for sure.
Frank
 
I like bookmatched but I have heared a very well estabilished maker say he does what you normaly do because of the reason you give
Still I find that bookmatched looks simular not the same . The more shaping you do the less simular it gets
 
I'm not married to one way or the other. I just look for the best looking figure. I split the block, agonize over it for about two minutes and go with what I think would look best with that block.
 
I prefer wood grain to line up on the spine like the blade split the piece of wood.
 
I use a lot of Arizona Ironwood. Rarely does the pattern match once the shaping is done. Stuff changes dramatically, no matter which way you use it.
 
Thanks for the opinions so far. Here's an example of what I'm talking about on one of the skinners I mentioned above:
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These were "bookmatched" (is that the right term) so that the sides of the scales are nearly matching, but you can see from the spine view, the spalting lines don't match up. If I were to put them on the other way, the top picture would have had very little of the lighter wood showing towards the tip.
Thanks again
~billyO
 
I think your problem is that your wooden handles were cut with a very fine blade, and say you're putting it on a quarter inch thick knife handle they wouldn't match up. If you could cut the knife handles with the same thickness of blade on the bandsaw as the thickness of the knife spine they would match up. That is because the missing wood is the same thickness as the knife spine.
To exaggerate if you were to take the wooden handles and separate them by 1 inch, they would not match up. Sort of difficult to describe this but I hope you see what I'm saying
 
On some woods with a very linear grain when seen from the spine, I flip one scale to make a herringbone effect. This works especially well with bias cut Asian Black Palm.
 
do what you think looks the best for the specific piece of wood. also try some variations. slot the handle material and fit to tang so the tang is not seen from top or bottom. cut the handle material in two, then use a router to remove 1/2 tang thickness from each piece, each piece would look like L, short leg top and bottom, tang is not seen. or router so pieces look like [ and ], again tang not seen.
 
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