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BK11 scales from a log (just buy micarta)

S

SoldMyHat

Joined
Dec 28, 2011
Messages
485
This is my first "major" project with a knife. And what better knife than the venerable BK11
This is going to be a work in progress and might take me a while. I am starting with a log that I took from a downed maple tree in my front yard.

The stock:
IMG_1898.jpg


Step 1: debarked with a BK2 and shortened to let dry. I read this can take a month to fully dry but I am going to try and reduce its size next weekend and then give it another week to speed it up and hopefully reduce cracking. Those are 12" tiles for size reference.
IMG_4049.jpg


Step 2: I have cut the log down to a smaller size after letting it cure for 10 days. As you can see it has done some splitting on the ends. I am hoping it has split as much as its going to. I will let this dry for another week before cutting out the rough forms.
IMG_3340.jpg


IMG_3277.jpg


IMG_8668.jpg


Final verdict: just buy micarta! It's so much easier and comes out perfect. Once I went out to buy tools and dye and sealer and blah blah blah, it was almost as much as the scales. :D
 
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Just hack a hole in the middle of it and stick the BK11 in - beefy handles are in this year!

---

Beckerhead #42
 
How thick is the log? Wood usally needs a year per inch thickness to dry without help.
 
Looks like I need to rough out the scales now to decrease size and I read on a woodworking forum that using the microwave in short bursts helps. You have to nuke it for 30 secs and then let it sit for an hour and then do it again about three times total. You can do that once a week and apparently that cuts it down a lot in drying time. I will be sure to include all these steps in my original post as the project moves forward.

Thanks for the heads up Grage!!
 
All kidding aside if you cut that log into slices about as twice as thick as you need and let it sit out (avoid direct sunlight) with airspace on all sides it will be ready before you know it. By cutting it twice as thick as you need it when it is done shrinking, twisting and cracking it will leave enough to cut it again and make it flat and workable. Also by cutting some extra slices it will give you some extra to practice with and judge the workability of the wood at any given time.
 
Thanks tommy! A lot of info already in this thread! I only have a circular saw, hand saw, block and sandpaper. So I am going old school on this project. I plan on taking my final rough cut and blocking it flat with low grit and then smooth with a higher grit. Pretty much the same approach I am thinking for the outside too. And yes, this wood is now too small to use the circular saw, so all hand tools from here on out!
 
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