Bringing a pile of steel back to life!

I just finished this set of stabilized box elder burl grips black/brown dye for a guy. The two slabs just big enough were 64 bucks.


Stuff is really gorgeous and extremely tough, checkers well just stupid pricey.






Guess it's like everything else walk or make payments, or make payments or have tupperware grips?
 
Bawanna said:
I just finished this set of stabilized box elder burl grips black/brown dye for a guy. The two slabs just big enough were 64 bucks.
Guess it's like everything else walk or make payments, or make payments or have tupperware grips?
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That is Freekin gorgeous! Would love to have a Khuk handle like that. Im starting to like that Box Elder.
Love that wraparound grip. Must be fun cutting that? Nice job and nice pistol. Would love to have one of them for CC.
 
I really like buckeye burl but this guy I get wood from hardly ever gets it. He don't like it. Too many voids and harder to make right. With his dyes and process he can make Box Elder Burl look nearly the same.
I'd like to have a big pile of the stuff around so I could have it when I need it. That piece I had to wait near 2 months to get. I think he forgets me or something.
Let me find another picture here. Standby.......

This is whats on my right side all the time. Last piece of buckeye that my guy had.


One of my favorite pictures. Guy sent me some Hippo tooth (legal Ivory) to make grips out of. Nightmare stuff to work with but made a nice picture.



And one set just to toot my own horn. Made these for an old man a few years ago, step dad to one of our sgts. He cried when he first saw them. Made my day. Sadly he crossed the river a years ago or so. His step son gave me half and he kept the other half. My half is displayed in a place of honor of course.



 
Man! You are talented and that checkering is way cool! I got a lot to learn! Hippo teeth must be some interesting stuff to work with. I recognize the 1911 w/dog grip but is yours a 1911 also? My friend has a Kimber 1911 and I really like it! Single stack mag feels a hell of a lot better than double stack for my short fat hands.
 
Hippo teeth is ugly to work with. It stinks like a dentist office on a bad day, the outer skin is so hard that sparks fly when you run it thru a bandsaw. You can't get it hot or it will crack later in life. It was tough. Doubt I'll ever touch the stuff again.
The ivory itself under the enamel isn't bad to work with. Still hard but you can work it.

Mine is also a 1911. It is a Dan Wesson / CZ Cbob. It's the first couple of years after CZ bought Dan Wesson and they really ramped up the quality. It's a great gun that one.
 
I'm not sure Rhino is legal in the US anymore either. They seem to be really cracking down on it.
I read yesterday the feds were gonna crush 6 tons of illegal ivory to send a message to poachers. Some of it already beautifully carved, some tusk etc. Totally wrong to me. They should put it in a museum or something worthwhile. Just destroying it creates a whole new market for the poachers. Hang poachers as they are encountered and that would be sending a message.
 
Agreed! I say feed them to the lions!
Bawanna said:
I'm not sure Rhino is legal in the US anymore either. They seem to be really cracking down on it.
I read yesterday the feds were gonna crush 6 tons of illegal ivory to send a message to poachers. Some of it already beautifully carved, some tusk etc. Totally wrong to me. They should put it in a museum or something worthwhile. Just destroying it creates a whole new market for the poachers. Hang poachers as they are encountered and that would be sending a message.
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Bawanna said:
I'm not sure Rhino is legal in the US anymore either. They seem to be really cracking down on it.
I read yesterday the feds were gonna crush 6 tons of illegal ivory to send a message to poachers. Some of it already beautifully carved, some tusk etc. Totally wrong to me. They should put it in a museum or something worthwhile. Just destroying it creates a whole new market for the poachers. Hang poachers as they are encountered and that would be sending a message.
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No illegal horn for me. It's all from my Rhinofarm.
Yes I was just kidding. I thought everybody knew its illegal. I have no experience working with any horn except fixing a crack in a handle.
Rhinofarm would actually be a cool idea. Making money with selling horn to China ( no need to kill the animal, just saw it off while it's alive) and at the same time increasing their population.
Don't know if it's feasible.
 
Hey Bawanna! Who could you recommend for wood stabilization? I have been reading on other parts of this forum that WSSI and K&G are well respected businesses? I think they do the services to your own supplied wood but if I wanted to buy already stabilized wood do you have any recommendations?
 
I use WSSI myself. Always good stuff. If a person can hear and call him he would probably have better results time wise. I have to rely on email since I'm near deaf as the proverbial stump. I don't think he checks it often. Usually doesn't reply. Like that last set he wrote he'd get it out next week, waited a couple weeks, sent another email, almost 2 months later it just shows up in the mail?

I still think he's a good guy and no question about the quality of the product.
 
Bawanna said:
I use WSSI myself. Always good stuff. If a person can hear and call him he would probably have better results time wise. I have to rely on email since I'm near deaf as the proverbial stump. I don't think he checks it often. Usually doesn't reply. Like that last set he wrote he'd get it out next week, waited a couple weeks, sent another email, almost 2 months later it just shows up in the mail?

I still think he's a good guy and no question about the quality of the product.
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I might be a stump as well even if I can hear and talk.
I guess it's my accent that almost nobody gets my name right when spelled on the phone. I'm even using the NATO alphabet J as in Juliet S as in Sierra and so on. Doesn't help :)
One good thing is Stasi and KGB probably can't track as many people as they think live in our house. But they are probably smarter than the guys sending me me stuff with butchered names and see that all the guys are just one person.
 
Very cool! Thank you sir! Im thinking about some box elder for some of the other larger knives in this pile of steel. I still got a lot to learn on the quenching, heat treating etc. I think I just got lucky as all getout on the small knives but the larger ones will probably show me what I dont know:D
Bawanna said:
I use WSSI myself. Always good stuff. If a person can hear and call him he would probably have better results time wise. I have to rely on email since I'm near deaf as the proverbial stump. I don't think he checks it often. Usually doesn't reply. Like that last set he wrote he'd get it out next week, waited a couple weeks, sent another email, almost 2 months later it just shows up in the mail?

I still think he's a good guy and no question about the quality of the product.
Click to expand...
 
Heres another project from the "Pile of Steel". This was a Damascus skinner with an antler handle, brass pommel, and small guard. I dont know who the original maker was but the mark looks like a gorilla or something with illegible lettering underneath. I have never worked with stag or antler of any kind. I have a feeling it must be processed like horn or any other organic as far as cutting speed etc. I suppose it would burn if it gets heated too fast?

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There are several options here for rehandling. I would like to use the crowns but im afraid they may be a bit large for the blade size? I could also use the other end but would loose the crowns:grumpy: I would like the handles turned down a bit and use copper for a small guard and or bolster depending on which piece I use. Thanks for any of your ideas in advance! Ill post progress pics as I go... unless I screw it up too bad and thats entirely possible.

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First the blade was annealed in a special furnace for about a week at some unknown temperature:D After it cooled down two and a half years later I heated it back to non-magnetic and quenched in peanut oil.


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Then it was torch tempered with spine at spring temper. Kind of spotty looking but overall the spine is blue and edge is yellow"ish" and it holds an edge thats not chipping. The "spottines" is actually some banding radiating from where I was holding the torch which is interesting? Wont get into that yet. I slowly moved the heat towards the tip to get it spring tempered as well but I think I may have stopped short. Oh well since I know this ill try not to break the tip. Its for cutting meat anyway:D
 
Nice. I have a couple elk antler sheds that I've looked at and scratched my head about for several years. Not sure where to start or how to go about it.
 
Nice start I think personally if I was cutting the handle I would use the lower piece and cut it so that where the branch starts would make for a larger butt with the start of the branch down towards the fingers then crown up against the bolster. does that make sense? Could be a great rescue once it is done :)
 
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