can veneer be used as spacer ?

H

hobbitling

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Aug 16, 2013
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I've seen plenty of knives on here with spacers made from metal, horn, wood, plastic, etc...

I was wondering, can wood veneer be used as spacer material? Like the kind of veneer used by cabinet makers and marquetry artists. the really thin, stuff.
I have a collection of veneer scraps of almost every type of wood, and it seems like a good way to use them.
I also have some pieces that are a bit thicker than veneer, maybe 2 mm thick pieces of ebony and various rosewoods. would those work better?

My concern is that because the grain of the veneer would be perpendicular to the tang of the blade, and the grain of the other wood in the handle, it might cause problems with shaping, sanding, and finishing, or it may cause other problems. I'm not sure exactly what kinds of problems, but I figured I'd ask.

Would it be necessary to stabilize the veneer spacers? and if so, how?

this is for a hidden tang puukko, by the way, so I'm talking about using this as a spacer, not a liner.
 
End grain will wick moisture much faster then the side grain, you should seal it really good
 
I have finished a lot of birch veneer plywood over the years and the best results come from several coats sanding sealer before the final finish, after that you can choose any finish, true oil, linseed oil, lacquer

Edit you should soak the veneer before you cut it up for scales
 
I use veneers for spacers/liners all the time. You can use CA to seal them as well as the methods listed above.
 
Awesome. Thanks. I think I'll try a test piece, just to see how it goes.
I'm probably going to use ebony, so I'm not sure how much moisture it will really absorb, but i'll be sure to seal it anyway.
I'm also thinking of using a coin as a bolster, and maybe a butt plate/pommel. Some of the state quarters have nice designs.
I might try stacking a few coins with the veneer as spacers between them. I'd have to sand the coins flat to avoid any large gaps due to the engraving.

anybody ever try that?
 
Ebony probably won't take to much moisture. It's pretty dense. Just make sure to be careful sanding to keep the ebony dust from staining the other wood in the handle. You might be able to use spacers and/or masking tape to avoid this. Google "ebony inlay" to see what other people do to avoid this problem with ebony.
 
The other wood will be ziricote, so it's already pretty dark. staining shouldn't be too much of a problem.
 
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