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Clamping handle materials on tang
- Thread starter John L
- Start date
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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If by clamp you mean -to hold scales on it till the epoxy dries- then spring clamps (buy them in assorted sets at Harbor Freight)work best.The trick is to have firm but gentle pressure on the glue joint.Too much pressure and you squeeze all the glue out - no glue=no strength ,and the scale will pop off or separate easily.
If you are asking how to attach the parts you listed I will give you one possible technique (there are many ways).
Let's say you have a hidden tang knife with an oval guard and you want a 3/4" burl wood spacer behind the guard,with a piece of nickel silver on each side of it,and a stag handle for the rest of the grip.First - DON'T solder the guard on yet! Fit the guard and get it ready,set it aside,and take a piece of scrap metal(brass,aluminum,steel,whatever) a little larger than the piece of burl wood for your spacer.Fit it to the tang just like the guard was fitted.This is your sacrificial guard for pre-finishing the handle,you are going to grind it away with the metal spacers.Slip the sacrificial guard on the tang ,then the metal spacer,the wood ,the next spacer,and a piece of scrap wood shaped and drilled to go on like the stag will.Using just a little bit of 5 minute epoxy in the assembly,just enough to keep things from moving around while working on them.The amount depends on how tight your fit of the components is to the tang( if everything is a tight fit- only put the glue in the tang hole of the wooden handle piece).Take this assembly to the grinder and shape it ,using the measurements of your piece of stag to get the final size and shape.Sand by machine or hand to a good 400 grit finish.Put your propane torch to the scrap wood handle section keeping the flame away from the spacers and burl.Heat it a bit and with a gloved hand twist it until the epoxy lets go.It may take several heats to warm it up enough but once it is about 200 degrees it will come off easily.The rest of the parts may come off with a little twist and pull now,or you may need to heat the tang a bit.Same as before,it will slide off easily when the epoxy breaks down with the heat.Warm the sacrificial guard if needed to get it off the spacer/burl assembly.Nor you can clean up the blade and tang,solder on your guard,slide the spacer /burl section on and test fit the stag piece.Trim the stag as needed for a good fit,and shape the end as needed to join the spacer.When everything is pretty close,assemble the handle with slow set epoxy,(insert the pin through the stag if you are using one),Stick the blade tip in a block of Styrofoam or clamp it in a padded vise.Let the handle set up keeping it straight and snug till the epoxy sets.(a trick to put a little down pressure on the butt is to put a box on the work bench about 3 feet away,with the edge about the same height as the butt in the vise.Place a 1X3' board on the box with the other end resting on the antler butt.This provides a gentle down pressure to keep the parts snug while the epoxy sets). When set firmly,take out and clean up the drips with acetone.keeping it off the antler as much as possible.Let dry and harden overnight.Hand sand the final fit and finish on the entire assembly,buff as you desire and admire the work you've done.
If you are asking how to attach the parts you listed I will give you one possible technique (there are many ways).
Let's say you have a hidden tang knife with an oval guard and you want a 3/4" burl wood spacer behind the guard,with a piece of nickel silver on each side of it,and a stag handle for the rest of the grip.First - DON'T solder the guard on yet! Fit the guard and get it ready,set it aside,and take a piece of scrap metal(brass,aluminum,steel,whatever) a little larger than the piece of burl wood for your spacer.Fit it to the tang just like the guard was fitted.This is your sacrificial guard for pre-finishing the handle,you are going to grind it away with the metal spacers.Slip the sacrificial guard on the tang ,then the metal spacer,the wood ,the next spacer,and a piece of scrap wood shaped and drilled to go on like the stag will.Using just a little bit of 5 minute epoxy in the assembly,just enough to keep things from moving around while working on them.The amount depends on how tight your fit of the components is to the tang( if everything is a tight fit- only put the glue in the tang hole of the wooden handle piece).Take this assembly to the grinder and shape it ,using the measurements of your piece of stag to get the final size and shape.Sand by machine or hand to a good 400 grit finish.Put your propane torch to the scrap wood handle section keeping the flame away from the spacers and burl.Heat it a bit and with a gloved hand twist it until the epoxy lets go.It may take several heats to warm it up enough but once it is about 200 degrees it will come off easily.The rest of the parts may come off with a little twist and pull now,or you may need to heat the tang a bit.Same as before,it will slide off easily when the epoxy breaks down with the heat.Warm the sacrificial guard if needed to get it off the spacer/burl assembly.Nor you can clean up the blade and tang,solder on your guard,slide the spacer /burl section on and test fit the stag piece.Trim the stag as needed for a good fit,and shape the end as needed to join the spacer.When everything is pretty close,assemble the handle with slow set epoxy,(insert the pin through the stag if you are using one),Stick the blade tip in a block of Styrofoam or clamp it in a padded vise.Let the handle set up keeping it straight and snug till the epoxy sets.(a trick to put a little down pressure on the butt is to put a box on the work bench about 3 feet away,with the edge about the same height as the butt in the vise.Place a 1X3' board on the box with the other end resting on the antler butt.This provides a gentle down pressure to keep the parts snug while the epoxy sets). When set firmly,take out and clean up the drips with acetone.keeping it off the antler as much as possible.Let dry and harden overnight.Hand sand the final fit and finish on the entire assembly,buff as you desire and admire the work you've done.
- Joined
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If I understood you right, this is a stick tang knife? If so, install your guard, get everything cleaned up, put a few notches in the tang corners, to hold epoxy, butter everything up and screw it together.
Wipe off any excess you don't want on the outside, and let sit in an area of at least 70 degrees(your house) for 24 hours, and then finish grind your handle.
Stick tang with a threaded pommel is the easiest one to do, as it holds itself together. Just don't go crazy with the torque when screwing the pommel on and you'll be fine.
Wipe off any excess you don't want on the outside, and let sit in an area of at least 70 degrees(your house) for 24 hours, and then finish grind your handle.
Stick tang with a threaded pommel is the easiest one to do, as it holds itself together. Just don't go crazy with the torque when screwing the pommel on and you'll be fine.
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
Moderator
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2004
- Messages
- 38,349
I just saw that you are using a threaded pommel.That will make it even easier to do the method I suggested.You can probably skip the glue in the setup stages if the assembly screws down tight. - Stacy