Cold Blue Question

[blgoode]

Okay...if I were to cold blue my knife before the slab handles bolt on........What do I do to get the tang steel to match the rest of it once I have sanded off the blue finishing the handle area?

Q tip?

Or can I dip the complete finished knife?

 

[Mike Hull]

Once you completely finish the knife handle, mask off the scales ajoining the tang, leaving the tang exposed, then use cold blue on a Q-tip, like you said.

 

[rlinger]

Mike said it all generally.

I just finished my very first full tang damascus and it was a (the biggest) worry of how to submerge the ivory handle in etchant without staining the scales and yet etch all the tang. It was simpler than I had worried about. Yours will be simpler. I (as mike said) masked the tang with scoth tape and painted the top and bottom of handle with finger nail polish. It took a good while to mask the tang correctly and I used a 10X eye loop in doing so. It worked well though, very well. Just be sure to clean all tape residue and oils off the tang before you blue it. Oh, I then soaked the handle in acetone to remove the nail polish. On mine I had to be concerned about all scale surfaces. Your concern will only be that portion close to tang.

You will do fine.

Roger

 

[Lynn]

One thing I found helps with cold blueing. If you heat the surface the blueing will take better. Key to 'cold' blueing is a CLEAN surface and following all the instructions for nuturalizing after blueing.
Learning hard, Lynn

 

[blgoode]

Thanks guys....I need cold blueing and more knives to put them in!