Originally posted by Danbo
You used no buffer, and got a finish like that on a wood handle? Who do you think you are, Dan Farr? 
Beautiful work, by the way!
Well, Dan Farr is my buddy. We were in the same intro class in September of 2001. Not only is Dan a good bladesmith, he is one heck of a guy! There were a number of talented folks in that class. This was due largely to Roger Massey and Mike Connor being able to teach us all "something".
I used no buffer whatsoever, just sanded in steps up to 2000 grit. Once you get past 600 grit, it only takes about 15 to 20 minutes to get to 2000 from there. I go from 600 to 1000, to 1500 then 2000 grit.
The guard, ferrule, buttcap and thong nut are all nickel silver. The thong nut was just a piece of nickel silver that is about 1 1/2 inches long that screws onto the threaded tang, thru the buttcap. I shaped it on my grinder and squared the fit to the buttcap with a file guide. I threaded the tang using a 10-24 die.
The wood was a creamy color as Guy alluded to prior to starting. It tended to darken with a combination of the wood hardener and the more I got to the finer grits. One word of caution with zebrawood. It burns very easily. What I mean is that when get past 120 grit on your grinder, be very careful, it will scorch. It was necessary to slow my grinder down quite a bit. This wood is readily available from places such as Woodcraft.
I just wasn't exactly pleased with the outcome of the basic design of the knife. Ricasso is too wide for one. It really wasn't what I had intended. Oh well, nothing like the next one.
C Wilkins
