Finger guard slot width

[Rusty Nitsch]

I have a blade that is 1/8th thick. (.125) I want to put a finger guard on this blade as there is no forged in area to protect your finger from slipping up onto the blade. The width of the handle and the width of the blade at the plunge line are the same width. How much wider than .125 does the slot in the finger guard need to be to have enough clearance for solder. Jantz sells a nickel silver finger guard but the slot is .160 wide. That is too wide for my .125 width blade so I'll need to make my own.
Ohio Rusty ><>

 

[VorpelSword]

I am not a machinist. I have only made a few knives and that was a long time ago now.


But: If I were doing it today, I'd make the ginger guard slot the same width as the handle/blade and carefully fit it. Put a bevel or under cut the inside edge a little for the solder.

I had read where a knifemaker from the 1970s-'80s, Buster Wrenski, would mirror polish the face of the brass, then use that reflection to help him keep single file strokes absolutely square and parallel when opening a slot for a gap-free friction fit. I never got to try that, but it sounds like a workable, treasonable shop technique.

Anyone with real-world experience doing that?