- Joined
- Jul 29, 2014
- Messages
- 229
I'm relatively new to knives, although I have collected and worked on vintage fountain pens for years, so I guess it wasn't a matter of if I would modify a knife, but when.
A couple of weeks ago I bought a carbon fiber scale for my Hinderer XM 18 3.5 on the Exchange and today it arrived. So, immediately I had to do the deed. Fortunately in the interim I had watched a video on swapping scales and knew enough and had sufficient dexterity to hold the thing together as I loosened the standoffs and then the pivot. I had to fashion a spanner to replace the armorers tool I do not have, but the task was relatively easy, at least for someone with a bit of experience. Everything came apart as it should and neither I nor the knife were damaged (I did not tape off the blade edge).
The result: the look is barely changed at all from the stock G10. Someone who knows what they are looking at would know, but that's it. The feel is significantly different. In place of the textured G10 I have a smooth surface from the CF. Do I like it? Dunno. If I used the knife for field work, dressing game, etc. I might prefer the original scale. We'll see.
I did not take pictures, except this one desktop shot of the finished job.
One thing for sure, this will not be my last modification. Bring 'em on!
A couple of weeks ago I bought a carbon fiber scale for my Hinderer XM 18 3.5 on the Exchange and today it arrived. So, immediately I had to do the deed. Fortunately in the interim I had watched a video on swapping scales and knew enough and had sufficient dexterity to hold the thing together as I loosened the standoffs and then the pivot. I had to fashion a spanner to replace the armorers tool I do not have, but the task was relatively easy, at least for someone with a bit of experience. Everything came apart as it should and neither I nor the knife were damaged (I did not tape off the blade edge).
The result: the look is barely changed at all from the stock G10. Someone who knows what they are looking at would know, but that's it. The feel is significantly different. In place of the textured G10 I have a smooth surface from the CF. Do I like it? Dunno. If I used the knife for field work, dressing game, etc. I might prefer the original scale. We'll see.
I did not take pictures, except this one desktop shot of the finished job.
One thing for sure, this will not be my last modification. Bring 'em on!
