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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Flat black cord
- Thread starter ps2photo
- Start date
- Joined
- Nov 27, 1998
- Messages
- 2,602
Look under "Tsuka Ito" (Japanese sword handle cord). http://www.japanese-swords.com/pages/prices.htm This is the real thing. It's much nicer (and more costly!) than boot lace and well worth it. I wrap antique Japanese sword handles as a side-line and I can vouch for the high quality. The cotton cord is fine for most knives, especially if you're going to coat it with epoxy. The silk cord is much stronger, looks richer, lasts longer without abrading, and feels better too.
Silk shrinks slightly when wet (the opposite of leather or cotton) so keep it dry when you work it. This is tricky when wrapping a sword handle because you place triangles of moist, layered paper under the cord to give it a more "quilted" quality. Samurai would sometimes wet their sword handles before a fight to make em as tight as possible.
Heres a trick that will help you get a tighter wrap: Get a flat-jawed, heavily spring-loaded clamp (they look like a hand exerciser or large jumper cable clamp) at the hardware store. Cover the jaws with thin, adhesive-backed, dense foam or cork. As you wrap, pull the cord tight and clamp the sides of the handle. When you flip it over to work on the opposite side, you wont loose tension and your hands will be free to wrap (assuming youre using a jig or rotating vice to hold the handle).
One last note: If you stretch the cord, its surface will take on a slight curve. The convex side should face outward on the handle. This will give the wrap a more uniform appearence because the edges will roll down slightly as the wrap tightens and give the handle a smooth, rounded look.
Good luck.
[This message has been edited by Rick (edited 04-16-2001).]
Silk shrinks slightly when wet (the opposite of leather or cotton) so keep it dry when you work it. This is tricky when wrapping a sword handle because you place triangles of moist, layered paper under the cord to give it a more "quilted" quality. Samurai would sometimes wet their sword handles before a fight to make em as tight as possible.
Heres a trick that will help you get a tighter wrap: Get a flat-jawed, heavily spring-loaded clamp (they look like a hand exerciser or large jumper cable clamp) at the hardware store. Cover the jaws with thin, adhesive-backed, dense foam or cork. As you wrap, pull the cord tight and clamp the sides of the handle. When you flip it over to work on the opposite side, you wont loose tension and your hands will be free to wrap (assuming youre using a jig or rotating vice to hold the handle).
One last note: If you stretch the cord, its surface will take on a slight curve. The convex side should face outward on the handle. This will give the wrap a more uniform appearence because the edges will roll down slightly as the wrap tightens and give the handle a smooth, rounded look.
Good luck.
[This message has been edited by Rick (edited 04-16-2001).]
- Joined
- Oct 4, 1998
- Messages
- 4,131
Thanks Rick and Steve good info.
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" The real art of living is to keep alive the longing in human beings to become greater versions of themselves." Laurens Van der Post in memory of James Mattis
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" The real art of living is to keep alive the longing in human beings to become greater versions of themselves." Laurens Van der Post in memory of James Mattis