Gluing handles on Becker, to strip under the scales or not to strip?

I

IndigoJack

Joined
Jan 27, 2015
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First off, I just want to say this is my first post on the forum, but I have been a lurker for quite a while, and I love the information and the personalities here. I'm probably only a year or two into my interest in knives, but I love to work with my hands so when I saw the BK5 and BK15 were being discontinued, and remembered all the raving about Becker, i bought two of each 😎

Now my BK5 is stripped except for under the handle. I plan on using corby bolts and epoxy to glue the handles on for extra strength and some sealing. My question is wether or not epoxy will stick to this coating, or if I need to strip under the scales as well. I worry about rust under the handles, but that will depend on how good my work is I suppose. I'm using Acraglas by the way. The original, not the gel.

Hopefully those of you with more experience can save me from myself hahaha
 
Welcome Jack! Many of us here were long time lurkers. I screwed up stripping mine and ended up full on strip. But with removable scales, upkeep is easy. Most folks will say keep it under the scales which makes sense as far as low maintenance is concerned. Can't say about gluing them down or if epoxy will stick or not. I would not opt for this due to the fact that it would make scale removal more complicated. Eventually you'll rescale or something. I'm the same way and like to fart around and release my creativity on my Beckers. That's one if the main draws for me is that you can break them down then put them back together your way and make it unique. Just my input, people do many different methods and they turn out awesome anyway.
I have to say fine choice on the 5 and 15 and doubling up is sweet!
Welcome to the boards and please post pics!
Here's the family photo thread:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1266537-The-Official-Becker-Family-Pic-Thread

And here's some mods I did with the 5 and 15 which were my first major mod jobs:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...Scales-and-strip-in-progress(COMPLETE!3-5-15)

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1277738-BK15-scale-mod-reworked
 
Welcome to the addiction. ;)

I believe the coating is some kind of baked on epoxy so it would not seem necessary to strip it.

Even if it wasn't actually epoxy, it's damn hard to get off and would still be better than stripped steel.


Agree with NC. If you don't strip under the scales, sealing with epoxy wouldn't be that much better.
 
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Thanks for the replies. The reason I planned on epoxy is that im keeping one of the bk5s total,y stock and hoping to make this modded one look more "traditional", with the look of a handle with pins. That's why I went the corby route, but from what I understand the corby aren't easily removable once the slot for the screwdriver is filed flat. Does that make sense? I have a hard time describing. I couldn't think of a better way to get the traditional pinned handle look while keeping the removability.
 
I you do plan on a full on forever epoxied handles,then,remove the coating,it will be much stonger if the wood is epoxied right onto the metal....i yet have to find the time to do my BK5 but i have done many esees at this point and stripping the whole thing will,first,make it stronger and,second,look much better.good luck man.
Looking forward what you ll come up with.
 
NC, I had actually seen your thread before, right at the beginning of my brainstorming for handle ideas. I have some stabilized Buck eye wood and some maroon micarta liners. I guess I'm stuck with what to use to fasten the handles. While I love the function of Beckers stock setup, I want something that looks a little cleaner. I really like the way your mod came out, yours has the look I'm going for as far as hardware goes. They're not pins, but they have a clean look that goes well wit a traditional style handle. I'm just working with limited tools for countersinking, and sure where to find the right hardware other than the corbys I have and a couple of acorn bolts or whatever the proper name for those is haha
 
Darksidedenny said:
I you do plan on a full on forever epoxied handles,then,remove the coating,it will be much stonger if the wood is epoxied right onto the metal....i yet have to find the time to do my BK5 but i have done many esees at this point and stripping the whole thing will,first,make it stronger and,second,look much better.good luck man.
Looking forward what you ll come up with.
Click to expand...

Thank you, I'm still weighing the options now I guess hahaha it's a rough decision. I love the removable idea because I like to alter things but the look of pins or corbys is planted in my mind.
 
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I know these are not becker contents but this is the best i have to illustrate what i was trying to say...all done by me and by hand.;)
 
I agree with Darksidedenny. If you are going to put the new handles on and leave them FOREVER, you should strip the coating first. Whatever epoxy you use for the new handles will provide all the rust protection you'll need.

Welcome aboard and hold on to your hat (and wallet)! It's going to be a wild ride!!! :D
 
Yeah. Got it. I like the stainless bolts with cap nuts. If you check my thread above, I used the corby(I think) and cut just the threaded part off and used it with screws on both sides. The corby post fits exactly in the stock screw holes in the BK5 handle. Had to drill them out on the 15 and that was a bit of a chore not having a proper bit but the results are worth it.
Here's the cap screw look. If you do this make sure you get Home Despots because bLowes are really tall.


10-24x3/4" and 10-24 cap screws for the big beckers
8-32x3/4" and 8-32 cap screws for the tweeners

I use liners(another fun and easy project) so the 3/4 work and the cap screws hide the extra length and give it a finished look. Without liners I guess you'd need 1/2" for the tweener? Not sure because all of mine have liners and 3/4. I do know, however, without liners the 3/4 on the tweeners leave the scales loose. I think it's ok on the big scales because the stock ones are 5/8" I believe. But, once again. When I do the stainless upgrade I also make liners so I'm not 100%.
 
To countersink I just used a larger bit after drilling all the way thru with the same size as the screw hole. I'm pretty much a hack and just figure it out as I go along heh. I have no special equipment or bits except for a small cheap drill press my dad gave me when he moved. That's great for keeping stuff straight. Although I used a hand drill for the 14 scales.
None of its perfect but I'm doing it for me not for a customer and its good enough for a user. I like a little grungy and home made look anyway.
 
Welcome, Indigo! Since this is basically gonna be a one time deal, you'll want to strip under the scales. Rough up the steel as well. You could also just use straight up pins; the epoxy is what's holding the slabs on, anyways. You'll have no rust worries if your glue job is good. Daizee posted the list of steps in the Beckerhead knifemaking and mod thread, there's quite a trove of excellent info there as well as lots of pics. I actually think leaving the coating on might cause some unanticipated problems. Good luck!
 
NCSlice said:
To countersink I just used a larger bit after drilling all the way thru with the same size as the screw hole. I'm pretty much a hack and just figure it out as I go along heh. I have no special equipment or bits except for a small cheap drill press my dad gave me when he moved. That's great for keeping stuff straight. Although I used a hand drill for the 14 scales.
None of its perfect but I'm doing it for me not for a customer and its good enough for a user. I like a little grungy and home made look anyway.
Click to expand...

I like your style hahaha were basically working with the same tools. Perfect is not what I expect. I like a little bit of a rustic look myself
 
If you're anything like most here, multiples are in your near feature. Two 2's, three 16's, two 9's etc. So I say make it yours beyond a shadow of a doubt. Granite is right on prep work. Though I will add wash it with soap & dry it well. You don't left over grit & debris before gluing it.
 
I've got 3 stripped 16s I use just in the kitchen. I drop them in the dishwater just like everything else. I have no real problems with rust and cannot detect any...no rust oozing out of the cracks. I switched a couple of them to TKC scales and found a slight amount of rust beneath them that I just washed off in the kitchen sink.

I do let them dry and put the lightest coat of mineral oil *just on the blade* that I can and wipe that off as best as possible. The knives are then ready to go again. I don't worry about rust.
 
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