handle with different materials question

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AWGunS

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Sep 16, 2006
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I am going to start a Leuku style knife for my BIL this weekend, and I am going to attempt to use different materials for the handle, but I have a few concerns that I would like to discuss, and get some pointers.

Handle will start with a copper guard, around 1/8" thick, followed by a ivory paper micarta spacer 1/4" thick, birch wood section, then another ivory micarta section, and the copper pommel. My concerns are as follows.

I have done a guard on a knife before, results were OK, but I did struggle with not digging into the softer wood while trying to sand the guard. Tried using both my grinder and sanding blocks, but still struggled. Any pointers that someone could share to make this a little easier?

Another concern is the copper and ivory micarta area. I have worked only with dark wood prior to this, and I am concerned with discoloring the micarta when grinding/sanding the copper. IS this a valid concern that can be dealt with? Or is it a situation where I should dump the ivory micarta for something different?

AS far as equipment goes, I have various sanding blocks, along with the KMG grinder, with a rotary platen attachment. I love the rotary platen for convexing, but have not used it to work on handles yet.
 
Interested to see the responses to this as well, a I wondered the same thing. I'll be following along, if that's ok OP.
 
The ivory micarta will stain easily. The copper will get hot quickly, and may burn the micarta.

On solution may be using a darker material than white Micarta.

A better one is making the micarta/birch/micarta handle as one piece, and the guard and pommel separate pieces. After the handle is shaped and sanded, sand and polish the metal pieces as needed. Then assemble them and peen the tang. Using a small copper washer on top of the pommel makes this easier.

To make the handle make a mandrel that is a piece of steel shaped like the tang. Fit the three pieces on it, and when they fit, glue them up. When the epoxy is just set, but not fully hard, knock out the mandrel, clean off any epoxy, and stick it back in. You can now shape and sand the handle as needed on the mandrel. Very little fitting should be needed to put the finished handle on the knife tang.

Test fit the parts, making any adjustments needed to get a good fit-up. Shorten the tang to the amount needed to peen on the copper washer - about 1/8" to 3/16" extra is good. When all is right, epoxy the handle/guard/pommel in place, using 1 hour epoxy. Let it sit for about five to ten minutes, then clamp the blade firmly in a vise padded with leather. Peen the tang down snug, check that the parts are all aligned, wipe off as much excess epoxy as you can with a rag wetted with acetone....and let dry for 24 hours. You can take it out of the vise and clean it off well after 2 hours, and then place it back in the vise to fully cure.

Side note - I usually solder my guard on the tang first. This prevents things from moving during glue-up and peening. It also makes fitting the handle more accurate.
 
Thanks Bladsmith.

I have rethought the ivory micarta and the copper guard, and I am eliminating the ivory, and just using birch and copper.
 
If you can get a copy of Bo Bergman's book "Knifemaking", it will be a great source of ideas and info on making Puuko, Saami, and Nordic knives.
 
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