help fitting buttcaps

R

Ryan Meyering

Joined
May 4, 1999
Messages
534
Hello all,

I just finished profiling my first couple of blades, and am considering doing another in a hidden tang configuration with a stag handle. Can anyone who has made this type of knife tell me how you fit the buttcap to the handle material? Did you just epoxy it on, or is there another way of doing this? I know I could just buy a handle with a pre-fitted buttcap, but I'd rather do it myself.

Thanks,

Ryan

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For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23


 
Ryan, thread the end of that hidden tang and drill and tap your butt cap, then you can just screw it on. For a nice look put spacers between the cap and the stag stick. When its all tightened you grind it to desired shape and polish it up.

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Jake Evans,War Chief of the Terrible Ironic HORDE, Wielder of the Mighty Blade SOUL STEALER
 
Okay, I think I can manage drilling and tapping the buttcap (tapping just requires a special drill bit, right?) But how can I thread the tang? Is there a special tool I can use for this?

Thanks,

Ryan

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For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23


 
easiest way is to slot the tang...it only needs to be one to two inches long...and weld a piece of threaded rod (thread-all) into the slot....like if you hold up your index and middle finger and then stick the index finger of your other hand in between them...simple right? protect the h/t of the blade while you do this...then as said above, you actually make the buttcap into a blind hole nut by drilling 2/3s of the way thru and then tapping the hole...easy to do. keep everything straight and square...i would use either 6-32 or 1/4-20 rod and tap. make sure you use enough threaded rod so you have a little to trim off after you get everything all set up. i would say have it about 5.5 inches from the back of the guard while you are fitting everything together.. then stick all the parts you want to use for the handle on there...put the buttcap up against everything with the rod next to it.. and guesstimate how much to cut off...the more turns you get on the thread the better. like everything it takes a few times (100 or 200) to get good at it!!

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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
Some of us don't have welding or brazing equipment. Is there any other way to attach a threaded rod? Soldering? JB Weld? Some kind of pin arrangement?
 
Great suggestions, but I'm with cjensema; no welding equipment. Threading the tang probably isn't the most efficient way, but if it's my only option, is there a tool I can use to do it?

Thanks for all the replies; I appreciate your help.

Ryan



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For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23


 
well, if you just have to thread the tang, you can buy a matched tap and die set from most tool stores. the tap threads the hole in the but cap, and the die threads the end of the tang.

One alternative is to cut the head off of a 3/8 bolt, and cut/file a 1/8 slot in the middle of the non threaded end. drill a 1/8 in hole through the two "ears" on the bolt and through the stub tang on your knife. Pin with 1/8 stainless or steel pin. This is also a nifty way to accomodate a piece of stag that has a pretty significant curve to it without trying to bend a tang.

if you dont want to drill and tap your buttcap, you can weld a nut to the center of it too
smile.gif
You might even bet by with jb weld, but I never tried it.

James

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I love my country! I just don't trust my government!
 
A 3/8 inch bolt is a pretty significant piece of metal.

An alternative idea that occurs to me is to take a piece of 1/8 rod, bend one end into a hook and thread the other end. Put the hook end into a hole in the tang, put on your handle material with lots of epoxy, and screw on the butt cap. The epoxy would hold the hook in place when it hardened.

I haven't tried this yet, but I plan to. Has anyone else tried this?

Carl
 
Carl,

I'm probably missing something here, but how would that be easier than just threading the tang, assuming you thread the tang before heat treatment?

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For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23


 
Ryan, you just grind/cut the end of the tang to roughly the size you need and round the edges the best you can so when you thread it, it looks like a bolt with two sides ground flat. Take your time and it will come out alright. You might want to practice on some scrap and get the feel of it first, but this always worked well for me when there were no welders handy. I'm sorry I wasn't more clear about it in the first place. I see you already realize it needs to be done before heat treating.
If you have any more questions, feel free to E Mail me. If needed. I'll give you my phone number and explain it better.

Jake

 
Jake,

Thanks! I just might take you up on that e-mail offer when it comes time to do it.

Ryan



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For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23


 
I do a little different
I epoxy the stag on the tang then drill
the back out about 3/4" and then drill two blind holes in the brass butt cap and solder pieces of brass rod in the holes long enough
to fit the hole in the stag. Then epoxy the
cap in the hole in the stag. Makes a very
clean looking finish. I slightly angle the
brass rods towards each other to make it
more secure in the epoxy. I do the same thing with wood butt caps only I use super
glue to secure the brass rods in the wood.
I use accura glas epoxy and I have had the
knives dropped on concrete and the caps have
not come off.

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http://www.imt.net/~goshawk
Don't walk in tradition just because it feels good!!!!!
Romans 10:9,10
Hebrews 4:12-16
Psalm 91

 
a lot of good ideas here...but the goal is a well built knife that will NOT come apart.. period...no matter what....go with thte braze/weld technique...you must know someone who has a torch or a small wire feed welder.

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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
I must agree with Tom. Welding or brazing is the right answer here. Preferrably welding. If you don't want to tap the butt cap then a nut can be brazed or welded to it if need be depending on the material used for the butt cap.

If you just absolutely cannot weld or braze the all-thread to the tang than I suppose the next best thing would be to slot the all-thread, place the end of the tang in the slot and drill a hole thru the all-thread and tang and then place a pin through it. You may want to at least drill the hole prior to heat treat unless you have carbide drill bits.

C Wilkins
 
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