How do your wooden scales come?

[BlueFalcon]

This is a question for the wooden knife scale enthusiasts. I bought some stabilized black ash burl scales and the retailer I bought it from online, shipped them to me in what I would consider pretty bad condition. This is my first time buying wooden scales so I want to know if this is normal. it came to me taped together and when I took off the tape it left a lot of residue on the wood that I had to spend extra time getting off, I had to also end up sanding the wood by hand so that I could actually even begin to see the grain. There are also deep scratches from what I would assume is either the saw they use to rip this wood into scale size or some sort of rough sanding they did before shipping it. Anyway please let me know if this is normal because if it isn't I'm not buying anything in the future from them. Thanks everyone in advance.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I think the assumption is that most raw scale material is going to be shaped, carved or sanded into finished condition after the fact, by the consumer. So, if the material comes in somewhat rough condition, I personally wouldn't be too concerned about it. Don't know if coarse saw marks are the norm, but unless they're so deep that not enough material would be left after sanding them out, I'd think most could be dealt with.

Having said that, I do think it's fair for a buyer to be able to know or see the grain/figuring in the wood, before purchasing it. If the seller did a poor job representing that, I'd be disappointed. Also, if the wood was significantly cracked/split, warped or had excessive/large voids or other unrepairable defects, I'd find that unacceptable too.

 

[jpadia]

I don't think I would be too worried if I were you. A picture would help though if you have one. When I buy scales, they are usually cut from a block and taped together when shipped. The inside is rough cut. I don't mind because I end up hand sanding to make sure they are flat. The outside of the scales are usually finished to at least 220 and coated to show the grain. This is how I'm able to pick out the scales to buy. I end up removing this finish when I shape the handle, but it does serve to show the grain so I can decide how I want the handle to look. I've never had any issues with tape residue, but it would not be an issue for me. I recently ordered some cocobolo from a different online retailer and it came in what I would call "worse" condition. It had the same saw marks, but had some wax on it and neither side was finished to show the grain. None of this affected the outcome and it made a nice handle.

 

[Poez]

They do cut these scales off the block probably using a table saw, and I do not think there would be any reason whatsoever to do any additional finishing before the scales are cut to shape drilled and glued to the tang. You need to watch for any signs of cracks, voids, defects or warp: that is what I would call bad condition.