How well is JB Weld on finger guards received by buyers?

Jesse Smith

Jesse Smith

Joined
Dec 2, 2013
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163
I see that many great bladesmiths are using JB Weld on the finger guards. I understand that it is actually making a better product vs. sealing the guard with epoxy, or maybe even better than solder considering JB Weld is rated for higher temps than the melt point of the solders that would be used on a knife, plus you don't mess with the knife's temper or HT by torching it like you would when installing solder.

My concern is how is JB Weld received by knife buyers? I mean you have two types of buyers, you have the educated knife guys that might hang out on sites like this and understand that JB Weld might actually be better than solder, and you have the guys that might collect custom knives at gun shows and so forth and never talk to the makers.

I've been the second guy most of my life, and if someone had told me they used JB Weld on a knife, I would have assume there was duct tape and bailing wire involved as well. Again, I understand that JB Weld is probably one of the best options, but I'm wondering if it makes some buyers question the quality. I mean, everyone knows the best knives are soldered. :rolleyes:
 
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I have done both soldering and JB welding to seal the guard. A well made knife has a pressed on guard and doesn't actually need anything to keep it in place. However I seal the joint with JB Weld to keep moisture out. Soldering especially on Stainless is a mess after spending days grinding and hand finishing a blade and the front of the guard. There is no good way to keep the acids from fluxing from causing trouble with that finish. There is also a good possibility of trapped flux behind the joint corroding and seeping out at a later date and rearing its ugly head. How can we guarantee that won't happen? It won't happen with JB Weld.
 
I also find on some customs I have looked at, years later, you can see the solder. It does not age the same as the nickel silver guard, etc.

If you do a good job on the guard, no one should be able to tell it was JB weld at all.

I don't have a strong preference any direction, but if the knife maker is doing a good job, either way, I am happy.
 
Bruce bring up more good points about JB Weld. For clarification, I think it's great stuff and I don't know if I'll ever solder a knife.

I guess what I'm asking is has anyone lost a sale, or just got a bad reaction from a potential buyer when they heard the words JB Weld, or the lack of the word solder when describing a knife?
 
You mentioned JB Weld vs. epoxy vs.solder. For the record, as I understand it at least, JB Weld is a form of epoxy with some type of additives. I started out trying to solder guards and bolsters but my soldering skills are very lacking. I also had some of the corrosion concerns Bruce mentioned so I'm thinking JB Weld may be the better product. I guess it's up to us to educate the buyers.
 
Maybe use the term "steel reinforced epoxy" instead of JB Weld. The people that know will understand what you're talking about and the people who don't know (and would possibly be turned off by JB Weld) will think "Ooo that sound's like tough stuff." It isn't dishonest since that is all JB Weld is, steel reinforced epoxy, it just sounds better to the average laymen.
 
To reiterate - more important than the method of affixing the guard is the FIT of the guard.
One should not visibly be able to determine the "adhesive" used.
Whether JBW, epoxy or solder, its use is to render the guard/blade junction environment proof above all else.
The final assembly of the knife should render the guard motionless - not the sealant.
On my take-down knives - I use bees wax. :D
 
I haven't had a bad reaction yet to the use of JB Weld or other epoxies. However, I haven't had the volume of sales that many of you have had. That said, I think woodwrkr221 has hit on a good point. I believe it is about educating the buyer. I think soldered guards are in the same area as "forged blades are better". Soldering guards is certainly a good skill to have. But as Bruce pointed out it does have its negative points to consider. If you can effectively articulate your choices to the customer they will realize that you chose JB Weld for its positive attributes and not because it was easier to do that way. Many buyers are very well informed, some not so much. Educating the buyer can help them to let go of the myth of everything "old school" is better.
 
Karl B. Andersen said:
To reiterate - more important than the method of affixing the guard is the FIT of the guard.
One should not visibly be able to determine the "adhesive" used.
Whether JBW, epoxy or solder, its use is to render the guard/blade junction environment proof above all else.
The final assembly of the knife should render the guard motionless - not the sealant.
On my take-down knives - I use bees wax. :D
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This is absolutely right on. :thumbup:

And no, I've never lost a sale to not having a guard soldered on. In fact, that particular question has never even come up from a buyer or potential buyer.
 
JB weld, or epoxy, or any type of sealer is fine, as long as you can't see it. Like Karl said, it's all about the fit up.
 
Jesse17 said:
I would assume there was duct tape and bailing wire involved as well.
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I guess I assumed that using JB Weld was above the skill level of most Red Neck Engineers, using it would require that one could read the instructions ;0)
 
Awhile back I read where someone was giving a high end maker some grief for using regular ol lead inside of a handle for balance purposes. The lead would be sealed forever inside the handle, and it really didnt matter because it would never be seen. The lead was the right material for the job, no matter how crude the public thought it was.

Most of these guys who are critics of some of these materials have never held blade to belt. I've had people scoff at the use of two part epoxy to help hold handle materal on. Please, let me know of a more suitable material....

A local knifemaker who specializes in period pieces and movie props told me that he gets flak all the time for using modern epoxies and things like that in the construction of his knives. He always tells people that if those guys had 2 ton epoxy back then, they would have used it!
 
As everyone said, if the guard isn't fitted properly to start with, it's going to look awful no matter what you use. JB Weld just plain works, and I doubt it would stop a knife from selling overall. However, a really well-done solder job is going to impress people, because the folks who spend that kind of money often realize that it's a PITA to get right.

Josh Mason said:
A local knifemaker who specializes in period pieces and movie props told me that he gets flak all the time for using modern epoxies and things like that in the construction of his knives. He always tells people that if those guys had 2 ton epoxy back then, they would have used it!
Click to expand...

If you really want to get folks riled up, just mention that if they had quality stainless steel back then, a lot of 'em would have used that, too. :D
 
Some might be under the impression the solder is there to hold the guard on and for strength, it is not.

John N Cooper discovered corrosion between the guard and blade and came up with ways of sealing the joint between by brazing, epoxy and that lead to soldering the joint.
 
Great advice from the "been there done that" guys!
I'd just add one little point- Most people who use solder use Harris Stay brite, and the flow temp (liquidus) is 430F. That's not going to trash the HT, especially if you use a damp rag in the ricasso area and heat from the tang side.
 
About 7-8 years ago I did have one customer ask if I soldered or used JB Weld. He was insistent on the soldering. At the time I was doing both so went ahead and soldered his knife. I was kind of in a transition period, switching to JB Weld. This was the last one I soldered, for me JB weld makes more sense for all the reasons listed. I do bolsters mostly, not that many guards. He was insistent enough that it probably would of been a lost sale.
 
I really screwd up with the 5 min jb weld I was trying to get everything in place with dovetailed bolsters n getting the bolsters on and the job weld started to harden. I had to pound on it and one ss bolster never got perfectly flush. After all that work to finally get the knife to that point having few power tools it was pretty disheartening! So lesson learned don't use the 5 min version.
 
You also have to be super careful not to get the JB on areas of your unprotected wood scales that do not need sanding, it will stain
 
I did loose a sale right here on BF last year, but the. It sold soon after to someone else. That's said, I still JB my guards!
 
I think that for guards JB Weld type epoxy is taking you home the best, but if you are going to attach bolsters on slipjoint liners, i bet there aren't as many to question if solder is the way to go, all the fears of trapped flux going out of the window.
When damascus jumps into the equation probably has also its weight about the choice....
 
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