Recommendation? How would you make a knife to scrape down a 8" diameter pole?

L

LCoop

Joined
May 5, 2007
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Well technically it wouldn't need to be knife quality metal. Here's the deal. I just recently went on vacation and did some surf and intercoastal fishing. The rental I stayed in was next door to a year around resident. He taught me more about salt water fishing intercoastal waters in two weeks than I could have learned in a lifetime of trial and error or watching youtube.

Anyhow one day he took me fishing for sheep heads. Of course we used some fiddler crabs but his number one bait was barnacles scraped of pier poles. Yes we caught several with barnacles. He used a regular flat shaped putty knife and scraped his and mine dock poles. We ended up with a bunch of damaged barnacles to get some good ones.

So I got to wonder how one could take a existing putty knife and reshape it to scrape a round pole. EX: what type of steel used in putty knives? Could I remove the existing handle and heat treat to shape and then reheat treat and temper to spring temper.

Or would I be ahead to use knife steel and make a knife to accomplish this. It should be thin and doesn't need to be really hardened or if so tempered down to spring harness. What type of metal should I use?

FYI I don't have a forge but strictly do stock removal. I do have a knife kiln and tempering oven and do my own heat treat but lately just use SS blade material.

Any thoughts on which way you would accomplish this? I'd love to make him a new rounded scraper for a Christmas gift,
 
Have you considered a draw knife? I use the 2 I have for making bows but it might work better than a putty knife.
 
First thing that hit me was a draw knife. You can find an old one in a pawn shop or flea market.
A floor tile scraper or sidewalk edger would also work. You may want to cut the handle shorter if needed.


I did find this image:
1726307737507.png
 
Thanks Stacy. I never thought about looking for a picture. That's exactly what I'd like to make! Any suggestions of metal or how you would go about making one? I'm guessing AEB-L would work fine. I'm also thinking to be rust resistant I'd have to go ahead and heat treat and really draw back the temper. No need to be sharp as you don't want to dig into wooden poles. But several around here are PVC filled concrete anyhow.
 
Honestly, I would buy a scraper from Amazon or Home Depot. It wouldn't need to be curved. The one below is like $27 on the big A.

1726318976537.png
 
If I were to make one, I'd probably look for a scrap piece of stainless 14-16g sheet and just cut and bend to the radius, then rivet it to a pole.
 
You all are far too practical....the first thing I thought of was a Magnacut Sickle! lol
 
Sorry Stacy but it DOES need to be curved if you don't want to ruin most of the barnacles. He already has been using straight flat shaped putty knives. You only cutting a minute amount of barnacles off correctly where they need to be without damaging good barnacles. ALSO keep in mind your not standing on solid ground while doing the scraping. Your in a boat with waves and scraping off the side of the boat while moving. He already has a "net" that's shaped to the pier.

Imagine scraping a ROUND pole with the image Stacy posted. You are only going to save 1/8" of the barnacles scraped per scrape if your lucky. And ruin a bunch of other good barnacles. It' might be good for removing barnacles that you DON"T want to save for bait. But thinking about it even if you don't want to save the barnacles using a straight or flat scraper would take ten times the work as opposed to one that closely matches the curvature of a pole.
 
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OK, make one from an 8X6" piece of 14-16 gauge stainless. You can pound it into a curve with a hammer if you don't have a friend with a press. An auto repair shop or muffler shop could curve it on their press for you, too. Any handle will work that you can bolt on.
 
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