I had my BA-E Bead Blasted (Pics)

Silas · Oct 7, 2005

I think it turned out pretty good. There's only only one bad spot, right at the bottom of the handle. I really didn't notice it until I started taking pictures. I took the handles off like a moron

and now I guess I'll have to put them back on with the ole style fasteners. I'm going to do either my NO-E or my BM-E and leave the handles on. :thumbup:

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Here's a couple of before shots. You can notice a gouge in the crinkle coating on one side. I bought it that way from a private individual. It was unused and unsharpened, just had a big gouge in the crinkle coating. It didn't scratch the Infi though

. I also scrubbed the handles to get them clean. I carry it in a pouch sheath and you can see how far the sheath comes up on the handle.

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Cutshaw · Oct 7, 2005

Nice, nice job. That looks really great.

Incidently, what kind of costs are involved when you get a blade bead-blasted? Does the actual blasting take very long or does the coating come off pretty easily under the pressure of the bead blaster?

doorkicker · Oct 7, 2005

that looks really good. why not contact jerry and see if you can have them refasten the handle? i cant see it costing you that much money to have them do it right.

Solstice · Oct 7, 2005

Darn... you guys are fast! I'm still in the process of buying the blaster.

That knife looks flat out great! Now I got to get the blaster and the abrasive. Where did you end up buying the glass bead? Where you able to get the 120 grit that Skunk recommended? All Harbor Freight has is 80 grit.

More details please!

Great job bro. Very nice work, clean. I would try and get Jerry to put the handles back on. Yeah the next one don't bother taking them off. Dwayne and Skunk have both said that the blast won't effect the micarta. If your worried about that you could always tape off the handles.

DC Rocks!

Stay Strong & No Regrets!

Solstice · Oct 7, 2005

BTW, what type of sandblaster did you use? Pressurized with a cabinet or a hopper type?

Stay Strong & No Regrets!

Silas · Oct 8, 2005

Thanks for the compliments. I'll be honest, I was really wondering what I was getting myself into when the job started. I did strip it before I had the blasting done. There was a little bit of black coating on it when I gave it to him. The handle blasted fine but I will be getting the blade good and clean on the next one before it gets blasted. You can't really tell on the pics but if you hold the BA-E at the right, well I guess it would be the wrong angle in the light you can see what looks like the shadow of a stain on the blade. Here are some comparison blade finish shots with two Busse Factory DCBB SFNO's.

He charged me $20.00 which I was happy with. The blasting was fast. Switching the machine from sand to beads took a few minutes.

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cleaner145 · Oct 8, 2005

That came out sweet. That stain is not even visible in the first set of shots and once you put it to work you'll never notice it again. A very nice bit of work. :thumbup:

Peter La · Oct 8, 2005

That looks great! :thumbup:

Does anyone know what is more durable between the bead blasted (the do it yourself version) finish and the crinkle coat?

Solstice · Oct 8, 2005

Thanks for the more info Silas. Can't really notice the stain that much... I think I see what you're talking about. In the center of the blade. I swear from the pics it looks every bit as good as the factory DCs. This might not be the case up close, I'll be finding out soon. Just ordered my beadblaster and abrasive from Habor Freight. From what I understand, Jerry puts a satin finish on the knives then beadblasts them. It sounds like a lot of trouble so I'm not positive that is his actual procedure. I would think it would make the DC knives more expensive then a satin finish knife. But, it difinitely would insure no blimishes. Now that you've experienced it for me, I'm thinking I might hand sand my Ratweiler some prior to blasting. It also has some black still on it.

Peter I would definitely say the DC is much stronger than the black crinkle. I've done similar things to knives with both coatings and the DC doesn't change much, while the black crinkle comes off. Mind you it isn't easy to get the crinkle off. It's pretty strong stuff, whatever it is.

BTW... thanks Silas, you just had to put up a picture of a DC SFNO with Mag handles didn't you?

Is it a fatty? If it is a fatty and had black canvas magnum handles it would be my "someday" knfe! Even still, I'm green with envy when looking at those SFNOs! Very nice bro, VERY NICE!

Stay Strong & No Regrets!

idahoskunk · Oct 8, 2005

looks good, nice job

:thumbup:

u812 · Oct 9, 2005

I did strip it before I had the blasting done.

How did you strip it?
I am thinking about doing mine.If the handles are left on what is the best way to protect them from the blaster?

rbmcmjr · Oct 9, 2005

u812 said:
How did you strip it?
I am thinking about doing mine.If the handles are left on what is the best way to protect them from the blaster?

The stuff I used for my NO-e was "JASCO Premium Paint and Epoxy Remover". It works very well on the smooth areas, but left some residue in the dimples.

Micarta is very tough stuff and you don't need to protect it. As I understand it, the folks at CRK don't even mask the micarta on the inlaid Sebenzas when they refurbish them in the bead blaster.

Rick

u812 · Oct 9, 2005

Thanks,How does it come out if the scales are left on,can you tell that the coating is still under them?

thatmguy · Oct 9, 2005

Any secret codes or maps under the micarta????

Silas · Oct 9, 2005

I would definitly leave the handles on. I will be leaving them on with the next one. I do recommend doing a good job of stripping and sanding the blade though. I would also recommend the Jasco paint stripper that the others have mentioned. They were sold out so I bought the cheaper stuff and BOY did it suck. I had no where near the results the others did. It took forever and there was alot of strenuous sanding involved. GET THE GOOD STUFF! I'm thinking of resanding the blade on the BA-E and running it through the BB again. I should just be worried about getting the handles back on though.

1. Strip with Jasco, the jelly not the spray.
2. Do a good job sanding the blade, by hand.
3. Blast with sand
4. Blast with beads
5. Go pick up women. The Ladies dig DC.

Thanks again for all the compliments.

Silas · Oct 9, 2005

thatmguy said:
Any secret codes or maps under the micarta????

Why do you think I layed the handles on it in all of the pictures.

Actually it was the shape of some kind of bottle cut out of the steel.

rbmcmjr · Oct 9, 2005

u812 said:
Thanks,How does it come out if the scales are left on,can you tell that the coating is still under them?

You can't see the coating. The finish merges with the scales and there is no seam. Someone (SkunK?) mentioned that if you take off the scales and strip it, then they won't fit as cleanly afterwards.

Rick

idahoskunk · Oct 9, 2005

1a Leave scales on and all clothing.
1b Strip with Sand @ 100psi.
2. Do a good job sanding the blade, by Sand.
3. Blast with sand (100psi) @ all angles from 18".
4. Blast with beads (30psi) straight on from 18".
5a Get naked.
5b Go pick up women. The Chicks dig Sand.

wetdog1911 · Oct 9, 2005

Solstice said:
Darn... you guys are fast! I'm still in the process of buying the blaster.

That knife looks flat out great! Now I got to get the blaster and the abrasive. Where did you end up buying the glass bead? Where you able to get the 120 grit that Skunk recommended? All Harbor Freight has is 80 grit.

More details please! Great job bro. Very nice work, clean. I would try and get Jerry to put the handles back on. Yeah the next one don't bother taking them off. Dwayne and Skunk have both said that the blast won't effect the micarta. If your worried about that you could always tape off the handles.

DC Rocks!

Stay Strong & No Regrets!

What you need to do this right is CERAMIC beads. This is what Kit Carson and I believe Busse uses. Much better than glass beads and really does 'ping' the metal shut. Big difference between glass and ceramic beads. If there wasn't, I doubt if Kit would go to the added expense and Busse mentioned ceramic beads, not glass.

Also, very expensive, but will go through the blaster 12/15 times rather than the 2 or 3 of the glass. Also it dissintragates rather than break up so there are no sharp edges to cut the metal.

The name of the stuff is ZIRBLAST and is made in France, thus the high cost due to shipping. I think what Kit reccmd was ZB-60. I have all the details in my other computer if you are interested. It may be worthwhile to split a 50# pail with someone as, IIRC it's around $250 for 50#.

Blasting Micarta is no big deal, just adds a bit of sticky to it.

I would call the shop and see if they could re do the tube fasteners. Shouldn't be a big deal, but who knows? Looks to me like re installing pop rivets. No big thing if you have the right tool.

Rob

idahoskunk · Oct 9, 2005

i get my 120 sieve beads from a place called "graingers" i shoot it once and never use it again. the glass beads i use leave the finish as smooth as a blade babes bottom! :thumbup: