- Joined
- Jan 22, 1999
- Messages
- 331
And it was Cool!!!!
I've been here going on 13 years, and I just built my 1st 110's. I've been in the Quality dept all these years and have not built much of anything before. Part of what I'm doing is getting more familiar with assembly operations since all these years I have been working pretty much on the parts end of things.
So I had our Production Engineer who was the Supervisor for the 110 line these past years give me a lesson on building some from scratch.
I started with brass handles , Green Dymondwood bias cut scales and BG-42 blades (as long as I'm gonna build some, they might as well be unique). I ended up building a matched set of two 110's, one with fingergrooves and one W/O. (pics below)
I gotta tell you, I had a blast, and they came out killer. (there are a couple of flaws, but they are MY flaws and they add character)
I started by assembling the wood to the sides with rivets, and then assembled the rough assembly.
I then riveted the bolster ends and rocker in place. So far so good. The easy part is over.
Now I go to rough shaping. After practicing and munching some 112's, I did mine. So far so good, You can still tell its a 110.
Then over to rough polish, with a tycro wheel to blend the lines and reduce the sanding scratches. Put the knives into the harper buffing room and 8 minutes later they are really starting to look like a knife.
After that I went to do the blade work. This is where I put a small flaw in the Hollowgrind lines by greywheeling too aggressivly. Nothing major, just a rejectable item for a normal 110.
I then chickened out on the Sharpening of the units as I have never sharpened on a wheel before. I didn't want to ruin them
On to final buff and fluff buff , then a final degrease, and There they were. Better than I could have expected. It took me 6 hours to make two knives where the normal build time was 3 1/2 minutes. I don't think they'll be transferring me out to assembly anytime soon
Things I learned.
1 - Even though an operator can do between 6000-and 10000 knives week, they are still craftsman. You get one shot to sand it right.
2 - I learned which operations cause which defects.
3 - I gained a greater appreciation for the product line and how delicate the operations are.
4 - I could never do it full time.
5 - Its easy to make scrap!!!
Pictures of The 1st 100's by Jeff
Sides:
Top:
Jeff" I'm mechanicaly declined and sharpening impaired" Hubbard
Next project 119's from scratch...
------------------
Jeff "Without data it's just another opinion" Hubbard
JeffH@buckknives.com
www.buckknives.com
Watch for [bold]Pete's Custom Knife Shoppe[/bold] on www.buckknives.com
I've been here going on 13 years, and I just built my 1st 110's. I've been in the Quality dept all these years and have not built much of anything before. Part of what I'm doing is getting more familiar with assembly operations since all these years I have been working pretty much on the parts end of things.
So I had our Production Engineer who was the Supervisor for the 110 line these past years give me a lesson on building some from scratch.
I started with brass handles , Green Dymondwood bias cut scales and BG-42 blades (as long as I'm gonna build some, they might as well be unique). I ended up building a matched set of two 110's, one with fingergrooves and one W/O. (pics below)
I gotta tell you, I had a blast, and they came out killer. (there are a couple of flaws, but they are MY flaws and they add character)
I started by assembling the wood to the sides with rivets, and then assembled the rough assembly.
I then riveted the bolster ends and rocker in place. So far so good. The easy part is over.
Now I go to rough shaping. After practicing and munching some 112's, I did mine. So far so good, You can still tell its a 110.
Then over to rough polish, with a tycro wheel to blend the lines and reduce the sanding scratches. Put the knives into the harper buffing room and 8 minutes later they are really starting to look like a knife.
After that I went to do the blade work. This is where I put a small flaw in the Hollowgrind lines by greywheeling too aggressivly. Nothing major, just a rejectable item for a normal 110.
I then chickened out on the Sharpening of the units as I have never sharpened on a wheel before. I didn't want to ruin them
On to final buff and fluff buff , then a final degrease, and There they were. Better than I could have expected. It took me 6 hours to make two knives where the normal build time was 3 1/2 minutes. I don't think they'll be transferring me out to assembly anytime soon
Things I learned.
1 - Even though an operator can do between 6000-and 10000 knives week, they are still craftsman. You get one shot to sand it right.
2 - I learned which operations cause which defects.
3 - I gained a greater appreciation for the product line and how delicate the operations are.
4 - I could never do it full time.
5 - Its easy to make scrap!!!
Pictures of The 1st 100's by Jeff
Sides:
Top:
Jeff" I'm mechanicaly declined and sharpening impaired" Hubbard
Next project 119's from scratch...
------------------
Jeff "Without data it's just another opinion" Hubbard
JeffH@buckknives.com
www.buckknives.com
Watch for [bold]Pete's Custom Knife Shoppe[/bold] on www.buckknives.com
