Knife Handles

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Sipavicius

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Feb 18, 2014
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Hello I recently bought a Russell Green River Camp/Hunter knife and along with it a pair of Buffalo Horn scales. I am by no means a knife maker because this is my first time even attaching the handle. I live in an apartment and have no machinery to work with so I have recently came into some problems. The only current tools I have to make this handle are: metal file, 2-in. C-clamp, hacksaw. I know I'm missing a few thing that are required but I will purchase sand paper and epoxy when I get to that point. I have only roughly cut out one scale so far and I have some questions that need answering.

1. I do not own or have access to a table drill. If I used a hand power drill am I running a great risk of not drilling the holes straight? Do they have to be perfectly straight? If so are there any other methods? Or is there some sort of place I can use a table drill for a small fee?
2. Is the epoxy adhesive mandatory? I have three sets of brass rivets and the male part will have to expand a bit for the female part to go in. Could this hold my knife handle in place for a lifetime?
3. What grain of sand paper is normally used to finish the knife handles?
4. Can I use my C-clamp throughout the whole process? Can I use it to press the rivets together/in place when the time comes?

I really appreciate any helpful information anyone can provide. As I said before I'm completely new and I am only making a personal knife. If I learn how to do it this just might become a hobby of mine. Thanks.
 
Welcome to Shop talk.

The hand drill will work OK.
Drill a smaller hole ( 1/8") and then re-drill it larger.
Epoxy is a must!
The cutlers rivets you have are not the best choice for horn handles, as they may split in installing the rivets. You would do better with just using brass pins. The local hardware store or hobby shop will have 1/4" brass rod.

Filling out your profile will help us help you. Just knowing where you are and a bit about you and your age will often get an offer of help and materials from a local maker.
 
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Filled it out! Thanks for the info.

Will the pins stay in place by themselves or is there something I need to specifically do?
 
You rough the sides of the pins/rivets with 100 grit paper. then you rub epoxy on them as well as put some in the holes in the scales. you put everything together and clamp lightly. When all is cured (24 hours) file the pins down flush or file to about 1/16" proud and peen.
 
Get the five ton epoxy that takes 20 minutes or longer to dry. The 5 min stuff isn't as strong.
The epoxy not only bonds but helps seal out moisture on the tang so it don't get rust pushing the handle scales away from the steel. Rough up the tang and the flats of the horn scales to 120 grit and then evenly butter them up with the epoxy and assemble and clamp as Stacy has suggested.
 
Sipavicius - I just did a W.I.P. thread about how I do my handles. I was on a spyderco Mule blank. It will give you some ideas to think about and maybe help with some questions if you see how I did it. Not everyone does it like that though...

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1154179-Handling-a-Spyderco-Mule-W-I-P

Everything I did could be done, with a hand drill, your C - Clamps and a 2 x 4, sandpaper, and your file. It would just take some extra time.
 
Sipavicius said:
1. I do not own or have access to a table drill. If I used a hand power drill am I running a great risk of not drilling the holes straight? Do they have to be perfectly straight? If so are there any other methods? Or is there some sort of place I can use a table drill for a small fee?
Click to expand...

The risk is relatively high as it's difficult to keep the drills lined up for a straight hole-although there are products that can be purchased to help with this. They are basically precision machined blocks with holes drilled to exactly match certain size bits. They basically force you to drill straight-otherwise the bit will likely snap. I'm not certain how effective they are, but I intend on purchasing one myself as
I figure it'll be worth a try as the reviews on it are good (found them on Amazon).

If the hole isn't straight, you will have hell fitting the handle to the blade and it will result in significant gap issues if you're using a guard or ferrule (which you should). It would also result in a blade that isn't inline with the handle-which of course, just looks horrible. I've recently had this issue myself-tried shaping the handle to make the slanted blade not be a issue..but yeah, didn't work as the blade is still noticeably crooked.

As for sandpaper-it's based on the material and preference. For buffalo horn, you probably want to go a higher grit, so perhaps stop at around 600? I've never worked with horn so wouldn't know.
 
While the above post is good info, a simple handle like on your green river blade will be no problem with a hand drill.

The simplest way to get a good alignment on the scales and pins is to tape one scale in place before any shaping is done. Drill the smaller guide holes through that scale from the tang side, trying to center each hole with the one in the tang. Now, take that scale off the knife and tape the two scales together. Drill the front hole through first. Use the smaller bit , and then switch to the bit that will fit the rivet. The proper size drill bit just allows the pin/rivet to slip through the hole without any force, but with a minimum of slop. Once this hole is made right, stick a pin/rivet through it. Then drill the hole on the butt end and put a pin through it. Drill the third hole if there is one and fit its pin/rivet. This should give you perfectly matched holes. Before you take this assembly apart, shape and sand the front end of the handle where it will sit on the blade. This area can't be shaped and sanded after assembly, so it needs to be done off the knife before glue-up.

Once ready to put the handle on, use the slowest setting epoxy you have available. One hour is the minimum. Twenty-four hour set is the best.
Tape up the blade with masking tape to within an inch of where the handle will start. Wearing rubber gloves when installing handles is a good idea. Mix the epoxy well and put a layer on one side of the blade tang as well as on one scale. Roll a pin in some epoxy and slide it through the front hole on the scale and place on the tang. Apply epoxy to the other scale and the other side of the tang, and slide the second scale on the pin. From here it is a simple matter of rolling the pins in some epoxy and sliding them in place. Wipe off the major excess of epoxy and then clamp the scales down VERY LIGHTLY. Don't clamp too hard. Wipe off any excess epoxy from the blade ricasso with a paper towel and acetone. Set the assembly aside on some newspaper and don't pick it up for at least 15 minutes. Check the epoxy pot regularly, and when it starts to get gelled, pick up the knife assembly and clean off any new drips on the blade with a paper towel and acetone. Don't worry about any epoxy on the handle, as this will all be sanded off later. If all is good, set it down and leave it for 24 hours. After the epoxy fully cures, you can file and sand the handle to the desired final shape.
 
You may find something in this old thread that may help as well. I used stabilized wood for the project, but it's not so different from your horn, although as others have mentioned, the horn can crack and split from incorrect handling. Give those scales a good dip in mineral oil at least yearly too once you have the knife complete. Feel free to pm me questions in the future. I may not have the answer, but I'll try to help you find it. You're gonna have a great time doing that. Don't be surprised if you want to do another. ;)

Edit- would probably help if I gave you the link.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1092821
 
Is there any other way of making holes in the scales other than electrical means? I do not own a power drill but I might be able to borrow one.
 
When I was a kid and I got to help out in my dad's wood working shop he had a hand powered drill. I would borrow a powered hand drill
 
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