Knifemaker's Block...

Kalindras

Kalindras

Joined
Aug 24, 1999
Messages
933
Hey, folks, time once again to celebrate "Be kind to the Hapless" week...

I'm finishing out a nice, big Bowie(ish) blade. I've put some really beautiful ironwood scales on, but due to an experiment in the learning process, I've decided to inset something over the bolts that I used to secure the scales. I need something small and round, in the realm of 13-16mm, with a reasonably flat back.

I had toyed with the idea of using glass eyes, like those used by taxidermists (I was leaning toward something exotic, like a lizard or shark), but am gradually losing my enthusiasm for that idea. Next, I considered coins, but can't readily think of or find any info on such small change (no pun intended, but since it's there, well, what the heck...).

Any thoughts on either of these possibilities, or others? If I can get this thing done, I'd love to bring this piece to the show this Friday over in Mesquite. If not, I guess maybe I'll make the next one...

Thanks in advance, as usual, for all of your help, guys 'n gals!


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Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy, and good with ketchup...
 
Mix up some epoxy with pigment in it and fill in the holes. Just don't buff it much or it'll dish out.

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Always think of your fellow knife makers as partners in the search for the perfect blade, not as people trying to compete with you and your work!
http://www.nebsnow.com/L6steel
Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms!!!
 
Go to your local wood-working tool store and get a plug cutter. Its used for exactly the same purpose that you need it for.

Hugh
 
L6Steel--

I'd considered that, too, but that ironwood is so darned pretty that I couldn't stand the thought of having two big, dull spots in it...that's why I was looking to put something with a little more 'flash' into them...but don't think I'm not about to wrap the whole shebang with duct tape and call it done! My 'bugger all' factor on this one is growing hourly--I've been tinkering with various ideas for about three months, off and on, on this one. Dangblastit, this was going to be the first knife I made for ME. Oh, well...I'll keep thunkin' on it, I guess. Keep those thoughts comin', though!

Totally--

Here's the situation: the bolts for the scales are brass, and I want to set them in, maybe a mm or so. Will a plug cutter do this (safely--I've never tried this with one of these)? What I'm looking at doing is dishing out the wood and brass to a sufficient depth to take whatever I put in that cavity. I think I can manage the removal of the material, I'm just not sure what to put in its place, unfortunately...
frown.gif


Thanks for the thoughts so far, though. Good stuff for future reference, too!


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Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy, and good with ketchup...
 
my suggestion...get some copper or stainless tubing the size of the hole....get plug cutter or on lathe insert ironwood that is a totally different color than the handle... or mokume...have been thinking about putting that or some killer damascus in the holes of one of my tnts...should look great!

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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
Just order or make a decorative pin.Then all you do is epoxy it in the hole and finish the knife.If you want it by this weekend just get a piece of tubing cut it a little longer than you need it and then set sum pin stock in some sort of pattern in side the tubing,put some epoxy in the hole and push the decorative pin in place and the epoxy eill fill in the gaps..This is the quickest and easiest way to cover hidden pins or decorate a handle.I have one of these in the middle of the handle on my bowie with a little piece of history thread here in the shop talk forums.......Bruce

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Bruce Evans Handcrafted Knives
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The soul of the Knife begins in the Fire!!!!!
Member of,AKTI#A000223 and The American Bladesmith Society
 
Try The Rock Barrel over in Richardson. In the same strip center as Wood World. They have lots of cabachons of stone, semi-precious stone, even paua. The size you are talking about wouldn't cost more than a couple of bucks, even for nice pieces. Some of the lace or greentree agate has a rugged look that would be good in a bowie with ironwood.
 
K; find a cartridge case that suits you; say a 25/20 or 32/20 for a bowie. Maybe even a 44/40. Knock the spent primer out, cut off the head and grind flat, insert in appropriate hole,then glue. If you want to have it primed, soak new primers for a few days in wd-40, will usually deactivate them hope this helps.
 
<< soak new primers for a few days in wd-40, will usually deactivate them >>

Usually? What happens if you find out later they were not deactivated????
eek.gif
 
Ahhhhhh, so many great ideas! Thanks, everybody!

I'm thinking right now that I will probably wind up going with either the bullet rim idea, or the different wood plug idea. Mokume or pearl would be super cool, but I probably can't afford it right now (or anytime in the near future). I've never quite understood what exactly 'reconstituted' stone is, or how exactly to work it...anybody?

BTW, thanks for the tip about the Rock Barrel! I'll probably try to scoot over there, maybe tomorrow afternoon.

Finally, if I do go with the cartridge case idea, and the WD-40 doesn't kill the primer, then I guess I will have (probably posthumously) violated EVEN MORE state laws with this knife...and maybe even a few Federal ones, too! (Ballistic knives and all...)

Thanks again, and I hope to catch most of you at the show!


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Damn! That wasn't supposed to explode...yet!
 
Reconstituted stone is made from real stone chips and ground stone suspended in resin. In many cases, it is just cheaper than "real" stone. But what it loses in snob appeal and attractiveness for jewelry, it gains in toughness and ease of use for knifemakers, especially for inlay. I'm playing with some low quality lapis lazuli and emerald stones now. May have something ready for the Dalls show. More likely will post photos of my own "homegrown" reconstituted stone on my website in a couple of weeks.
 
Wild Bill--

That would work perfectly! They would fit in with the style and feel of the blade, and look good, too! Do you have any websites where I might be able to get a look at what I'm trying to find?

Thanks again, everybody! The great ones just keep rolling in. And Tom...one other little question has been weighing on my mind about the bullet idea...if you want an unspent casing, how do you (safely--always safely...I have a one-year old that I'd like to see make twenty...) get the bullet out? I've seen 'bullet pullers' in various catalogues, but they always look suspiciously like hammers of one sort or another...and I just can't get past the little gremlin image in my head that echoes, "These blockbuster bombs only go off if you hit them juuuuuuust right..."

eek.gif





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Damn! That wasn't supposed to explode...yet!
 
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