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- Dec 27, 2010
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- 6,852
So, after looking at a number of custom scales and such, and wondering what it was that makes AXIS lock knives so hard to make your own scales, I decided to bite the bullet and give it a go. After all, aftermarket scales run at least 100 dollars, often as high as 200 dollars with shipping, and that's kinda insane.
It actually took me a bit to get some of the screws out of the handle (and bear in mind I voided my warranty when I did so). That's okay. The knife has already seen some heavy use, and it's still in good shape.
I'll put up some pictures later to talk others through the process. It's definitely not easy. But you CAN do it with nothing more than a hand saw, a set of files, a drill press, and some sandpaper. Also some clamps, because precision in where you drill the holes is very important.
First thing I did was cut out a couple slabs of G10. You can use whatever material you think is best. You may also want to get some metal for spacers on the inside. I think if I were to repeat this process, I'd get some soft metal that I could machine out to fit, and get some slightly longer screws for screwing into the AXIS lock mechanism. I made sure I had a good amount of material on all sides beyond what I needed; better to have too much and sand to fit than to have too little.
Next I clamped down one of the original handle scales to the slabs using a small c-clamp, and drilled the holes for the pivot and the axis lock mechanism. I then inserted the pivot and drilled the holes for the screws that connect the AXIS lock mechanism and spacer assembly to the handles. The pictured screw hole is the only one that seems to really matter.
I counter sunk all the screws holes, and then assembled the knife. It looked very rough. I had a really tough time getting the blade in. Three things to note: 1, the AXIS lock holes need to be wider than you'd think, unless you want to counter sink along the inside. I ended up doing a lot of file work to get it to work, and it still doesn't work as smoothly as the original.
2, you need to counter sink or otherwise mill a space for the spring for the lock to function. I used my largest drill bit to do this. It wouldn't hurt if you had a small rotary tool that could do the task. Just take it slow. You don't need that much space.
3. You have to retract the AXIS lock to get the pivot to fit into the blade, especially if you're going to assemble it with the blade out, which is what I did. I shaped the end of the handle so that the thumb studs didn't interfere with the handle slabs. Then I assembled the knife carefully.
After I had the whole thing assembled, with the AXIS assembly screwed to the scales, and the blade inserted with the phosphor bronze washers, I needed a back spacer. I cut a triangular piece of black canvas micarta off, and clamped that in between my scales using my drill press vise. Then I drilled two holes. I used a largish triangle, because I could sand it down after I drilled holes. I drilled slightly smaller than the screw diameter, then screwed it in, so I didn't need to use nuts on the screws. I sanded the screw ends down to fit. I should have countersunk my screw holes, but I was lazy, so I didn't. This was more a proof of concept process.
After I got my backspacer fitted, I sanded down the handle to shape. In retrospect, I would have redesigned the handle somewhat to provide a separate detent just for the forefinger, rather than keeping the original handle shape. But the original handle shape works fine. I used the end of the sander to round the handles and provide a bit of texturing, and used the files to refine it. I'm still not completely satisfied, but it's reasonably comfortable, and you can get a good idea for how it's going to look.
Process pics to come. But this is, while a semi-hard project, definitely a doable one. It's obviously not THAT hard because I didn't fail on my first attempt.
It actually took me a bit to get some of the screws out of the handle (and bear in mind I voided my warranty when I did so). That's okay. The knife has already seen some heavy use, and it's still in good shape.
I'll put up some pictures later to talk others through the process. It's definitely not easy. But you CAN do it with nothing more than a hand saw, a set of files, a drill press, and some sandpaper. Also some clamps, because precision in where you drill the holes is very important.
First thing I did was cut out a couple slabs of G10. You can use whatever material you think is best. You may also want to get some metal for spacers on the inside. I think if I were to repeat this process, I'd get some soft metal that I could machine out to fit, and get some slightly longer screws for screwing into the AXIS lock mechanism. I made sure I had a good amount of material on all sides beyond what I needed; better to have too much and sand to fit than to have too little.
Next I clamped down one of the original handle scales to the slabs using a small c-clamp, and drilled the holes for the pivot and the axis lock mechanism. I then inserted the pivot and drilled the holes for the screws that connect the AXIS lock mechanism and spacer assembly to the handles. The pictured screw hole is the only one that seems to really matter.
I counter sunk all the screws holes, and then assembled the knife. It looked very rough. I had a really tough time getting the blade in. Three things to note: 1, the AXIS lock holes need to be wider than you'd think, unless you want to counter sink along the inside. I ended up doing a lot of file work to get it to work, and it still doesn't work as smoothly as the original.
2, you need to counter sink or otherwise mill a space for the spring for the lock to function. I used my largest drill bit to do this. It wouldn't hurt if you had a small rotary tool that could do the task. Just take it slow. You don't need that much space.
3. You have to retract the AXIS lock to get the pivot to fit into the blade, especially if you're going to assemble it with the blade out, which is what I did. I shaped the end of the handle so that the thumb studs didn't interfere with the handle slabs. Then I assembled the knife carefully.
After I had the whole thing assembled, with the AXIS assembly screwed to the scales, and the blade inserted with the phosphor bronze washers, I needed a back spacer. I cut a triangular piece of black canvas micarta off, and clamped that in between my scales using my drill press vise. Then I drilled two holes. I used a largish triangle, because I could sand it down after I drilled holes. I drilled slightly smaller than the screw diameter, then screwed it in, so I didn't need to use nuts on the screws. I sanded the screw ends down to fit. I should have countersunk my screw holes, but I was lazy, so I didn't. This was more a proof of concept process.
After I got my backspacer fitted, I sanded down the handle to shape. In retrospect, I would have redesigned the handle somewhat to provide a separate detent just for the forefinger, rather than keeping the original handle shape. But the original handle shape works fine. I used the end of the sander to round the handles and provide a bit of texturing, and used the files to refine it. I'm still not completely satisfied, but it's reasonably comfortable, and you can get a good idea for how it's going to look.
Process pics to come. But this is, while a semi-hard project, definitely a doable one. It's obviously not THAT hard because I didn't fail on my first attempt.
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Worthy of note here for anyone else who might consider trying a similar project.
