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making a scandi style knife on the cheap...
- Thread starter siguy
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- Feb 14, 2008
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Simon, yes, it's Black Walnut - harvested seven years ago from a yard in Lucky, Ohio. I Milled the logs myself at a friend's mill and had to stop to resharpen a three-foot diameter saw blade three times because of the nails I kept hitting. This was why I milled the log instead of my friend doing it. He knew they were "yard trees" when I pulled up, got a big grin a said he would call me just before he sent the blade in for a "real" sharpening. So. there's the history of your handle.
Oil will darken the Walnut and obscure the colors. If you can, use shellac first or polyurethane. If you're not that interested in the figure, oil's just fine.
I still stuck the Micarta in just in case. It works well with files and sand-paper.
Great thread, Simon.:thumbup::thumbup:
Oil will darken the Walnut and obscure the colors. If you can, use shellac first or polyurethane. If you're not that interested in the figure, oil's just fine.
I still stuck the Micarta in just in case. It works well with files and sand-paper.
Great thread, Simon.:thumbup::thumbup:
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2007
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- 2,798
very nice tutorial you have going, and a great job you are doing so far!!!
This is a fun one to follow, I can't wait to see it finished.
This is a fun one to follow, I can't wait to see it finished.
- Joined
- Sep 26, 2005
- Messages
- 3,516
Nice work, I tried turning an old file into a scandi, but I found it very hard to get a flat bevel, I very quickly made myself another convex edge, but it's extremely sharp.
I will cord wrap the handle rather then try to put rivet holes in the handle, but I may also
temper the handle and tang with a blow torch.
I am ordering some O1 steel stock soon to really sink my teeth into this, by then I hope to have a proper heat treat forge set up, and I found a big chunk of birds eye maple in the wood pile to make handles from.
I will cord wrap the handle rather then try to put rivet holes in the handle, but I may also
temper the handle and tang with a blow torch.
I am ordering some O1 steel stock soon to really sink my teeth into this, by then I hope to have a proper heat treat forge set up, and I found a big chunk of birds eye maple in the wood pile to make handles from.
Rupestris
Gold Member
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- Mar 1, 2006
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Instead of starting another thread, I thought I'd resurect this one with an update to my "winter projects" that Siguy got me started on.
I've posted these before but that thread is burried somewhere.
A while ago I got my first Mora knives from Ragnar.
The two Cobbler blades are going in different directions. One will be cord wrapped. The other turned into a full tang scandi. - ON THE CHEAP!
The shaping of the $7.50 knife:
And an update:
This stuff is hard. Therefore it'll be pinless with a lanyard tube.
I wanted to keep it cheap so the slabs are some scrap oak. The pin? An ink pen. Its a brass sleeve with white Corian over it.
The cleaver was an early Christmas gift from my son. Its a heavy, high carbon beauty with a nice solid handle, full tang and brass pins. Its going to be my Nessmuk-ish Scandi ground camp chopper. Where its marked, the blade will measure 6.5".
Thanks for reading,
Chris
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2008
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- 596
Thats fantastic! Nice job on the grinding, especially without affecting the temper, I've found that to be pretty tricky. Just ruined my mora 510 resharpening it on the 1x30, I think I used too fine belts, cause quick passes with drunks in between didnt cut it.
I've got a lauri blade I've been putting off making, I've been thinking of what to do for ferules and decided to make them out of a $2 Canadian coin, it's nickle with a copper insert (if my memory serves me) I think it'll look quite nice once it's shaped, but at $2 a pop it's not quite the bargain the sheet of metal is. That and there might be some law about destroying currency...
Is the epoxy strong enough on its own to hold the handle together? I've been racking my brain trying to come up with a way to drill a hole in a block of wood for a rat tail tang like that, but your method just might be the ticket!
I've got a lauri blade I've been putting off making, I've been thinking of what to do for ferules and decided to make them out of a $2 Canadian coin, it's nickle with a copper insert (if my memory serves me) I think it'll look quite nice once it's shaped, but at $2 a pop it's not quite the bargain the sheet of metal is. That and there might be some law about destroying currency...
Is the epoxy strong enough on its own to hold the handle together? I've been racking my brain trying to come up with a way to drill a hole in a block of wood for a rat tail tang like that, but your method just might be the ticket!
chris, i think i might have the twin of that cleaver there, i found it in the local junk shop. bought it about two years ago. i mostly use it for splitting wedges and things, and for chopping in the shop...
good looking stuff so far, as for drilling pin holes; you can use a basic stone bit chucked up in an electric drill to grind a hole into the handle.
edited to add;
sheng was typing at the same time as me...as for the epoxy, i have found it to be very strong, and with the peened over tang it is even stronger. you can also try clamping the block down horizontally, and drilling horizontally. i haven't tried it yet, but i will next time i do one of these. it seems like it would be easier to drill straight and control everything.
good looking stuff so far, as for drilling pin holes; you can use a basic stone bit chucked up in an electric drill to grind a hole into the handle.
edited to add;
sheng was typing at the same time as me...as for the epoxy, i have found it to be very strong, and with the peened over tang it is even stronger. you can also try clamping the block down horizontally, and drilling horizontally. i haven't tried it yet, but i will next time i do one of these. it seems like it would be easier to drill straight and control everything.
Rupestris
Gold Member
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- Mar 1, 2006
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- 29,938
Ankar,
The epoxy I'm using is from 3M called Panel Bond. Its the stuff that body shops use to attach quarter panels and door skins as opposed to welding them like they did in the past. IIRC, its what GM uses now to put quarter panels on Cadillacs. We've done some testing at work and you'll rip the sheet metal before the bond gives up.
Panel Bond has small plastic beads in it. The beads insure the proper film build/thickness. If all goes well it'll look like thin black spacers between the slabs and the tang.
I'll be gluing it up tomorrow. I'll keep you posted on how well it does on a wood-to-steel bond.
Chris
The epoxy I'm using is from 3M called Panel Bond. Its the stuff that body shops use to attach quarter panels and door skins as opposed to welding them like they did in the past. IIRC, its what GM uses now to put quarter panels on Cadillacs. We've done some testing at work and you'll rip the sheet metal before the bond gives up.
Panel Bond has small plastic beads in it. The beads insure the proper film build/thickness. If all goes well it'll look like thin black spacers between the slabs and the tang.
I'll be gluing it up tomorrow. I'll keep you posted on how well it does on a wood-to-steel bond.
Chris
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2008
- Messages
- 596
Good to hear, adhesives sure have come a long way!
I still think I'd like to drill a small hole through the annealed part of the tang and insert a pin to make sure it'll never come out, or like siguy suggested just peen the end of it. Though it sounds like that wouldnt even be necessary and that the wood would sooner break apart than come unattached.
I've only made a few test runs at drilling the blocks. Getting the hole straight is one problem, getting 3 or more holes to converge nicely to make that tapered shape is another. One trick thats been suggested is to secure the drill with the bit parallel to the table, and use a book as a platform for the block raising or lowering it until its centered by the number of pages beneath it and sighting down the block as you push it into the drill. I dont even have a long enough bit to do the full length from one end though, and I've heard that the thinner bits will veer off in hard wood, perhaps trying to follow the grain.
I'd rather just find some good birch bark and stack it up, should be easier and make for a very nice handle. Though now I'm thinking it's not as simple as going to the forest, or a friends wood pile and grabbing some, I was talking with Jukka Hankala (the Finnish puukko maker) about having a bark handled knife made and even though he says bark makes the nicest handles he recommended going with a wood handle because he's having a hard time finding good bark! So there's clearly more to the selection process than I would have anticipated.
If I make a handle out of a solid block I might just have to start with an oversized piece, drill it as best as I can, then make it straight (in line with the blade) by shaping it.
I still think I'd like to drill a small hole through the annealed part of the tang and insert a pin to make sure it'll never come out, or like siguy suggested just peen the end of it. Though it sounds like that wouldnt even be necessary and that the wood would sooner break apart than come unattached.
I've only made a few test runs at drilling the blocks. Getting the hole straight is one problem, getting 3 or more holes to converge nicely to make that tapered shape is another. One trick thats been suggested is to secure the drill with the bit parallel to the table, and use a book as a platform for the block raising or lowering it until its centered by the number of pages beneath it and sighting down the block as you push it into the drill. I dont even have a long enough bit to do the full length from one end though, and I've heard that the thinner bits will veer off in hard wood, perhaps trying to follow the grain.
I'd rather just find some good birch bark and stack it up, should be easier and make for a very nice handle. Though now I'm thinking it's not as simple as going to the forest, or a friends wood pile and grabbing some, I was talking with Jukka Hankala (the Finnish puukko maker) about having a bark handled knife made and even though he says bark makes the nicest handles he recommended going with a wood handle because he's having a hard time finding good bark! So there's clearly more to the selection process than I would have anticipated.
If I make a handle out of a solid block I might just have to start with an oversized piece, drill it as best as I can, then make it straight (in line with the blade) by shaping it.
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- Jan 21, 2008
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