My first attempt at 'handling' an knife

hornetguy

hornetguy

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Just thought I'd share my first two attempts an putting a usable handle on a blade. I bought three of the Mora #2 carbon steel blades, and used two different techniques to "handle" them. I still have one left to do, and I haven't decided how I'll go with it, yet..

The first one has a slightly ovalled handle, made from Texas Ebony. It is slightly reminiscent of some puuko knives I've seen.
The second one has a handle that is laminated, using mesquite and ash... at this point, for this size knife, I think I prefer the ovalled style, rather than the flatter profile with finger grooves.

Comments and suggestions are welcomed...

both%20moras%20on%20book%20facing_zpsenladbh8.jpg


both%20moras%20on%20book%20right_zpso3has8uq.jpg


both%20moras%20in%20hand_zpsvkb3jluu.jpg
 
They look nice. One suggestion would be spend more time with a small file fitting the knife into the brass plate to get it flush.
 
Very well done. I like the finger groove one too. For the 3rd one try a single finger groove?
 
great work

if people like that puukko style, they can do this without having to actually make a handle ;) just buy a classic mora #1 (or #2) - sand off the red paint (they use birch) - and stain it yourself
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Skidoosh said:
They look nice. One suggestion would be spend more time with a small file fitting the knife into the brass plate to get it flush.
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Yes.. the Moras come with slightly radiused corners where the blade meets the brass.. I need to dremel that corner more square, and fit it more closely to the brass, to make it a tight "joint"... I confess I was in a bit of a rush to see how it would turn out. That little bit of extra time would make a big difference.
Thanks for the suggestion..
 
eveled said:
Very well done. I like the finger groove one too. For the 3rd one try a single finger groove?
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Now, that's a thought.... hadn't considered that. I'll do some research on that style. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
Good stuff. I'd like to see some pics of the process too. Before, after, some in the middle, etc.
 
Also, I had never seen a #2 Mora... I just bought some of the larger ones, red and black handle, can't remember the name. Those have been good "utility" knives for knocking around in the garage/yard, etc... but the blades seem thicker than these. (haven't measured them yet). I've never gotten a good "scary sharp" edge on them, but I'm still working at it.

These smaller #2's take a brilliantly sharp edge... perhaps the "sliciest" blades I've seen, next to the Opinels...
 
hornetguy said:
I need to dremel that corner more square,
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I second the use of a file. I was wondering what the dark area was around the joint; whether that was solder or what.
Quite enjoyable to look at and I bet they are great to use. I'm not a fan of the stock factory Classic Mora handles. Mostly I buy these knives to get the plastic sheath that doesn't screw up the edges on my Cold Steel knives like the Cold Steel sheaths do.

Nice job on both !
Thanks for posting them.
I wasn't aware of Texas Ebony. I need to check that out. I recently rehandled a folder in ebony and enjoy working with it and using the knife.
 
dirc said:
it's interesting that texas ebony is actually a flowering bean tree - (which is also used for bonsai) ; )
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Requires finish or not so much ?
I'm digging bare ebony. These guys convinced me to leave it bare.
 
dirc said:
texas ebony is actually a flowering bean tree
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. . . er . . . those bean pods look familiar (see dirc's link) . I swear I used to play with those when I was a kid. Think little boomerangs that don't come back. Pretty fragrant inside. Any chance a few plants made it as far north as southern Colorado ?
 
Yeah, the dark stuff around the blade at the brass was the epoxy I used that bled through at the edges. The tang on the Mora blades is thicker down the tang, and as it gets closer to the edge, the grind starts, which makes it thinner at the blade than it is down the tang.
I used JB Weld steel epoxy to put the handle on the ebony one. It is a dark gray in color. I tried to keep the bleed through at a minimum, and filed down what did get through, but it left the dark gray at the openings in the brass.

I used clear epoxy on the finger grooved one, but the gaps are still visible.
 
Wowbagger said:
Requires finish or not so much ?
I'm digging bare ebony. These guys convinced me to leave it bare.
Click to expand...
I started to put TruOil on the ebony, and didn't like it, so I sanded it back down. There's nothing on it in the pics, and I prefer it that way.
 
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