My North Slope Scraper

Runs With Scissors

Runs With Scissors

Joined
Dec 3, 2000
Messages
3,002
Just got done makin' a NON KNIFE tool.

As many of my friends here know, I work in the oil fields on the North Slope and while I'm allowed to play with large trucks, front end loaders, chainsaws, oxy/aceytylen cutting torches, disc grinders, sawzalls, etc. I'm not allowed to carry a knife.

Of course, this is official policy from the Ivory Tower. In reality, many, many of my co-workers carry knives, half the Safety officers,Foreman, and Superintendents just make sure never to notice.

Myself, never being the rebellious type intend to comply with this rule at work. Rather than carrying a dangerous knife, I'm carrying a humble scraper.

I found an old 12" Nicholson Bastard (I can say that word in that context, can't I?) Mill file. Then I annealed it, and shortened it to 8.5".

Four inches are handle, Four and a half are errrr...scraper.

I then chisel ground the front of it, and one of the sides. I intend to find a very crude, rudimentary but effective handle for it. I think I have an old broken shovel handle I can cut a piece off of around here...(Picture a totally ghetto Graham Bros. Razel here) I'm deliberately keeping it very humble in appearance to attract the least attention.

I intend to use it for light duty prying, scraping old pipe insulation, and light filing (one side of the file is still completely intact) I'm making a very ugly scabbard from an old tool belt and some safety wire (that humble appearance thing again) and it's measured to ride perfectly in the side pocket of my work pants.

The fact that hair jumps off the forearm every time my new scraper is waved near it is inconsequential, and utterly irrelevant to the discussion at hand.:D

Edited to add:

Just finished the handle. Wound up making it from a Red Oak bow stave that gave up on me. The handle almost came out more attractive than I wanted, but with an 80 grit belt, some dirt, and filings it looks appropriately unattractive and humble.

a bit of bailing wire, some worn leather, and she'll be finished.

errr....you guys didn't wanna see a picture of this ugly piece of garbage did ya'?
 
Now, if you'd just skewed that point about 45 degrees.....nah, don't listen to me, I'll just get you in hot water. Looks like a good, solid, tool, and "scraper-like" enough to probably sneak past the knife nazis just fine. Just don't leave your Douk Douk at home though. They'd have to pat you down pretty thorough to find that durn thing, and with that handy lanyard ring, you could wear it under your shirt suspended from a neck cord.
I still can't understand how a company could deprive honest working men of one of their most useful tools. Dang near everywhere else that involves outdoor work, knives are just fine. Heck, in the military you'd get one issued to you. Crazy :confused:

Sarge
 
I dunno what the heck they're thinking. typical "zero tolerance" mindset at work again perhaps.

According to the story book if we're out on a pad working, say building a welding hooch, laying out fire blanket, etc. and we need a knife we're supposed to hop into a truck, drive 20 minutes to the tool room, check out a disposable razor knife and a set of kevlar cut resistant gloves (which my Douk slices through like hot butter) go back to perform the job, finish the job, and immediately return the disposable razor knife. I'm sure you can imagine how inspipid this could become on a day to day basis if any body paid attention to it.

Truth is, I can play those silly games for the most part, I'm paid by the hour whether I dig a trench with an excavator or a soup spoon.

My issue is that I've NEVER travelled without a decent knife, and I dang sure aint fixin' to start in the middle of the oilfields umpteen hundred miles from the nearest hospital.

The Douk will always remain my day to day companion. Just as other guys there have Winchester knives, Gerbers, SAK's, Benchmades, Spyderco, etc.

I'll just have to continue practicing careful discretion about usin' it.

grrr...this topic always gives me a case of the red errr...buttocks.

I'm likin' the scraper though. Although it was harder than I thought it'd be to deliberately discolor and ugly up a knife.:D
 
Dude, you're going to make me go bald. The more I hear about the rules you have to put up with, the harder I scratch my head. Better make another one of those "scrapers". One to keep for yourself, and another one to loan to coworkers.

Sarge
 
Do any of us know a business where the suits remember -- if they ever knew -- what it's like on the workfloor?

The "bottom line" used to mean get the job done.
 
Fugly ? Thats fugly with sauce on it . I don,t like to see that much fugly before breakfast . Is the tape measure in the picture to cut that ten foot pole you wouldn,t touch it with ? L:O:L
In fact that looks mean and fugly . It looks mean enough to chop through anything short of itself . I would like to see a closer view of the file side of it .

I carry a folding saw where I can,t carry a knife . Yours is a step above that .

I hate to hear of a bow stave gone bad . I once saw a longbow handle being used as a gardening tool . I tried to rescue it . My buddy abandoned a bow stave to the scrap pile . Its now hanging in the hallway waiting to become something else . Maybe a drum frame . I,m glad you found a good use for yours .
 
Nice tanto, RWS :D . Call it a "chisel" at work.

If the back is a file, you *may* have invented a pretty handy tool.


Mike
 
I think some of the suits remember very well what its like to be in the workplace.
Its all for insurance . The smart suits don,t care that much if you use a knife . As long as they have told you not to use one their A$$ is covered . By their cheap suit .:barf:
 
I don't think its fugly at all bro. Though I can tell you did you're best. Simple cutters! Good stuff.
 
Honest workin knife. Looks great to me:) I've looked pretty hard at those really nice Graham knives, but couldn't justify it. However, something like your mock up looks really good to me:) If i ever get the time and shop space, i might have to give one a try myself.

Jake
 
Not a bad idea. I have also examined those "Razels" from New Graham, particularly after viewing a Jim Kingshott woodworking video where he sharpens his pencils, etc. etc. with chisels. I have tried it myself and the chisel is a better whittling device than one would think. In many respects it is more precise than a knife, and can make a more powerful cut even without being struck on the butt.

Just the other day I was considering making a belt sheath for a spare 2" chisel I have lying around. It seems to me this would be mighty handy for pointing tent pegs and "batoning" firewood.

The thing about a 2" chisel is that one or both of the sides could be turned into cutting edges with little difficulty, since they are already beveled similar to the cutting edge on the end. Also, if an additional edge was installed, it would not change the fact that it was a chisel.
 
cliff355 said:
...Just the other day I was considering making a belt sheath for a spare 2" chisel I have lying around. It seems to me this would be mighty handy for pointing tent pegs and "batoning" firewood.

The thing about a 2" chisel is that one or both of the sides could be turned into cutting edges with little difficulty, since they are already beveled similar to the cutting edge on the end. Also, if an additional edge was installed, it would not change the fact that it was a chisel.
Click to expand...
Even better, pick up an well used (hence quite short by now, and quite cheap) antique firmer chisel (flat sides, not bevelled). Grind down the one edge into a knife, and you're away... and have a flat edge on top for batoning. An old Buck Brothers, Greenlee or Witherby chisel would be amazing steel ... and they're pretty cheap on eBay, if you can't locate one locally. Especially if the handle's wrecked.


t.
 
A point of consideration on converting large chisels into knives fellows. Many of the better ones are differentially hardened for toughness, since they're meant to stand up to being smacked with a mallet. That's how I make my mortising chisels, etc., the thing is tempered fairly soft except for the last inch or so, which gets harder toward the edge. Just something to think about, and perhaps head off potential dissapointment.

Sarge
 
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