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New scales for my Urban

phillipsted

phillipsted

Joined
Oct 4, 2010
Messages
1,315
Here's my latest modding project - new wooden scales for a Wharncliffe Urban. I had some left over wood from a recent Mule project, so I decided to replace the orange G10 with flamed Red Eucalyptus. The Urban has no liners, so it makes an incredibly light weight EDC blade. Even though the Eucalyptus is a bit thicker than the original G10, the modified knife is a few grams lighter than the original.

As usual, I like to do the majority of the work with manual tools. I cut out the scales using a coping saw, drilled and counterbored the holes with my drill press, then I reassembled the knife and began shaping and contouring the scales with rasps, files, and sandpaper. I sanded the scales down to 2000 grit and then finished with five thin coats of TruOil followed by a polish with Ren Wax.

Enjoy!

TedP









 
Wow Ted, that turned out great!
Now I'm off to look for an Urban. ;)
 
That looks great man, one of my favorite features is the steel back space, any way we could see a pic that's looking down on the top of the handle?

I really like the grain pattern.
 
Ted,

Is there a reason you left the new scales wider? Does the wood get too fragile if too thin? Part of what I am asking is what is too thin without liners? Or is it a personal fit thing?
Just wondering. Thanks.
 
Looks awesome Ted. Giving me some further motivation to put something together for the Salt 1 I picked up recently.
 
Thanks, guys!

I left the scales a bit thicker this time as a bit of an experiment. The stock G-10 is just a shade under 1/8" - and my last Urban mod in Cocobolo was very close to original thickness. It worked OK and was certainly strong enough for EDC use. I started with a slightly thicker slab this time so I could put some more contouring on the handle and see if it improved grip. The only trick is that you have to carefully counterbore the screw holes to the correct depth so the knife assembles correctly. The end result is that this one is *extremely* comfortable in hand...

Wood selection for unlined knives is a factor, though. I tried to craft a set of stabilized maple burl scales for a G10 UKPK last year. The wood was a bit "crumbly" and just didn't have the strength to be useable. That's why I'm sticking with denser woods for these knives - ironwood, blackwood, cocobolo, rosewood, eucalyptus, acacia, lignum vitae. If you put a steel liner behind the scales (e.g., G-10 Dragonfly, Native V, Cat/Chicago, value series), the wood typically ends up being thinner - but strength becomes less of a factor because of the steel.

Hey, Cereal. I think I have a shot of the backspring at home - just didn't upload it to Photobucket. I'll see if I can post it tonight. I did polish the backspring's outside edge to 2000 grit just to give it a nice finished look. From the factory, it is nice and clean, but there were a few stray toolmarks that I wanted to dress up.

TedP
 
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