OT: Hand sanding shadetree burlap

The holes that are inherent in some forms of burlap as a material drives my OCD off the chart. Would it be a good idea to fill them with clear superglue and sand?

I know this has been discussed elsewhere but can't find the thread.
 
(This is NOT a Fiddleback Forge knife)

I just wanted to post a quick update here. I ended up only having up to 600 grit available and no scotch brite pads yet (I have to order them online). So for the time being I hand sanded through 220, 320, 400, and finally 600. I didn't need to do a ton to the scales so each progression was pretty quick. I'd say all in all it only took me about 20-30 minutes. Before you could feel a little lip between the scales / liners / tang but now its a perfectly smooth transition and the handle feels really nice in hand now. I would still like to hit it with some finishing pads just to see how it changes. I had some neatsfoot compound so I added that to the scales (again not ideal but what I had on hand) and I think it did a good job in bringing out some color. Here are some before and after pics. Thanks for the advice!

d2e7d59cf56d2581e4d5bc35a6ba1936.jpg
26c9fc2f6be459ccc36d3c767e8a6331.jpg


c500c75afe0ff6787bd8a185c452ec57.jpg
a1369cec606f4b80873ded20cd1b736f.jpg
 
Last edited:
nice job Tx.

You are going to have to get your time down if we are going to hire you though.:thumbup::D
 
Yea, looks much better now. Looks to me like he tried to belt finish it. generally knives that aren't contoured are belt finished. It leaves a lot to want imo. We get a lot of guffaws from makers about hand sanding. Why, they always ask.

1. Because of the contours.
2. Because I want the scratches on the tang to be longitudinal.
3. Because I don't think the results speak for themselves.

I pay three AMERICANS to sand the handles of the knives we sell y'all. Very few companies do this, and NO production companies that I know of.

Imagine the time savings to make a knife with no contouring and a belt finished handle. I can tell you that in our process 75% of the labor is on the handle. Rounded over un-contoured handle (any assistant can do this rather than me) that is belt finished and we could cut the total labor we put into our knives by half or so. So, why do I do it? What do I tell these other makers? We hand sand our handles because that is what our customers come here for, its what they expect, and IMO, its what they deserve. This might prevent us from becoming a BIG company but damn if I'm going to make 2nd rate knives so that they're cheap to make.
 
Awesome post Andy. I spend a lot of time watching the custom exchange and rarely see the level of finish available on your knives. I guess some makers think buyers prefer square-edged scales and uncomfortable handles.
 
Fiddleback said:
Yea, looks much better now. Looks to me like he tried to belt finish it. generally knives that aren't contoured are belt finished. It leaves a lot to want imo. We get a lot of guffaws from makers about hand sanding. Why, they always ask.

1. Because of the contours.
2. Because I want the scratches on the tang to be longitudinal.
3. Because I don't think the results speak for themselves.

I pay three AMERICANS to sand the handles of the knives we sell y'all. Very few companies do this, and NO production companies that I know of.

Imagine the time savings to make a knife with no contouring and a belt finished handle. I can tell you that in our process 75% of the labor is on the handle. Rounded over un-contoured handle (any assistant can do this rather than me) that is belt finished and we could cut the total labor we put into our knives by half or so. So, why do I do it? What do I tell these other makers? We hand sand our handles because that is what our customers come here for, its what they expect, and IMO, its what they deserve. This might prevent us from becoming a BIG company but damn if I'm going to make 2nd rate knives so that they're cheap to make.
Click to expand...

Thanks! Yea, I wasn't expecting the same level of finish from this maker as I do from FBF. To me, y'all are the bar.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Scotcha said:
The holes that are inherent in some forms of burlap as a material drives my OCD off the chart. Would it be a good idea to fill them with clear superglue and sand?

I know this has been discussed elsewhere but can't find the thread.
Click to expand...

I'd like to repeat this question as I have the same issue with the holes.
 
Scotcha said:
The holes that are inherent in some forms of burlap as a material drives my OCD off the chart. Would it be a good idea to fill them with clear superglue and sand?

I know this has been discussed elsewhere but can't find the thread.
Click to expand...

The poores that exsist within burlap micarta are a feature of the material. They accentuate the grippiness of the material, which is superior to most other handle materials. I tried to fill the poores on the material when I first started using it. You fill them with superglue, then sand them down. As you are sanding it down other poores open up. If you keep filling and sanding eventually you can win the battle. IMO it is not worth the time, and when you're done, you have a slick feeling piece of burlap micarta. PLUS, all that sanding is almost sure to make the pins and tang proud of the scales and could very likely change the shape of the handle drastically.

Not recommended. I know this doesn't address the OCD drive, but with burlap micarta the poores are part of the charm of the material. Commercial micarta is made with heated plates on a giant high pressure press. What shadetree does by hand cannot possibly avoid creating poores like these. AND, keep in mind, they really do make the material very grippy.
 
It's no Fiddleback, but following your procedure I'm very happy with how the Shadetree ruby on my BK-17 came out.
(I used an old sponge as the backing - couldn't find a decent piece of scrap leather.)

Went from this:




To This:



In just a couple hours.
Feels a lot better in the hand.
Thanks for the tips!
 
Necro!

Phillip pointed me to this one.

Anyone have tips on how to remove small scratches from wood as far as the actual technique goes? Had one show up with some scratches (wood) that definitely need to be removed.

I have 400, and white and grey 3M pads. The 7445 and 7448
 
JustinFournier said:
Necro!

Phillip pointed me to this one.

Anyone have tips on how to remove small scratches from wood as far as the actual technique goes? Had one show up with some scratches (wood) that definitely need to be removed.

I have 400, and white and grey 3M pads. The 7445 and 7448
Click to expand...
always sand from blade to pommel( back & forth), never side to side.
don't stay in the same spot for too long
 
My numchucks need polishing and my 5-bladed throwing stars meet sharpening. Can I send them in for a warranty polish and have Allen do a twine wrap on them for the rustic look?
 
Bmurray said:
My numchucks need polishing and my 5-bladed throwing stars meet sharpening. Can I send them in for a warranty polish and have Allen do a twine wrap on them for the rustic look?
Click to expand...
You recon if you tied one end of the twine of the thrown star to a finger you could use it kind of like a bow fishing arrow? Once you hit your target you could just pull it back to you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top