Pretty happy with this one, learned some new tricks

[Gendry]

I bought the blank online, because I always wanted a Damascus knife, and the blank was cheaper then the 8 inches of steel I would have needed. I used some "Buckeye burl" for the handle, it took me about 8 hours today to turn the 1/4' by 2'X6' scales into this handle.. I was working it into the perfect shape for my hand the whole time, marking it with pencil, griping it every 5 minutes until it was a fit. Used some nickel pins which I was iffy about, never been able to do them right before, but they look decent on this one. I also used some yellow g10 liner material, gonna have to figure a way to work with that easier.

Sanded up to 1000, it looks nice in person, but it will be a work knife, so I think I'll put a coat of varnish on it so it doesn't get too messed up.

Quick question, is there a way to like, split a 1/4 inch scale lengthwise, to get 2 1/8ths? What type of tool would do that?

 

[Frank Niro]

A coat of varnish? You got to be joking. There was just recently an excellent description and showing how to do it right by the Burl man. Find the thread for that and use the right way to do yours.

Frank

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Please don't varnish it.

The way to finish buckeye burl is a CA ( super glue) finish.

Get a bottle of thin CA from a hobby store of knife supplier.
Run a coating over the entire handle and hang the knife up by the tip over a stack of newspapers ( a magnet bar works great for hanging the knife).
After 24 hours, sand the handle down with 400 grit paper to expose the wood.
Repeat the CA coating and cure for 24 hours.
Sand to the surface again.
Apply a light coat of CA and using a old cotton cloth and some acetone, rub it into the handle. Wipe the excess off. Let dry for 10 minutes. Lightly sand ( no need to do much more than remove any big excess). Repeat about ten times.
Now, re-sand the handle with 400 grit and go up to 1000-2000 grit. Buff by hand with a soft cloth. You can put on a light coat of paste wax and buff it off with the cloth as a final coat, but it is most likely that the handle will be shining like granite when you have done the above steps.

The whole principle is to put the CA IN the wood...not ON it.

Unless you are very good at it, power buffing can darken and dull the surface. A soft cotton cloth and hand buffing works better.