Re-Handle a Ka-Bar

dougo83 · Mar 2, 2009

So..you guys saw my pics of the Ka-Bar with a bamboo handle. I did a little work on it this weekend.

Before:

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The materials: Ka-Bar, old belt my fat arse outgrew, X-ACTO knife, scissors.

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Cutting the leather down:

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Into rough ovals. I used the buttcap as a template:

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Finished with this stage:

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In Hand:

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I am probably not going to taper the grip because I really like the way it fits right now. I will smooth it out once I have the eqpt because it does have a few potential hot spots on it.

dougo83 · Mar 2, 2009

Basically, step by step:

1. Find the leather that you will be using. I used an old belt I had laying around.

2. Use the butt plate to cut a rough square-ish piece of leather. Make sure you cut enough to fit the length of the tang.

3. Using the butt plate, cut the leather squares into rounded sections to start a rough form for the handle.

4. Using the X-ACTO, cut small slits in the leather discs, making sure they fit tight on the tang. No exact measurement for ya, guys I just did trial and error.

5. After you stack all the leather, tighten the butt plate and you are good to go.

Next comes the sheath...

Old CW4 · Mar 3, 2009

Hmmmm. Knife handles. Great topic. I made a post about the following in one of the other threads herein but got no answers or comments so please let me make a quick post here. My method was wrapping the haft with nylon rope, in my case black nylon antenna guy rope about 3/8 inch in diameter. After rope is wound on, melt it with a propane torch. It turns into a super hard and tough substance which can be filed/sanded/etc. into shape. The damned stuff permanently sticks to whatever and will never come loose. I'm not into 'pretty' but am into durable and practical. Don't get any of this black 'goop' on your hands or fingers as it melts, it will burn you badly.

Absintheur · Mar 3, 2009

I rehandled an old Marble's Expert using cholla and casting resin. It is an easy and inexpensive way to do one as well as being attractive. You can color the resin any color you chose...this is a woods knife and I wanted it easy to spot if dropped so I went with red but earth tones look great with the cholla as well.

This is what I started with...I had already reprofiled the tip which was missing about 1/4 inch...

Sharp Eye · Mar 3, 2009

Nice jobs guys.
Doug,
How are you going to shape the handle?
Do you put any kind of finish on it at the end?

pict · Mar 3, 2009

Doug.

Leather handles turn out really well if you epoxy the leather together. It isn't that difficult if you have a threaded end cap. Just spread a thin layer of epoxy on each one as you stack them and screw down the end cap good and tight. Once its set you can sand the handle down smooth.

I did a Mora re-handle this way and it turned out very well. Mac

chewbacca · Mar 3, 2009

Here is an old Camillus that my brother rehandled. I think he did a really nice job. The sheath is my first try at Kydex, and it came out pretty well, except the eyelets are not even...oh well it works!

Butcher1 · Mar 3, 2009

Absintheur, would you please tell me how to make a handle like that?

dougo83 · Mar 5, 2009

Sharp Eye said:
Nice jobs guys.
Doug,
How are you going to shape the handle?
Do you put any kind of finish on it at the end?

I am not going to shape the handle any more than removing rough spots. I like the wider grip I have with it now. It fits my hand better than the traditional shaped handle, so I guess it stays. As far as finish, I am not sure I am clear on what you are asking.

IVANKERLEY · Mar 5, 2009

dougo83 said:
I am not going to shape the handle any more than removing rough spots. I like the wider grip I have with it now. It fits my hand better than the traditional shaped handle, so I guess it stays. As far as finish, I am not sure I am clear on what you are asking.

usually the handles gets buffed and polished to help seal the leather, if not then i think that all manner of nastiest could ensue... personally i would treat the leather with something especially since leather has a tendancy to expand, fray, rot etc. if treated it'll last a good long time if not then who knows how long the raw leather will last
just my 2 cents though

ivan

dougo83 · Mar 5, 2009

IVANKERLEY said:
usually the handles gets buffed and polished to help seal the leather, if not then i think that all manner of nastiest could ensue... personally i would treat the leather with something especially since leather has a tendancy to expand, fray, rot etc. if treated it'll last a good long time if not then who knows how long the raw leather will last
just my 2 cents though
ivan

Oh, got ya. I am not sure what I am going to use after I am done sanding it. This is my first try at thei kind of project ever. I am going to be baking on a coating of boot dressing as a friend suggested to get a uniform color.

Ebbtide · Mar 6, 2009

When you sand it, you can use the "shoeshine" method and it will work well.
Instead of a long (rectangular) strip of paper, try an elongated triangle.
It won't dig into the leather as much.
Dampen the leather with a wet paper towel and sand.
Dampen & sand.
Work up thru the grits and you should end up with something like this.

My two latest

FWIW, I followed the tutorial at the Brisa website.