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Re-Handling a Cleaver
- Thread starter efaden
- Start date
Looks to be some sort of rat tang, What material are you looking to use?
If wood you would probably end up drilling a hole and using epoxy/etc to fix the tang into the handle. Shape, sand, polish, seal at your leisure.
Handle making one of the simplest things to do for blades.
A shoddy handle still works; bad sharpening, heat treat, grinding etc does not.
If wood you would probably end up drilling a hole and using epoxy/etc to fix the tang into the handle. Shape, sand, polish, seal at your leisure.
Handle making one of the simplest things to do for blades.
A shoddy handle still works; bad sharpening, heat treat, grinding etc does not.
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2011
- Messages
- 1,125
i would first figure out how old handle is held on. hidden pins or epoxy or ????? then remove as gently as possible so as not to damage the tang. once you have the tang exposed, go from there.
scott
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2011
- Messages
- 1,125
i think total weight and balance now enters the equation. maple or walnut are very durable, look good and are lightweight. black locust, honey locust, or dogwood are durable and about twice the weight of maple or walnut.
scott
It's cracked.
The Zieg
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2002
- Messages
- 5,008
I did this, too, but used the same handle it already had.
Whatever you use, reenforce the attachment with epoxy. Chinese cleavers, which is what I think you have here, are only attached by folding over the tang, not even peening. Also, don't be tempted to use it like a European cleaver, which is sort of a "kitchen hatchet". Asian cleavers are slicers, really.
You probably know all this. Forgive me, I took my Mr. Know-it-All pill this morning. :foot:
Zieg
Whatever you use, reenforce the attachment with epoxy. Chinese cleavers, which is what I think you have here, are only attached by folding over the tang, not even peening. Also, don't be tempted to use it like a European cleaver, which is sort of a "kitchen hatchet". Asian cleavers are slicers, really.
You probably know all this. Forgive me, I took my Mr. Know-it-All pill this morning. :foot:
Zieg
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2008
- Messages
- 26,134
Epoxy isn't necessary if done right. What I usually do when re-handling hidden tangs is I'll drill out the handle as best I can to match the taper (use a couple different bits) but leave it undersized a little. Then heat the tang with a torch and burn it into the pre-drilled hole for a custom fit. Be careful to keep the blade itself cool during the process, of course. Burn it in until you're about 1/4" or a little less from being fully seated and allow the tang to air-cool before tapping it in all the way to fully seat it.
The thought came across my mind, ruining the heat treat makes me a bit apprehensive though...
only because I haven't tried it myself yet.. I've seen plenty videos of people doing it.
The Zieg
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2002
- Messages
- 5,008
Yes! Good advice. I'll look at doing it this way next time I do a job like this.
Zieg
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2008
- Messages
- 26,134
Just angle the torch away from the blade and it's not hard to avoid heating the blade. A wet rag is even just insurance--you can often get away without it. Since the tang is so thin relative to the blade it heats quickly without much heat diffusion, and you're not heating the very base of the blade/tang junction--just the tang itself. It's a very common traditional practice, and still used by many tool manufacturers across the globe.
