Removing excess epoxy from gluing handles?

B

Bufford

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Mar 13, 2006
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How do you makers remove excess epoxy glue from your handles?

When I epoxy my handles onto the full tang blade contruction, glue will seep out of all the crannys where the wood, guard and blade come together when compressed in the vice.

Normally I just let the whole thing set overnight. When the glue is set, usually it is fully set hard. My prefered method of removing the glue from the blade and other unwanted areas is to either gently heat things abit with a torch, or together with heat generated from grinding the handle down.

Once things are warmed up but not too hot, I take a small chistle I made from solid brass and scrape off the glue. With brass being soft it will not mark the hardened steel. It works quite well, especially if the glue has not set fully. But often it is already rock hard and needs some gentle heating to scrape it off.

What other methods do you use?
 
Just clean up those areas before it sets. Use the same process as you currently do and clean it all up near the blade/guard well before the glue hardens. The rest of the handle etc will be sanded so its no big deal to let that dry
 
I have tried cleaning up the glue before things set up, but it smears badly, and makes it harder to clean which is why I let things set up. Is there a cleaner that can be used to clean up epoxy before it sets that will not contaminate the glue that is inside the scales as it sets?
 
Scrape off as much as you can with something that won't scratch too badly. I use popsicle sticks from the craft store. Denatured alcohol works for softening and removing epoxy and so does fingernail polish remover (acetone). Just take it off while the epoxy is still tacky. Use as little solvent as possible to avoid contaminating the edges.

Works for me!
 
I scrape it off as it dries. Theres a golden period when its gummy enough to simply peel off but not soft enough to smear. Any smears can easilly be cleaned with acetone. Ive wondered the same about acetone, but ive never found using it on junctions to actually get deep enough and in enough concentration to eat away the glue that you want.
 
I always just figured that final finish was after epoxy, so after it was all set up finish sanding and buffing would get rid of it. Have I been doing something wrong? :)

-d
 
I apply vaseline (petroleum jelly) to the areas i dont want epoxy to stick, like the filework. I also apply vaseline to the sides of the handles and tang.

Becareful not to let any vaseline move into the areas under the scales you are trying to glue.

Once the epoxy has dried i take a brass rod which i have ground down to a point and a type of chisel on the other side and scrape away the excess. When doing this i heat up the brass with a butane torch. (i have the rod inserted into a wooden dowel, becareful you will burn your fingers if you are heating up the brass and not using something to insulate it from your fingers.)
 
Plain old white vinegar on a paper towel will remove epoxy quite nicely before it sets. After I clamp my scales, I just wipe off the excess that oozes out. Very clean. Any little smears that are left will easily buff off in the final clean up.
 
If the guard, ferrel, spacers, handle ect. are already finished the epoxy needs to be removed before it dries after final assembly. I just use WD40. It doesnt harm anything and cleans epoxy off very nicely. I use a toothpick for the hard to reach spots. If there is too much pressure in the handle it will seep epoxy later so be sure to check it a couple times as it dries.
 
Use c-clamps instead of a vise. That way you can wipe up while the scales are attached. Vinager cuts the crap out of epoxy but WILL eat your steel if not cleaned off well and rather quickly. My scales are always over-wide when attached. I use Q-Tips to wipe between scales. You will have nothing to chisel or heat and the belt is all that is needed after curing.

It is messy, isn't it.

rlinger
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First Use less epoxy. You don't actually need that much. You don't need to butter the scales, just a thin coating.
Buy those cheap flux brushes in a pack of 50 for $2. Trim the bristles to half the length with scissors. (they will be stiffer)

Clamp with small c-clamps then just wipe the excess that squeezes out with paper towels and lots of alcohol.
 
I wipe the bulk off with a shop towel then use acetone or braklene with a Q tip to wipe up the smudged glue and any remaining....works for me....
 
All the above is good advise.
Also ,don't clamp beyond snug. If you clamp down hard,you will squeeze out all the epoxy. The joint will fail at some future time when it gets a little moisture in it or gets a sharp rap.The perfect joint is about .010-.020 thick in resin. One reason colored fiber spacers are popular is they disguise the glue joint (especially when you dye the resin,too).They make a slightly flexible cushion between the hard scale and the harder tang. They also absorb a bit of the resin,making a stronger joint.
Stacy
 
Once my guard/bolsters are rough shaped (and the face finished) I use 2" wide masking tape and tape over the front half of the guard/bolsters as well as the blade. With everything covered there is no need to worry about the finished areas while epoxying. I used to make a real mess that took a long time to cleanup but now I just peel the tape off and toss it in the garbage. Works great.

For the tang areas that I don't want covered in epoxy I use WD40 and Q-tips which works great to take epoxy off. This is also what I do for knives where there is no guard/bolsters. I usually clean it all off right away and then check again after about 45 minutes to take any off that seaped out.

Sean
 
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