Removing handle scales...

stevekolt

stevekolt

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Jan 9, 2007
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Is there a way to remove scales that have been epoxied onto the knife? I noticed a small gap where I had not clamped the two together, and if possible would like to remove the scales, re-epoxy, and do a better job clamping them together. Any help would be much appreciated.
 
Heat them to about 150-200°F and they will peel off with a sharp knife inserted between the scale and the tang. You can use a kitchen oven or a hair dryer, but a heat gun is the best tool for the job.
 
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Most epoxyies and CS will break down by 400 F.If a lower temperature will do it so much the better . Most steels will not be damaged by heat below 400 F. If you worry about it you could always clamp the blade in the vise .
 
Thanks for the help folks. Once I have it apart, I'm thinking that acetone should be able to clean it all up. Is that correct?
 
I have found they start loosing their grip far below the rated "failure temp". A heat gun is a really useful shop tool, and one from HF is very low price.
 
I've just boiled them off, worked great. Since water boils at 212* F, you're in no danger of losing your temper, even if you have to take it to 300-350F. Just put a candy thermometer in the water and keep an eye on the temp. If you're using non-stabilized wood for your scales then I wouldn't boil them... not really sure whether of not it would affect stabilized wood..

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
... (It's been quite a while since I've posted any new vids)
 
coldsteelburns said:
I've just boiled them off, worked great. Since water boils at 212* F, you're in no danger of losing your temper, even if you have to take it to 300-350F. Just put a candy thermometer in the water and keep an eye on the temp. If you're using non-stabilized wood for your scales then I wouldn't boil them... not really sure whether of not it would affect stabilized wood..

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
... (It's been quite a while since I've posted any new vids)
Click to expand...

You are joking......right?
I hope you realize that water can not exceed 212F at sea level ( roughly what Federal Way is at). No mater how high you turn up the flame, the thermometer will stays the same.....212F.

Any wood that gets boiled will probably be of no use again for a handle, stabilized or unstabilized. You can dry it out for a few weeks and see if it is salvageable, but it will likely warp in boiling and drying.
 
Stacy, thanks for the heat gun trick, I've used it twice since your posting to salvage blades that were in the "trash" bucket.
 
When using the "heat gun trick". do you apply it to the scales or directly to the blade?
 
I play it over the scales and tang area. Concentrate a bit on the rivets to carry the heat down and break up the epoxy holding them in the holes.

All that said, a hammer will take care of most handles that have to be removed. Trying to salvage the handles is usually a fools errand. Heating them with a heat gun or boiling is just to help them come off clean. Chuck them in the trash once off.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
You are joking......right?
I hope you realize that water can not exceed 212F at sea level ( roughly what Federal Way is at). No mater how high you turn up the flame, the thermometer will stays the same.....212F.

Any wood that gets boiled will probably be of no use again for a handle, stabilized or unstabilized. You can dry it out for a few weeks and see if it is salvageable, but it will likely warp in boiling and drying.
Click to expand...

lol, sorry bout that, was dumb info on my part guys. Can't say I remember learning the sea level thing in science class, so don't blame me :D jkjk ( I'm sure I did, my memory of things learned in junior high is pretty bad though :o ) Anyway, I just threw the higher temps in there mainly thinking about how hot the element underneather can get as well as the metal pot.. And the candy thermometer was suggested because that's how I used to heat up canola oil for quenching, so it was just a mix of ideas. I boiled a pair of scales off once, maybe 4 years ago and it worked great, but I definitely would never boil wood scales off if I planned on reusing them. Thanks for the correction on that, I honestly wasn't thinking about how the water above 212 would just turn to steam or anything :confused: lol


~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
... (It's been quite a while since I've posted any new vids)
 
Believe it or not, the pot also stays at 212F ( or close to it ) until the water us gone, even with the burner running on HIGH. The coefficient of heat for the metal in the pot determines how fast the heat from the burner is transferred to the water, but as long as there is water the pot doesn't increase much in temperature. Same for ice water. Put some ice cubes in a pan of water, give it a stir to get the water cooled down to 32F, and turn the burner on HIGH. The water will stay at 32F until every last chip of ice is gone before it increases even one degree.

I was a Girl Scout ( explained below) as well as a Girl Scout leader. We used to cook eggs and such in a paper bag due to the same scientific reason. We also heated soup in a paper bag.

When I was 17 I worked Girl Scout Camp Appasus. I was the only male there ... not a bad gig at all! The camp was being inspected for its accreditation, and it was noted that the camp charter said ,"All staff are registered Scouts and Leaders." Even though I was an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts, it wasn't quite the same. I came up with a good solution. My name is spelled in the girl way back in the 60's. (Stacy was a girl, and Stacey was a boy. My name was a family last name, so I got put in girls gym and home-ec every year.) There was no box to check on the application that said "female". I filled out an application and became a member of Troop 5 in Ocean View.....problem solved. A year later I became a leader. At that time, males were only allowed to be a leader if they were part of a husband/wife team....all except one ;)
 
Who says you can't boil ice water?... sheesh.

At 0 degrees celcius, the vapor pressure of water is 4.85 mmHg. Thus, if you can place ice water in a vacuum such that the ambient air pressure is less than 4.85 mm Hg, the water will boil.

Child's play.
 
In Seattle and the surrounding area, they only have STP.

I used to do a thing with scout groups when I gave a tour of my jewelry shop. When showing the casting equipment and the big vacuum bell jar, I would take a glass of cold water and stick it in. I would say that the vacuum worked like a microwave oven and could boil the water in seconds. I would turn it on and in no time at all the water would be violently boiling. I shut it off, took out the glass, pretended it was too hot to hold, ....and poured part of it over my head. After they all screamed, I then passed the glass around so they could feel that it was still ice cold.
 
Too cool, Stacy.

A bit back on topic, I recently had to remove a handle. Mine are (G-Flex)epoxy soaked leather scales wrapped with (WS 105/207)epoxy soaked hemp cord. The leather fully encases the tang, much like a Japanese Tsuka with the menuki hole at the butt end(I wrap through the hole to finish it off). I have to grind, chisel, hack, peel and soak in solvents to remove a handle. The difficulty is the fact that the leather and cord flex as you pry up under the scale. It is a long process... made even more difficult when I have a guard/butt cap assembly peened in place.



 
Thanks for all the help folks. I put it in the oven @ 300 and they came apart with little difficulty. The Dymondwood scales seem to have survived relatively unscathed. The question is now how to remove the residual epoxy from the scales and pins...Stacy, heat gun added to the shop equipment :)
 
Keep those eyes closed Stacy !!
At one time I coached a girl's fencing team. Yes , in every way girls and boys are different !!
One difference I remember is that while boys may lose to someone he shouldn't have , girls do it more often !
 
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