SAK Mods! Post your pics, questions and ideas

Ahh, wait... what if I keep the chisel in the same spot but I flip it over so that the angled part faces the other side of the SAK? That would make the nail nick unusable, but it would make the end of the chisel easier to use once it is deployed, because there is only one layer in the way on that side.

hmmm...

or...

I could reprofile the chisel so that the grind is on the opposite side. That would make it shorter, but it would still be more usable than the stock orientation.
 
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Spikediesel said:
I agree with you! the GEC Red/Burgundy linen Micarta would be beautiful! It can be purchased a lot of places, it’s just not that popular. Out of the hundreds of knives I’ve built I’ve had one request for Red Micarta, Green wins by a landslide 🤷‍♂️
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Are you referring to making Red Micarta SAK handles here? If so, you just put another thing on the list of what I'd love to have for one of the "Dream-SAKs"! 😁

I am shocked at the lack of popularity though! I mean, I have some nice green micarta, sure, I get the natural look is beautiful... but the burgundy is just so classy and beautiful.
 
Hickory n steel said:
Anybody ever try giving the tweezers a pointed tip profile ?

Maybe they're not quite robust enough for a fine pointy profile, but I've got enough of them around that I think I may go for it.
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It’s not much of a deal to cut back the corners on a pair of tweezers to make the point finer. The problem with the SAK tweezers is the flex of the prongs which prevents a useful clamping force. The Uncle Bill’s tweezers have prongs which are .026” thick. The SAK prongs are .015” thick.View attachment 1899220
 
Would it be easier to put Phillips + magnifying glass onto a Super Tinker in place of the 1. Scissors, or 2. the openers?
 
Guy McVer said:
Ahh, wait... what if I keep the chisel in the same spot but I flip it over so that the angled part faces the other side of the SAK? That would make the nail nick unusable, but it would make the end of the chisel easier to use once it is deployed, because there is only one layer in the way on that side.

hmmm...
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Nail nick issue aside, the tang profile isn’t so easy to redo as needed if you flip it. The tang is far from symmetrical.

Guy McVer said:
or...

I could reprofile the chisel so that the grind is on the opposite side. That would make it shorter, but it would still be more usable than the stock orientation.
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I’m not sure I understand the issue. I use the chisel in its original position (next to the blade layer) pretty often as a scraper. No issues for me.
 
kamakiri.knives said:
I’m not sure I understand the issue. I use the chisel in its original position (next to the blade layer) pretty often as a scraper. No issues for me.
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When you have a 5, 6, or 8 layer SAK, the chisel becomes increasingly difficult to use as an actual chisel and not just a glorified scraper, wedge, or screwdriver (yes, some people do actually claim to use it as a screwdriver). That's why I'm brainstorming on how to move it or change the orientation so that the chisel can more easily be used as a chisel.

I will probably just move it down 1 layer and be done with it. It's better than nothing.
 
Guy McVer said:
When you have a 5, 6, or 8 layer SAK, the chisel becomes increasingly difficult to use as an actual chisel and not just a glorified scraper, wedge, or screwdriver (yes, some people do actually claim to use it as a screwdriver). That's why I'm brainstorming on how to move it or change the orientation so that the chisel can more easily be used as a chisel.

I will probably just move it down 1 layer and be done with it. It's better than nothing.
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I don’t understand the position issue. I use it on knives in that width range. Ranger, Troubleshooter through Champ. My biggest issue using it as a chisel is not having a good place to hit it with a hammer or punch.

I’m not against moving it, but don’t see your need to.
 
kamakiri.knives said:
I don’t understand the position issue. I use it on knives in that width range. Ranger, Troubleshooter through Champ. My biggest issue using it as a chisel is not having a good place to hit it with a hammer or punch.

I’m not against moving it, but don’t see your need to.
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It's kinda weird that you don't get it, but it's okay. You don't really need to understand it. It's just an angle/reach issue. The layers underneath the chisel get in the way of your reach, causing you to have to increase your angle to get the chisel where you want it. At that point the angle is often too steep to use the chisel the way you want to. Lowering the position of the chisel reduces the angle you have to hold it at to get past the edge of whatever you're using it on. It's that simple.
 
kamakiri.knives said:
I doth think there’s really a difference in difficulty. Either way, I’d have a tendency to put the mag/Phillips layer in the middle.
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Yup - I feel like I'm going to keep things pretty traditional in that way. I like the order of the tools. Keep it traditional, I say. Hahaha. Not traditional in my SAKs in any way except the tool placement - well, more traditional than others, I found some Eastern European SAK modders, but they all only do full-build crazy titanium modern Star-Wars looking SAKs. I just want my white scales and some red micarta + my blades, these folks are talented but man....

Since it can be done by just grinding the tool, I am thinking of trying to fashion a crochet hook out of a Phillips layer tool for my fiance, she said it looked like enough room to work with for the purposes needed, which was inspiring. I don't think you can get scale tools on the layer, can you?
 
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Hashishiin said:
I don't think you can get scale tools on the layer, can you?
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Like the Toothpick and tweezers? Pen? Into the main body…haven’t thought about it, but a Wenger Minathor drawer comes to mind.

I wonder if a Marlin Spike from the 111mm would be a good place to start for the crochet hook? Or maybe the long Phillips from the 111mm that sits under the scissors?
 
kamakiri.knives said:
Like the Toothpick and tweezers? Pen? Into the main body…haven’t thought about it, but a Wenger Minathor drawer comes to mind.

I wonder if a Marlin Spike from the 111mm would be a good place to start for the crochet hook? Or maybe the long Phillips from the 111mm that sits under the scissors?
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No, I am sorry, I meant things like the hook into the main body, the way the Phillips screwdriver comes out of the Explorer. My fiance was wishing for such a tool, slightly cut in a way to make it a crochet hook.

I really would like some of those models, for the spike, and for the excess metal to mod. And it comes out straight, not from the side, in the way she described was desired. Biggest size I have is the 91, technically a few 100mm but the cutting-edge is not larger than 91s.
 
Hashishiin said:
No, I am sorry, I meant things like the hook into the main body, the way the Phillips screwdriver comes out of the Explorer. My fiance was wishing for such a tool, slightly cut in a way to make it a crochet hook.

I really would like some of those models, for the spike, and for the excess metal to mod. And it comes out straight, not from the side, in the way she described was desired. Biggest size I have is the 91, technically a few 100mm but the cutting-edge is not larger than 91s.
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Ah, I see. It’s possible to mount the hook (backside tool) into the main body on one of the 2.5mm end pins. Not a lot of tools that will fit opposite of it (maybe the short Wenger in-line Phillips), so a ‘solo’ tool layer or maybe with another hook on the backside if the scissor backspring was used. Probably not that easy for most modders as spring work and tang cutting is needed. Definitely not a drop-in sort of mod.
 
I have just taken apart the back of a Handyman. We have jumped way up in both the cost of the SAK and the number of layers. 😨

The pin removal was accomplished by removing the head on one side with a file and some sanding with p240 paper to finish. Once again I attempted to save the back pin and reuse it, and once again this ended in failure while causing more trouble than it was worth. I will at least be able to recycle the pin on a smaller SAK. To fully drive out the stock pin I had to flatten the end of a small nail and drive it through the pivot slot to chase the pin out.

This modification will of course be extremely simple. I will yet again replace the corkscrew with a phillips. I will probably also swap the positions of the chisel and the dolphin screwdriver. I might not do this if I don't feel like modifying a liner to make the nail nick on the chisel accessible in its new position. It should be an easy modification though. Just a small bit of material has to be removed.

My plan to insert the replacement pin is boring and unoriginal. I will make the pin way too long and with one end tapered to a point so that it's easier to align the pin with all the holes. The bench vise won't help me as much this time because the back tools don't stick out past the liners on this SAK, so the pin itself is going to have to do some of the work aligning the tools. Should be interesting...

All of this is once again being done by hand without power tools. That includes resizing of the brass rod from 3/32" to something closer to the 2.2mm diameter used by Victorinox for the back pivot on all 91mm SAKs. I will use the same boring technique that I used the last time. It will just take longer this time.
 
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A couple recent projects:

Black Canvas Micarta
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6AL-4V Titanium
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I finished making the replacement pivot by hand this morning. It took almost exactly 1 hour using the same process I described before when making the pivot for the Apprentice mod. The new pivot fits cleanly through the sideplates and liners from both directions and is able to pass all the way out the other side of the SAK without issue.

Since there are a lot of layers and the backsprings will make lining up all of the holes difficult, I added a nice smooth pointed taper to one end of the rod to assist in the reassembly process. Hopefully it works well. If not, I will try to make it even more pointy and hopefully that will make it work better. I made the rod for the pivot way longer than it needs to be, so I should have more than enough room to play with.

edit: I just made the cutout in the liner for access to the chisel's nail nick. It took nearly two hours to do it with sandpaper! 😩 It would have gone so fast if I had used a dremel.

I matched the new cutout really closely to the original one. It's not perfect but you can't tell unless you look really closely. The original cutout is right next to where the new cutout goes, so that made it a lot simpler. I actually don't think it would work as well in any other spot. The first cutout makes reaching in to create the 2nd cutout a lot easier, and having both cutouts lined up next to eachother will probably also help to access the chisel's nail nick more easily once the SAK is assembled.
 
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I am now the proud owner of my very own custom Craftsman! 🎉🥳

I just finished peening it but I haven't put the scales on yet. I may need to do a test fit with some used scales first because I made the rivets bigger this time.

The tapered rod trick worked insanely well. Wow. I don't remember where I learned about that, but kudos to whoever shared it! 👍 I was expecting the reassembly to be a nightmare, but nope! Tap-tap on the pin, and presto! Back tool is magically aligned. Repeat for each layer. The backspring for the pliers was the only rough spot but I just tappy-tapped my way through it. The whole thing was a breeze and probably only took about two minutes, and that's only because my clumsy self dropped a couple of the tools. :rolleyes:

I had already peened one side of the pin before inserting it, so once it was all the way in I cut off the tapered side, filed it smooth, peened it, and it was done!

@#$% me, that was easy. o_O And it was only my second time peening. It's actually not that hard at all.

I think if I can do this, then anyone can. All you need are a few basic tools and some free time. The hardest part is simply getting the back pin out cleanly. The rest is easy street. It only requires time.

I used:

a small cheap file
a small cheap hacksaw
a few sheets of sandpaper in various grits from p120 to p3000
a bench vise
a small 5 ounce ball peen hammer

That's it. If you don't have a bench vise, a table vise or a clamp will probably work fine. Just make sure to use cardboard to protect the SAK.
 
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