Scale adhesives

Absintheur

Banned
Joined
Jan 31, 2008
Messages
3,280
Ok...got my Spyderco Mule Team blades (one of each steel) and I have finally settled on what I am going to handle them with. The wood I am going to be using is polymer stablized, one set is birch and the other is red wood. I will be using mosaic pins as well. My plans are to use a different colored wood for each steel that comes out and I am starting with a couple I liked, one in red and one in blue and each will also get a contrasting liner. All the rest of the Mule Team Blades (when they come out) will get scales from the same maker as these.

Question is what adhesive would be best for this? In the past I have used JB Weld as well as a two part epoxy from Brownells that I have used repairing gun stocks. But as you can see these scale are pretty nice and I want the best I can use, not the best I happen to have on hand. Any suggestions?

ZapSnap_014.png
ZapSnap_013.png
 
I would start with a high grade super glue or try and find a epoxy ment for that purpouse. Good glue is only half of it, make sure you do a proper prep of each surface. Good luck, that some good looking handle material.
 
I would start with a high grade super glue or try and find a epoxy ment for that purpouse. Good glue is only half of it, make sure you do a proper prep of each surface. Good luck, that some good looking handle material.

Knifenut how do you know what is high grade super glue. IM making some wood scales for somew knives but I want to make sure they stay.. Don G
 
You might want to ask this question in the Maker's forum, they have great advice.
 
I would suggest 2-part epoxy adhesive.

There are two basic grades of such a thing. Exact brand is less important than the grade. The two grades are:
5-minute
high strength.

The high strength takes longer to set up (hours) so you will need to clamp it together during cure. But the resulting bond will be pretty much indestructible. Because it takes longer to set up, you will have more time to get the alignment exactly correct before clamping.

The 5-minute gives you less time to adjust and the resulting bond is less robust.

Cyanoacrylate adhesives (super glue, crazy glue, et. al.) set up almost immediately so there is almost no time to adjust alignment. The resulting bond is least robust of the three adhesives I have mentioned.
 
So the Loctite High Strength 2 part epoxy would be good? That is what I use already and trust me I know about prep, having a shotgun rib come loose is embarrassing...especially on a customers gun.
 
I'm sure there are many epoxies that will work well. I have heard or read somewhere, however, that 'shafting epoxy' which is used to attach the heads on golf clubs, is an excellent choice for knife scales.
 
If the wood being used was of a lesser grade, I'd suggest "Mighty Putty." It's what I'm using with mine when I get some micarta out of storage.
 
Super Glue or any CA will crystalize and fail!If you're using pins a slow cure 2 part epoxy is fine.The best,tightest grip i've found is loc-tite 330 or Loc-Tite Speedbonder.I think it's actually the same product.I use that for inlays without pins.Those are beautiful scales.Is the left one that PVC mix stuff?
 
The blue scales are red wood burl dyed blue with cracks in the wood filled with a lighter blue epoxy. The red scales are birch burl double dyed. Both are polymer stabilized. The scales come from the Craig Stevens Studio. Next I think I will go green if he has some available.

I have never really trusted super glue for anything I wanted permanent.
 
So the Loctite High Strength 2 part epoxy would be good? That is what I use already and trust me I know about prep, having a shotgun rib come loose is embarrassing...especially on a customers gun.

Yes sir. That would be dandy.

I should have remembered about your prior work. Yeah, you would know how to prep, that's for sure.
 
Does it matter the color of the epoxy? The 2 ton at the store was grey colored and I didnt think that would go well with my black micarta scales.
 
I use clear casting epoxy available at hobby stores, but I would never trust any glue alone for knife handles. Mechanical fasteners (screws, bolts, or pins) are the way to go.
 
Back
Top