SHe - Scales need help

K

kjd2121

Joined
Jun 17, 2008
Messages
831
I picked this SHe up on the exchange. This knife I believe dates back to around 2000 so 14 years has taken its toll. This came with a CG coating except the spine and underside were satin from the factory.

Can I get these paper scales back to a nice rich Black color? Notice how they are a brownish/greenish mess.






The previous owner said that the edge was convexed to a super sharp edge. What he didn't reveal is that one side is about 2-3mm more than the other. I can't see both sides at the same time, but it still bugs me :( I took her out and chopped some wood and trimmed a tree. Afterwards I noticed several chips in the blade edge, damn it must have been too thin on the edge???? I got the edge fixed on my HF belt sander, but the bad convex remains. I guess over time I will get enough experience to make it right.

I have since stripped the crinkle coat to reveal a nice fairly smooth blade with some cool INFI pitting at the ricasso and the butt, but don't have photos at the moment.








Thanks for listening:)
 
Thanks JAXX - I grabbed a bottle of mineral oil last night and have soaked the scales overnight. I will soak again today and wipe tonight to see what we have! They looked pretty good this morning - all shiny:)
 
don't let the edge difference bug you too much. These came new with an asymmetrical edge, if my old memory isn't failing me. Ground higher on one side than the other as a design feature.
 
MikeH said:
don't let the edge difference bug you too much. These came new with an asymmetrical edge, if my old memory isn't failing me. Ground higher on one side than the other as a design feature.
Click to expand...

Really? Hmmm - learn something new everyday - I will try some searches for more info. thanks

Found this thread - http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/747170-Asymmetric-Edge-Resource-Thread

Quote Originally Posted by resinguy View Post
I just stripped my Asm B11, and buffed the blade with a ScotchBrite wheel, producing a nice dull silver/gray working finish.

Now I need to touch up the edge. I confess that it is hard for me to tell which side is which. When Jerry says (above) that with the blade edge down, that the left bevel is flat and the right convex, is the knife pointing away from you or towards you? Is the convex bevel the wide one or the narrow one?

The convex bevel is on the right side of the blade with the blade pointed away from you, edge down. The convex bevel is the wide one.



Just last week I was trying to find someone who could 'FIX' this knife. Little did I know it was a design feature. Slaps forehead...I have much to learn.
 
Last edited:
I cleaned up my Sarq handles by soaking them (while still attached), in a solution of 1\3 bleach for 30 minutes. Do not know if this would work for you, but it removed a good bit of the grime. I would be leery however, of using too strong of a mixture for too long of a time(?) Curious of any others have spiffed up their micarta's in this manner??? Good luck.
 
Last edited:
tuica said:
I cleaned up my Sarq handles by soaking them (while still attached), in a solution of 1\3 bleach for 30 minutes. Do not know if this would work for you, but it removed a good bit of the grime. I would be leery however, of using too strong of a mixture for too long of a time(?) Curious of any others have spiffed up their micarta's in this manner??? Good luck.
Click to expand...

I have washed this handle about 10 times at least so I don't think it is grime. I think over time they dry out as the scales are no longer flush with the steel. I have used some mineral oil and it helps, but I think the discoloration will always be there.
 
If you talking about the spine of the knife sitting proud of the scales, then that is a pretty common thing among the older E handle knives. I've had many that were like that.

I have a Satin Jack original with black paper and it has that same brown "oxide" on the scales. I was once told that you could sand them and it would show black again. I just cant do that to a rare bird. Sometimes the oil works, sometimes not, but I wonder if there is a thinner oil that would penetrate better? I'd like to see my Satin Jack back to new looking.

EDIT: to add, the asymmetrical edge comes in all widths. I've had some that were very pronounced and some you would barely tell the difference between the two. My long gone BAe was very different from side to side, one side twice the height. Yours is not out of that realm of possibility. :)
 
Last edited:
kjd2121 said:
snip...

Now I need to touch up the edge. I confess that it is hard for me to tell which side is which. When Jerry says (above) that with the blade edge down, that the left bevel is flat and the right convex, is the knife pointing away from you or towards you? Is the convex bevel the wide one or the narrow one?

The convex bevel is on the right side of the blade with the blade pointed away from you, edge down. The convex bevel is the wide one.[/FONT][/B]



Just last week I was trying to find someone who could 'FIX' this knife. Little did I know it was a design feature. Slaps forehead...I have much to learn.
Click to expand...


The edge is down with the tip away from you. :thumbup:

THe convex is the wide edge on the right side of a typical asym for a right handed user. Also, known as the reverse side of the blade or the side with no logo.

Now in your case it looks like the previous owner tried to convex the entire edge which is why its hard for you to see.


A left handed asym is the opposite which places the convex bevel on the left side.

You can send it in to the shop and they can return it to asymmetrical or make it straight with a v edge, or convex it entirely depending on what you prefer.:)

Great find. Not many Sh-E with quilted black paper.
 
Last edited:
That edge is no longer factory and looks as though the knife has been re-worked a bit.

The spine and work around the handle does not look to be done at the factory, I have a had a bunch with polished spines from Busse and they do not look like that.

Nice Knife, I would use it a bunch.

You could call or e-mail the shop to fix up the edge I know any of the great folks there could put a razor edge on it.

I would say that is a great user, collect-ability other than being a nice E-handle Busse has been lost on that one with grinding and stripping unfortunately .

Kind of stinks it was sold as something else.

The scales, I would have different ones put on, I am not a fan of black paper for this reason, I have had a couple do this same thing or lighten up to grey and I have not found a way to get them back to deep black.
 
Thanks guys for the information - I am new to all this Busse stuff:)

I bought this one to use hard. No collectors for me - yet. I will leave it as is for now until I decide what kind of scales SHe deserves. Then the grind can be reworked if what it has now is unsatisfactory for me.

I have stripped the entire knife and have started sanding. Photos to come...
 
That's my old knife. I put that edge on there. It's no longer an asymmetrical grind. It's a lean and mean convex. I also rounded the corners on the handle slabs. I don't know how many owners it's been through since me or how they maintained that edge but when it left me... it would shave a gnat's ass. And it wouldn't chip even in super dry hard wood.

408972372.jpg
 
kjd2121 said:
I have washed this handle about 10 times at least so I don't think it is grime. I think over time they dry out as the scales are no longer flush with the steel. I have used some mineral oil and it helps, but I think the discoloration will always be there.
Click to expand...
That knife looks pretty good as-is. In my limited experience with paper micarta on Busse knives, it has a slight brownish-greenish look to it even when new. Regarding the scales not being flush with the metal, this was somewhat common back then when knives shipped new from the factory (whether paper or canvas micarta); I doubt that it is due to shrinkage. If you decide to get new grips, I recommend canvas micarta for a knife that will be used. Congratulations on a nice knife!
 
Funny story... I have a scar on my shin from that knife. I was showing it off to a friend and I wanted to show them how insanely sharp it was so I went to shave a little hair off my shin... took off a quarter (coin that is) sized piece of meat. I felt this sharp burn as I did it then looked to inspect the knife and it had a hairy little scalp hanging on the edge... then I felt something running down my leg. Good times.
 
Haven't there been some posts by folks who used black RIT dye to darken the scales?
 
resinguy said:
Haven't there been some posts by folks who used black RIT dye to darken the scales?
Click to expand...

I've heard that has mixed results. It's so far back I can't remember it well. But I think I remember Mr. Brown commenting that it left some kind of white/gray residue on the scales if it was exposed to solvents later. Don't quote me on that though. My brain ain't what it used to be.

Maybe something like leather dye? That stuff is pretty strong right?
 
Took the stripped SHe out for a drive by last weekend:














Stropped on my kitchen steel and still sharp as $hit.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top