Here is my latest "kit" knife project:
Well as you can see it used to be an Uncle Henry Wolverine. I bought it at Smoky Mtn. Knifeworks for $10.99 when they were closing out stock. It came with a sheath also! I took the handle off and went to work. Here's what I did:
1. (15 min) Removed scales. I used a hand drill to remove the rivet heads on one side then just removed the scales since they are not attached with adhesive.
2. (25 min) Prepare new scales. I had a good block of Bubinga that I wanted to use so I split the block and sanded it flat (by hand on a flat surface) and then reduced the thickness to what I wanted.
3. (15 min) Fit and drill new scales. I used double-sided carpet tape to attach the scales to the tang of the knife to drill the holes in the scales. This worked great. I then attached the scales to the tang using the bolts and gave a preliminary shape to the scales.
4. (25 min) Attach scales. I counter bored the holes to accept the nuts in the scales. I only left about 3/32 inch of the scale near the tang after boring. I put epoxy on the back of the scales and in the counter bores and on the threads of the bolts and assembled the knife.
5. (40 min) Cut bolts. After the epoxy set overnight, I cut the bolts flush with the scales. I had a difficult time with this since I did not want to damage the scales or overheat the bolts. So I used a small hacksaw to remove the bolts. Each took about 10 minutes.
6. (30 min) Final shaping. I shaped the scales with various hand tools and sand paper. I found a 4-sided wood rasp very handy for doing the initial shaping and strips of sand paper for contouring. The knife was held in a vise for contouring.
7. (10 min) Applying Tung Oil. I gave it two heavy coats of Tung Oil, letting each dry thoroughly. After which I used 0000 grade steel wool to polish it up and give it a nice satin finish. BTW, the Tung oil I used was originally used as a floor finish. It dries VERY hard.
8. (20 min) Clean up and sharpen. I removed epoxy still on the blade and polished it by hand. Finally, I resharpened the blade and called it done.
Hope this helps those who are looking to start...I know I learned a bunch and have a knife I plan on using. To finish the project, I will probably attempt to make a pouch sheath for it. I will post it when I get it done.
jj
[This message has been edited by jeffj (edited 05-03-2000).]
Well as you can see it used to be an Uncle Henry Wolverine. I bought it at Smoky Mtn. Knifeworks for $10.99 when they were closing out stock. It came with a sheath also! I took the handle off and went to work. Here's what I did:
1. (15 min) Removed scales. I used a hand drill to remove the rivet heads on one side then just removed the scales since they are not attached with adhesive.
2. (25 min) Prepare new scales. I had a good block of Bubinga that I wanted to use so I split the block and sanded it flat (by hand on a flat surface) and then reduced the thickness to what I wanted.
3. (15 min) Fit and drill new scales. I used double-sided carpet tape to attach the scales to the tang of the knife to drill the holes in the scales. This worked great. I then attached the scales to the tang using the bolts and gave a preliminary shape to the scales.
4. (25 min) Attach scales. I counter bored the holes to accept the nuts in the scales. I only left about 3/32 inch of the scale near the tang after boring. I put epoxy on the back of the scales and in the counter bores and on the threads of the bolts and assembled the knife.
5. (40 min) Cut bolts. After the epoxy set overnight, I cut the bolts flush with the scales. I had a difficult time with this since I did not want to damage the scales or overheat the bolts. So I used a small hacksaw to remove the bolts. Each took about 10 minutes.
6. (30 min) Final shaping. I shaped the scales with various hand tools and sand paper. I found a 4-sided wood rasp very handy for doing the initial shaping and strips of sand paper for contouring. The knife was held in a vise for contouring.
7. (10 min) Applying Tung Oil. I gave it two heavy coats of Tung Oil, letting each dry thoroughly. After which I used 0000 grade steel wool to polish it up and give it a nice satin finish. BTW, the Tung oil I used was originally used as a floor finish. It dries VERY hard.
8. (20 min) Clean up and sharpen. I removed epoxy still on the blade and polished it by hand. Finally, I resharpened the blade and called it done.
Hope this helps those who are looking to start...I know I learned a bunch and have a knife I plan on using. To finish the project, I will probably attempt to make a pouch sheath for it. I will post it when I get it done.
jj
[This message has been edited by jeffj (edited 05-03-2000).]