Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2004
- Messages
- 38,094
I thought i would post a few comments about fitting the tang to the guard on a knife. Hidden tang of full tang, if the guard has to slip on the tang, it will need to be a good fit by the time it gets to the shoulders at the ricasso.
1) Make the tang a taper. It should be a little smaller in width and thickness all the way up to the last 1/2". I make the end of the tang about 75% of the thickness at the shoulder, and about 2-3mm narrower.
2) Make the guard hole with round ends, and round the tang sides to the same radius. Do your drills make round holes?...then why do you make the tang sides square?
3) Make it a smooth fit. Sand the tang and the shoulders to 400 grit, and file the guard slot with a fine tooth file. A #1 or #2 needle file is good.
4) Make it a force fit. The guard should slip on to the tang and get snug about 1/4" from the final seat. When it gets snug, remove and look inside the guard slot for shiny spots. Those need a stroke of the file to take of a tiny amount of metal. Do this slowly, and the guard should get to being a perfect fit all around as it gets almost to the shoulder.
5) Slip it up snug. Apply a drop or two of oil to the tang and guard and use a piece of slotted or drilled out wood to tap the guard snug. If it does not want to go home with a little persuasion, remove and look inside as above. Once fitted, remove and clean off all oil and other contaminates and then proceed to the next step.
6) Solder it on. If the guard and tang are perfectly fitted, it takes only a minute and the tiniest amount of solder to solder on the guard. There should be no need for a guard clsamp/jig...because it is already snugly in place. JB Weld will work, but nothing is as professional and permanently sealing as a good solder joint. The biggest problem with bad solder joints is too much solder and too much heat.
1) Make the tang a taper. It should be a little smaller in width and thickness all the way up to the last 1/2". I make the end of the tang about 75% of the thickness at the shoulder, and about 2-3mm narrower.
2) Make the guard hole with round ends, and round the tang sides to the same radius. Do your drills make round holes?...then why do you make the tang sides square?
3) Make it a smooth fit. Sand the tang and the shoulders to 400 grit, and file the guard slot with a fine tooth file. A #1 or #2 needle file is good.
4) Make it a force fit. The guard should slip on to the tang and get snug about 1/4" from the final seat. When it gets snug, remove and look inside the guard slot for shiny spots. Those need a stroke of the file to take of a tiny amount of metal. Do this slowly, and the guard should get to being a perfect fit all around as it gets almost to the shoulder.
5) Slip it up snug. Apply a drop or two of oil to the tang and guard and use a piece of slotted or drilled out wood to tap the guard snug. If it does not want to go home with a little persuasion, remove and look inside as above. Once fitted, remove and clean off all oil and other contaminates and then proceed to the next step.
6) Solder it on. If the guard and tang are perfectly fitted, it takes only a minute and the tiniest amount of solder to solder on the guard. There should be no need for a guard clsamp/jig...because it is already snugly in place. JB Weld will work, but nothing is as professional and permanently sealing as a good solder joint. The biggest problem with bad solder joints is too much solder and too much heat.
