The “Can’t leave anything alone” Thread

[jideta]

Started with my other folders and it just continues!



I actually messed up the other side some.
I was getting hungry for lunch so I rushed it a bit and sanded it too much.
Still needs a finish sanding and thinking about some wax.

 

[Rose and Thistle Custom]

Benchmade Proper I'm working on.

 

[Clem Fandango]

Giant Mouse family out today.

 

[Old Biker]

First up was drilling the clip off the scales. The screws were in there good so I needed to extract the screws.
I thought I learned something the first time I did this.
Apparently not because as I was doing the countersinks...

View attachment 1453430

I almost packed up and went home.
There went like 12 bucks worth of cocobolo!
Okay, take a deep breath!

You know they make this stuff called glue? That break looks like it could be fitted back together well. Tape it tight while the glue dries. Sand off the excess and squeeze out, and the break should be pretty much invisible.

O.B.

 

[Sharp & Fiery]

O Old Biker Sometimes gluing does work...but it’s rare that you cant see the crack. :/
Case in point jideta ... I was fuming when I dropped and broke this scale in half while finishing up one of my “Thistles.” You can see the crack running through the front pin. It looks ok, but I wouldn’t send this out to a customer. Luckily, this was the one I was keeping. Haha.

 

[jideta]

You know they make this stuff called glue? That break looks like it could be fitted back together well. Tape it tight while the glue dries. Sand off the excess and squeeze out, and the break should be pretty much invisible.

O.B.

yeah I looked at it and looked at it.
What happened was I did a shitty job with the epoxy and the liner; I didn't bother to clamp so the scale came right off the G10. I actually cracked the other side first and had re-glued and clamped that while breaking the second side.
In the end I said f*ck it, I got another set, might as well do it the right way. I tossed the first set.
Instead of using a giant old regular bit, I busted out the Forstners for the second set and got a much nicer countersink (which I should have done the first time).

O Old Biker Sometimes gluing does work...but it’s rare that you cant see the crack. :/
Case in point jideta ... I was fuming when I dropped and broke this scale in half while finishing up one of my “Thistles.” You can see the crack running through the front pin. It looks ok, but I wouldn’t send this out to a customer. Luckily, this was the one I was keeping. Haha.
View attachment 1454775

YEah I'll bust out the Titebond depending on how scarce the source material is and how far along in the project I am. I don't usually sell my wood stuff but yeah if I'm making it for someone it doesn't leave the shop. I'll usually just start over. The problem is no matter how good the repair job, other folks might not know, but YOU know.

I don't usually work wood this small and thin so I'm still learning.
And messing up!

 

[Sharp & Fiery]

yeah I looked at it and looked at it.
What happened was I did a shitty job with the epoxy and the liner; I didn't bother to clamp so the scale came right off the G10. I actually cracked the other side first and had re-glued and clamped that while breaking the second side.
In the end I said f*ck it, I got another set, might as well do it the right way. I tossed the first set.
Instead of using a giant old regular bit, I busted out the Forstners for the second set and got a much nicer countersink (which I should have done the first time).



YEah I'll bust out the Titebond depending on how scarce the source material is and how far along in the project I am. I don't usually sell my wood stuff but yeah if I'm making it for someone it doesn't leave the shop. I'll usually just start over. The problem is no matter how good the repair job, other folks might not know, but YOU know.

I don't usually work wood this small and thin so I'm still learning.
And messing up!

That is the thing...I know its there! Haha.
I really wanted those scales on my Thistle so I made due. Haha.
But yes...always better to start over.

 

[jideta]

Sometimes the hard part of being the maker is that we think we can get away with stuff 99% of folks won't notice.
Unfortunately, I worry about that 1%!

 

[ChazzyP]

Here's another of my modest, typically store-bought mods from October--a Jekyll to Hyde backspacer/lanyard attachment for the large natural Micarta 31 I picked up LNIB off the Exchange. I've always added lanyards to my CRKs and have eschewed using the stock lanyard pins as it's next-to-impossible to get 550 cord through and I don't like the way they hang when pinched so tight anyway. I generally go through the vacated pin holes on 21's and did the Norvox mod on my StarTac as I'm fine going around the post on my 25's and Inkosi's.

The JtoH piece is not inexpensive but, considering it's a small-batch, specialty piece, I get why it's priced where it is. It's also an example of my favorite sort of lanyard attachment such as those on my F3, 111, or MP1 for example.

After reassembling the knife after installation I had trouble getting the blade centered and wondered if the new part wasn't throwing things off as it locks in all four points at the rear of the handle, however I found the fault was mine as I had reassembled the knife incorrectly by stacking it all together including the blade and pivot instead of putting the handle together first then subsequently slipping the blade, pivot bushing, and washers in the front as a unit just like one should with a 21. I'd probably pinched a washer, but after re-doing things properly everything came out dead on, the only caveat being that the new shouldered pivot required backing off slightly as fully tightening made the action too stiff. Those screws came thread-locked from CRK and I suspect they weren't fully tightened to begin with. With the improvements made to the 31, I wonder why they didn't include the Inkosi's floating stop pin in the package, which is an altogether more sensible design.

 

[Billy The Hungry]

I have wanted one of these knives for years. Do they have any blade play? I know most slippies have some.

 

[afishhunter]

Does forcing a patina on carbon steel blades (1095; T10; and whatever Mora and Opinel use) using vinegar or ketchup/mustard, and /or an excessive quantities of fresh peach ... count as "modifying"?

 

[afishhunter]

I have wanted one of these knives for years. Do they have any blade play? I know most slippies have some.

I don't have one of the Lion Steel knives. They are way outside my budget. Those that have one and talk about them in the "Traditional" forum don't mention them having blade play. Trust me ... if they did, that would be a major issue/defect over there.

I do, however, have around 75 or so slipjoints, ranging from Rough Ryder/Rough Rider, Colt, Boker Plus, Boker Magnum, and recent offshore production Schrade, and Marbles, to Made in USA Case, GEC, Buck (301) and vintage, obtained used Schrade/Imperial*/Old Timer USA, Pre-War Remington, and a circa 1911 Robeson 'Sure Edge' 'Pocket Eze' pen knife, and a couple inexpensive no-name souvenir and advertising knives, dating to I'm guessing the 1950's. Exactly zero/none of my slippies have a case of blade wiggly wobblies. Wiggly Wobblies is a deal murderer for me.
(*one of my Imperial Barlow's is a post fire, made in Ireland, with shell construction, same as my pre-fire Prov. RI Imperial Barlow)

Blade play on a quality slipjoint is rare.

Please note that cost does not determine quality.
The Imperial Barlow's I have were both well under $4.00 when new in the 1960's and 1970's. Both have shell construction. The "bolsters" and integral "covers" are a sheet of tin clipped on each end to the frame.

My Marbles MR278 "Demo"/"G.I. Utility" knives, were all of $6.99 each. They are of equal quality to the Camillus and Western made "Demo" Knife issued to the US military from circa 1948 to circa 2007, when Camillus shut their doors.
The Camillus and Western cost the government a lot more than call it "$7.00" each.
(The Western made "Demo" knife I was issued in 1975, only cost me a couple months. The Army Reserve didn't want it back when I was given a (not wanted by me) "forever"/"in this lifetime" medical discharge. Unlike the M-16 A-1, bayonet, and 81mm mortar I was issued. Those they wanted back, for some reason. )

The last slipjoint I had with a wobbly blade was a sub $1.00 "Gas Station Special" FROST, currently located somewhere in the mud approximately half way between Clinton, Iowa and Fulton, Illinois, in the vicinity of the old US Highway 136 toll bridge.
(unless it was removed in a dredging operation, or by a major flood between post still a record flood of 1965, and today.)

 

[Rose and Thistle Custom]

I have wanted one of these knives for years. Do they have any blade play? I know most slippies have some.

I haven't seen any blade play on any of my slipjoints, only on lockback knives. I have a lot of very nice folders, some much more expensive than the Roundhead and Shuffler you were asking about but for my daily carry it's always my Roundhead slim (titanium handles) in my pocket.
Here's one I worked on a bit.

 

[Ruudr]

A few favorites:

Awesome Micarta scales on that Victorinox! Where did you get them?

 

[Rose and Thistle Custom]

Awesome Micarta scales on that Victorinox! Where did you get them?

Spikediesel makes them himself!

 

[Chevelleface]

Scrapyard hot diggity dagger bead blasted and fitted with python micarta scales.

 

[Billy The Hungry]

I haven't seen any blade play on any of my slipjoints, only on lockback knives. I have a lot of very nice folders, some much more expensive than the Roundhead and Shuffler you were asking about but for my daily carry it's always my Roundhead slim (titanium handles) in my pocket.
Here's one I worked on a bit.
View attachment 1456584

Beautiful!!!

 

[WValtakis]

 

[jideta]

Off-Grid knives Black Stallion
Kinda strange proportions, for me anyways.
Looks like a fat knife, but it's not.
Anyways, I didn't like scales:



I also don't like G10.
Here's a picture I took while I should have been working...



Not sure I like them scales either; dyed bog oak, stabilized with red liners.
I actually messed up one side; my excuse is that I was trying to finish up while I was in class and I was distracted.



I also lightly sanded the blade to get rid of some of the finish.
I also don't like black blades!
If you look good at the other side, you can see where I started to mess up the sanding on the scale. I have another set of slabs if I decide to go with this.
Not sure.
I kinda like it?

 

[Sharp & Fiery]

CPK FK1...user...black worn screws and orangish micarta scales I was not a fan of...

Let the mods begin!!
I decided to replace the scales with some faded and worn black micarta scales, blast the black off the screws, and make some liners from some blue G10 I had kicking around.


Here is a shot of the before and after sprucing up the black scales.