What would you like in a Custom Scales?

What Would you Like in Custom Scales?

  • Nice Design - Dazzle me.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • K.I.S.S. Design - Form and Function is all I need.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Affordable - Low price is all I care.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    0
form and function.
don't really care about material as long as it doesn't have a glass smooth surface -- "sandblasted" or 120 grit finish on polycarbonate, micarta, or G10 is fine with me -- or ship them out with a machined surface and ready for alteration to taste.
If you want to mess with wood in the mill, let me know what rough dimensions you want to work with and i can send you a small box of exotic scraps to play with. (cumaru, tuauri, some other S. Am hardwoods, laminated bamboo, etc...)
 
Just to throw in my $.02 - for me a large part of the BKT draw is affordability. While I voted for function as a main consideration - I would not spend over $50 for a set of BK2 scales. That is about 75% of the price of the knife.

I am sure there are different opinions, but to me these are working knives, not show knives. So function and comfort are way above looks.

BK14 scales I would want a $25 or so range.
 
Tornado relief efforts are finally winding down here in North Bama. Got the pair of scales from Sh@rp pictured below just after the storms, and have been using the heck out of that knife with them on it over the last two weeks. Just haven't had time to write up a review yet, and I know that some of you will find this conclusion counter-intuitive, but the hard, flat shiny scales on this knife present no hot-spots for me. Most of the work has been swinging it through 1" - 2" sized branches. No real chopping per se, just cleaning small outgrowths off of larger trees and branches so the guys with the chain saws could section them down to manageable sizes. Sorry, no action pics. Just been too busy to even grab the camera. Full review coming within a few days, but just wanted to quell any fears about Sh@rp's "normal" designs not being well-suited for heavy work. I am surprised to be saying that I could tell no difference as far as comfort between these and the stock Grivory set that's been on there for the 7 or 8 years I've had it.

DSCF3651.jpg
 
DerekH said:
Something like this in that Lexan you got. Or black G10. That kind of texturing on a becker shaped handle scales.

Oops, forgot the pic I was going to post.

DSCN2012.jpg
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Has anyone had used something similar to this (scale pattern) in a big chopper (BK9 or similar)? I'm curious if it might cause some hotspot. It does look cool though.
 
1066vik said:
form and function.
don't really care about material as long as it doesn't have a glass smooth surface -- "sandblasted" or 120 grit finish on polycarbonate, micarta, or G10 is fine with me -- or ship them out with a machined surface and ready for alteration to taste.
If you want to mess with wood in the mill, let me know what rough dimensions you want to work with and i can send you a small box of exotic scraps to play with. (cumaru, tuauri, some other S. Am hardwoods, laminated bamboo, etc...)
Click to expand...
Thank you, my friend. I would like to try exotic woods sometime later. I need something roughly 6.0" X 2.0" X .375" thick. I'll let you know when later.

paperairplane said:
Just to throw in my $.02 - for me a large part of the BKT draw is affordability. While I voted for function as a main consideration - I would not spend over $50 for a set of BK2 scales. That is about 75% of the price of the knife.

I am sure there are different opinions, but to me these are working knives, not show knives. So function and comfort are way above looks.

BK14 scales I would want a $25 or so range.
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This is what I wanted to hear. Yes, BKT has a very affordable for a proven products. I believe no one can offer anything better than BKT's price and performance. The Micarta scales for the big knives is about $40-45, and the BK11 micarta scales is about $35-40. I know BKT is going to offer the BK14 scales soon as it's been mentioned in another thread, and I believe they'll be affordable (may be in the price range you mentioned?). My hope is that I'm one amongst us "knife nuts" can offer a choice rather than compete to the OEM products. Therefore, to make this hobby more enjoyable. Doing that I've put my skills and thoughts into my works hoping that I could share the enjoyment with you guys. The Izula scales that I offer is very competitive in pricing (compared to BK11 micarta and T-K-C) and I hope you see I have more work on my scales than any other scales. I can offer a very basic form and function scales at a very competitive price given that if the interested is at least 20 people or more. I hope everyone seeing this as a choice you can make in choosing the scales and have fun doing it. Cheers.

BluesStringer said:
Tornado relief efforts are finally winding down here in North Bama. Got the pair of scales from Sh@rp pictured below just after the storms, and have been using the heck out of that knife with them on it over the last two weeks. Just haven't had time to write up a review yet, and I know that some of you will find this conclusion counter-intuitive, but the hard, flat shiny scales on this knife present no hot-spots for me. Most of the work has been swinging it through 1" - 2" sized branches. No real chopping per se, just cleaning small outgrowths off of larger trees and branches so the guys with the chain saws could section them down to manageable sizes. Sorry, no action pics. Just been too busy to even grab the camera. Full review coming within a few days, but just wanted to quell any fears about Sh@rp's "normal" designs not being well-suited for heavy work. I am surprised to be saying that I could tell no difference as far as comfort between these and the stock Grivory set that's been on there for the 7 or 8 years I've had it.
Click to expand...
I'm glad to see you put them to use and turned out OK. Looking forward to see your full review. Thanks bud!
 
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Functional Micarta or G10 would be wonderful. Keep it simple for the sake of customization after the fact.
 
OREGON FAL'ER said:
Don't want anything fancy, I'm not collecting them so much as using them. So Micarta in a few different colors would be good. I'd say keep it as close to ethans design so it stays comfortable. I be more than happy to evaluate a set for you when you get some proto's done. Their gonna be dirty when you get em' back.
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Have you seen 1066vik's thread about passaround scales I made. Please sign up for it. I'd love to hear your opinion on the scales. If you have some micarta or G10 send them to me, I'll mill them to shape and send them back for finishing. I'd love to see how they turn out.

kfgk14 said:
Functional Micarta or G10 would be wonderful. Keep it simple for the sake of customization after the fact.
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gytheran said:
I would love to see some colored g10 for my beckers. :)
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Same offer to you if you had some material. I need something 6.0" X 2.0" X .375" thick.
 
I didn't notice the survey questions when I posted before. But I can't vote anyway. It would be correct to say that form and function is all I need, but I'm a sucker for being dazzled too. I don't see the two choices as being mutually exclusive. When I'm buying custom pieces of anything that's not strict art, I still find value in artistically engineered functionality.

I have a cousin who is a fairly famous artist. He casts shapes that look like something, a vase or a lamp base or picture frames, that kind of stuff. But on the vases, he makes the hole where the flowers and water would be put in covered, which is what defines it as art in his mind, because he removes any chance for it being functional as what it appears to be. To him, it can't be strict art if it serves any utilitarian function. He similarly renders all his other castings useless for what they appear to be. Whoop-dee-doo, it's a bit too esoteric for me and over my head I guess, but he's internationally known and his art is highly sought after.

Me, I have no problem with combining art with functionality. I prefer it in fact. Not necessarily "bling-like," just something that adds to its aesthetics in something other than a functional way, while still sharing the same space with creative full-function.

Also, price is always a consideration, but low price is hardly all I care about. Actually, I care more about good value than price, if that makes sense.

So for me, elements of all three choices would have to be part of any answer I could give. Don't know if that's helpful or just confusing the issues, but it's the truth for me, so there ya go.

Blues
 
I think it would be cool if you made some budget scales, maybe already cut to shape and had the holes drilled but unfinished, as in no shaping what so ever and let the end user customize it to suit. Maybe in the $25 ish price range?

G10 or Micarta would be obvious choices for this.
 
How about something along the lines of the Hogue grips for handguns? They are rubber over steel? and have a pebbled texture. I have a couple dozen on various handguns and in wet weather they are still grippy. Or, perhaps aluminum with 20 or 30 lines per inch of checkering for a good grip with finger grooves at the bottom?

By the way, if you can, I also have an Izula who is in need of a set of scales. I don't need the Ant logo but some checkering would be dandy! drop a line on here if possible. Thanks. In addition, I have some canvas micarta if you would like to mill them from it instead of metal. What do you think?
 
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I would be in for some OD green micarta or OD G10. Finished as I dont have a way to work with them over here. Where do you get that sized micarta/G10 slabs? Can't find any big enough on ebay.
 
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DerekH said:
Something like this in that Lexan you got. Or black G10. That kind of texturing on a becker shaped handle scales.

Oops, forgot the pic I was going to post.

DSCN2012.jpg
Click to expand...

a grip design like this in micarta is what I would prefer.. on a tops knife I have, it is equipped with the micarta scales with the rocky mountain pattern, and I love it!
 
DerekH said:
Y...Could you reproduce the standard handle scale in a solid block of G10 or Lexan? That alone would be fine by me, then if I wanted a crazy texture or whatever I could do it myself and not have to worry about the scales since they were solid and not hollow.
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reproducing exact 3D shaped Becker handles of the existing variety will get you in trouble in short order. it's a protected design dontchaknow.

now, what would be cool is getting a license/deal with KaBar to produce handles for them. ESP in many colors :) and since KaBar has been lax on the BK14 scales, and we've got 3 new handle variants coming out, they might just like such a side thing. course, Sh@rp would have to make 1000s and 1000s of them. might be killer.

just a thought :>
 
kabar already has the neon green material for the ZK line, why not pour some in becker handle molds and sell bright green handle scales! that would be easy enough and would probably generate sales

bladeforums4g.jpg
 
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Micarta for me. Maybe a few texture options, bow drill divot option and colors. If it'd be the same shape, or similar and will fit the same kydex sheaths, like the BK2 sheath, that'd be great.

My thing, is that the scales from KaBar are expensive already, if these scales could be similar or lower price?? That'd be awesome.

Thanks,
Cole
 
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