Will etching tang help adhesion.....

C

cgdavid

Joined
Sep 12, 2005
Messages
85
Been messing around with different finishing methods one of which is etching. Using half ferric chloride (Radio Shack etchant) and half water, the steel comes out with what feels like a porous sufrace. Is this texture a good surface to epoxy handle material to? Maybe to right question is how deep/well-attached is the etched surface to the base metal?

Before someone mentions it, I don't have blasting equipment. Blasting the surface to enhance adhesion would probably be preferable.

Thanks...Curt
 
cgdavid said:
Been messing around with different finishing methods one of which is etching. Using half ferric chloride (Radio Shack etchant) and half water, the steel comes out with what feels like a porous sufrace. Is this texture a good surface to epoxy handle material to? Maybe to right question is how deep/well-attached is the etched surface to the base metal?

Before someone mentions it, I don't have blasting equipment. Blasting the surface to enhance adhesion would probably be preferable.

Thanks...Curt
Click to expand...
Hi Curt, I figure you are speaking of a full tang knife. When you epoxy handle slabs onto the tang it only acts to bond them to the surface, not so much as the soul provider in keeping them in place but as a helping hand to the rivits or pins that you use. These are what really holds the slabs in place. Epoxy is affected by heat to the extent that the slabs if epoxied only would soon drop off. Good question.:thumbup: Fred
 
Assuming you get the oxide layer off (which can be tougher with ferric chloride then with alot of other etchants) it should be a better surface for adhesion, at least it is for paint so it stands to reason it'd be better for epoxy too. What Fred said is correct though, you don't really want the epoxy to be your main attachment method, just backup for the pins.
 
I hit the hidden tang area of mine w/ a 50 grit hogger. That leaves a plenty rough enough surface for adhesion.
 
THanks....

Fred

It is full tangs I'm refering to...

I's really amazing how well just epoxy holds up though. Here is the first knife I did (decades ago) whe I was a 13 year old sprout. The edge of the file was used to cut into the deer antler. It was epoxied in hard and unground. The antler was used to hold on to the blade while it was ground on a bench grinder.

It's dressed out a truck load of deer.....
first.jpg


After dabling with knifemaking over the years, I decided to get into it a little more seriously since the kids are grown and gone. aka lots more time to do stuff now.
 
AWP

The oxide layer...is that the slightly darker film that washes off ? with a scrubbig with soap and water?..

THanks

Plain ol Bill

That's about what I do on the few I've done lately. Usually the edge of a disk on an angle grinder does the trick for me. Etching just seems like a neat trick...something to play with.... maybe even a good idea...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top