WIP - Loveless Style Hunter by Erik Boese

Okay, this was actually yesterday but wanted to make the final post in one complete section.

I started out prepping the thong tube. I chuck it in a hand drill and reverse the direction on it. Then I went to the belt grinder and spun the ends down smooth. This isn't the final length, it just gives me a nice smooth tube to pop through the handle. You can also do this by hand like I did the pins, just giving other alternatives.
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And here's the end result.
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Here are all my pieces cleaned and laid out. I wipe everything down with acetone while wearing gloves so I won't have any oils from my hands transferred.
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I use Pop's 30 min epoxy. I have some 15 min also, but the 30 makes for a better bond IMO.
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I'm going to add some black coloring to the epoxy since I used black liners. this will mask any minor joint defects. Ummmm....not that I have any because I'm perfect ;)
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It doesn't take much
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And here is the result
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I give everything a nice even coat but not too thick.
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Here's a quick tip, I don't like having my clamps stick to the handle because I get a little crazy with the epoxy at times, so I use some painter's tape with the adhesive side stuck to the clamp ends. When your epoxy is all set, the clamp comes right off and so does the tape.
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Here we are all clamped up. You don't need a lot of pressure, just firm and even.
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I started out the day by doing light cleanup with the belt grinder and then going to 120 by hand.
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I shape out the handle by using the 120 grit shop roll 1" strips from Harbor Freight. It's really sucky paper but for starter shaping it works great. I use it like a shoe shine rag and orient myself so I shape out the handle. At this point I don't worry about the grain direction but will for 220 grit on.
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Blending wood to metal can be a pain. Wood moves so my faster that I found when sanding the butt joints, taking a file (or similar flat piece of something) and backing it with the paper helps keep everything nice and level.
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Here we are moving on to higher grits
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I made a common newbie mistake, I forgot to polish the bottom of the blade where it meets the guard. Here's how to fix it. Tape your guard well and using a thin firm piece of metal (I use a metal ruler) and wrap some paper around it. Carefully swipe from the joint towards the blade edge until polished.
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Now that I'm at 220 grit on the handle, time to flush the pins and thong hole. Do yourself a favor and get some curved needle files. With this set you can get almost anywhere. For the pins, it allows you to "scoop" out the excess on the pins without messing up the handle too much.
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To clean up the thong hole, I use a tapered reamer and run it on the inside until I see metal shaving come out. Then I take my Dremel and grind lightly at low speeds inside the lip. This rounds it and makes pretty smooth.
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Now I did buff with some high gloss white compound but for legal reasons I won't cover buffing. I don't want someone saying "well this guy told me to do it this way" as he's in the emergency room with a knife stuck in his foot...or somewhere else. Anyhow, here it is. I have some minor touch up and may give it a coat of Teak Oil but I'm extremely please how it turned out. Let me know what you think!

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Perfect, gorgeous, WELL DONE!

Nice Job Erik, thanks for taking us along for the ride, always cool to see a new/another's way of doing things.
 
Thanks, Sam, it was definitely a fun project. Have to admit thought, the time investment to post and type everything up was definitely twice as much work. I just hope some new guy will read this and see that even with minimal tools you can definitely accomplish a lot.
 
It looks a lot better in person. I am really the worst at taking pics.
 
I have enjoyed following this post to the end and have been amazed. At times I almost thought I was there during the whole process. This has been very educational for the newcomer just starting out. You created a masterpiece for sure Erik. Thanks for letting us all see you at it. I really enjoyed it. :thumbup:

Terry
 
The way I look at it, this is how I learned most of what I know and BladeForums was the key element. I just wanted to give something back.

bodydamage said:
Wow that's awesome.. Is it taken??
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And nope, not spoken for yet. Have to make up the sheath for it and do some final fit and finish. Drop me a PM or email if you're interested.
 
Your knife came out really nice Erik. Thanks for the tutorial. I like framed handles about the best of them all. Yours is very tight and precise. Good work man.
 
Thanks, Bruce, that means a lot coming from you! My next frame handle style will be a take down I think.
 
Sir that is just amazing! Thank you for taking the time to share that with us.

Beautiful knife!

Mark
 
TekSec said:
It looks a lot better in person. I am really the worst at taking pics.
Click to expand...

It looks good to me, I think the fussy pictures were due to your thumb being dislocated and all:D Alot of work trying to do that, and make a good post, but you pulled it off.
:thumbup:
Paul
 
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