Another F1D re handle

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mark.177

Maker
Apr 21, 2014
722
152
Cornwall UK
looking forward to shaping this one tomorrow! another Fallkniven F1D re handled, curing over night.
brass, micarta and vulcanized fibre...

fallk2.JPG
 

mark.177

Maker
Apr 21, 2014
722
152
Cornwall UK
finished the handle this morning! only thing i wish id done different is used a larger piece of brass behind the bolster and angled it to line up with the thinner micarta sections instead of using a thicker piece of micarta and angling it.

faltan1.JPG faltan2.JPG faltan3.JPG faltan4.JPG faltan5.JPG
 

Muddypaws

Full Member
Jan 23, 2009
1,094
313
Southampton
Lovely! You are turning utilitarian looking knives into aesthetically pleasing works of art. That looks far too good to use.
 

C_Claycomb

Moderator staff
Mod
Oct 6, 2003
7,354
2,364
Bedfordshire
I do like the look of the stacked Tufnol. It gives a much smoother finish than sanding over the weave when its used as full slabs.

It looks like you keep the slots in the thin slabs pretty close to tang size and keep the small ends of the slots square, so if the tang is at an angle to the blade shoulders you have to make something tapered (brass or thicker tufnol) to get a fit. If the slots were over sized, would that give you better freedom of movement so you wouldn't need the tapered part, or would it just move the taper to the butt end, or not support the thin lams enough to prevent movement? Filling the over size slots with epoxy would might be strong enough, but I can see it not being appealing, in which case, what about using a modified file to angle the two narrow slot edges, keep them close to the tang, but the lam faces could sit parallel to the shoulders rather than perpendicular to the tang?

I have never done a stacked handle, but I have done stacked bolster/guards and used the filed method with some success. Another idea would be to have the thicker bit of tufnol in the middle of the grip, so that the thinner lams are angled parallel to the guard for the front half and parallel to the pommel for the back half, kind of make a feature out of it?

Anyway, really like this look, very Randal, but harder wearing!:bigok:
 

mark.177

Maker
Apr 21, 2014
722
152
Cornwall UK
thanks, its very hard to know how it'll turn out till its finished and quite often i think if only... i could have filed the slots so the pieces fitted at the same angle as the guard but as said would then be moving the problem to the rear. with the parts being so thin it was impossible to put a slight angle on them to blend with the curve. the way it was done was deliberate. though in future if using the same material/colour i would epoxy a couple sections together first to aid shaping give me something to hold onto
i hadnt bargained on the inconsistencies of colour in the tan micarta which isnt easy to see till its polished. i was hoping the separations wouldnt have been that noticeable. if id used black linen for example you'd hardly notice so wouldnt have been a problem.
i find the tan micarta has the biggest variation in colour and hue even in the same piece ranging from dark brown to cream, hopefully it'll darken and mellow with age?
thicker micarta would have been my preference but this is all i had
 

Robson Valley

Full Member
Nov 24, 2014
9,959
2,664
McBride, BC
What do you use as your guide to handle size (thickness/diameter/etc)?
The result is really a delight to look at for style with the brass.
 
Mar 11, 2011
8
0
Germany
only thing i wish id done different is used a larger piece of brass behind the bolster and angled it to line up with the thinner micarta sections instead of using a thicker piece of micarta and angling it.

That sound like a good idea, but I'm not 100 % sure. Maybe someone could photoshop this to visualise it? Anyways, you did an awesome job. Hats off to you, sir!
 

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