DIY Scales question

[DaveBromley]

Hey guys

Made a few knives so far but I've always used either reclaimed timber or scales bought from a supplier.

My question is do any of you guys collect your own wood and season it yourself specifically for knife scales?

If so what woods have you collected yourself and how did you prep them, how long did you season etc!

Thanks in advance fella's

Dave

 

[ex-member Raikey]

i do Dave,..

i collected some spalted birch 3 weeks ago,...

i wont use it until summer,.,...


i turn green wood as a hobby too so i usually have "something 6 months old" in the shelves near my stove,...

i will plank this up for scales sometimes ....

i reckon any unstabilised wood will "move" a liuttle with time,....

i used some 4-5 year old laburnum which had been indoors,...

and i noticed i can feel the brass pins i did on a blade in the summer,....

i dont think there is a definitive answer outside of stabilizing,...

and i dont really get on with that,....it loses something in the process i feel.....and its chuffin expensive,...

i would start collecting now for summer projects,...

and until then bit the bullet and pick up some "known" scales,...

Gaz (Culloch) has some very nice reasonably priced stuff Dave,.....

hope this helped,...

i have some laburnum left if your stuck,...its from me dads garden ,....and dry as a bone ,...just needs planking ,....

let me know bud...

Stu

 

[Chainsaw]

i reckon any unstabilised wood will "move" a liuttle with time,....

i used some 4-5 year old laburnum which had been indoors,...

and i noticed i can feel the brass pins i did on a blade in the summer,....

i dont think there is a definitive answer outside of stabilizing,...

Agree with that, I collected a bunch of Yew about 2 years ago and it's still moving, even when very dry it still seems to absorb moisture and move slightly. Then there's cracks.... admittedly I was digging an arrow out of some wood when it went but shouldn't have popped like it did.

I'm sticking with stabilised or bought wood for now only using the Yew on small jobs

Cheers,

Alan

 

[Andy2112]

I wonder if Eucalyptus is any good for scales? I've got loads in the garden thats been seasoning for more than a year now since the blasted thing fell down in high winds.

 

[ex-member Raikey]

I wonder if Eucalyptus is any good for scales? .

worked ok for me,....

hahaha everyones gonna get sick of seeing this,...i,m like a proud parent at the moment,...sorry...

and before oil...

 

[CaptainBeaky]

I have assorted bits seasoning in the workshop - some birch, a bit of yew, some beech which came down a couple of years ago, and about 6 cubic feet of oak burl in big lumps that I collected during the recent snows. This last will probably sit there drying for a year or two before I get round to cutting it up.

 

[Andy2112]

worked ok for me,....

hahaha everyones gonna get sick of seeing this,...i,m like a proud parent at the moment,...sorry...

and before oil...

Ahhhhh, it looked stabilised in the pics Raikey, that's what made me ask. Looks like i might cut a few smaller logs up now then. Thanks

 

[ex-member Raikey]

it gives off the nice smell on the belt too,...(through the mask)

 

[DaveBromley]

how did that laburnum turn out Raikey? does it have a nice grain? good to work with etc?

Also is it safe to use as laburnum is poisonous? or does the oiling mean that there is no chance of contamination?

sorry for all the questions lol

Dave

 

[ex-member Raikey]

ingestion is needed really for the poison to be an issue,,,,

i just double mask when sanding,.....

it has a very hard figured heartwood,...but the sapwood is a little soft ,...

i left a little sapwood in play to give contrast,....

it takes oil very well and will polish to a high gloss i did these two handles with it,....

its in the whole form as below if you need some mate,...