this knife thing is more complicated than i thought...

[ozymandias]

well i was going to get a lapplander 90 and olivewood scales for my first 'homemade' knife, but it seems olivewood is quite oily, which has scared me off- think i'll go for a different interesting grain, and i found these two sites which both do great looking RM clones:

http://www.swc-handmade-knives.com/KNIFE-KITS

http://www.shingcrafts.co.uk/

always wanted a woodlore knife but has been a bit pricey- anyone got one of these knives? i'm completely clueless on this, they look good to me but i was hoping someone had experienced them. oh and sorry for going for yet another RM clone- not very original i know!

 

[Martyn]

well i was going to get a lapplander 90 and olivewood scales for my first 'homemade' knife, but it seems olivewood is quite oily, which has scared me off...

Oily is goooooood!

The problem is getting it to glue up properly, but there are things you can do to improve your odds there. Once sucessful though, oily wood is great.

 

[bushwacker bob]

Both those knife kits have had exellent reviews on British Blades.

 

[Ogri the trog]

http://www.swc-handmade-knives.com/KNIFE-KITS

- anyone got one of these knives? i'm completely clueless on this, they look good to me but i was hoping someone had experienced them.

Yep, got one, like it a lot and would recommend Steve's work to anyone

No matter what kit you start off with, it instills confidence to change whatever you want to - if you want to change the scales - no worries, rivets etc no problem - it just becomes a minor step on from the initial assembly to take it to bits and start over.

Ogri the trog

 

[Longstrider]

Most oily woods become a lot easier to glue if you give the surface to be glued a darned good clean with plenty of acetone, then apply whatever glue you like using as soon as the acetone has dried off. Some sort of epoxy resin is what most folks seem to use for knife scales.
Any less oily wood that is evident after gluing and finishing can quickly be made good with an application of an oil like Danish or Tung.

 

[ggfh666]

I haven't used olive in scales but in stick tang.
It is one of the most lovely woods. Beautiful and very nice to feel.
Some may say the smell is that of vomit, but apart from some of the knifefreaks most people don't use their knives to smell.

 

[Hoodoo]

If you use bolts instead of pins, you should have no fear of your scales falling off, assuming you applied the expoxy properly. You can also do it the old way and anneal the ends of the pins and peen them over into the scales. You would have to countersink the scales for this. The trend has been away from this but I actually think it's a good practice.

 

[ozymandias]

shings knives seem to use the loveless bolts which you screw in then grind away the screwdriver slot. just to check, you could do this with a handfile, right? thats what i have and prob what i'd use.

 

[Shing]

My kit comes with screw in Corby bolts, if the wood is really oily, use an acrylic glue like Loctite 330 http://www.cromwell.co.uk/quicksearch?id=dv7DQQpK. Its more tolerant of oily surfaces than epoxy and slighty flexible to resist shock loads.

Giving any wood and handle a good clean with acetone or methylated sprits is always a good idea to prevent oils and waxes weakening the bond.

 

[ozymandias]

ah ok cool this rivet/bolt thing is starting to make sense...think these awesome sounding shing blades are looking more and more appealing.
thanks for your help mr. shing, its all becoming clear!

 

[Martyn]

ah ok cool this rivet/bolt thing is starting to make sense...think these awesome sounding shing blades are looking more and more appealing.
thanks for your help mr. shing, its all becoming clear!

For a really slick job, you can use a step drill...

This creates a shoulder in the handle slab for the bolt to push against...

Now for a quick test....

Pin, Corby or Loveless?

 

[Pignut]

Go for the shing!

I love mine! it has had some serious use! and performs!

Here is a link to my thread about it

 

[ESpy]

Now for a quick test....

Pin, Corby or Loveless?

Definitely!

 

[Bushwacker]

don`t be put off useing olive wood oz. I`ve used it recently, it`s not at all oily, lovely grain, good grip, just prepare it properly with acetone before bonding to your liners. you`ll be well `appy

 

[eraaij]

I agree on Olivewood. I handled a SWC woodlore blade in Olivewood and it looks and feels fantastic. Since I always use Corby rivets, I am not too worried about scales falling off. Just use the acetone treatment and it will be ok:

-Emile