I'm impressed as to how well my bandsaw is cutting without the top blade guide! Better than it was before. I'm hoping that when I have a new one fitted (if I can find one or make one) that it'll be even better!!
So to get over the uneven surface of the tang, I decided to make some micarta liners between the wood and blade.
The wood is a mystery wood - I just don't know what it is, but it is a hardwood.
I've laminated some old denim jeans with resin, leaving the impression of the knife tang behind. It's good fun doing this because the knife just slots exactly back into place.
I know need to treat them as normal scales - drill holes for pins, shape the front before gluing, etc.
It looks pretty rough at the moment!
I have a bit of a batch of micarta to make at the moment. I need to find some red material for one wee knife then I also have a kukri handle to do - that one will need a lot of resin!
I recently saw a stacked birch bark handle being made in the traditional way. I'm tempted to make a stacked denim handle in a slightly traditional way but using modern materials.
The blade is a Brusletto Brevkniv blade, modified to suit a friction folder. The handle is made from African Blackwood with a tufnol spacer and brass pins.
The tail of the tang that pokes out of the handle is a lot smaller than often seen on other friction folders. This is good for the pocket but it means there's less to grip the hand to stop rotation of the blade in use - I wouldn't recommend using any friction folder in a way that would push it closed anyway.
I wanted to be comfortable that there was enough friction on the blade to be safe to use and carry so I had it in a pocket for a good while (couple of weeks at least) to see if it opened - not at all.
This brief video gives an idea to the resistance:
I have at least one more of these blades, maybe more. Next time I'll have a more prominent contrast between the scales and the spacer but apart from that I'm happy with the design.
Feel free to drop me a note if you would like one building up to your specs!
I always get confused with the spelling of kukri and have to look it up every time! Apparently khukuri and khukri seem to be acceptable as well! So, I have two more blades here ready for handles, from two different people.
The shiney blade is an unused Tora Havildar kukri. It's even nicer then the Indra blade that I handled previously. It's destined for a micarta handle in a dark cloth.
The dark blade is a heavily patined blade that has had a lot of use. The blade is chipped and the spine is bashed and battered. It has real character to it and I'm planning to leave all the signs of age in place, although it'll need a good sharpen as well as a new handle. It's getting a new handle in walnut with copper fittings.
