All About Pocket Knives

Since these rough riders are relatively inexpensive I decided to try to rehandle one. Used Amboyna burl, elephant ivory and snakewood. I'm kinda pleased about it since I've probably got the only one like it. It pushed my meager talents and almost crashed several times but all's well that ends. Took pics of the whole process and would post them but may be too much for the forum.

Nice, Rough Riders are great to learn on. Some of their knives are getting a bit pricey for what they are though.

nice job on the rehandle

Looks good!

D

Looks very nice! Did you cut the handle scale pins with a utility razor? Are the new scales held on by glue or epoxy?

pmike5869 wrote: It pushed my meager talents and almost crashed several times but all's well that ends. Took pics of the whole process and would post them but may be too much for the forum.

Mike,
If you don’t push your limits you won’t expand them. It really is a good thing. That is when I learn.

Every once in a while I get one that kicks my butt & I redo it 5 or 6 times. That is when I really learn a lot!

Don’t be afraid to take the risk & even crash. I am sure Muskrat Man and others will agree with me, sometimes the crashes are when you learn the most.

Keep up the good work,
Dale

Looks good! I've half thought about picking up one of those little ivory scrap bags from Jantz or whatnot to add some stripes, etc. Looks good in person

I've found it's the really tough projects that you end up the most proud of. I've got one right now that is really pushing all my buttons (the bandaid on my finger being the latest in a long line of near tragedies with this one knife) but, every time something goes right, I stand back and look at it and think "damn, that looks good"

Keep it up, post more for us, feed our addiction!

pmike, I reckon I'm the only guy in the world that likes RR knives, so post some more of your projects. I like to see all the custom done on any knife on the forum. Great lookin knife you got there and a good job. Take some closer-ups if you can. I like'em.

Brad

Thx a ton for the encouraging remarks. Will attach more pics.
Used Loctite quick set 5 min epoxy to attach the scales.
There were no pins on the original scales.
Also used the Loctite to attach the pieces together before attaching the assembly to the frame. Pieced the different parts together on a glass pane coverred with wax paper to get a flat surface without sticking to the glass.
On the baby sunfish I essentially used the same epoxy but the pins were a much bigger problem. Temporarily attached 1 scale w/ small spot of super glue and transferr drilled through, then temp attached the other and again transfer drilled to get location precise. Pins are peened outside but not inside since I did not completely disassemble. Pins are epoxied in place but are not going anywhere.

good job Mike, very nice

Thx MM. thrilled you looked at my humble efforts.
REALLY admire your outstanding examples.
I need to start doing file work. Knowing what it requires kinda scares me but there's only one way to fly,,, you have to jump out of the nest.

Just remember you don't have to start filework on knives, you can use 1/8 inch steel purchased at a local Sanford and Sons for about $0.15 per LB.

HUKK is right, I always test a new pattern and/or develop new patterns on 1/8" brass stock (is softer and easier on your files) or whatever thickness the spring is that I may be filing.

The quality of filework seems to be dependant on precision. Right now, I couldn't begin to be precise enough just by hand.
Trying to figure out how I can use an X_Y table on a drill press to grind a pattern. This would give me the precision I need as every step would be repeatable. This may be going the wrong way as far as handcraft goes but the result could be better than I personally can deliver for now. I would be amazed if I am the only one exploring or using this method. Going a step further, CNC machines would be ideal for this challenge even though I don't have access to one. Doing it "by hand" has its' appeal but superior end results are the goal. How do we judge quality or value????Just thinking about it. Anyone else have any thoughts??

the most beautiful filework is done by hand. yes, care must be taken but that is the point imo. the old days, before computer driven art. you can have machines cover any art, but is the result art?

You hit the nail on the head Johnnie!

Great point. Do we as craftspersons focus on the end product as in the print of a painting, accurate but a shallow reproduction, or the art of the craft. The talent to create a masterpiece is more valuable than the painting. A lot of knives I see from China have very good quality and almost NO value. The Rough Riders I have rehandled are a good example.... 8 dollars?????
Thx for redirecting my focus.

I look at it like this pmike, the art is in the symmetry of the work and the hands that did it, not in the program of the CNC

There are knifemakers who can and do make an knives on a CNC machine. I have seen discussions on another site about a naming convention as these knives cannot be called hand made. The artistic symmetry comes with practice and more practice. Certainly there are many such as I that find the hand made knives far more desireable than those that have been cranked out by programmable machinery.

What a tremendous asset, to have intelligent minds to discuss these things with. I'm retired, live by myself and have no one to bounce ideas off of. Thank God there are talented artisans who share my interests. Don't know another soul to appreciate or understand this interest I have.
Just tried some filing and found that the D2 blade I was working on is so hard the file just slides over it. A dremel tool with a grinding wheel cuts it fine but the grind marks are crude and no file I have will dress them up. I did use the X_Y table to mark the spacing for the cuts but the drill runs too slow(3k rpm) to do the work.

Nice job. I don't have anyone in my area that cares about knives. I used to have a close friend that made knives and we'd talk about them a lot but he is very ill and doesn't do anything at all now. Other people think a utility knife is the best thing since sliced bread. Hah. Anyways, I know what you saying.