First try at stacking leather

Zuluninja

Tuquito Leather & Steel Works
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Aug 25, 2009
Messages
2,693
I've been itching for a while to get a crocodile dundee knife, but the closest that comes to it is the Outback, which I'm not ready to shell out 200$ for it yet. So I decided to try and get a cheaper bowie that looked like it and redo the handle.

Some surfing later I landed a Coast bowie with a 9" blade and a wooden handle, brass "s" guard and pommel:

coast.jpg


The leather sheath is flimsy with an embossed tiger at the front; it will probably be butchered up for an upcoming leather project. I cracked the handle to begin working, and was horrified by the view:

BC5F1392-orig.jpg


Yep...a screw welded to a quite short tang. Even as I hate this type of tang, I was rewarded with an easy removal procedure and a threaded pommel that offered little resistance. Notice the lack of glue in that big gap under the main bit of tang... Anyway, carry on. Got a strip of 8/9 oz x 2' tanned leather and cut it up; drilling the holes in the middle was a major PITA so I ended up using a thin blade to shape them up. Next time I do this I will get the pre-drilled/shaped washers...

handle.jpg


I cut off the top of the guard to make it single quillion, then tried to shape up the shoulders to match the contact area with the guard still loosely in place, as the welded screw is wider than the guard slot. After being satisfied about it kinda sitting square at the shoulders, used some JB weld to fix it in place and left it to dry overnight.

I used scrap pieces of kydex for spacers. Made a drawing of 2 separating lines forming a cone and numbered the bits of leather to know the exact order of each after I sorted them by size: small-medium-small. I have small hands so I wanted to taylor this handle to myself. Here's everything epoxied in place:

handle1.jpg


Since I made a kydex sheath for my KB Heavy Bowie, its original sheath became home for this blade. After a day of of rest for the epoxy to dig in, I hit it with the belt sander - first time using it, too! I'm fascinated by this tool now!

D88D48DB-orig.jpg


A search here on bf landed me on a leather stacking tutorial which I followed as best as I could. It was sanding with 150, 220 then crazy glue, sanding to 320, 400 then some more crazy glue, then 600, 800, finish with 1000 grit and a dab of furniture wax:

2DD4C833-orig.jpg


As the paper was out already, I dressed up the face of the blade on both sides up to 1200; only went up to 600 on the guard and pommel:

74BAA0F1-orig.jpg


So this is the end result, and I am quite satisfied with it; to me it's only missing the fuller to be a close relative to the dundee knife. Now I got the itch to keep on doing more stacked leather handles and already took off the handle off of a Blackjack Anaconda III, but am stuck on what to use to create a pommel since the butt of the tang is not threaded, it's a full length tang and ends like this symbol --> ]. If I can pull this off, next on the list might be my Ontario SP5 after I strip the blade. Sorry for the crappy cell phone pics and thanks for looking!
 
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the handle looks good. did you glue the washers together before final sanding? on the anaconda, you might be able to cut the tang down and thread it. there is also another option and if you send me an email i'll send you some pictures.
rje196021@gmail.com

i like fixing up stacked leather washer handle knives. i have 1 i'm fixing up for a friend. i finally milled a new guard and have the washers sanded down close to size. when he comes over we're going to put contact cement on all the washers to stick them together before the final sanding and application of super glue. i hope to get the pommel milled out before then.
 
Good work. On the Blackjack you can shape the tang and drill a 1/8' hole in it. Then shape a pommel to fit it, matching the holes. Then stack the leather on the tang press the pommel on and insert the pin. Sanding it off later. Also try using a sharpened fence pipe to cut your leather disc. Then a small pen blade to cut a rectangle hole. Usually one handle only needs 16. DM
 
Thanks guys! as ebbtide said, now I'm hooked... Richard, I did glue the washers one by one before sanding and application of super glue to the surface, will shoot you an email for tips, looks like you got this pat down. I was thinking about getting some chunk of steel or nickel silver, shape a hole to fit the tang and another for a pin (I've never done a pin, just read about it so will have to practice with the ball peen before doing it for real). Martin, sounds like a good idea to shape the tang, didn't think about it but surely would make things easier! I had no problem cutting off the squares with that scissor, but the hole was done with the pen blade of a vic and finished with a xacto... f*** that, unless I get a sturdy leather belt for free, I'm gonna order some pre-cut washers. Glad you guys enjoyed it, I have the knife at my belt as I write this!
 
if you order pre cut washers they might not fit the tang so i always cut my own. if you need leather i'm sure you can get one of the sheathmakers to send you a box of scrap leather that would be perfect for washers. maybe there is a sheathmaker close to you. (fill out your profile to let members know a little more about you) a leather punch and an exacto knife are all i use to cut the slots. i see you cut your washers out like i do. having them cut bigger gives you the option of shaping the handle larger if you want.
 
Hmm, thanks for the info, I'm gonna fill out my profile now.
 
When I do leather washer handles I use a drill about the thickness of the tang.
I drill 2 holes (top and bottom of the tang) and connect the dots with a razor knife.
Once the tang is the same size I trace from one washer to the next.
Epoxy to hold them on... not a lot, just a squeeze around the tang.
Use the clamp shown in the Brisa tutorial to squeeze them together while they dry.

Not sure why you are using super glue finishing the handle.
I haven't found a need for it. Just dampen the leather with a paper towel and worked my way up thru the sandpaper grits to 1500-2000.
But if it works for you :thumbup:

Now let's see some more :D
 
I'm not sure what your saying but I don't glue the leather disc either.
They're fit tight to a flat tang and can't rotate. Then I press and pin the pommel on. DM
 
I glue the disks to the tang, as per the Brisa tutorial.
I didn't understand the use of superglue when finishing the leather.

Hope that clears things up :D
 
Too funny I just finished my first one today. I may have to post in here too if your interested? :D
 
i use contact cement to glue the individual disks to each other. i'm making this knife take apart so the whole handle can be removed for an entire cleaning and oiling. thats how i do all of my leather washer handle knives, even if they have a pin on pommel. here is one i did for timsclips. i had to clean up the blade too. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=587129
 
yeah, the use of superglue might be to bond the surface of the rings but not sure, I followed this tutorial found here on bf : http://www.britishblades.com/forums...ndled-knife-tutorial&highlight=leather washer

I made contact with a sheath maker here so as to get scrap leather, and am gonna build a handle press maybe tomorrow. This stuff is addictive...now I need to learn how to make my own pommels and guards!
 
send me an email and i'll send you some pictures that might help you out. i'll also send you some pictures of the knife i'm working on now when i make more progress.
 
OK, it's been so long since I've thoroughly read that tutorial that I forgot about the super glue.
Makes sense.
Many roads to the same end.
:)
 
when you apply the superglue, do it in short sections until you have the whole handle covered. then sand it with fine sandpaper to highlight any low spots. go back and fill in the low spots and repeat this a few times till it looks good and as thick as you want it. make sure to wipe the handle off with alcohol to clean any sanding dust off. compressed air will work too. allow plenty of time for the glue to dry since it takes longer when put on thick.
 
richard, thanks for the tips, I'm midway on my new project with the blackjack anaconda and will make a new thread when I finish it, hopefully on the weekend. Got some scrap leather that I cut a bit bigger and making the slots, also made a handle press with a block of wood, 2 long screws and a metal plate, and been modifying the tang and a screw to adapt the pommel, thanks for all the info!
 
no problem. i hope to catch my buddy in the shop one of these nights so i can use the lathe to make a nut and the mill to make a pommel so i can get the one i'm working on finished.
 
no problem. i hope to catch my buddy in the shop one of these nights so i can use the lathe to make a nut and the mill to make a pommel so i can get the one i'm working on finished.

You are about where I am at then. I have to wait for some machines to open up at a shop too. :(

Slow and steady wins the race.
 
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