Knife mods from polish to file

[David L]

First let me start by saying this might not be a good idea. I have tried to "fix" a little scratch on a blade only to make it worse and the end result was that it was fixed but a little more polished than when it started so it ended up slightly different. I tread lightly now when even thinking about any type of maintenance or repair on the grind of a knife.

I have seen a couple of others here make grip, comfort, and guard mods and a very valid concern is what if I mess it up. Disclaimer: Mods can and probably will lower resale value and even void warranties so a thought you might want to run buy yourself before you start is that this knife might be forever yours from this point on.

The only before photo that I took was this one of the butt of the Loner. Like many of the sub 3.5" bladed fiddleback knives the but of the handle ends up in my palm so sharper lines are less comfortable than smoother ones. I love this little knife, it is really small and easy to carry but the pointy spot where the three lines intersect is just too sharp in my palm so I decided to make it better for me. On the bigger Bush Hermit the handle is bigger so this is probably a non issue I don't know.



I tried to focus on doing as little as I could to keep the same shape but remove the pressure point. I used 400, 600, 2000 grit sandpaper. I ended up sanding all of the handle on the Loner with the 2000 and it worked out really nice and helped show off the DI even more. I did also sand the butt edge just a little of the Burlatex Bushnub with the 400. The Mountaintown Jr. got the most sanding both on the butt (for awesome comfort) and on the spine from where I had a little shrinkage on the Osage. I am guessing this is probably due to the kitchen duty (water) I have been putting it through and the dry Colorado winter air. The spine and butt got sanded but not the sides of the Mountaintowne jr.. I like the grip just the way it was but the top where my thumb goes is super smooth now. The 2000 grit polishes more than original finish on the wood and polished the little scratches out of the tang nicely. I wish I had 1000 grit as well or in place of the 600. I did not feel like breaking out the file on the metal part of the butt so I just tried to taper off with that in mind.







So in conclusion the Mountaintown Jr. and Loner surpassed my expectations. The Bushnub is improved but might need me to break out a file to match the comfort of other two. Did it change the appearance, yes a little but I have other knives I can look at I like using these.

 

[Bmurray]

I do the same with mine. that back end if the handle is usually way to sharp

 

[David L]

I do the same with mine. that back end if the handle is usually way to sharp

I just saw the picture of your Bushcrafter Tasker and noticed the texture on the non notched part looked ruffed up like your Bush Hermit. What do you ruff it up with?

 

[Bmurray]

I just saw the picture of your Bushcrafter Tasker and noticed the texture on the non notched part looked ruffed up like your Bush Hermit. What do you ruff it up with?

just one of those foam medium sanding blocks

 

[Fiddleback]

I think you did a good job. Sometimes I add a facet back there to ease those edges, but not always. Really depends on the shape i see in the handle.

 

[David L]

I think you did a good job. Sometimes I add a facet back there to ease those edges, but not always. Really depends on the shape i see in the handle.

Thanks, I really was just trying to smooth not change. I too like the facet on the butt both for looks and feel and I am glad you kept it on the Loner. I really liked it before and now it is even more awesome!

 

[David L]

I used to think about filing off guards. Then it evolved into if they cause problems I will file them off. That grew into their fine I'll just let them be, and now I even like them sometimes. For those that wish to see a more involved mod threads, links below.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...”-that-is-the-question.1510999/#post-17400949
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/sneaky-pete-review-handle-mods.1369907/

 

[Fiddleback]

I never like the mods where folks grind off the guard. I think the way I do gurads is very minimal anyway. Plus its very hard to remove one without impacting the edge accidentally.