void between the bolsters and scales

[skippydm]

well i am a little stuck, i know what i want to do but unsure how to go about it,

simply i got a SG4 kit and i have shaped the bolsters and want to curve the bottom of the bolster and the top of the scale. but when i do this there is a gap (about 2-3mm), so i was going to fill the space with fibre spacer material.

any ideas on how i would fill the void, i was thinking about stacking them and using epoxy... but how would i hold them into position.

[logem]

You can stack the fibre spacers as you mentioned. Compression between the bolster and liner should hold them in place (along with epoxy) if you can manage a tight fit there. Pins offer more insurance. At least a couple of small holes through your stacked scales would be advisable to provide anchor points for the dried epoxy.

You can put 1/16" pins through the bottom of the stacked spacers (very close to the knife tang) and notch the bottom of your bolster and handle scale to retain the pins. Then epoxy all of this together.

You can add die to your epoxy used in this area to help disquise any small gaps that result due to matching the curved surfaces.

I suspect that stacking spacers will be quite difficult though, considering your plans for curving the bolster / scale interface.

Have you considered buying some more handle material, and not using spacers? I'm assuming that you purchased pre-shaped scales with the kit.

Good luck,

M.L.

[skippydm]

yeah i got a pre made scale set, i think the idea of stacking them is a little confusing, i was thinking more along the lines of just rectangles then bend them to the right shape.

i got quite a lot of spacer material. so i should be able to make it work

Thanks

Dean

[logem]

I meant that you may need to stack more than one thickness of fibre material to fully fill the gap.

If your gap is 2 mm wide, and your material is only 1 mm thick, then you may need two "stacks" (pieces) of material to fill the gap. You would bend these two thicknesses of spacer in unison to match your curved bolster.

Shape your bolster and scale so that the gap width is uniform from the top to bottom.

Mike L.

[skippydm]

thanks mike, i will try that, it should work out perfectly (as long as I dont mess it up lol)

Dean

[AcridSaint]

Hi Dean, I've never done one of these kits, but I'm wondering if you have enough room with the scales to even them out and close the gap. 2mm seems pretty wide to me, if you press the scales hard does the gap close? Also, are your holes already drilled or do you have some room in that department?

[skippydm]

thats one of the big problems the scales are already drilled out,

the gap is dependant on how much curve i put on the bolsters, they fit pretty much flush while keeping it straight. but the curve i am looking for is going to make a gap, i guess a shallow curve would have a similar effect to what i was wanting

Dean

[AcridSaint]

I see, I misread the post and thought everything was shaped. If you want to keep the curve then the space idea may be the best solution since your scales are pre-drilled. I'd try to mix some epoxy the same colour as the spacers to fill any additional gap when you assemble.

[skippydm]

how would i go about colouring the epoxy?

Dean

[AcridSaint]

You can use a drop or two of leather dye or ink, if you're going to use red spacers, you'll probably be able to use red dipping ink from the craft store. It doesn't take very much to colour the epoxy.

[Dwane Oliver]

You can also color epoxy with Testors model paint , the ones in the little bottles.

[skippydm]

cheers for the info guys, this is most likely the best place for knife making as you guys are glad to share what you have learnt, rather than others who refuse to help...

thanks again Dean