First DDR3-BL, Newbie Question

[MSWallace]

Hi All,

This is my first post, and my first folder kit. I posted this over in the Newbies forum and it was suggested that I try over here instead.

I have in front of me two of the DDR3-BL kits, they arrived yesterday. One I purchased with the Cocobolo scales and the other with Black Micarta scales (I didn't order any spacer material, I hope what I have on hand is the proper thickness to build up to the bolsters.)

I have a question for you all. I'm looking at the knife and it doesn't appear that I should assemble it first and then finish the scales and bolsters. For instance the button lock sits proud of the bolster and will be in the way of sanding/shaping. Do you guys partially assemble, then finish the scales, bolsters and spline, then reassemble and complete the knife? Am I going to have order the longer screws to use with the Micarta scales?

I hope my questions are clear. I tried searching the forums, found lots of good information, but am still unsure how to proceed.

Thanks in advance,
Mike

[Alberto]

Hi!!Mike!!I have built a few of those,and I polish all the parts to get them a bit more mirror like!!You have pre cut scales and I think some are too thin and must use a spacer.The screws should be ok,and if not you can make the holes for the heads a little deeper.I usually have to file off the tip that goes through the side plates!!I usually assemple the whole knife without the button and rough finish the scales and sand to make all fit smoothly.Also bolster,scales without a step!!Carefull not to scratch the bolster!!Another advice!!The bosters and sodeplates sometimes have a small step between them and I use a round stone and Dremel to just give a careful touch so the button does not have a catch up!!
I make my own safeties as the plastic one is not up to the rest of the kit!!
I use a bit of molly grease on the suefaces of the sideplates,blade and pivot pin,also on button and safety!!!
I hope this helps!!Regards
Albert

[MSWallace]

Alberto, Thanks for the tips. I just got home from picking up the Torx ####### I need to assemble the knife. I'm ready to go to work on it now. If it comes out OK I'll try to post a picture. Won't be any cool file work, like yours, maybe on a future one though.

[Alberto]

I'm sure you will do a nice work!!Did you order the spring for auto opening??It is not included!!
Good luck!!Have fun!!
Albert

[Osprey Guy]

Welcome Mike Wallace (I won't say it...)

Good luck with your kit. You'll be hooked before you know it!

Here's a suggestion...

While shaping your scales, checking your fit, attaching screws, etc. it's very helpful if you go ahead and attach your bolsters to the liners, but without putting the knife together. That way you can much more easily work on the scales... and you can get easy access to the back side of the liners (Alberto is calling them "side plates"), which will be essential when it comes time to grind/sand off any excess portion of the screws that may be poking through the screw holes (you'll understand once you get into it).

Have fun!

Dennis

[Osprey Guy]

Oh, and Mike... Don't be at all afraid to do a "dry run" with putting your knife together (sans scales). Everything comes back apart quite easily.

In fact you really should do that before you do anything else. It'll give you a better feel for how things work, and if by any chance you're missing a part (it does happen on rare occasions), you'll know about it in advance.

Dennis

[MSWallace]

Dennis....Go ahead and say it, I'm used to it. Did you know "his" given name is Myron, not Mike. I think he oughta' give me a kick-back for swiping my name.

Thanks for the tips. I've got the knife assembled, dry run. The only problem I ran into was getting my clumsy hands around the small parts. 30 years or framing houses has taken a toll on the old clubs.

Alberto, Yes, I got the little spring, how sweet it is. California Recon; I lost it under my work bench...

A couple of comments/questions:

• The spacer material I have is too thin, I'm gonna double it up, glue it to the scales (not the liners). What do you think?
  
• The pivot pin sits proud of the bolster, the pivot pin screw is recessed in the bolster a little. Can I shave down the pivot pin to sit flush? (I haven't cinched the pivot screw down yet, maybe it will sit flush after I cinch it up.
  
• The back spline seems to negate the use of the plastic safety, or do you cut it to allow room for the safety? I just looked at Alberto's pics again and it seems that is the case.

Thanks for the help, I'm going to back to it....

Mike

[Alberto]

HI!!Here I am back!!I think sticking the spacer material to the scales is the rigt way!!
The pivot pin sould be rigt!!Don't file it!!It will be ok!!
You must cut a piece of the spine off to make place for the safety.The right place is the bigining of the safety slots!!The spine will also be slightly higher than the side plates(liners!!)
Good luck!!(I am also in farming down here,and I am 71!!!My hands are still ok,but a bit of cataract is bothering my sight!!
Reards:Albert
PS:I use my big blade holding magnet when i lose smal steel parts!!I got tired of crawling with a flashlight under all my tables!!

[MSWallace]

Alberto, Thanks for the response.

I got the Micarta handle scales mounted and sanded today. I epoxied the spacers to the Micarta, and used too much epoxy. I filled the screws holes up with epoxy and had to re-drill them out. That was a pain but it worked out alright.

I messed around with the pivot pin and it does sit down like its supposed to. I just didn't have it installed properly.

I'm not going to use the back spline on this one. But thanks for the info. I have another kit here with the cocobolo scales that I'm going to use the spline with. I'll cut it like you said.

I should have this first one done tomorrow. I'll try to figure how to post a picture so you can have a look, no laughing allowed though.

Thanks again,
Mike

[MSWallace]

Well, I said I'd try to post pictures of the completed folders so I'll give it a try. These kits were a lot of fun. I've shown them to a couple of friends and family members and it looks like I'm going to have to order several more.

Thanks for your help Alberto and Dennis. Your input made the process much easier.

Here are the pics, nothing special, no tooling, etc....just a simple assembly:

[Osprey Guy]

Mike-

They turned out Terrific!

The fit and finish looks spot on... That bit of bevel that you put on the edges of the scales is perfectly matched to the bolsters. Might not sound like a big deal but that's the sort of detail that a lot of newbies miss (and a lot of experienced makers as well).

The red spacer worked out well. Nice contrast against the black.

You obviously came to the party with some skills, and definitely off to a wonderful start!

BTW- You've got impressive photo skills as well... very clear images.


Dennis

[skippydm]

Originally Posted by MSWallace

Wow i really like the Black micarta with red liner, am i right in thinking you tapered the red liner and the micarta. as it appears thicker in the top and thins out to the bottom, never seen it before and it looks amazing. Really good work there

doh zoomed in and its just the perspective still they look amazing the contrast and fit is perfect great work.

[MSWallace]

Dennis & skippydm,

Thanks for the kind words. The Red Cinnamon liners aren't tapered, I think it's just an illusion when the photo went out of focus there. That is a cool idea though....tapered liners....

Thanks again,
Mike

[Alberto]

Mike!!Sorry I did not comment before!!I had not come to this thread again for a few days!!You did a magnifficent work,like a pro!!Those two look just fabulous!!
Glad some advice was helpful!!Now that you got the "bug" I am sure many more will follow!Best regards!!Congratulations!!
Albert

[MSWallace]

Alberto, Thanks for the comments....I got two more Button Locks in the mail today. I'm looking forward to getting them started!
Mike