Something for the weekend......

willie_gunn

Well-Known Member
Having been out stalking Friday night I decided I needed a little project for this weekend.

A couple of weeks ago I bought two Victorinox Swiss Army knives with the intention of re-handling them. One of these was the Waiter, which is a nice simple model with only one blade, a screwdriver and a corkscrew:



I have plenty of antler in the garage, but I'd also picked up a pair of antler scales a year or so ago, and as these were just sitting in a drawer I decided to make use of them. Thus the challenge was set!

This is the first SAK I've re-handled, so having removed the normal red scales, I stuck them on the scanner to create a pattern for the antler, as you need to do some work on the holes for the retaining bolts and the little accessories like the tweezers.



I cut out the two patterns and glued them to the "flat" side of the antler scales. One scale was thicker than the other, but as the Waiter has a corkscrew this actually worked out well.

Most of Saturday afternoon was then spent hunched over the workbench with the Dremel. This was finished Sunday morning, and the antler scales could then be sanded down to remove the pattern and then epoxied to the bare knife. Leaving it to dry over lunch, this afternoon I could start the process of shaping and sanding the scales.

Three hours and a lot of elbow grease later, the knife was completed. I don't think the end result looks too bad, but having done the first there are a few things I'll change on the next one.












Proud of my handiwork I showed it to Mrs Gunn, whose first words were "Why did you ruin a brand new Swiss Army Knife?" :doh:

willie_gunn
 
Wow, looks great, that's some talent & patience you've got W-G
I'd have a go but after 10 minutes with 9" angle grinder it would be another scrap bin project
Wingy
 
Dom
not only are you a brain box your good with your hands as well
your going to make the rest of us feel inferior if you carry on like this :(
Regards pete
 
Looks great! :cool:

Out of interest how are the scales held on? I've got an almost identical knife here and it's not obvious... Do they just clip on? If so how on earth did you manage to dremel the required recesses! :eek:

Alex
 
Looks great! :cool:

Out of interest how are the scales held on? I've got an almost identical knife here and it's not obvious... Do they just clip on? If so how on earth did you manage to dremel the required recesses! :eek:

Alex

Yes, the normal red scales are just clipped on - the bolts slot into the recesses - so can easily be removed by using a sharp blade to pry them off.

For the antler I used a Dremel with a straight deburring bit. You start by grinding a recess the same diameter as the bit, and then gradually widen the recess. It takes some time but works well.

The new antler scales were then epoxied to the bare knife, so the only way they will come off is with an angle grinder ;)

willie_gunn
 
That looks superb! I must admit that scanning the original scales is nothing short of genius - I would never of thought of that in a million years, but I will be stealing that idea for some work of my own.
 
That looks superb! I must admit that scanning the original scales is nothing short of genius - I would never of thought of that in a million years, but I will be stealing that idea for some work of my own.

Many thanks to all for the kind comments. :oops:

Legolas - when I first took the original red scales off the knife I was looking at them and wondering how I could get a template of the underneath to make the holes, etc. I was thinking about drawing around them, or taking a photo, and then had the idea of the scanner. The only thing to be a bit careful of is that, because of the thickness of the scales, it can be difficult cutting out the exact size, as the shadows tend to make the edges a bit difficult to determine. Once stuck in place, though, they really work a treat. They really help for the rough sizing on other fiddly things like the space for the corkscrew. When drilling out the holes for the retaining bolts you do need to make them a bit deeper than needed, as when you sand off the paper template of course you take off some antler as well.

It may have been a smart idea, but I just wish I'd thought of it in time for some of my earlier attempts at handling knives, as it would have meant my scrap bin being a lot emptier. :doh:

Having played around with the knife for a day, I have to say that I really like the tactile nature of antler. I've got a couple of fixed blade blanks that I was originally considering handling in micarta but I might now have to use antler instead, particularly as I've got a lovely piece of Sambar in the workshop just begging to be used.

The only spanner in the works is that I can see that I am going to have to buy a small bench saw to cut the antler accurately.....yet another power tool :D

willie_gunn
 
That's beautiful work, WG. I used to have a Victorinox Swiss Champ with horn scales that I'd bought from the factory shop in Schwyz, back when I lived in the area. But unfortunately, ones with horn scales are lost just as easily as the standard plastic ones...
 
The only spanner in the works is that I can see that I am going to have to buy a small bench saw to cut the antler accurately.....yet another power tool :D

willie_gunn


If that's the only spanner in the works then I'm sure you can live with that eh???

Many thanks for the explanation
 
Back
Top