Trad Gang

Main Boards => Hunting Knives and Crafters => Topic started by: bretto on January 12, 2009, 09:21:00 PM

Title: Knife scales
Post by: bretto on January 12, 2009, 09:21:00 PM
What is the average thickness of most knife scales. Slabs and hidden tang. Thanks
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: OconeeDan on January 13, 2009, 05:27:00 AM
for scales 1/4 if you use liners and 3/8 if you don't .  thicker is better as you have more control of the final shape/thickness.
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: beaver#1 on January 13, 2009, 02:23:00 PM
im with dan on this one, always better to have to take more off than try to figure out how to make it bigger.
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: bretto on January 13, 2009, 04:15:00 PM
Thanks Guy's, was wanting to put a knife together as a gift. I've got a great looking piece of Cocabola (spelling?) that is 1" thick and I new if I re-sawed it to 1/2" it would be pretty beefy.

bretto
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: Ray Hammond on January 13, 2009, 04:21:00 PM
I find most knives I build end up much thinner..but I like having 1/4 to 3/16 to begin with so that I can have room for errors not available if stuff is really thin to begin with.

I also have begun removing material from the back side of scales if it has a particularly pretty grain on the visible surface so I don't inadvertantly remove all the pretty and end up with plain jane scales.
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: bretto on January 13, 2009, 04:24:00 PM
That makes a lot of sense Ray. Thank You
Title: Re: Knife scales
Post by: uhdet on January 16, 2009, 09:09:00 PM
1/2" scales will be okay if you plan on doing some shaping and contouring of the handle. I use 1/2" scales when I shape a coke bottle shape and real agressive finger groves.