i am making my first 2 knives for Christmas presents, and i have no idea what im doing. They are damascus hunters. Do i epoxy the scales and the mosaic pins or do i peen them with a hammer? and are there any good tutorials on sheath making here? thanks in advance

Stephen

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v503/haynesr/?action=view¤t=100_1591.jpg

Epoxy the scales and the pins. Make sure you rough up the scales and the metal with sandpaper then wipe them down with acetone or alcohol. Use some 2 part 2 ton epoxy and wipe of the excess with acetone before it dries(saves sanding time). Nice looking blades! We want finished pics! Good luck! Sheath making is whole nother monster! LOL! You might consider buying some premade leather sheaths if the project starts to take longer than you thought. You can get them on the auction website or Jantz supply.  

peening helps but isnt necessary, i have never peened pins.

epoxy the scales and pins.

Hey Stephen,

Great lookin' blanks.  Should make great presents.

Skull gave you good advise about roughing up the tang and scales.  Also the scabbard part.  And Lucky is right about NOT peening the pins.  You don't peen mosaics.  

I would add, epoxy doesn't work well in really thin layers.  Durability drops drastically.  When you clamp on the scales you push the epoxy into a thin layer.  Not good.  Here's how I overcome that.  

I, using a dremel, but you could do it with a simple pocket knife...slightly hollow the back of the scales so that the only part that's touching the tang is a 1/8 to 1/4 inch flat around the outside of the scale.  It leaves a thicker puddle of epoxy in the center for more durability.    Also, if you can drill a few extra holes in the tang for the epoxy to grip through it will greatly increase the durability.  

Oh, and if you miss cleaning some of the epoxy when you do as Skull suggest, just take a piece of deer antler, file it into the shape of a small chisel and scrape it off.  Shouldn't scratch the steel at all and it'll peel right up.  I hope!  ;~)

Also, test the acetone and alcohol on a bit of the tang that will be hidden by the scales.  It shouldn't have and effect, but the way the Damascus was etched can cause it to be discolored by certain cleaning agents.  And you definitely can't sand it without changing it.  So be careful.

thanks guys this helps alot.

Stephen

Sheath making

http://beknivessite2.homestead.com/pouchsheath.html