old stag knife mod

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garyflorida
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old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

One step at a time. I can now clean a knife. Now I want to disassemble a knife starting with removing the scales. The stag scales are good, sort of and the rest history. The pruner knife has a butt plate too so want to understand how that is connected to the frame (spring).
Do you tap the pins through?
Do you drill the pins out?
I want to preserve the stag so the least trauma the better please.

Gary
Attachments
old stager.jpg
knife7knut
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by knife7knut »

garyflorida wrote:One step at a time. I can now clean a knife. Now I want to disassemble a knife starting with removing the scales. The stag scales are good, sort of and the rest history. The pruner knife has a butt plate too so want to understand how that is connected to the frame (spring).
Do you tap the pins through?
Do you drill the pins out?
I want to preserve the stag so the least trauma the better please.

Gary
I'm not sure why you would want to disassemble this fine old knife. Removing the old scales would really serve no purpose other than maybe to remove rust from under them;assuming it has iron liners.
Removing any scales usually involves a certain amount of risk in damging them either by breaking or cracking.The only pins that go completely through the knife are the blade pivot pin;the rearmost pin and the spring pivot pin at the center top of the handle.The scale pins only go through to the liners.
Drilling them out is a chancey proposition as centering the drill on such a small item is difficult at best.Trying to center punch them usually results in a cracked scale when the punch slips or too much force is applied to the opposite side scale.Making sure that the drill takes out only the pin and not the surrounding material is a real crapshoot as a lot of the pins bend when being hammered in so they are not totally vertical.
The butt plate is likely attached to the back spring via hidden rivets. If I just had to take this knife apart I would probably drill out the rearmost rivet(it is relatively large and probably the straightest)and swing out the scales to access the inside for cleaning.Not sure if this procedure would work on a knife with a butt plate but it is worth a try.
Conversely if you are looking to replace the blade;I would drill out the pivot rivet only.You probably won't be able to swing the sides out due to the butt plate but it is one solution. Just my opinion.
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garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

Thanks for that.
A few more condition pics.
Attachments
pruner buil C.JPG
pruner build  B.JPG
pruner build B.JPG (52.59 KiB) Viewed 2611 times
pruner build  D.JPG
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orvet
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by orvet »

Personally I would not take the stag off that knife. Old stag can be very brittle and I have had it crumble on me even when I removed it ever so carefully!
I would use Zap-A-Gap on the cracks and re-pin the blade if that is the gap between the blade & liner you are showing with the quarter.

I kind of have to weigh these things; what will I gain as opposed to what will I loose.
Will it gain a lot of value if I fix it? No, the blade is way down for a hawkbill so the value is limited as is.
The real value is the awesome stag. Repaired it should be worth a few dollars more, but unless it is a rare maker, it still has a pretty used up blade.

On the other hand, if you don't have a lot of $$ in it, and it is not a rare brand, it is not worth a great deal anyway. ::shrug::
If you are just itching to work on a knife, here you go.
If it were me I would leave it as is or use the stag on another knife maybe with a smaller handle.

It is your knife, you ultimately have to make the decision.
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garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

I drilled out the pins. Peeled the butt plate off (totally sep unit held by two pins). Left the liners on the stag and sawed the spring out giving me two pieces.
Then I pulled the stubs (snags) of the pins that were exposed. Scales never knew what hit them. I will now repair the stag and build a new frame.
Have not decided about blade.

Gary
Attachments
dis assemble A.JPG
dis assemble B.JPG
dis assembl C.JPG
garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

Super glue and stabilize scales.
draw picture of butt plate connection and parts for future use.
secure liners, bolsters, blade and butt plate together for future ref.
pink marks are my bad...drill throughs from pin attack.
Attachments
knife repair  C.JPG
knife repair A.JPG
knife repair  D.JPG
knife repair  B.JPG
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glennbad
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by glennbad »

I am curious to see what you do with this, Gary. I have a Russell pruner that is in a similar state, although yours has that great stag, and mine is just wood.

I like the way you are approaching the build. However, I do not take as great planning with my projects.
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by TripleF »

Helluva project bud.....keep us posted!
Thanks for sharing!
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orvet
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by orvet »

I like your drawing. Once I get a knife disassembled, if it's one I haven't done before I usually make a drawing of it by tracing the parts onto graph paper and make notes of the pin sizes so I get it repaired with the proper size pin. It's just easier to me to measure the old pins when I take it apart then to dig through the parts and try to figure out which pin went where and measure it then.

I have a whole notebook of drawings and notes. It's especially helpful for some knives that have unique features about them. I also have full-size drawings of certain critical parts I often have to make. Just makes it easier for me in the long run. Maybe I'm just lazy. :lol:
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jerryd6818
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by jerryd6818 »

One thing's for sure, you ain't afraid to jump into the deep end of the pool in order to learn to swim. I had that kind of self confidence when I wore a younger man's clothes but it's diminished with age. Not a criticism, just an observation. Best of luck with the project. So far you seem to be doing fine. Please keep us posted.
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garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

Thanks men, I thought it was going to be interesting to see how an old knife was put together.
Next I dyed some JB weld to fill depressions and level the stag scales.
Sanded on flat surface and still not completely flat but close.
I feel the scales are much stronger now and repairs do not show too bad.
Pin holes will need to be re-drilled to match rod material.

Gary
Attachments
scales 003.JPG
scales 004.JPG
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orvet
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by orvet »

I have a strong bias against JB Weld, there are so many other better products on the market, IMO.

It occurred to me that rarely have we discussed adhesives here on AAPK.
The most exhaustive discussion & testing of adhesives I have ever read is in The Knife Network forum.
It was moderated by Tracy Mickley, custom knife maker and owner of USA Knife Makers Supply, and SteveS another custom knife maker. The information is a bit dated, not much new since 2008, but the research and testing is first rate, IMO, and there is a wealth of info there. It certainly changed my view of a number of popular adhesives and as a result I switched to the adhesive I currently use and am very happy with, plus it is one of the less expensive options on the market.

Also worth noting is the prep they used in the glue testing.
Enjoy the read, it is like a college course in adhesives!
http://www.knifenetwork.com/forum/showt ... light=glue
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garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

Good stuff Dale thanks.
I had 3 options
Local epoxy company Fasco products
West Marine Epoxy
JB weld

I added allot over rec % amount of color agent to the epoxy. Some dried and some took their time but dried.
I was looking for a color match so the grey JB with dye came right in color wise and dried on schedule.
West marine is clear and too liquid.
Fasco product didn't dry on time. Took 48 hours to harden. Had me scared.

The JB bond is good and I can sand it. Color dye test dried true to wet mix so I went with good old JB.
Had good body too.

Gary
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Joe Dirt
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by Joe Dirt »

GARY! PLEASE tell me what you are using for the dyes!
I've been trying for years to find out what the base of the dye needs to be
for JB Weld AND other modern epoxies. Alchol, water, patrolium???

Many many thanks!!!

Joe
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garyflorida
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by garyflorida »

Joe Dirt wrote:GARY! PLEASE tell me what you are using for the dyes!
I've been trying for years to find out what the base of the dye needs to be
for JB Weld AND other modern epoxies. Alchol, water, patrolium???

Many many thanks!!!

Joe
OK Joe. The product I use is a Polyester Epoxy Coloring Paste made by Axson North America, Inc.
The granite and marble top people use it if that helps.
Try calling Tenax in North Carolina 704 583 1173 this is a wholesale connection so...

They also sell a knife grade epoxy in a quart can but it dries in minutes and I don't use enough so I end up throwing most of it out.

Gary
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Joe Dirt
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Re: old stag knife mod

Post by Joe Dirt »

Thanks for the contact info., Gary! ::handshake:: I really appreciate it.
I just so happen to know a counter top guy too! ::groove::

Joe
I've got a camouflage knife, but I can't find it.......

..... cardboard addicted.....

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