Fixed! Über-Rare Böker 182 w/ Fiber Scales
Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2022 8:43 pm
I recently got this fantastically rare Böker 182 with a broken off awl. There are a few things that make this knife rare. Most noticeably, the red fiber scales, but this one has some other features that are scarce, especially being a 1930's-40's specimen. Stainless steel implements (most were carbon steel) for one, and wavy aluminum liners for another. I've never seen another Böker 182 like it.
So the broken off awl was a bummer. Had it been carbon steel an otherwise-trashed donor knife would have been very easily sourced for around $25. But pre-war stainless 182's are scarce, so I had to pay through the nose for a stag-scaled donor. Normally of course, it would be a crime to sacrifice such a beautiful stag knife for parts, but this one was missing its bail, the main blade was about 15 mm short, and the cap lifter was broken off at the shank. Its awl, however, was perfect. And stainless!
I was going to send it to a real knife smith for professional repair, but his turnaround time is 3 months and the operation just didn't look that tricky to me. I've built a couple SAKs, but I'm far from an expert. Still, I decided to save the time and money and give it a try myself.
Here you can see the broken awl next to the donor awl.
Here's the donor stag-scaled 182. Even broken these things are worth a lot of money.
Using a pin drift, I carefully tapped the pin through the fiber knife. It looks like it's made of steel, which is a bummer because I only have brass pin stock to work with. Decision time -- Re-use the steel pin, which was a little too short anyway, give up and send the knife off to a pro, or substitute brass pin stock? I decided to replace the whole pin with the brass pin stock that I had. Here's the fiber 182 with the steel pin halfway removed and awl taken out.
Test fitting revealed that the holes for the scales, liners, and implements were a just a hair misaligned and wonky. I thought long and hard before doing this, but finally decided to run a drill bit through the knife body and then the implements individually. My technique worked and further test fitting showed everything lined up.
With the brass pin in place, I nipped off the ends using these micro nippers. Then all I had to do was peen them flush with the scales.
The knife was now very snappy, and I was happy with my flush-peening and the color of the brass, but there was another problem. The tip of the awl sat proud of the profile of the knife in its closed position. Enough that it would catch your pocket or your finger. Closer inspection revealed the cause -- there was a knob at the base of the awl that rests on the spring and keeps the awl in just the right position when folded in. The same knob on the original awl was much less pronounced. I get the feeling that back when this knife was made the knob was probably custom finished to each individual knife. Anyway, a few passes over it with a file reduced its profile just so, and now the awl fits perfectly in its happy place when folded in.
So the broken off awl was a bummer. Had it been carbon steel an otherwise-trashed donor knife would have been very easily sourced for around $25. But pre-war stainless 182's are scarce, so I had to pay through the nose for a stag-scaled donor. Normally of course, it would be a crime to sacrifice such a beautiful stag knife for parts, but this one was missing its bail, the main blade was about 15 mm short, and the cap lifter was broken off at the shank. Its awl, however, was perfect. And stainless!
I was going to send it to a real knife smith for professional repair, but his turnaround time is 3 months and the operation just didn't look that tricky to me. I've built a couple SAKs, but I'm far from an expert. Still, I decided to save the time and money and give it a try myself.
Here you can see the broken awl next to the donor awl.
Using a pin drift, I carefully tapped the pin through the fiber knife. It looks like it's made of steel, which is a bummer because I only have brass pin stock to work with. Decision time -- Re-use the steel pin, which was a little too short anyway, give up and send the knife off to a pro, or substitute brass pin stock? I decided to replace the whole pin with the brass pin stock that I had. Here's the fiber 182 with the steel pin halfway removed and awl taken out.
Test fitting revealed that the holes for the scales, liners, and implements were a just a hair misaligned and wonky. I thought long and hard before doing this, but finally decided to run a drill bit through the knife body and then the implements individually. My technique worked and further test fitting showed everything lined up.
With the brass pin in place, I nipped off the ends using these micro nippers. Then all I had to do was peen them flush with the scales.
The knife was now very snappy, and I was happy with my flush-peening and the color of the brass, but there was another problem. The tip of the awl sat proud of the profile of the knife in its closed position. Enough that it would catch your pocket or your finger. Closer inspection revealed the cause -- there was a knob at the base of the awl that rests on the spring and keeps the awl in just the right position when folded in. The same knob on the original awl was much less pronounced. I get the feeling that back when this knife was made the knob was probably custom finished to each individual knife. Anyway, a few passes over it with a file reduced its profile just so, and now the awl fits perfectly in its happy place when folded in.
You really brought that dead old soldier back to life! 
Also, kudos on the picture editing, so many times I've wanted to view the "before n' after" shots together and now you've achieved the process! Congratulations and thank you! 
