Making 91mm wooden plus scales (pic heavy)

[enki_ck]

I've promised tosh to give him a step by step run down on how I make wooden plus scales and thought someone else might find this interesting.

This time I made them out of oak. I'm not completely satisfied with the result, I went a bit too low on the edges where the cut outs for the T&T and pen are. I sanded them down by hand, then decided to speed up the process a bit with a dremmel and messed up. I did a thread about making Wenger scales a while back but those are recessed, Victorinox doesn't use recessed scales. I'll be using some of the pics from that thread though to demonstrate cause I forgot to take pics this time and some pics were made later for the purposes of this thread.

Here's the finished product.
 








And here's the run down.

I cut a slab of wood about 5mm thick (to be sanded down later) and long and wide enough for two scales. Here's the rest of the block of wood used for the scales.

 

I use masking tape to transfer the positions of the holes. (Wenger pic)


I then cut out the rough shape of the scales leaving about a millimetre on each side (to be sanded down later) using a fretsaw. It's great for very accurate work, as the saw leaf is very thin.


I then drill out he holes for the pins using this dremel bit. It leaves a lot nicer hole than a drill bit would.




The holes are a tight fit and could be just pressure fitted/could just snap on, but I like using some sort of adhesive, I think it's rubber cement but I never was sure what the right English word for this was. When the scales are cut and the pin holes drilled I put the scales back to back and sand them down by hand.
Then I place then on the SAK and sand down the excess if there's any.





The trenching for the long straight implements was done using a diamond dremel bit and a steady hand.


I first cut two or three lines depending on the thickness of the implement, dremel out the excess and then straighten it all out using the Vic Spirit file (I had to use at least one multitool on this)



When doing any kind of dremeling always use eye protection. Trust me



I used boat varnish ? as a sealer this time. I think it looks OK.

I hope someone finds this useful. I'm not saying this is the best way to do it. Most of the tools I use are just what I grabbed cause it was near me when I needed something to do the job. If anyone has any advice on how to do it better, please let me know.

[tosh]

Hi enki

Hats off to you !!

That's exactly what I wanted - step by step.
Brilliant.
Is the dremel bit you used for the holes the actual size needed or is it a case of wiggling it about?

To be honest, the only thing that's stopping me now is............Me!! 
I haven't got a fret saw but I do have a coping saw and a band saw. So, hopefully they'll do.
As for the sanding bit - I think I'm tempted to take of the excess with a wood scraper. if I follow the pattern of the grain it should hopefully work out and much less laborious!!

But thanks to you - you've gone and got me all inspired.

Cheers enki 

Tosh

[enki_ck]

...
Is the dremel bit you used for the holes the actual size needed or is it a case of wiggling it about?
...

You are welcome.

The 4th hole, the one where the corkscrew/phillips pin goes, is the actual size of the dremel bit. All others require a bit of "wiggling it about"

[Sidhartha]

very nice! congrats enki! 

[tosh]

The 4th hole, the one where the corkscrew/phillips pin goes, is the actual size of the dremel bit. All others require a bit of "wiggling it about"


What size bit is that?  

[enki_ck]

Thanks, Sidhartha. I'm nowhere near your masterpieces. Still a lot of learning to do.

The 4th hole, the one where the corkscrew/phillips pin goes, is the actual size of the dremel bit. All others require a bit of "wiggling it about"


What size bit is that?  

I'm not sure, I'd say about 3-4 mm, it's in my workshop, I'll check tomorrow and let you know.

[Sparky415]

very nice! congrats enki! 

+1

I do like wood scales 

[Zed]

very nice! congrats enki! 

+1

I do like wood scales 

me too, nice work mate, i really need to make something different scale wise for my tinker soon, 

[enki_ck]

The 4th hole, the one where the corkscrew/phillips pin goes, is the actual size of the dremel bit. All others require a bit of "wiggling it about"


What size bit is that?  

I'm not sure, I'd say about 3-4 mm, it's in my workshop, I'll check tomorrow and let you know.

I checked, it's 3mm.

[tosh]

The 4th hole, the one where the corkscrew/phillips pin goes, is the actual size of the dremel bit. All others require a bit of "wiggling it about"


What size bit is that?  

I'm not sure, I'd say about 3-4 mm, it's in my workshop, I'll check tomorrow and let you know.

I checked, it's 3mm.

You're a STAR enki.....A STAR
That's it - the last piece of the jigsaw.

It's time to get busy folks.

I've gone and ordered a simple Recruit to be the donor.
My problem now is which wood

Elm Burr, Spalted Beech, Walnut or Oak.
If this works, I'm going straight to the Buffalo horn, Stag etc etc

[Ashley]

Sent from Ash forum mobile

[MultiMat]

Great tutorial mate 

[Outback in Idaho]

Nice work! Have been searching for 91mm Silky Oak scales, as think that would look absolutely bonzer on a SAK Climber. Want Plus scales, but have no Plus scales on hand or a real life blueprint and/or tracings to work from.

Was looking to find a someone that can make a Plus scale from Silky Oak, then happened across your post on Google. 

I see some silky oak scales on eBay from Australia that are affordable.






That's a fantastic wood when polished, almost like Tiger Eye effects when polished. First ran across Silky Oak from a special run of Lorin Hawes M-17 boomerangs. Hawaiian Koa is nice too.

[PTRSAK]

The silky oak is nice.  That seller also has some Ebony listed and this Yellow Box Burl.



I think I need some of that.

[MARIOS7319]

Very nice job enki_ck.
Congratulations.
By the way, how do you make the symbol in the front scale?

[enki_ck]

Very nice job enki_ck.
Congratulations.
By the way, how do you make the symbol in the front scale?

With a soldering iron and these tips. It's burnt in my a fraction of a millimeter.

[volbu]

Nice post!

This summer i collected some wild cherry branches while I was at my Village.
Yesterday I got them at last to resemble a lot a pair of recruit scales.
I don't have any mask tape. And I m thinking to make some close enough holes in them for the rivet heads and use super glue to attach them to the recruit.

Do you think it will be ok??

Also I m thinking to soak them in olive oil before installing them, will it help them not to wear off quickly? (Thats what ppl here usually use for wooden spoons forks etc! ) Will I be able to wash the Recruit later??

Any thought from the more experienced will be much appreciated!

[Outback in Idaho]

Oil & glue don't get along. Varnish would probably work better for the attachment side, then oil the other sides if you prefer that. If I recall, those that prefer oil end up drilling out the brass rivets and replacing them with new tensioned rivets. Then ping (using a ball peen hammer) the ends over to hold everything together.

As to super glue for a permanent fixture... 

I had plans on getting some epoxy to glue the scales on, and definitely some varnish. Wait for the more experienced folks to chime in before doing anything.


Not sure as if gluing, epoxying, or replacing the rivets to hold the scales on voids the warranty.

[MARIOS7319]

Very nice job enki_ck.
Congratulations.
By the way, how do you make the symbol in the front scale?

With a soldering iron and these tips. It's burnt in my a fraction of a millimeter.

(Image removed from quote.)

Very interesting, if they make a cross tip it will be perfect.

[Farmman]

I glue the scales on using gorilla glue. I then dress the front side with bees wax polish made from turpentine and wax.

[MARIOS7319]

Nice post!

This summer i collected some wild cherry branches while I was at my Village.
Yesterday I got them at last to resemble a lot a pair of recruit scales.
I don't have any mask tape. And I m thinking to make some close enough holes in them for the rivet heads and use super glue to attach them to the recruit.

Do you think it will be ok??

Also I m thinking to soak them in olive oil before installing them, will it help them not to wear off quickly? (Thats what ppl here usually use for wooden spoons forks etc! ) Will I be able to wash the Recruit later??

Any thought from the more experienced will be much appreciated!

The best varnish for these scales will be the varnish that they put on the wooden floors.
You can buy a small can, and apply with a brush.
An alternative for this will be the spray varnish, but i don't know if it will hold for long.

[Sparky415]

Nice post!

This summer i collected some wild cherry branches while I was at my Village.
Yesterday I got them at last to resemble a lot a pair of recruit scales.
I don't have any mask tape. And I m thinking to make some close enough holes in them for the rivet heads and use super glue to attach them to the recruit.

Do you think it will be ok??

Also I m thinking to soak them in olive oil before installing them, will it help them not to wear off quickly? (Thats what ppl here usually use for wooden spoons forks etc! ) Will I be able to wash the Recruit later??

Any thought from the more experienced will be much appreciated!

I used epoxy to glue mine on and oiled them after it was finished




Added,
I like oil as it’s easy to repair/re-apply   

[enki_ck]

Nice post!

This summer i collected some wild cherry branches while I was at my Village.
Yesterday I got them at last to resemble a lot a pair of recruit scales.
I don't have any mask tape. And I m thinking to make some close enough holes in them for the rivet heads and use super glue to attach them to the recruit.

Do you think it will be ok??

Also I m thinking to soak them in olive oil before installing them, will it help them not to wear off quickly? (Thats what ppl here usually use for wooden spoons forks etc! ) Will I be able to wash the Recruit later??

Any thought from the more experienced will be much appreciated!

I use rubber cement, none of my scales ever came off. I've never had luck with superglue on these. As for soaking them in olive oil, I've never heard of that. It depends though on how dry your wood is. I'd try t on a separate piece and see if it swells. Also, wouldn't just a coat or two do the trick. Soaking them seems a bit too much.

As for transferring the holes you may have luck pressing them against the rivets and seeing if it leaves a mark on the wood. Scotch tape may work too. I usually make the holes first and sand off the excess.

[Sparky415]

There are some good tips in this thread 

[PTRSAK]

I have used several methods for attaching wood scales. each has its advantages and disadvantages.
Cutting clearance size holes for the rivets and then gluing the scales on with 5min epoxy is probably the easiest and quickest, but it is a little permanent. Very hard to remove the scales later without wrecking them.
A variation of this method is to only put the glue in the holes over the bushings and lightly oil the bushings. This way the glue forms around the barb on the bushings but doesn't actually stick to it. These will be well held on but reasonably easily removable.

If you work slowly and carefully you can get the holes in the wood "just the right size" and the scales will snap on like cellidor ones do. I find using this method works best if you harden the sides of the holes with a little superglue before you fit them.

Most invasive method is to drill out the pins and fit new brass pins that go right through the whole knife, scales and all. Old Skool bonus points for this look, but short of custom making tools this is heavy duty modding. Not for the beginner.

Most of the time I leave the back of the scales unfinished, but a thin coat of epoxy would be pretty much the top option.

I prefer an oiled finish to varnish, but it can be a lot of work to get it looking really good.
Linseed oil would be my choice for SAK scales. Leave the olive oil for your cutting board.
"Boiled" linseed oil dries faster than raw and, like most decorative coatings, many thin coats are better than one thick one.
Oiling a piece of timber like this can take days or even weeks to get the best out of it but IMO it's worth it. After you see the way oil enhances the grain, varnish looks like cling-wrap over the top of the wood.

[volbu]

Wow!!

So many, nice and thorough replies!
Lets see, soaking in olive oil seems out of the question.
I really dont believe that I can make them "snap", I will try to get the holes as precise as I can and then epoxy glue (never heard of it I ll have to search for it in the local market)
I ll think about the varnish / oil or uncoated option.
Although I have some floor vanish I dont like how "fake" the coating looks.
Maybe I ll coat it 1-2 times with some oil.

Any case I ll let you know what happened!!

Thanks a lot for the great replies!!!!

[Sparky415]

Wow!!

So many, nice and thorough replies!
Lets see, soaking in olive oil seems out of the question.
I really dont believe that I can make them "snap", I will try to get the holes as precise as I can and then epoxy glue (never heard of it I ll have to search for it in the local market)
I ll think about the varnish / oil or uncoated option.
Although I have some floor vanish I dont like how "fake" the coating looks.
Maybe I ll coat it 1-2 times with some oil.

Any case I ll let you know what happened!!

Thanks a lot for the great replies!!!!

Epoxy resin/glue, is the one where you mix two tubes of resin and hardener together 
I prefer the slow one as 5 minutes never seems like enough time for me 


http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_sq_top/276-5591968-4187336?_encoding=UTF8&index=blended&keywords=epoxy%20glue&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_r=1R5D6ACZ97CYA9TZXP3D&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=103612307&pf_rd_i=B003BPX9EK

[volbu]

Thank you!

Tomorrow I ll buy one, and hopefully finish my cool recruit !!!

[Outback in Idaho]

Soon as my Australian silky oak and neodymium magnets arrive have plans on making Plus scales for my Climber. Thanks to the MTO members here the helped provide patterns and layouts for the 91mm scales.