91 mm SAK Liners -- Aftermarket or Refinishing?

[Kale]

I'd like to upgrade the scales on a 91 mm SAK (and possibly do a simple toolset mod as well).  I'd also like to upgrade the liners, which seem like poor quality compared to the rest of the tool (even the Alox liners have a nicer finish by comparison).  Are there any aftermarket options for this? 

I suppose the other option is to polish the liners it already comes with, to give the nicer finish I'm after.  Has anyone tried this?  Any tips?

[SAKTaschenmesser]

I had a go at making brass and copper liners from 0.7mm sheet, but I just didn’t have the tools or skill to get it right. Would be interesting to find a source of liners in different materials.


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[Kale]

I had a go at making brass and copper liners from 0.7mm sheet, but I just didn’t have the tools or skill to get it right. Would be interesting to find a source of liners in different materials.


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There's a guy on Youtube "Fit to Survive" who does beautiful custom SAK's... the fancy handmade liners are what really steals the show.  Anyone can purchase and install aftermarket scales pretty easily, but custom liners aren't something you really see.  And copper/brass would definitely be sweet, but I'm not handy enough to even contemplate trying.

[kamakiri]

If you want the liners done right, gotta do them yourself. JMO.

G10 liners look great, until you have to live with a knife with G10 liners.

84mm example in nickel silver here, but same smurf different day.

[kamakiri]

This thread may be some inspiration:
https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,61541.msg1141529.html#msg1141529

Also had the suggestion to use a local machinist to fabricate some for you. 

[kamakiri]

Are there any aftermarket options for this? 

No experience with them, but there are titanium ones available from China.

[tattoosteve99]

No aftermarket except from modders.  It’s actually easy to make, all but the exterior ones (91mm). Those are pressed in such a way as to expand the size of the knife slightly and keep the scales tight.

[Fortytwo]

No aftermarket except from modders.  It’s actually easy to make, all but the exterior ones (91mm). Those are pressed in such a way as to expand the size of the knife slightly and keep the scales tight.

Same goes for the 84 mm models.

I have done a few liner-swaps and the tool set required is fairly limited. I've used a stock liner as a template for drilling the holes and then done a coarse shaping with a jewellers saw. After that it's just a little bit of time with a file and then some sandpaper.
As for the stampings, I did a brass Sportsman and had to account for that. A fairly simple fix where I soldered (unnecessary I should believe) a brass spacer that I made in place. I had some 1 mm stock from making the liners. Drilled a hole to match the pin and mounted it in a drill and filed it into a disc of the right diameter. Sanded it a bit thinner to match the pressing size and finished it by filing one side flat to give space for the for the backspring.

[kamakiri]

No aftermarket except from modders.  It’s actually easy to make, all but the exterior ones (91mm). Those are pressed in such a way as to expand the size of the knife slightly and keep the scales tight.

Good point about the outer liners. The stamped contours and relief areas are an added feature in modern knives that reduces the binding of tools in the outer ‘Spartan’ 3-tool layers. The latest versions even accommodate the very bottom of the opener tools and use lots of complex contouring to do so.

[kamakiri]

Another option for outboard clearance with custom cut liners is to make custom cut spacers. Washers work fine too, but I dislike the way washers look from the top view…and they have the tendency to collect dust and grit around the washer. A ‘full’ spacer prevents the dust issue somewhat.