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My daughter hikes in the wilderness & packs everything in. Therefore, weight is a factor. She also likes bones .. Anthropology major. Soooo , Dad put this together for her.
I started with a generic (no stamping) blank. Possibly, Colonial .. they can still be found in antique stores & the like for under $20. Light duty camping hatchets for the weekend camper of the 50’s / 60’s. Decent steel & light in weight.
I removed the black plastic grips ..and voila .. my generic blank.
I ordered some bones from Moscow Hide & Fur .. nice people to deal with. I ordered a couple different sizes .. not knowing what exactly would make a best fit.
Once they arrived .. I decided on the larger .. and cut it down to size.
I then laid the bone on top of the blank .. in a couple different configurations .. till I found the one I liked.
I made the required cut in the bone .. allowing the blank to be inserted & sandwiched by the bone.
This allowed me to estimate what material to remove from the blank to obtain the desired fit between bone & blank.
After obtaining the desired fit .. I etched the blank for corrosion resistance to the elements.
Brass tubing was used for pins. The space between bone & blank was filled with fiberglass resin.
For my first go ‘round .. I’m OK with the result.
Tags: FerricChlorideEtch, MoscowHide&Fur, bones, hatchet
... of course .. I had to try it .. works as intended !!!
Good job. Nice results.
Thanks, JJ
J.J. Smith III said:
Good job. Nice results.
I like it Dale and I think Hannah will cherish it. Light weight and easy to take Dad on all the trips with her :)
Pretty awesome Dale!
I see where you bought the bone, thanks for the link, what animal is it from and how did you cut the grove?
Dan,
For this project, I cut the groove/slot in the bone w/ a std 10" bastard file. The thickness was a close fit to the hatchet blank ..so.. I used the narrow side w/ teeth on it to cut the groove. I was very happy w/ the way that portion of the project worked out. It does require mucho more elbow grease ..but.. the manual approach inhibited gross errors :)
For the matching Camp Knife .. I machined the desired groove. Absolutely loving the mill !! :) !!
Dan ... that's an Elk leg bone for the hatchet handle ..&.. a white tail deer leg bone for the camp knife.
I've experienced ZERO negative issues dealing with Moscow Hide & Fur. They're honest, reliable, & ship quickly .. when in stock. i.e. Their inventory does vary.
Also, bone sizes vary. I order multiple units & then choose "best fit" for current project once in hand. Their pricing is such that it allows this freedom.
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