Softens my hands, too!

Thanks JJ - I planned to be sure it is well treated all the way through, but worth reminding since I am a newbie. Now looking more seriously every day at tools, blanks, raw steel, finished blanks, and the list is growing. :-) At least my wife is ok with it. So far!

"So Far".

LOL!!!

Alanm, that reminds me of a small Remington I have in simular condition, these knive were made to be used. I soaked my leather washers with mineral oil, after a while it did tighten up. Good luck with it. Dont foget to share the before and after pictures. 

Finally getting to this one. Below I am removing the scale pins from an old LF&C . The crossguard was misding so I am making a replacement. Here it is with scales removed for the first time in 100 years. 

I read that twice!  Those scales came off for the first time in 100 years!  This one is a labor of love to bring back a quality knife!

Way cool, Michael .. the result will be something to be proud of !!!

My version of a handy mini vice - idea stolen/borrowed from D ale - Thanks for the inspiration!!!  GEC #15 for size reference. I have added some stiff leather to the rear jaw (?) and intend making up some more inserts of varying widths.

Nice work on that "mini vice," Derek! Kudos, mate!

What's the widest width that your current model could accommodate? Maybe 2 inches?

I especially like that you beveled the corners! It looks very professional!

Thanks Ron, the widest it will go is 1 1/2 inches, which for my purposes should be plenty ... I only intended  to use it on slip joints but actually found it useful today holding a bronze guard I am sanding/plishing on a Bowie build.

Thanks for posting Pics , Derek!!!

!!! .. Very nice job .. !!!

.

I see what you mean by "pinned .. screwed .. glued".

Especially like the "not marring" leather pad.

Appears you've already discovered its usefulness

for

a wide variety of applications.

.

If do believe .. like me & mine

you'll come to really appreciate it's light weight & versatility.

.

Again .. nice job .. sweet result !!!

What kind of scales will you be slapping on the Bowie with the bronze guard, if you don't mind me asking?

Michael, I just saw now I had missed your reply. I did post another area about my Western knife - and forgot to come back here. I put up a few photos, but the whole sequence is on a flickr album as well at http://bit.ly/2beBfd9

Even though it is "finished" I will likely do a little more sanding and polishing on the pommel and scales. I didn't want to take much more off the blade because removing all the pitting would just remove too much material.

That's a good looking vice Derek, and of course Dale ... I might have to make something like that one day. My small red steel vice works, but I was very careful while using it, where wood with leather would be better.

Of course Jan and others will be amused to know that my original comments about tools I have "for now" literally is for now and I'm already attracting comments from my wife when I talk about wanting to add a 1x30 sander. And maybe a power saw which I don't have any more. Many moves along the way, including one across continents and I don't have many tools.

Ron I have some deep dark-red Jarrah which should come up nicely. This has been a side project for a while now ... one I go back to every now and then. It is one of those projects that, for me, requires a lot of concentration & I need to only work on it when I'm in the 'right' frame of mind. I will post pics when I 'finally' get it done.

http://www.woodsolutions.com.au/Wood-Species/Jarrah

Derek, I completely understand and appreciate what you mean about being in that "right state of mind." I find myself in that same situation with so many "side projects" that I have placed on the back burner.

I've been doing less and less with knives lately and spending more time out in nature taking photographs. Everyday I grab my little point and shoot camera and go out looking for something interesting to photograph. If you ever have some time on your hands, have a look at some of the pics I've been taking.

Here's a link to my Flickr page: Ron's Flickr Page

There are more than 2600 photos posted on 27 pages so far! And there are even some of my knife pics posted between the birds n' butterflies!

That red Jarrah should make a beautiful handle for that Bowie knife! I will look forward to seeing the finished product somewhere down the line. 

Cheers, my friend!

Nice photos Ron - I'll take more time looking too. I used to do a lot of general nature, but mostly I was interested in macro of flowers and seeds, and bugs. Many butterflies and caterpillars.

Not so much any more - strange, I did all that in the day of slide and film photography, did some digital but over time interests pulled me different ways

Thanks, Allanm! I appreciate your comment. 

Many years ago I got the Photography bug and dropped a small fortune on 35mm camera bodies and lenses. I ended up with boxes full of pictures and slides.

Carrying bulky bags with cameras and lenses was cumbersome and didn't really lend itself to spontaneity the way that walking around with a small digital "point and shoot" camera you can wear on your belt does today. 

I am fortunate to live just a mile away from the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens. And that's where the vast majority of my wildlife and nature pictures are taken. I have long regarded the grounds of the Arboretum as one of the most beautiful places on the planet. With 127 acres of flora n' fauna from around the world there is never a shortage of interesting subject matter to point my tiny camera at.

Plus, prowling the grounds of the Arb serves an added benefit for me in that it gets me out of the house and into the sunshine where I also get some much needed exercise to keep my septuagenarian bones from rusting. (Talk about run-on sentences!) I go there everyday!

Cheers, my friend!

Here are some of mine from over the years Ron. The last link has a variety of other "touristy" stuff. It was a visit back to family in South Africa after having moved to the US a number of years before.

The first link is rather recent, all US based.

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipN1FLcPlycfraFLOGE5Dla6ZyHCoyk...

The second link is flowers, taken in the US - many are proteas, the South African national flower

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipP8tjotp-YBVMifUeFLwiFAiNMYMmW...

This link is all in South Africa, most flowers in Kirstenbosch national botanical garden, in Cape Town

https://photos.google.com/album/AF1QipMzpIjEmgU3LDQnWEHa9PtEqG9zB5e...

Allanm,

None of the links worked. You need to click on the blue icon marked "LINK" in the top lefthand corner of the message box and then enter them there before posting them otherwise they won't work. 

Give that a try...I'd like to see your pics!

Cheers!

Kershaw help needed.  My brother has a Kershaw "leek" 1660.  He was looking at replacing the handles with something lightweight and compact.  Any suggestions on where I should send him searching?  We are located in Columbus Indiana.

 Andy Larrison   .. I didn't know exactly which one the "1660" was ..so.. I looked it up. I noticed they can be purchased outright for around $70.oo or slightly less. Quite frankly .. I doubt he'll get it rescaled for less than the cost of a new knife. Unless .. he does it himself.
That being said .. you could ask "muskratman" for a quote .. he has a very good reputation !!!

Andy,

If he is indeed looking to do it himself you may want to review of the rehandles here in this group or have him review them.  I agree with Dale, to have it done would likely be around the cost of the knife itself

Andy, If your brother's knife is stainless steel handled he is stuck with what he has, unless of course he is a machinist with a mill machine. If it is steel and he feels it is too heavy, then his best bet is to buy one of the aluminum handled ones.

If you want more information about this highly regarded knife, check out knifecenter.com and Jantz Supply for handle material.

Not knife related, for others ... sorry Ron, I forgot, those are non public Google albums. I needed to click a "create sharing link". These should work for you

US based - dragon fly, butterfly & moth

https://goo.gl/photos/xem11MQcXiGMirKx7

US based flowers, includes South African proteas

https://goo.gl/photos/GsiL2uUJGyFvwPgf8

Around South Africa, Cape Town in particular, and Kirstenbosch botanical gardens

https://goo.gl/photos/PivmoxGuswwCAz8x8

Ah, yes ~ Much better!

Thanks, Allanm! You have a keen eye for beauty, my friend! I especially liked your So. African album. So mant extotic species of flora and fauna. And the landscape is stunning. The contrast between coast and cliff. That fortress, or lookout, perched upon that steep precipice overlooking everything is really stunning and stimulates thoughts of how it had been constructed! At least for me it did. lol.

Your plant work is gorgeous. I love proteas! I wish they were indigenous to the United States as they make for lovely photographic subjects! Beautiful!

Thanks for the new links! 

Thanks Ron, and honestly, not being overly humble or anything, I honestly don't think I'm that good a photographer. I also think I have virtually zero creativity - except when I'm writing programs for computers where I am very creative and can automate just about anything. With photography, I just look at what appeals to me, and snap away. My sister always used to tell me I was very good, now she's been studying a lot, going to classes, experimenting, and she's become good. I was basically self taught and just did what felt right.

Now I've kind of moved from photography to hunting more, but plan to use everything possible. My wife helped me last season, I skinned and quartered three deer, then we butchered together for the first time ever, she vacuum sealed, and we have not bought much meat since November. I tanned my first three hides as well, now in addition to getting into knife repair and making, I'm considering some taxidermy as well. So photography has been mostly pushed aside, as you can see.

Somebody in church today was telling two of our pastors he met me, and then suddenly one day I went to visit and I had turned into a redneck overnight. :-)

LOL Allan, overnight redneck is pretty easy to do.

I really like that your wife is involved with preparing the meats and I LOVE that you have had yo buy very little of it in almost a year.  That tells me you are conscious of what you kill and it is not a wasted kill.  When you get that taxidermy started we want to watch.  I know the outdoor group would love it

We're well and truly off topic Jan, but yes, I was raised with the philosophy of no meat left behind. Oooops ... that saying was no child left behind, but we can adapt. :-) Really, I was raised with the belief that I hunt only what we will eat, and anything I hunted, I had to clean then my mom would cook for us. Definitely no frivolous killing, except if an animal is a serious pest to a crop on a small, poor farm or danger to an of the farm animals.

So last season my wife told me she would help butcher, on condition I bring back carcasses - no heads, no hides, no feet. The ban was on what she would see and handle, not on me boiling out heads for European/Texan style mount, and tanning hides myself. Once hides were salted at least, she was willing to look at them. She just didn't want to see poor Bambi looking at her with sad / dull eyes. But I have also been told that skulls and antlers are not welcome on walls inside the house. Such is life!

Making some progress on my crossguard.  Cut from a piece if brass. 

Thanks  D ale, I got a little more done today. 

Anyone have any tips on re-stiching a leather sheath? 

Hmmm, Michael let me look around I think someone just posted some info on sheaths.   Try the Leather Group

You made some nice progress on that guard, the detail is looking fantastic!

Micheal have a look here...

http://iknifecollector.com/group/clws/forum/topics/knife-pouches-sl...

Thank you Derek!!

Wow, I tyed the link and it wants me to subscribe to an Australian newsletter. funny. 

Thanks Jan, i decided to add so e flair to the knife as im not making an exact replica of the guard. I saw a picture of an antique bowie with a simular design. 

Michael, 

Here is the link Derek was attempting to get you to.  I dont know what happened

http://iknifecollector.com/group/clws/forum/topics/knife-pouches-sl...

Thanks Jan  & Sorry Michael ... not sure what happened there 

There it is with the new cross  guard in place. in a few months when the brass tones down it should look even better. 

Nice neat replacement & I agree once the bright brass mellows it will take on the look of the original. 

Thanks Derek, I had fun with this one. Next is a sheath made from an old belt for it. Then some bone scales for another old bowie type blade. 

I have a number of deer antlers in the workshop from a nearby deer farm - these had been shed and laying in the paddock so very faded - thanks to Google' I discovered the Condy's Crystals trick of re-coloring them. After a couple of solutions that were too weak I think I have hit on a winning mix.

Bottom piece in the Photo is a naturally colored piece with just slight fading... the top piece is my rejuvenation ... So now I have plenty of antler to work with.

Here is my next project. I have already started cutting the bone up. 

Excellent Michael!  Cannot wait to see how it works through the process of becoming your knife