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There are loads of high-quality marking knives available on the market. Some have plastic handles, others include wood deal with scales, and a third type is simply a easy skinny piece of metal that was floor to an arrowhead geometry. Recently I discovered but an alternative choice – a equipment manufactured from a blade and two brass pins that assist you to make your individual deal with by selecting and forming scales of your liking after which gluing them onto the blade.
Building your custom-made marking knife is a enjoyable challenge which I’m certain will curiosity many, together with those that have already got a marking knife.
The blade
I obtained my blade from Taylor ToolWorks who imports high-quality blades from Mikov, a legendary knife firm from the Czech Republic. Taylor carries a few fashions that modify in blade thickness and tip geometry. The knife that I made a decision to “scale up” has an arrowhead tip geometry that’s preceded by two coves to permit for comfy finger nesting.
The scales
Like many woodworkers, I too have an infinite stash of scrap items – together with many stips of lovely woods that I saved for future initiatives. One of them, a strip of mahogany, was a tad wider than the blade – which made it the proper inventory for making the brand new scales.
After slicing the strip to size I riped it within the center and used the 2 halves as scales.
Use the “Knife wall” method to chop the scales to size. With a sq. and a marking knife rating throughout the workpiece. Then maintain a chisel at an angle to the wooden, and shave off a slim sliver of fibers to the fitting (or left) of the scored line. Place a noticed on this trench and noticed by means of.
I used a marking gauge and scored a line to information me whereas ripping the inventory in half.
Planing the scales
To efficiently aircraft these skinny scales and eradicate the noticed marks I made a miniature planing cease from a huge nail.
Clamp the nail in a vise and file a slanted flat side on its circumference; Alternatively, you’ll be able to partially hammer it into the makeshift planning board after which file the top.
You can depart the nail put for future use or extract it.
After planing the scales flat, type a chamfer on their’s two ends. A sanding block may be very helpful for this job.
Instead of sandpaper, you should utilize a aircraft for chamfering the corners.
Drilling the Scales
Clamp the primary scale to the blade and use the predrilled holes as a drilling template. Drill the 2 holes with a ⅛” drill bit.
Remove the primary scale and affix the second to the blade with a clamp, then drill the remaining two holes.
It is all the time advisable to rehearse earlier than the efficiency, so conduct a dry run to verify that the elements are all aligned.
Gluing the scales
Clean the metal blade with alcohol or acetone to take away any oil residues.
Mix some epoxy and unfold it on the scales (or blade) – whichever is extra comfy for you to deal with.
Sandwich the scales and the blade over a piece of corrugated cardboard. Spread some adhesive over the pins and thoroughly drive them into the holes (ensure to push them by means of and into the cardboard). Lift the knife and clamp alongside the scales.
The pins that Taylor Toolwarks present are loads lengthy and might be reduce in half to suit into a skinny deal with such because the one I made.
Next time I’ll present how I completed this challenge.
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