Large Bowie - Finished

opaul

opaul

Well-Known Member
This one is beginning to take shape on the last stages of the build. Right now the OAL is ~15" with a ~ 2" wide - 9" blade. I'm going to remove about 1-1/4" off the butt of the elk antler. This is my first time using 52100 steel and I like it. The heat treat and tempering went very well. I may end up putting two brass spacers in the micarta spacers. Right now everything is dry fit and I'm sure after truing up the micarta pieces I'll need a few more inserts. I need to sculpt the micarta spacers to transition to the antler. I completely removed all the pith from the antler and filled it with epoxy. I haven't' decided what I'm going to do with the butt cap yet. I may mount a large silver dollar or might try something different.
 
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One of my favorites. Stainless, brass pins, mosaic pin.

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Chris Railey said:
When you drill the hole in the antler for the tang to fit into how do you widen it so that the tang will fit? For example I use a broach on wooden handles I wondered if it would work on antler.
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On this one and on a couple of others what I have done is completely remove pith from inside the antler. I use different size drill bits to accomplish this. If the tang fit isn't where I want it to be I use a broach or small key hole saw to remove excess material until it sits where I want it. I make some reference marks on the outside of the antler (I use tape so it's easy to see), I also wax the antler to help with any excess epoxy leaking out which will happen. I clean the inside of the antler with alcohol. I wrap the tang with Teflon plumbing tape. I warm up the epoxy and pour it in the antler cavity leaving room for the tang to displace the epoxy. On this Bowie I premade the pommels and used scotch tape on the surfaces to keep the surfaces from being epoxied together. Once I'm satisfied with the fit I'll use rubber bands, gorilla glue or whatever to hold everything in place until the epoxy cures. I use Rouge epoxy for this. I think it has an hour or two working time. Once it's cured I'll crack everything open, carefully, and use a pick to remove any tape left in the key hole for the tang. Minor adjustments can be accomplished using the broach.
I hope this helps.
 
Austin Thrasher said:
Man OP! That looks awesome! Great work. :D
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Thanks Austin! I just did a little more work on the sheath. I blended some of the outline with a darker dye on the sheath face and the retention strap. I think it turned out pretty good. First time working with buffalo and will do a few things differently next time.
 
That sheath is beautiful! Great work. Do you have any more pics of the knife? Would love to see the butt cap and a close up of the handle and spacer. It really looks nice, love the colors and textures together.
 
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