Anyone checker handles?

T

Travis Fry

Well-Known Member
I saw this knife by JS Josh Fisher this weekend (who is a really nice guy), and it got me thinking about checkering handles. It felt GREAT in the hand, like it wasn't ever going to go anywhere except where you put it:

image_zps13812d85.jpg

Has anyone done this? Can you recommend a good set of checkering tools and/or any good resources? Is this a bad idea/waste of time/good candidate for outsourcing? In the flip side, is there demand for this as a salable skill (would you pay someone to do it for you)?
 
Why don't you give the guys at Brownells a call. They have the equipment and should be able to help you figure out if this is feasible. Otherwise talk to a local gunsmith. They may be able to teach you how to do it.
 
I'm planning to give Brownells a call when it comes time to order the tools (if I decide to) since I've got a few other things to get from them. Doug, a checkering file is for checkering metal. Wood checkering tools are a like a cross between a chisel and a file, and work by slowly scraping repeated grooves. I may send an email to Josh Smith, who did the knife in the picture, to see if he things it's worth the trouble, what TPI he recommends, etc. The results are certainly nice!
 
I've done a bit of checkering on knives.....got all of my tools from Brownells. The checkering files Doug mentioned are for metal checkering, and don't work too well on handle materials.....especially where and radius is involved. It's takes a bit of practice, and in my opinion, layout is the key to a good checkering job......and of course a LOT of time and patience. Personally I like single or double line checkering tools, for the control they offer. Generally once you get a pattern laid out, and all the lines established, it requires going over everything at least twice more for depth. The key that many miss to checkering is the finishing......a VERY light sanding with 800-1200 to slightly knock the points off the checkering make it much more appealing and comfortable. If you got to Midway's website, and look in their video library, there is a very good 30+min video on checkering.
 
Ed, thanks for chiming in. I'll check out that Midway video. What tpi do you like? I was thinking about 22, but finer might be better for a knife. I think most guns are 16-18. I'm curious to see what your experience can offer. About how long would you estimate that it takes to do a knife handle of average size?
 
Personally I use 16 LPI......After having tried the finer LPI I discovered that many times with certain woods, the tops of the diamonds would "break off" easily with handling, and wreck the whole thing. Since moving to 16 LPI I've not gotten any "breaks". To do a good job, you can count on around 2-3 hours for a simple checkering job (like in the pic you posted) on something easy to checker like Blackwood. Other woods such as Ironwood tend to clog the cutters a lot and you spend a lot of extra time cleaning the tools/cutter(s) between passes....
It's like any other embellishment you put on a knife.....the time/effort you put into it will dictate how well, or how poorly it turns out.
 
Some of the Scottish Dirks and swords have beautiful patterns carved more than checkered. Look through some books at the Library or on line for some ideas for different patterns you could checker rather than just a gun stock type checkering.

Just a idea for thought for you.

Laurence

www.rhinoknives.com
 
The Midway video is well worth the watch.

Ed, I was looking through your gallery on your website to try to get an idea what 16 lpi looks like when applied. I didn't see any checkered knives, but I notice you do a lot of stippling. Do you use a stippling punch like they sell at Brownell's, or do you just do it with a Dremel/Foredom?
 
Most of it is done with a GRS (the engraving folks) model 850 rotary air tool. Most of the checkering jobs I've done, have been for clients who didn't want pics of the knives posted.....so I obeyed their wishes. I'll scrounge through my photos, and if I come across any that I can post, I will.
 
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