Bloster finish questions

Tune_up

Active Member
Any tips on keeping the metal dust from bolsters from staining my handle? I am making a knife with a maple handle with NS bolsters and the silver is making my maple look dirty. I have noticed this before but with a darker wook it hasn't been significant. I've tried to sand the different surfaces separely as much as possible, but eventually you have to sand the area there they join. The wood is not stabilized so I can't just scrub it with water.
Question two, do you always buy your pins/bolster material from the same supplier? I leaned a lesson about SS when I tried to put 303 ss rods in 416 ss bolsters, on this knife if I look closely I can see the NS pins are a different color than the NS bolsters. All of my supplies have been purchased in small amounts from one of three different suppliers and its going to be impossible to tell where a pin came from. I really don't want to start accumulating materials again but it's really going to suck if I can't tell if the pins are going to show until I get to 320 grit on my finish.
Thanks for any help. Michael
 
I don't like using a grain filler so I typically use a few coats of flake shellac. After finishing the bolster you can remove the shellac with denatured alcohol and finish the wood however you'd like or you could apply a few coats of poly on top of the shellac as the shellac helps most finishes adhere better. The idea here is to seal the open grain of the wood/ provide a barrier to keep "gunk" out.

Hope this helps.
 
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