Epoxy question

I'm making a hidden tang antler handle knife in which the tang will be epoxied inside the antler handle. My tang goes 3/4 into the handle 3/4 the length of the handle. I saw a pictorial online where the knife maker (making a hidden epoxied tang knife) recommended using slow setting "3 hr epoxy". Which it appeared was thin enough after mixing that it could be poured into the handle. All I can find is the east setting 5 minute type.
Questions: Can the fast setting 5 minute type also be poured? I'm not sure how get a uniform coverage deep into the handle if it can't.
#2. If not, where can one get slow setting epoxy that can be poured?
Any advice/recommendations appreciated. Thanks

Get the G-Flex epoxy that bossdog sells. It's not quite pour able, but you can scoop it into the handle cavity. I don't use 5 minute for much at all.

I use the 24 hour G-Flex.

I would think acraglas would be another option that is what I have been using for my scales glue up. 5 minutes is not much time I don't like that much stress incase something goes not quite right.

My vote it for Accraglas! It's the only thing I will use for knife construction. Without going into a long winded thing, most of the commercial "two part" epoxies are chemically engineered to start breaking down at about the 5 year point.... and even if it says so on the packaging, 5 min epoxy IS NOT waterproof, and will usually start chemically breaking down in 1-2 years. The only "glue" that I would recommend besides Accraglas, would be the West System Marine epoxy. If you'd like more of an explaination, just let me know. But suffice to say, do yourself a favor and start using accraglass or west system now......not in 5-6 years when folks start returning knives to fix the "loose handles".

Justin Presson said:

I would think acraglas would be another option that is what I have been using for my scales glue up. 5 minutes is not much time I don't like that much stress incase something goes not quite right.

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No kidding. Mike Tyson said that everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. That is how it goes with me and five minute epoxy, lol. Acra-glass cannot be beat, period.

West Systems GFlex is my go to. It works very well and has great adhesive qualities. Very easy to clean up afterwards. In South Florida it sets in about 45 minutes, and takes between 24 to 36 hours to fully harden. I usually let it set for 48 hours in our rainy season.

Tip: Don't throw away your mixing stick or container. That way you can check the drying time.

I also use the west systems G-flex. Ed's right about that 5 minute stuff. It WILL break down, shrink or crack away in a year or so and your blade will rattle around in the handle.

Laurence, I'm surprised that you weren't able to pour the G-flex. I pour mine into every hidden tang handle I build. If you want to make it thin and really pourable (and also set faster), turn your burner on your stove on to the very lowest setting. Mine is like 90 or 100 F. You can still set your hand on it after an hour. I'm talking VERY LOW heat! Put your epoxy in a cup and set the cup on the burner for the 4 minutes of mixing time and when you're done mixing, you can pour that stuff very easily.

People...........IF you do this.......PLEASE make sure you can touch the burner with your hand before you set the epoxy cup on the burner. If you melt that cup and get the epoxy all over that stove you may need a new stove, kitchen, house, wife or all of the above.

Hello, I drill A tiny hole at the bottom of the cavity, usually in the belly of your handle. This allows the air to escape and fills with epoxy when the tang is pushed in.
Clint

I use Locktite 5 min. epoxy quite often. You do have to have everything laid out and ready to go and a plan of attach since you don't have a lot of time to fool around, but it's worked for me. If you want it thin enough to pour, all you have to do is warm it up before you mix the epoxy and hardener together and keep it warm while mixing. Depending on the time of year, you can set the bottles out in the sun, set them in front of your shop heater (not too close or the bottles will melt - personal experience oops!) or you can even use a heat gun or hair drier. I suggest you do a test run with it before using it on a finished blade to get a feel for how it handles (pun intended).

What do you guys think of the devcon 2 ton epoxy?


EDIT: nevermind...I think I found the answers to that. It's good to know. I think I'll order some gflex right now.

I've used Devcon two part for over twenty years and never had any problems. I use the 5 min. occasionally. for warming epoxy what I do is fill a bowl with hot water and put the bottles in it making sure there standing up, after a few min. pull them out, wipe off any water and go to it.

I've used acraglass and g-flex, prefer the g-flex because it is easier to mix... they are both a huge step up from the stuff you can buy at home depo. They both take forever to cure, but are well worth it.

It might be interesting to note, if you buy g-flex in the quart containers it is actually cheaper than buying by the tube at your local hardware store for the same amount of epoxy.

J. Doyle said:

I also use the west systems G-flex. Ed's right about that 5 minute stuff. It WILL break down, shrink or crack away in a year or so and your blade will rattle around in the handle.

Laurence, I'm surprised that you weren't able to pour the G-flex. I pour mine into every hidden tang handle I build. If you want to make it thin and really pourable (and also set faster), turn your burner on your stove on to the very lowest setting. Mine is like 90 or 100 F. You can still set your hand on it after an hour. I'm talking VERY LOW heat! Put your epoxy in a cup and set the cup on the burner for the 4 minutes of mixing time and when you're done mixing, you can pour that stuff very easily.

People...........IF you do this.......PLEASE make sure you can touch the burner with your hand before you set the epoxy cup on the burner. If you melt that cup and get the epoxy all over that stove you may need a new stove, kitchen, house, wife or all of the above.

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Now that I think about it? It really does mix in a pourable state, I just mix enough of the two G-flex bottles to do about 2-3 knives at a time and mix with bamboo chopstixs in a small Salsa take home container. The Fast food and take out restaurants provide well!:35:

rhinoknives said:

Now that I think about it? It really does mix in a pourable state, I just mix enough of the two G-flex bottles to do about 2-3 knives at a time and mix with bamboo chopstixs in a small Salsa take home container. The Fast food and take out restaurants provide well!:35:

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Haha I swiped some ketchup to go containers from Five Guys the other day

Sampson knifeworks said:

Hello, I drill A tiny hole at the bottom of the cavity, usually in the belly of your handle. This allows the air to escape and fills with epoxy when the tang is pushed in.
Clint

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Here is a tip I learned on another site sometime back. When doing a knife handle like this use those coffee stirrers that the they give at the fast food restaurants. They are usually small and thin and hollow like a straw. When pushed into the cavity you are trying to fill with epoxy it allows for the air to escape the mix via the coffee stirrer!

In the past I've used both loc-tite and Gorilla glue epoxy just because they've been easy to come by around here. I actually like that they are 5 minute epoxys because I'm usually only working one knife at a time. 5 minutes is plenty of time to stick it together, pin it, and clamp it. Plus, I can get back to work on it after a short break. I'll have to rethink my workflow to let the gflex harden over night.

I've never seen a problem from the walmart epoxy's, but I've probably not been making long enough for that yet. I think I always assumed that the pins would prevent any back and forth movement and thus prevent the epoxy from becoming detached. But it deteriorates over time? Why would they formulate it like that? Seems kinda stupid to me.

so that makes me wonder....is the gflex any different in application? I ordered some of the 650-8. Is there anything different about it that I should know?

N.N said:

But it deteriorates over time? Why would they formulate it like that? Seems kinda stupid to me.

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If they make a product that lasts forever.....then they're out of business after a while. It's a built in way to sell more product.

G-flex is much better. The only real difference in G-flex and acraglas that I can see is acraglas is a 50 year product and g-flex is a 35 year product. The g-flex is a 1:1 mix and therefore, the reason I choose it. It's easier for me to mix it. I do know that it is VERY strong and VERY durable.

If they make a product that lasts forever.....then they're out of business after a while. It's a built in way to sell more product.

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Exactly. I was flabergasted when I got that bit of information out of a chemist at a well known company (they are the ones who do the formulations for almost all epoxy made in the U.S.) I spent a LOT of time searching for answers after I had a number of knives come back to me in the 5-7 year time frame after they'd been sold, with "loose" handles. All of those knives were Devcon epoxy (some where the 2-ton variety, and others were 5 min). I have to conceed that mixing Acraglass is more difficult to learn, but the results and the longevity are well worth it. It's mix is 4:1.....4 parts resin, and one part hardener. Unlike other "epoxies" you can't make acraglass "kick" by adding more hardener, in fact the opposite happens. Too much hardener, and it gets to the consistency hard jell-o.......and no harder. (learned that one the hard way too)
I think as long as a maker is happy with what they are using, then use it. I think it's like just about anything else an individual favors.....you continue to do so until something gives you reason not to.....that's what happened to me, and started me on long search for answers. For now that answer is Acraglass. I'm sure down the road something else will come along that tops it (for me), but it's not here yet.

Man, you guys are making me nervous. I was literally going to glue my scales on tonight with Loctite 5 minute epoxy. I'm using 3 Corby's and my stabilized scales are sanded dead nuts flat, so I figured the epoxy would be more of a super thin layer of sealer than a fastener. If the handle is rock solid mechanically, is this even much of an issue?