Double guard and framed handle, rear bolsters too

Bruce Bump

Forum Owner-Moderator
Our own Josh has been doing a great job keeping track of all these WIPs and we all appreciate him more than he knows. Thanks Josh!!

Its time I contributed to this library of tutorials so here is a pictorial and some explaination of what I do to make a Gents Bowie guard, spacer, frame, liners, rear bolsters and ivory handle scales. This method works good for me with my tools but I cant see any reason why you guys couldn't adapt it also. I do have a milling machine that helps tremendously for cutting the slot in the guard but you could do the same slot with a drill press and connect the holes with a round and flat files. I didnt always have a milling machine you know.

I believe all knives should start with a drawing that shows all the parts in the knife. This drawing should be to actual size and should be as exact as possible. Its easy to erase and draw the knife again and again but not so easy after it is cut out of steel. This drawing will be the "blueprint" for the entire construction process so make it look right on paper. One trick to designing a knife is to draw it at night and look at it in the morning. Many times you will see what it needs to improve the design. I use an art drawing book and keep the drawings for future repeat business.

This blade is one I made a few months ago and I'm using this drawing as the handle. Notice it has the guard, spacer, frame and the rear bolsters drawn now. I'm going to use 416 stainless steel for all these parts. Later it will get stainless liners and a pair of nice mammoth ivory scales.

I like 416 stainless because it wont rust on a user knife. Many times I use mild steel especially if it will be hot blued but unless the owner knows to use gun oil on the frame and guard it can rust easily from sweaty hands.

This guard is forged from a bigger piece of 416 stainless and annealed. 416 likes to be forged hot but needs to be annealed afterward because it air hardens to about 48 rockwell. Thats a bit hard to drill, machine, and way to hard to be engraved. This guard is about 20 rockwell hardness and should be nice to work with.

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Notice the detailed drawing especially where the frame goes through the spacer and the guard.
I'll later make some copies of this drawing so I can cut and glue the paper to the steel.

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The shoulders need to be square so I use a file guide clamped on and use the belt grinder. Also I like to round the tang because the guard slot will be rounded to match.

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Copper is a real "camera hound"

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Here is my milling machine squaring up the forged and annealed 416 ss. I cut it to length according to the blueprint first.

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Using the drawing as a guide I can lay out the approximent location of the slot.

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Dial calipers measure the width of the tang behind the shoulders so I know how long the slot needs to be.

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Notice the guard is painted blue with dykem blue so the layout is visible. I use a carbide scribe to scratch the lines.

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The slot needs to be milled in the same width as the blade so I use the dial calipers and write down the width.

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I also measure the width of the guard and write that down

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Next subtract the blade width from the guard width and divide by 2. This will give you the distance from each edge so the slot will be in the center of the guard material.

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At this time its not important how wide the guard is as it will be narrowed and shaped soon.
 
This will be GOOD...I am glued to the computer. Thanks for doing these wips Bruce I have learned ALOT from your wips..
 
Thanks Bruce, can't get enough of these.
Hoping to do a frame handle soon this will be a great guide.

These little details make a huge difference in the final product.
I haven't always used a drawing but with one, the work is much better and goes smoother and faster with less mistakes.

Having it in a book is great too, when I want to reference past work, I hunt around for those scraps of paper hiding who knows where, what a waste of time and distraction.

The flow from concept to completion is so important but it's not so easy to recognize the details involved in this process.

Just trying to say I appreciate these tutorials very much and think there is a lot more than just the mechanical aspect.

Mark
 
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You have my attention. :)

And I already have a question. When you are measuring the thickness of the tang, do you keep the tang thickness equal to the ricasso thickness?
To ask another way... I know the tang is stepped down in width on the front and back, but is it also more narrow than the rest of the blade to create a 4-sided shoulder for the guard to rest on?
 
You have my attention. :)

And I already have a question. When you are measuring the thickness of the tang, do you keep the tang thickness equal to the ricasso thickness?
To ask another way... I know the tang is stepped down in width on the front and back, but is it also more narrow than the rest of the blade to create a 4-sided shoulder for the guard to rest on?

The tang tapers from the back of the guard just a few thousands so the guard can slide on easy but is driven home to the shoulders. The ricasso is the same thickness. In the past I've removed metal on the tang so the gap is not visible at all with a shoulder all the way around but had problems making a super tight. Also my guards are not flat so that made it even harder to close up any visible gaps. These shoulders are very small so I can use a guard thats not truly flat in the front.
 
Back to work today,
I milled the guard slot to .187" wide. Remember the tang is only .182" wide so that means there will be a gap of .005" which will need to be closed up on the press.

I set the stops on my milling machine table so the slot is exactly as scribed in length. I take out about .010" at each pass and just go back and forth until it cuts through. Be sure to keep it cool. I use Kool Mist and mix it with water. It won't rust the machine as its a synthetic coolant. Dont use just water or you'll have a rust problem on the milling machine.

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The tang is tapered so the slot needs to match it. Notice the round file at the same angle as the taper? Be careful to not widen the slot or else the gap will be very hard to get rid of.

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The tang also needs to be tapered starting at the back of the guard all the way to the pommel end. It just needs a few thousands, just so the guard slides up and seats tightly against the shoulders. Be sure to taper it before you squeeze the gap closed or else the guard wont come back off. Clamp the file guide back on the tang and touch up the shoulders and round the tang in the guard area until the guard drops on up very close to the shoulders.

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Now that the guard fits I need to press the gap closed. this guard is nearly 3 inches long and I only need to compress the width of the tang so I grind all 4 corners off as in the sketch.

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I now place it in my press and lightly squeeze the gap closed. I have no idea how many tons this takes but I have done it in a heavy duty vice before. I've also hammered the gap closed but just one miss and you'll be cussing out loud from a hammer mark on your pretty blade. My suggestion is to get a small 12-20 ton press or go over your local machine shop with a dozen donuts.

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The gap is now closed and the guard needs to be driven back off. This is why I said to taper the tang or else the guard has to be pressed off all the way down the tang.

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Now the "S" shaped can be bent into the guard. Good thing this 416 is annealed otherwise this will snap it off. I just clamp it in my big vice and use a crescent wrench and a cheater. Be careful it doesn't slip off and hurt yourself.

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