Thread: My first set of horn scales fail Joseph Roders

Originally Posted by Chevhead

Did you drill the holes with a drill press?
They NEED to be aligned PERFECTLY or your asking for trouble....

Oh yeah... Horn smells "great" too.. Doesn't it?
I sure hope you are OUTSIDE while sanding.....

I was in the garage with the door open, that and the bone wedge has an interesting smell lol.. I did use a press, what your saying is that I might not have had it perfectly flat when I drilled? Because I hit it right in mark on one side

Originally Posted by Dafonz6987

I was in the garage with the door open, that and the bone wedge has an interesting smell lol.. I did use a press, what your saying is that I might not have had it perfectly flat when I drilled? Because I hit it right in mark on one side

Yes, it might have been askew.
That could cause problems.

A lot of different things can contribute to off center blade. Warped scales, warped tang, bent pins, misaligned pivot or wedge holes, unevenly tapped pins, different thickness scales, etc...

I would start with wood as it is more accessible and much cheaper than horn. Wood also acts similar to wood in the fact that it has grain and is as easy to shape as horn. Any hard wood should do. After a few sets you'll get a better feel for razor mechanics and also get to play with design ideas. Check out micro fasteners. Com if you haven't already and get some #0 screws and nuts for mock up, it will save lots of time and material instead of pinning and unpinning.

Another thought for the OP - you didn't mention how you sand the blank - so I assume this is by hand. I always found that very laborious - especially when using wood, so I bought a bench sander which is also good for shaping scales when cut. By taping the blank to a thin paddle you can get a pretty accurate thickness from the sander. It's a good investment if you intend to make this a long term hobby.

If you don't want to invest in a bench sander, there are examples in the wiki of hand sanders turned upside down and held in a vice. It achieves the saame end.

Here's little tutorial I put together and one I use for making a set of horn scales by hand.
http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...ales-hand.html

Originally Posted by UKRob

Another thought for the OP - you didn't mention how you sand the blank - so I assume this is by hand. I always found that very laborious - especially when using wood, so I bought a bench sander which is also good for shaping scales when cut. By taping the blank to a thin paddle you can get a pretty accurate thickness from the sander. It's a good investment if you intend to make this a long term hobby.

If you don't want to invest in a bench sander, there are examples in the wiki of hand sanders turned upside down and held in a vice. It achieves the saame end.

Yeah I have a belt sander and after my progression I went to the sand sanding... So the paddle is supposed to be a flat surface u use to make sure ur applying even pressure? I really enjoyed shaping the horn it was a lot of fun getting it just right.... its funny out of all the things I prepared myself for this and all the videos and tutorials I never thought it would be the wedge I found the most challenging hahahaha

Originally Posted by jfk742

A lot of different things can contribute to off center blade. Warped scales, warped tang, bent pins, misaligned pivot or wedge holes, unevenly tapped pins, different thickness scales, etc...

I would start with wood as it is more accessible and much cheaper than horn. Wood also acts similar to wood in the fact that it has grain and is as easy to shape as horn. Any hard wood should do. After a few sets you'll get a better feel for razor mechanics and also get to play with design ideas. Check out micro fasteners. Com if you haven't already and get some #0 screws and nuts for mock up, it will save lots of time and material instead of pinning and unpinning.

About the scales, so after obsessing over it the last day I played with them a little more and with someone suggesting that it was because I didn't flatten them before taping them could have been the issue, I went ahead and put another razor into the scales first just by holding it at the pivot and it did the same exact thing... It was hanging waaaay off to the left, I had pinned it for the mock and still same thing... So no more cutting my blanks in half until I know I can do it accurately...

I see everyone having different types of wood, some that u even have to harden first... What's a good strong wood to start with?

Originally Posted by Dafonz6987

What's a good strong wood to start with?

Ebony is my FAVORITE.
It is a bit of a chore to sand it though.
It is HARD!

East Indian Rosewood is a NICE wood also!
Real pretty wood...

Watch for allergic reactions, WEAR A RESPIRATOR if you are working with exotic woods!!!!

White quarter sawn oak, walnut, hard maple, hickory, euro beech, etc... All those are easy to obtain and cheap. Like someone said before you can use your belt sander to flatten your scales. Personally I flatten one side of each scale then try and thickness same them to just over my desired thickness, then flatten them again on a sheet of 180-220 grit sand paper layer on a flat surface, once finished stick them together with either double sided tape or a sheet of paper and a few dabs of wood glue on either see and stick them together. I them take the template I designed and double side tad it to my scales and them shape it. Once I'm there, just a left a little larger than desired, I drill my pin and wedge holes with a drill press. Then Ito back t the belt sander and contour the scales, when I get close to the desired final shape I stop and start hand sanding. It's crucial you keep the scales even thicknesses. This is where using a sheet of paper I between can come in handy because it is easier to see where the scales meet and there fore gauge the thickness as you sand. I try to make it perfect as possible and do not separate the scales until I have made sure there as identical as possble and polished to my desired finish if horn, for wood I completely assemble the scales less the razor then finish with nitro lacquer. It is always easier to work on scales when they are stuck together.