Two firsts: Duck & CA

[Cangooner]

I actually started making these scales for a W&B Bow, but they turned out to look better on a Dubl Duck Special No 1 that I have been putting off rescaling for a while. The proportions of the two blades are very nearly identical, but the shape of the tang on the Dubl Duck was a better fit.

Not only is my first DublDuck, it was also the first time I tried using CA glue for finishing wood. In this case it was spalted maple that I bought on ebay. The wood looked great, but it was much softer than I had expected which is why I opted to try CA rather than Tung Oil which I usually use on wood. I figured that the extra strength of the glue would make up for the unexpectedly soft wood. Sadly I found the CA process a bit of an exercise in frustration, but it did eventually give a nice finish. I think it went a long way to strengthening the scales too.

The wedge is soapstone. I chose that for two reasons. First, I have a bunch of small chunks of soapstone left over from making my razor and brush stands. And second, it adds a nice bit of extra weight. Also, I was really just curious as to how soapstone would work as a wedge. And to be honest it really is more of a spacer than a wedge. I originally started out with a nice wedge shape, but it was forcing the scales too wide, so I went back to the drawing board and opted for a spacer instead.