Thread: Scale thickness

Hi,
I am trying my hand at making my own scales out of oak. Is it important to make the scales the same thickness as the previous set of scales? and if so why? Thank you for your help I appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Bullmoose

Hi,
I am trying my hand at making my own scales out of oak. Is it important to make the scales the same thickness as the previous set of scales? and if so why? Thank you for your help I appreciate it.

Make them as thick or thin as you like.

• Too thin and they will be fragile.
• Too thin and they will be too light to balance the blade.
• Too thick and they will not flex for the wedge
• Too thick and they will be heavy and out of balance.

I have a Dovo with ebony wood scales and they are thick but light.
I have another Dovo with sawn horn scales and they are thick and heavy.
Both shave well but do feel different --- golly the horn is beautiful
but the wood scales seem to balance better.

My thought is to make them close to the old scales (trace the outline)
and see how they turn out. My two Dovo's tell me that there is a
lot of room for personal preference and the natural range of natural
materials as long as they fit and keep the sharp bits covered when closed..

To still keep a certain thickness or width with your wooden scales (or any other scale material) but to make them look less bulky and more streamlined it's important to nicely bevel them as round or oval as you can. Nobody says you have to keep the same thickness or even design as the originals.

That was one of the biggest learning curves - Max's post. I'm still learning with each set, especially with different materials, what looks good....how to use the material....what it can withstand. I.E. G10 vs. Exotic wood.