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Ed Caffrey's Workshop Talk to Ed Caffrey ... The Montana Bladesmith! Tips, tricks and more from an ABS Mastersmith.

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  #1  
Old 09-15-2014, 03:50 PM
guides42 guides42 is offline
 
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soldering

when soldering, between the blade and the brass guard, should you use ,or do you use
yellow ochre powder?. I have read that you are supposed to. ?
thanks
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  #2  
Old 09-15-2014, 03:54 PM
damon damon is offline
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white-out can do the same thing in a pinch.
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  #3  
Old 09-15-2014, 04:03 PM
argel55 argel55 is offline
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Yellow ocher powder is used to stop the flow of solder. I may be reading your statment wrong but you do NOT want it between the guard and knife blade. If you use it ,it should be on the blade front side of the guard to help not having to clean up a mess on the blade.
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:37 PM
guides42 guides42 is offline
 
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soldering

argel55: thanks for the reply, I didn't make my self very clear on my post. I read that some
knife maker's, solder the seam between the knife and the guard, and use the yellow ochre
to keep the solder off of the blade and guard where you don't want it. The first few knives
I made I didn't need to solder. this last one I do, and not having done it before, I'm not sure how to proceed, regarding the yellow ochre.
thanks
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  #5  
Old 09-15-2014, 09:03 PM
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Ed Caffrey Ed Caffrey is offline
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Although solder is the traditional method for sealing the joint between guard and blade, I've not use it for over 10 years now. The issue is clean up.....not to mention keeping the blade cool while soldering.

With the advancement of modern adhesives. I personally think soldering for knife guards is simply doing it "the hard way". Just too many things to go wrong, and clean up is always an exercise in futility.

Personally I use Brownells Accra-Glass on all my knives. It seals the guard joint as good as solder does, with far less clean up and hassles. Durability wise, I think it's an even match.

Some folks would say they "attch" a guard with solder. To that I reply....If you have to use solder as an attachement method, then your guard fits are not tight enough.


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Old 09-16-2014, 07:04 AM
guides42 guides42 is offline
 
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soldering

thanks Ed usually I only need to pin the guards, as they have a tight fit, but I have one
that needs a little filling between the blade and the brass guard. That's why I was inquiring
about using solder. and yellow ochre,( to keep the blade and guard clean of solder) where I don't want it. Will accra glass hide the small gap or is it clear?
thanks
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  #7  
Old 09-16-2014, 07:36 AM
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Ed Caffrey Ed Caffrey is offline
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Accra-glass is amber colored.....most of the time I add pigment too it for the color I want. I might be overstepping here, but if you're trying to fill a gap, whether it be with solder or accra-glass, it's gona show. When/if this happens to me (any gaps), I either fix it, or build a new guard. It sounds like I'm being picky....but it ends up being a lot less work and effort to fix the gap, or build a whole new guard, rather them fight with trying to "hide" it with solder or glue.....and the associated clean up it requires when you're trying to fill a spot that really shouldn't be there in the first place.


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Old 09-16-2014, 08:39 AM
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Gary Mulkey Gary Mulkey is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ed Caffrey View Post
Accra-glass is amber colored.....most of the time I add pigment too it for the color I want. I might be overstepping here, but if you're trying to fill a gap, whether it be with solder or accra-glass, it's gona show. When/if this happens to me (any gaps), I either fix it, or build a new guard. It sounds like I'm being picky....but it ends up being a lot less work and effort to fix the gap, or build a whole new guard, rather them fight with trying to "hide" it with solder or glue.....and the associated clean up it requires when you're trying to fill a spot that really shouldn't be there in the first place.
Ed,

Something that I have used successfully for years as a solder substitute is adding Atomized Stainless to the AcraGlas. Give it a try and see if you don't like it as well. (It's available through Brownell's.)

Gary


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Old 09-16-2014, 05:03 PM
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Ed Caffrey Ed Caffrey is offline
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Good one Gary! I've tried that stuff in the past, and it works well. As I got better at fitting guards, I found I didn't need to spend the money on it anymore.....but looks very much like solder in the blade/guard joint. And is FAR nicer to clean up then solder.


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Old 09-17-2014, 07:05 AM
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Any place you get the powder...solder will not flow there. It's a bit of a double edged sword in that you must be very careful with it.....get a few grains in the blade/guard joint, and the solder will not flow there.....which means taking things apart (which is a real pain if you got a partial solder job), cleaning, and trying again.

Just one more reason that I find it simpler and easier to just make sure the guard fit is as tight as possible, and forego the solder.


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  #11  
Old 09-17-2014, 08:37 AM
Jon Kelly Jon Kelly is offline
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I have noticed that over time the blade steel and solder joint oxidize differently and cause that little gap, along with the rest of the solder joint, to stick out like a sore thumb. It is almost impossible for the end user to maintain the uniformity of finish in that area without causing damage in the form of unsightly scratches over time, which ultimately has the potential to create unhappy clients. I hand file my guards and press fit them, even so I often must make two and sometimes three guards for one knife in order to get it as near perfect as humanly possible. It isn't fun, but it's the right thing to do on a custom hand made knife.
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