Sub Hilt and Boot Knife

[GHNorfleet]

Steve, here are some photos of a sub hilt and boot knife I recently finished. I submit these for your approval. I don't take very good photos and the mirror finish really reflects everything around it

This is a photo of the knives together.


This is a close up of the handle grind, I didn't go too crazy with the grind because I have started using the corby bolts and I need to get used to them first but I like them, I just don't want to grind too much off and then have to replace one.


Here is the sub hilt by itself

Let me know what you think.

[AcridSaint]

Hi Gilbert, I'm not Steve but I think these came out rather nice.

[Doug Lester]

I'm not Steve either but I would say that superlative would not be too strong a word to describe your wook.

Doug Lester

[Steve]

That looks great to me, Gilbert.

Re: the screw concerns: First of all, make sure that the female half of the screws have a hole that does not go into the screw head, or you might grind into it, then make sure you countersink the screw head deep enough. To avoid that possibility, most of the time, I will pre-shape the handle before I put in the screws, then you know how deep to set the screws into the handle and you don't have to worry about grinding the head away. Keep up the excellent work! So how do you like making sub-hilts? They are a different animal, aren't they?

[GHNorfleet]

The sub hilts are fun to make but they are a lot more challenging than a drop point hunter, but I like to make them. I didn't mean to leave anyone out in this discussion, so everyone feel free to comment on these knives. I know for a fact that making a sub hilt requires patience and taking your time. On this sub hilt in particular I got in a small hurry and picked up the wrong pinning material and didn't notice until I got it finished that I had pinned it with nickel silver pins with stainless steel guards. I drilled out the nickel silver and replaced them with stainless pins and all is well again in time and space as we know it.

[Brett Schaller]

I c-sink my Corbys so that .080 of handle material is left beneath the c-sink, and have never had a problem, even on my thinner handles.

[GHNorfleet]

thanks to both Steve and Brett for the advice on the corby bolts. I like them much better than the Loveless bolts as they have a very clean look to me.

[Steve]

Once the handle is pre-shaped, I just put the counterbore down deep enough to leave a good strong head on the screw, maybe .100" or so, depending on the handle material. After all, a stainless steel screw head that is that thick will hold anything that needs holding and still give plenty of handle material between the head and the tang, leaving lots of strength there, also. However, if you're mounting thin pieces of MOP, then you have to use a more shallow depth. But, make sure that hole doesn't go into the screw head. It's about a 50-50 chance that you can get that screw out to replace it, without messing up the hole! At least for me, that's how it goes. Not many things make me more ticked than when I'm grinding away and I grind into the hole!

[cutromano]

Your work is very good Gilbert, congratulations!
Romano

[michaellovett]

Looking good!

Sub's are a pain, But I love making them!

Mike