handle shape and thickness

[donnymac250]

hello all , im making a drop point hunter , 1/8 thick 8 oal , 4.25 blade . i have 5/16 thick scales . should the final handle be thinner at the front then the back ? and what is a good thickness for this style knife . im just trying to figure out what a good over all handle should look like when its done .thanks

[Ray Rogers]

I don't know if everyone would agree but these are what i think of as 'good overall handles':

http://www.rayrogers.com/hunter.htm

I like to 'coke bottle' mine, see the 5th picture from the top for an example.

Yes, they should be thinner at the front than at the rear. The front should probably be between 1/2" and 3/4" wide at the guard (on mine at least). In a nutshell, make it feel right in your hand.......

[donnymac250]

Originally Posted by Ray Rogers

I don't know if everyone would agree but these are what i think of as 'good overall handles':

http://www.rayrogers.com/hunter.htm

I like to 'coke bottle' mine, see the 5th picture from the top for an example.

Yes, they should be thinner at the front than at the rear. The front should probably be between 1/2" and 3/4" wide at the guard (on mine at least). In a nutshell, make it feel right in your hand.......

ok , but my knife does not have a guard . so maybe 1/2 " at front and 3/4 "at back . i hear ya about the feel in hand . as i am new to this , im still uncertain about handle sizes and dimension for my knifes . the 5/16 just seemed so thick once all put together .

[cbsmith111]

I'm not very experienced in making handles, but I have used plenty of them. The two best feeling handles on knives I own don't look anything alike. There seem to be a few different ways of accomplishing a secure and comfortable grip.

Here's what I would do. Get some play dough, modeling clay, etc. Make a wad with it and pretend it's a knife grip and squeeze into it with your hand in a natural position. Study that shape and start thinking about how to subdue it and smooth it out into a normal looking handle while still keeping the basic proportions intact. Just a thought.

[donnymac250]

Originally Posted by cbsmith111

I'm not very experienced in making handles, but I have used plenty of them. The two best feeling handles on knives I own don't look anything alike. There seem to be a few different ways of accomplishing a secure and comfortable grip.

Here's what I would do. Get some play dough, modeling clay, etc. Make a wad with it and pretend it's a knife grip and squeeze into it with your hand in a natural position. Study that shape and start thinking about how to subdue it and smooth it out into a normal looking handle while still keeping the basic proportions intact. Just a thought.

very god idea . thanks

[jmccustomknives]

When I am shaping the handles I hold them to see how they feel as I go. For the most part, if you use it you'll figure out the handle geometry for yourself. If it's too big, square, thin it's always better for you to figure it out than a buyer.

[BCROB]

Donny
8'' oal drop point can look sexy in many ways but being a bit smaller of a knife I would lean towards sleaky than to thick and bulky , and yes I would taper the front slightly , have a feel and go from there, good luck , lets see a pic of where your at !!

[Andrew Garrett]

Most of my knives are smallish fixed blades. I make them as alternatives to folding pocket knives. Their size and purpose invite reduced bulk. Thus, the handles have flatter profiles when viewed from above the spine.

As a result, my larger knives, which I make fewer of, tend to have flatter sides when viewed from above like the small ones, but I have always liked the feel of more contoured handles with palm swells. The "Coke bottle" comment creates a good mental picture and is an excellent way to convey the concept. Kudos Ray.

I have two larger knives on the bench now. I will make every effort to give them some 'Coke bottling'.

[donnymac250]

Originally Posted by BCROB

Donny
8'' oal drop point can look sexy in many ways but being a bit smaller of a knife I would lean towards sleaky than to thick and bulky , and yes I would taper the front slightly , have a feel and go from there, good luck , lets see a pic of where your at !!

ok thanks. knife already gone , now working on a 6 " blade with 4.5" handle . final grinds went bad . . got a lot of waves in it .6" may be to much for me ?

[donnymac250]

Originally Posted by Andrew Garrett

Most of my knives are smallish fixed blades. I make them as alternatives to folding pocket knives. Their size and purpose invite reduced bulk. Thus, the handles have flatter profiles when viewed from above the spine.

As a result, my larger knives, which I make fewer of, tend to have flatter sides when viewed from above like the small ones, but I have always liked the feel of more contoured handles with palm swells. The "Coke bottle" comment creates a good mental picture and is an excellent way to convey the concept. Kudos Ray.

I have two larger knives on the bench now. I will make every effort to give them some 'Coke bottling'.

ok thank you andrew . will try coke handle again soon . screwed up last one using belt grinder , by taking to much off.had to replace handles . have to slow down and maybe use hand tools instead.

[BCROB]

Originally Posted by donnymac250

ok thanks. knife already gone , now working on a 6 " blade with 4.5" handle . final grinds went bad . . got a lot of waves in it .6" may be to much for me ?

Donny can you post a pic of this ? Maybe we can comment from there........

[donnymac250]

Originally Posted by BCROB

Donny can you post a pic of this ? Maybe we can comment from there........

hello rob . getting rid of the lines by doing a lot of hand sanding from 80 grit and up.im sure they were from bad form and wrong arm moving while grinding .

[cbsmith111]

I am also of the opinion that you it is hard to have too much handle length. Longer is usually better up to until the point that it becomes unwieldy.