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Sugru instead of epoxy for mounting custom handles

Discussion in 'Shop Talk' started by Anton, Mar 17, 2015.

  1. Basically, the idea is fully described in the topic. I wonder if it's something completely stupid or could work. I've never tried Sugru and ordered some out of curiosity. I'm not sure if it will work, but it should be rubber-like when cured, so might be an option for filling a tang hole. What do you think?

    What's your experience with Sugru?
     
  2. MotoMike

    MotoMike Founding Member

    Ha. I never even heard of that stuff. looks cool. one shot that surprises me is the one where it appears they are gluing a handle to a pan lid. small contact points with a somewhat heavy object.

    are you considering it because it can be cut off when you want to change the handle?
     
  3. MattS

    MattS Founding Member

    I have seen it, (got some for my dad to use), but monetarily does not make sense or offer nore than epoxy.
     
  4. Jim

    Jim Old Curmudgeon Founding Member

    I have used 3M brand '5200' quite a bit on boats and thought it might be a good choice for installation of handles also. Comes in black also.
     
  5. Yeah, I'm trying to find a way to make custom handles removable (yet securely mounted).
     
  6. XooMG

    XooMG Founding Member

    Shiba from Masakage said they cut little discs from hot glue sticks and put them in the handle. Hot tang melts the glue of course.
     
  7. MotoMike

    MotoMike Founding Member

    No this is the image, they mention its heat handling ability, but if they are asserting that it is strong enough to work in this application and will remain there until you cut it off, then I wonder how you could cut it loose if it is down inside the handle. ELWKgONuQR2mT0o2K9fZ.jpg
     
  8. I use beeswax inside the handle...then epoxy only the last .125" or so at the ferrule. If I want the knife removed I heat the handle with a hair dryer, and tap it out. The epoxy at the last 1/8" seals the tang just fine. For my own personal use (or prototype) knives, I don't bother with the epoxy. The wax seals it perfectly, and it's more easily removable if necessary to make changes etc.
     
  9. Cris, is this pure beeswax? or is it blended with something to make it malleable at room temp?
    I'm quite fond of beeswax. I use a mix of beeswax and tsubaki for handles and sayas it's excellent.
     
  10. Pure beeswax, right off of a block. I melt it in either a double burner or with a hair dryer (both work fine), suck it up with a very small syringe, and insert it into the tang. I then heat the tang up slightly, and push it in. BE CAREFUL not to overheat the tang, or you'll have molten beeswax spewing out of the handle and all over your hand.

    The nice thing about this method is that it allows me to perfect the blade alignment to the handle, even when things are off just a small amount. I have pulled the blade out repeatedly and reheated/reinserted it until the fit is just right. There is also the fact that it holds the blade VERY securely. Without heating the handle enough to soften the wax (again, a hair dryer is awesome for softening the wax and not overheating the handle), the blade isn't coming out. I know...I've broken handles trying.
     
  11. apicius9

    apicius9 Founding Member

    Great to hear that it holds up with bees' wax, thanks for exploring that. I was also wondering whether that would not be sufficient for home users. I was actually thinking about mixing in a bit of carnuba wax, that might make it a little tighter. But that is also on my 'Things to do if I ever get my act together'-list.

    Stefan
     
  12. Carnuba wax could make it stronger I guess...but honestly, the first wa handled kitchen knife I made (first REAL kitchen knife at all honestly) was for my Dad. It was mounted with just beeswax (no epoxy) and has been being used multiple times a day for pushing two years now. It hasn't slipped in the least. The few times I have removed it, I didn't even put more wax in. I just pushed the tang in as far as I could cold, then softened the old with the hair dryer and pushed it home. Some of the wax will come out with the tang on removal...just heat it up and reinsert it with the tang.

    Truly...the only reason I use epoxy at all is aesthetics.
     
  13. I'm so into this.
     
  14. I tried using carnauba wax 2 or 3 times for my knives at home but the results weren't good enough. Maybe my kung fu wasn't good enough to make it properly and secure.
    BTW I tried Sugru yesterday for the first time. Sculpted a handle for tiny kogatana. After curing it feels like a very solid resin. And it bonds to metal VERY securely, so I don't think it would be possible to remove WA handle if it was installed with a help of Sugru. Though the idea of filling tang hole with wax and using Sugru instead of epoxy for the last few mm might work well. Gonna try that as well.
     

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