Latest knife restoration with my son. Italian Stiletto...pics

[218bee]

Had this old girl in the bottom of a tool box for years . It was pretty beat up with dents, but the bayonet-blade was in nice shape. It always needed scales and I always put off making them. My son and I decided it was a nice, quick project so we cut two slabs out of a piece of figured walnut I had. I have been trying to get him acclimated to power tools (and knife-making in particular) and he seems to embrace it. Check the pics. We used double-sided tape to adhere the new scales to the knife body tightly, so my son could profile them. He then hand-sanded them to fit, then JB-Welded them to the body. Finish sanded with 1000 paper then stained with Dark Walnut. Then some clear coat and let dry. I think it came out nice for a quick re-hab.

 

[fnfalguy]

The work is great, but more important is spending the time with your kid. Good stuff.

 

[Bustedknees]

teaching your kids is great, but don't teach them how to loose body parts on power tools with long shirt sleeves..
great project though.. are you going to buff the metals out ?

 

[218bee]

After the pics were taken, we did Scotch tape over the wood & buff the end caps as best we could with a cloth wheel & red compound.. There's so many old dents & scratches in those end caps that we got to a point where we said "good enough". The end caps & blade came out a little better than the pics shown here. We put a nice edge on it with a 1000 grit whetstone. Its a neat knife to flick open...and it locks up rock-solid. He's really proud of it.

 

[kev74]

Nice work!

 

[S&W Fan]

Great little project and nice work ! i love those old Italian stiletto knives.

 

[96coal449]

Very well done.

Great bonding move with your son as well!

 

[Carlos Hathcock]

Very nice. Can't beat a pretty piece o Walnut.

 

[masterswimmer]

Very nice. Can't beat a pretty piece o Walnut.

I respectfully disagree. There's actually nothing better than a good piece of ash.

Nice project and results @218bee

 

[Uzi]

Cool, now you can make the pin rivets to properly attach the handle scales to the frame. Brass looks nice. I've used brass nails to make rivets before on my stiletto scales when I was a kid. JB weld isn't likely to hold up too well alone if it's dropped.

 

[Curmudgeon]

Really cool, tell the little ones they do nice work.

 

[Carlos Hathcock]

I respectfully disagree. There's actually nothing better than a good piece of ash.

Nice project and results @218bee

Or hickory....

 

[JohnD13]

That came out looking great, tell your kids they did a fine job

 

[wizrd]

Good job! If you want to encourage your son's enthusiasm for knives, building, rebuilding, etc. - Check out a forum called 'All about pocket knives.com' - Great bunch of knowledgeable people from all over. Tons of tips, how to stuff, etc.

 

[camper4lyfe]

I'd suggest wrapping the blade in a few wraps of tape while working on the handle next time. The last thing you want is for the belt to grab it, twist it in his hand, and rip it up. It may not be sharp, but it's sharp enough to cause damage.

 

[Saltwater60]

Scales look fantastic. That looks great.

 

[Day444]

Nice job.

 

[Mk44]

Nice project.
Great father and son time.
Plus it builds confidence & skill in a boy. Good job dad.

 

[Depick]

Very nice !

 

[dwa12479]

Shes a beaut Clark! Nice work!

 

[MuttCat]

Work of art, beauty!

 

[Deplorable Me]

Nice little project.

 

[masterswimmer]

Cool, now you can make the pin rivets to properly attach the handle scales to the frame. Brass looks nice. I've used brass nails to make rivets before on my stiletto scales when I was a kid. JB weld isn't likely to hold up too well alone if it's dropped.

Question about the pin rivets. Being that this knife is a folder, not fixed blade, how would the rivets be attached without impeding the folding blade?

 

[218bee]

We would have to have done the pins one side at a time I think. We chose not to use pins, on this project. The pins would strengthen it for sure but sitting in a display case , I think it’s fine with JB Weld.

 

[Uzi]

Question about the pin rivets. Being that this knife is a folder, not fixed blade, how would the rivets be attached without impeding the folding blade?

The rivets that run through the scales on stilettos are not all the same. Traditionally there are rivets that run all the way through the frame and outside the handles which are peened when the knife is assembled. These are larger, but still clear the blades edge when folded. These will hold the spring and frame in place.
Before any of those are put in, The scale only rivets are peened.
How it's accomplished is the inside sections of the thin metal frame liners where the blade will be folded have flushed rivets peened on the inside first. Once the scales are fitted, they can be peened from the outside, Then the knife goes together. All knives are different, but that's typically how it works.

 

[masterswimmer]

The rivets that run through the scales on stilettos are not all the same. Traditionally there are rivets that run all the way through the frame and outside the handles which are peened when the knife is assembled. These are larger, but still clear the blades edge when folded. These will hold the spring and frame in place.
Before any of those are put in, The scale only rivets are peened.
How it's accomplished is the inside sections of the thin metal frame liners where the blade will be folded have flushed rivets peened on the inside first. Once the scales are fitted, they can be peened from the outside, Then the knife goes together. All knives are different, but that's typically how it works.

So I'm guessing this process wasn't possible on this knife since the frame liner was already constructed? Kind of like the cart before the horse.

 

[218bee]

Correct, I think we would have had to grind off both the pivot pin and the rear bolster pin to effect the installation of the pins (splitting the knife)...Just didnt want to dig that deep on this project.

 

[thegatman]

Very nice work. A “sharp” kid

 

[GOPerfect]

Anytime spent with the kids is a great time. Cherish the hours!