Mule Team Picture/Appreciation Thread!

[Xplorer]

****! Thats fricken beautiful!

Thank you. :)

....This looks amazing!

Thank you! I enjoy seeing all the Mule handles people have done and just wanted to add one to your thread. Thank you for the kind response. :) I hope the new Mule(s) coming will inspire others to make their own handles. Regardless of the materials or even the aesthetics, there's a nice sense of satisfaction that comes from using a handle you made yourself. I encourage everyone to give it a try. :)

That is so beautiful Chad! Amazing work you do!

Very kind of you, thank you! :)

[legOFwhat?]

Chad, you've inspired me to try many different methods and materials not to mention all the tips and tricks you've shared. I for one am grateful.

That green mule is crazy! I've tried to incorporate brass and other usual materials together and it's not easy to sand and shape with the different densities and hardness, especially the finicky resin types. :eek:

[Xplorer]

Chad, you've inspired me to try many different methods and materials not to mention all the tips and tricks you've shared. I for one am grateful.

That green mule is crazy! I've tried to incorporate brass and other usual materials together and it's not easy to sand and shape with the different densities and hardness, especially the finicky resin types. :eek:

Thank you for the kind words.

Right now I consider you "the guy" that is inspiring people to make Mule handles. You have been doing tons of beautiful work! I look forward to seeing your next Mule.

There's a few tips I can offer about combining hard and soft materials. Ctek and most other resin based materials are relatively soft, sand easily, scratch easily and deform under heat pretty easily too. When you combine a soft material with hard materials you have to take precautions to ensure you don't sand away too much soft material while working on the harder one. The bigger the difference between the material hardness or wear resistance the more difficult it gets. For example, a stainless steel pin in resin is much more problematic than a nickel silver pin would be.

Adding small pieces of metal (brass, copper, nickel, Ti, whatever...) presents a couple of challenges. For sanding I suggest 3 things...

First shape the rough size of the individual parts to be as close to the finished size/shape as you can prior to bonding anything with epoxy. Metals conduct heat better than one would prefer when trying to rough-shape a handle on the grinder and the heat can easily ruin the epoxy bond. Copper (specifically) also tends to grind away in a gummy way and will leave little copper "hairs" wedged between material layers if you try to do too much too fast after gluing.

Second, if you add pieces of metal slicing through the handle (like the copper band on the green Mule I posted) you cannot count on epoxy to hold it in place. The bond between the metal and the epoxy will not be as strong as the bond to the other material and a sharp whack can dislodge the metal. For adding metals in that type of orientation I suggest using an internal pin to hold it in place.

Third, avoid hand sanding (with your actual hands and fingers) until you are beyond 800 grit. Use hard sanding blocks (not rubber) to do any hand sanding for grits below 800. I use pieces of aluminum that I have shaped into various sizes and shapes. The sanding block will help you keep from sanding the softer materials below the level of the harder materials. If you "finger sand" or "shoeshine sand" a soft material with metal in it, you end up with a crowned piece of metal in the handle. Anything above 800 grit won't remove much material and will be much safer to use by hand but I would still suggest being careful if dealing with extreme hardness differences like Ti vs Ctek, or brass vs wood, etc..

Any time you have any questions that arise feel free to let me know, I'm happy to share anything I know that might help.

Best regards,
Chad

[legOFwhat?]

Thank you Chad, that is invaluable information!

[legOFwhat?]

Played around with a PD#1 mule this past weekend and finally got it wrapped up. I'll have to wait on getting the sheath started since I didn't have any Kydex to match this green G-10 liner. Tried to pair up the green of the LC200N PacSalt but it's a few shades off :o Also my 1st burlap micarta and I really like it, it hides the flaws :D



I'm really Jonesin' to get the SPY27 mule so I can start on the next project :spyder:

[TomAiello]

That looks great!

I have some burlap micarta on my shelf I want to use, but I've been making kitchen knives (as christmas gifts) the last couple weeks, so I'm not sure when I'll have the energy to get back to mules.

I really like the green contrast with it. I don't have any toxic green G-10. I've never really been into that shade of green, but it looks great there.

[legOFwhat?]

That looks great!

I have some burlap micarta on my shelf I want to use, but I've been making kitchen knives (as christmas gifts) the last couple weeks, so I'm not sure when I'll have the energy to get back to mules.

I really like the green contrast with it. I don't have any toxic green G-10. I've never really been into that shade of green, but it looks great there.

Thanks Tom! I've used the green as liners quite a few times and have a couple more pieces in my secret scale drawer :D I like the contrast it gives. I jumped this project ahead of the black, blue and red set I started a few weeks ago, got a little frustrated with it, so I laid it aside. May use that for the SV45N mule once they come out.

Are you doing the entire knife or just the scales on the kitchen knives?

[TomAiello]

Are you doing the entire knife or just the scales on the kitchen knives?

Some of each. I was going to start with some Japanese kitchen knife blanks, but then I got more interested and set those aside and cut blades for some western style knives. I had them heat treated and went back to the Japanese (just scales) and then came back to the ones I cut.

I'm not sure if they're going to turn out any good, but I'm definitely learning a lot.

I've also learned that whoever harvests ebony has a job dirtier than coal mining. The dust coming off this stuff is ridiculous. My hands are getting stained black from it.

[legOFwhat?]

Are you doing the entire knife or just the scales on the kitchen knives?

Some of each. I was going to start with some Japanese kitchen knife blanks, but then I got more interested and set those aside and cut blades for some western style knives. I had them heat treated and went back to the Japanese (just scales) and then came back to the ones I cut.

I'm not sure if they're going to turn out any good, but I'm definitely learning a lot.

I've also learned that whoever harvests ebony has a job dirtier than coal mining. The dust coming off this stuff is ridiculous. My hands are getting stained black from it.

I've only tried stock removal ,thus far, to make a knife, but I'll eventually get brave like you fellas. The ebony must dust up like carbon fiber? CF is quite nasty.

[TomAiello]

Larry, have you ever used Richlite?

It's fairly cheap at Maker Material Supply right now, and I was thinking of trying it out.

[Josh Crutchley]

Played around with a PD#1 mule this past weekend and finally got it wrapped up. I'll have to wait on getting the sheath started since I didn't have any Kydex to match this green G-10 liner. Tried to pair up the green of the LC200N PacSalt but it's a few shades off :o Also my 1st burlap micarta and I really like it, it hides the flaws :D



I'm really Jonesin' to get the SPY27 mule so I can start on the next project :spyder:

I like burlap micarta it looks awesome on your mule. I just finished the contouring on my PD#1 and also waiting on the SPY27 mule. I have brown linen micarta waiting for it.

[legOFwhat?]

Larry, have you ever used Richlite?

It's fairly cheap at Maker Material Supply right now, and I was thinking of trying it out.

I've only heard mention of it, but would like to try it out as well!

I like burlap micarta it looks awesome on your mule. I just finished the contouring on my PD#1 and also waiting on the SPY27 mule. I have brown linen micarta waiting for it.

Thank you, I have a little bit more sanding now that I see some inconsistent areas. I really dig that white and blue!

[TomAiello]

Thank you, I have a little bit more sanding now that I see some inconsistent areas.

It never ends. Every time I pick up a knife I worked on or made, I see something I need to improve.

[legOFwhat?]

Thank you, I have a little bit more sanding now that I see some inconsistent areas.

It never ends. Every time I pick up a knife I worked on or made, I see something I need to improve.

I guess Sal's CQI may be rubbing off on us :p Wouldn't have it any other way.

Little vacation from work this week so, I plan to knock out one more handle before 2020 ends. May not get an SPY27 mule until after the new year unless Santa makes some magic ,and we get an alert. :D

[TomAiello]

I've only tried stock removal ,thus far, to make a knife, but I'll eventually get brave like you fellas.

Stock removal is knife making. You're starting with basic metal sheets and making the blade shape--that definitely counts in my mind.

I really need practice with my grinds though. I think I need to work out some jigs for it. I found an old thread on BF where Nathan Carothers was showing how he did his basic grinds with a CNC mill, and that looks super cool. Unfortunately, all I have for a CNC is the $200 Amazon version my daughter and I play with (which works pretty well for making scales, actually, although my CAD skills suck bad enough that I prefer just doing it by hand), and upgrading to something that can mill metal is outside my budget.

[legOFwhat?]

Really want to invest in a good jig to go with my belt sanders, even though my freehand skills are improving. I am guilty of using my drill press as an end mill and a router :o

[Xplorer]

I've only tried stock removal ,thus far, to make a knife, but I'll eventually get brave like you fellas.

Stock removal is knife making. You're starting with basic metal sheets and making the blade shape--that definitely counts in my mind.

I really need practice with my grinds though. I think I need to work out some jigs for it. I found an old thread on BF where Nathan Carothers was showing how he did his basic grinds with a CNC mill, and that looks super cool. Unfortunately, all I have for a CNC is the $200 Amazon version my daughter and I play with (which works pretty well for making scales, actually, although my CAD skills suck bad enough that I prefer just doing it by hand), and upgrading to something that can mill metal is outside my budget.

Agreed, stock removal is definitely knife making. As for grinds, practice is the key. It also helps a ton if you have variable speed control on your grinder. As for a grinding jig...check out the DD Workrest. I think you can only find him on Instagram right now but not sure. Although I don't use one, if I were going to buy a grinding jig I would get the DD Workrest version.

[TomAiello]

It looks like DD Workrest has an eBay store. I'll hit them up and ask. Thanks for the tip!

[sal]

You guys know that Kristi set up a Mule Team Forum section? Or maybe it isn't public yet? Hey Kristi, is it live yet? Or is it still for Mike and me?

sal

[Sumdumguy]

Looks like we're still out in the cold on that one.