Blades and Edged Weapons Including Khukuris

Restoring a Giant 24″ Hog Splitter

Everyone needs a hobby.  I guess mine is creating or fixing things in my own way.  Back in 2014, I bought an absolutely massive beat to hell 24-1/2″ hog splitter off eBay.  This thing was absolutely a diamond in the rough.  Clearly it had been used very heavily – probably for decades – yet there was an amazing design in that beat up cleaver as well.  First off, the blade was almost a half inch thick and it weighed about five pounds.  Back in the days before machinery, you need mass to butcher big animals and this was (and still is) the most massive cleaver I have personally worked with – imagine a baseball bat with one hell of a heavy end is what it boils down to.

In the eBay listing, the seller was up front – this thing was on its last leg.  The wood was all busted up, dirty as heck and the blade was loose.  Of course, I had to buy it!  Here’s what it looked like when it arrived.  Why I did not get an overall photo at the start, I do not know.

There were no maker’s marks anywhere but it was too professionally done to have been a village blacksmith.  I still wonder who made this as I would love to track down more of them.  If you have one, or find one, and are interested in potentially parting with it, let me know.  I’d even be happy with just the giant blade.

Getting back to the story, I had to look it over and take stock.  This thing was stunningly heavy and the wood was busted up because it was thin and hollow.

There had to be more than what I was seeing so I broke the frozen on nut and pulled the handle off.  Wow.  There was the largest rat tail tang I had ever seen – and still haven’t seen one bigger!!  That’s how they spread the load.  What an interesting design.

Now, the wood totally intrigued me.  There was something about the color that caught my eye so I decided to fill it with glass reinforced epoxy.  Now not all epoxies are equal.  When you do structural work like this, you need an excellent shock resistant epoxy.  My go to epoxy for stuff like this is Acraglas liquid epoxy from Brownells.  

I but it in quart bulk containers and meter it out using syringes or a digital scale.  I use 5/32nds milled glass fibers and black dye to color it.  Fortunately, it’s the same dye I use for my plastics but you can either buy from Brownells or elsewhere.  So, over the course of several days, I mixed, poured and let it sit overnight as it takes Acraglas 24 hours to cure so this work is done in steps.

I used wood stripper to try and get all the grease and oils out of the handle plus I drilled open the end to fill it easier.  By the way, if you heat epoxy with a heat gun, it will get thinner and flow more readily until it cools.  Gentle warmth also accelerates curing of the epoxy but remember that just because epoxy feels dry to the touch does not mean it has fully cured – read the instructions for whatever brand you go with.

Next, I sanded, sanded and sanded.  The wood was very interesting – maybe a cherry or mahogany.  I’m not really sure.

The rat tang was HUGE.  I carefully marked where it was at and drilled holes for two brass pins just to play it safe.  I’ve never had Acraglas let go from a clean prepped surface but never say never.  The pins are a cheap insurance for a giant blade like this.  I inserted the 3/16″ pins with epoxy and then added epoxy to all the imperfections followed by more sanding.  Notice how I blasted the pins before gluing?  Epoxy always, always, always does better on a rough surface.  Do not epoxy two shiny metal surfaces together and expect them to last – they probably will not.

Now this took my breath away.  I used a 50/50 combination of turpentine and boiled linseed oil (BLO), put it in a tank I have just for these big cleavers and let it sit for a few hours before I pulled it out.  The color blew me away.  Wow!!  I wiped it down and then applied additional coats of BLO to seal it.

My last steps were to acid etch the blade (click here for our guide to acid etching), seal everything with BLO and then make a blade guard.  Mission accomplished.

To protect the blade edge, not to mention protect other things from the edge, I made a protective cover out of 0.093 Kydex and 3/8″ shock (bungee) cord.

That bad boy weighed 5-1/4 pounds and was solid as a rock.  I keep looking for another one like it.  I never did find out where it was made but it sure was a stunner.  This is another project that part of me wishes I had kept it but it went to a very happy new owner shortly after I finished it.

3/4/2020 Update: This is still the most wicked restored cleaver I have done. The wood was simply gorgeous.

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

The following is a real-time search of eBay using keywords that have worked for me in the past and I hope they help you find something (note a few odd items might show up just like any other search does):

AK & Related Rifles, Gunsmithing

How to Bullet Drop Test a Barrel?

Plenty of AK barrel have seen heavy use and some are pretty much sewer pipes at this point – blown out, dirty and most of the rifling a distant memory.  A quick way to check is to take a cartridge of the correct caliber, such as 7.62×39, and put it in the muzzle.  If it stops before the case hits, there is hope.  It the case hits or even goes into the muzzle, the barrel is pretty much history.

Pass:

 

Fail:

 

I’m not saying the barrel is perfect but it may still be useful.  I built both M70 stubs on their original barrels and they shot good enough – about 8-10″ – at 100 yards fired with iron sights with cheap ammo.  Still a fun rifle to shoot though.

If a barrel fails, I would definitely get a replacement and not even bother trying to use it but that’s just me.  I’ve known a few guys over the years that proudly built and fired sewer pipe rifles.

Blades and Edged Weapons Including Khukuris, Gunsmithing, Tools

Acid Etching Steel With Apple Cider Vinegar

2 Comments

Some folks have asked how I get the dull grey look on khukuris that I used to work on.  The answer is simple – apple cider vinegar straight from the grocery.  I’ve also experimented with various ratios of Prep-and-Etch, which contains Phosphoric Acid, and gotten a darker color but apple cider works remarkably well.  Apple cider vinegar contains 5-10% acetic acid (CH3COOH) depending on how it is made.  For example, I read that Heinz is about 5%.  My local store carries Spartan brand, which is their store brand, and it works just fine – again, this is apple cider vinegar from the grocery store.  

This process only works with steels that can rust.  For example a mild steel or high carbon.  It will not work on stainless, aluminum, etc.

Safety Notes:

I would recommend doing this outside or some place very well ventilated or else if the acetic acid condenses on metal surfaces in your shop/garage, it will cause rust.

Wear safety glasses and don’t goof around with the stuff.  I’ve never had a problem but probably need to say some kind of warning here.

Process:

  1. Clean the part and remove all oil and grease.  Either hose it down really well with brake cleaner or soak it in acetone.  Any oil, even from your skin, will mess you up.  
  2. Abrasive blast the part – I use “The Original Black Beauty” media that I get at my local farm supply store.  It’s made from coal slag and is fairly environmentally friendly.  It does break down quick so if you use your blast cabinet a lot, be prepared to clean it out and add new media when performance starts to suffer.  Blasting will get you a really nice uniform surface color.  I suppose you could try sanding or wire brushing but blasting has worked the best for me and is all I do now.  My only recommendation is not to use sand because as it breaks down it creates a fine dust that will never come out of your lungs – read that as “bad”.  I do use a blast cabinet with a vacuum to get rid of dust, you could do this outside with a hand blaster or tank blaster and dust mask if you needed to.  I wear a hood when blasting outside as the media goes everywhere.  Just protect yourself is the bottom line.
  3. Wear rubber gloves and clean the part again – the gloves are to keep oils from your skin from contaminating the part and preventing etching.  Cleanliness is critical.
  4. Put the part in cider that is at least 70 degrees.  I like 100-150.  If it is too cold the reaction slows waaaaay down.  I don’t like to get it super hot or boil it as you lose a ton of cider with no real benefit.  I have done this in everything from stainless steel containers to plastic containers and even plastic trays used for wallpaper with halogen lights warming it up.  In general the colder the cider the slower the etching and the hotter the cider the faster the etching bearing in mind you will have the cider evaporating faster.
    Note:  If you do not see bubbles coming off the part then either the solution is too cold (especially on cold days under 70F), the part is not clean or ready (so clean and blast it) or the cider too weak.  I’ve never had an issue with weak cider – always the first two.
  5. Submerge the part in the acid and let it sit for 15-30 minutes.  It’s not a strong acid so there’s no rush.  Just check the part and stop at the color you want. The warmer the water and the part, the faster the reaction and vice versa.
  6. Rinse with hot water
  7. Rub down with WD40 and steel wool to get the loose particles off
  8. Then I like to seal it with boiled linseed oil (BLO).  Some of you may know BLO for woodworking but it is an old school rust inhibitor.  If you don’t want BLO, then thoroughly oil your part.

I like the results.  No real harmful chemicals are used, it’s cheap and looks great.

3/4/2020 Update: I recently did some blog posts on building a cost effective digitally controlled heat tank from PVC pipe that is perfect for acid etching – click here for that one. I’m also using a ferric chloride and apple cider etching solution now – click here for that one.

Photos:

The light brown solution is just apple cider.  If it is darker, it was 25-50% Prep-and-Etch + the vinegar.

Use whatever container works. These were from a bunch of zip ties I bought once.
You can see the abraded surface from the abrasive blaster. You can acid etch without this step but I find doing this first really makes for a good finish plus all the tiny nooks and crannies really let the BLO grab hold.
This one is getting ready to go it. I use WD40 when done to remove the water – it literally means “Water Displacement” forumula 40 and excels at that.
You will see lots of little bubbles. I go by the color of the etched steel more than I do the degree of fizzing or time.
These two have already gone through the process.
I like the post apocalyptic look it gives.
This giant cleaver was acid etched and then sealed with BLO.
Another angle of the big “splitter”. The blade is over a 1/2″ thick!
Another cleaver.

Abrasive Blasting

You can usually get a coal slag blast media very, very cheap from farm stores.  Check there first because off Amazon you are paying a pretty penny for shipping whether they bury it in the item’s price or call it out separate.  I think I pay $7-9 per 25# bag at Family Farm and Home.

This is the actual product I use:  http://www.blackbeautyabrasives.com/products/black-beauty-original-abrasives.php

Now for the blasting, you have tons of options – hand blaster for small work, siphon blaster, pressurized tank or cabinets.  It all depends on how much blasting you plan to do.  I started out with a siphon blaster – dirt cheap but very slow.  I then got a tank and it was very fast and portable but media went everywhere.  I still have that for working on cars and big parts.  However, for my grips, gun parts and knives, I use my blast cabinet.  I have a Cyclone brand large bench unit and am relatively happy.  If I had it to do over, I would have gotten a free standing unit with a bigger and deeper hopper so I’m not constantly hitting the side or moving media around by hand.  I have a foot control pedal and that really helps plus it gets a the pneumatics out of the cabinet where they would normally be subject to abrasive dust and wear.

Cyclone Manufacturing
http://www.cycloneblasters.com/

My pressurized tank blaster is a Harbor Freight unit.  It’s held up relatively fine other than my constantly wearing out valves and tips.  The tank itself is just fine.
http://www.harborfreight.com/40-lb-pressurized-abrasive-blaster-68992.html

Summary

Acid etching is easy and rewarding. I like using BLO to seal things partly because of the color it imparts.

I hope this gives you some ideas!

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

AK & Related Rifles, Gunsmithing

Converting a milled M70 receiver stub to a stamped receiver front trunnion using plug welds

I miss building AKs – I never have the time any more.  At rate, some years back I wound up with two Yugo M70 front milled stubs, and then decided to convert the rifle to a stamped receiver because I liked working with AK-Builder flats.  So, in the spirit of trying something new, I decided to convert a stub to a trunnion and plug weld it in place vs. trying to machine the rivet seats inside.

Yes, I’ve heard tons of people say not to weld them together and that rivets are better.  Yes, rivets are better and I have done many of them.  Have I ever had problems with a weld build where I filled the holes I drilled with plugs, stayed away from the locking lugs and was careful with the heat?  No, I have not had any problems.  I have an AMD-65 with tons of rounds through it that still runs fine.  My thinking is that I am not firing full auto, not using grenades, don’t use this in combat … I’m not really stressing it.  What would I use for a reliable build vs. a test like this?  I’d use rivets.

Why the big caveat in the previous paragraph – I get one or two emails a year from a purist telling me that what I did was evil, that I am a clueless half-wit, etc. Folks, innovation happens by trying new things. I have built more AKs than most – using rivets mainly because they do work best. There are a ton of reasons why rivets are best for joining forged blocks to sheet metal.

In terms of welds, do I understand the risk of destroying the heat treat in the locking lug area, the risk of causing embrittlement around the plug welds, that the Soviets explored this and dropped the idea due to cracking? Yes, I do and tried it anyway because I wanted to explore how to compensate. So, don’t send me hate mail me because I will not bother responding. When I first shared this, three guys immediately sent me hate mails and unfriended me – I did not lose sleep about it.

If you want to try and experiment, go for it. Should you do this with an AK build that you want to be historically accurate or plan to use heavily perhaps even under full auto, then the answer is “no – don’t do it”.

The build I am sharing photos of was done in 2009.  I found the photos and thought you might like to see them.

Here are the front stubs.

When you look at the front stub, you can see readily hiw it could become a trunnion.

Here’s a Hungarian AMD trunnion next to it.

Here are the stubs from a couple of angles.  I already used my bandsaw to cut the top one

Ok, time to make some chips.  It’s secured an I’m milling the OD under the top shelf of the trunnion that sticks out over the receiver:

I didn’t have anything to cut the slot with for my mill so I clamped a straight edge and then ran a Dremel wheel down it over and over until I got the depth and width needed for the stamped receiver to to slide into:

My theory was that by drilling holes and filling them via plug welds that I could lock the receiver into place.  Thus, I drilled holes for the plug welds both in the stamped receiver and into the newly made trunnion:

The plug welds were done with a Harbor Freight 220V MIG running ArCo2 gas and .030 wire.  I let it cool down after each weld and was careful not to pour on a ton of heat.  Notice the relatively big weld area to distribute the load.

I then sanded it all down with a flap sander.  The back was just a regular M72 rear trunnion that I found at R-Guns. I never had problems with cracking, etc.  The experiment seemed to work for a casual use semi-automatic rifle.

That’s all I have as far as photos go.  I hope maybe it gives you some ideas.

Writing this makes me wish I had time to build another AK but it’s back to our grips and handguards 🙂

Note, I have to buy all of my parts – nothing here was paid for by sponsors, etc. I do make a small amount if you click on an ad and buy something but that is it. You’re getting my real opinion on stuff.

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

Flashlights and Lasers, Shooting in General

How to Safely Save on CR123A Batteries for Your Tactical Lights and Lasers

The CR123A battery is very common in tactical lights and lasers these days.  I have a ton of lights that use them and think they are a great battery type and do not have to cost fortune to operate.  There are two tips I want to pass along so you can safely save money.  Now you might be wondering why I put it that way and it’s simple – CR123A batteries are lithium and when they are discharged deeply and rapidly, heat is generated and unless the batteries are properly made, they can literally catch on fire or even explode.  Now this tends to happen with dirt cheap batteries / no-name knock-offs and when they are used improperly such as mixing new and used batteries, types of batteries or trying to recharge batteries that were not designed to be.

Useless trivia for you:  CR123A is a code.  CR = cylindrical.  The 123 means it’s size is a ratio 1×2/3rds its length of “A” cell.  Put it together and you get CR123A.

So, to be safe, only use name brand batteries and change them all at a time.  For example, if a light or laser is going dim them change all the batteries at once with new cells of the proper type and I would even recommend from the same manufacturer.  I would also recommend only sticking with name brands from reputable sources.  Yes, cheap knock-offs show up on eBay and Amazon so be very suspicious of deals that seem to good to be true.

In terms of purchasing the batteries, do not go into a retail store and buy a retail package of one or two batteries in the camera department.  You will pay through the nose.  Instead, go to Amazon and buy Panasonic, Surefire, Streamlight or Energizer batteries in bulk packs – usually they are at least 12 batteries.  You are looking for new fresh batteries that aren’t being sold cheap because they are near end-of-life.  Lithiums last, or have a “shelf life” of, about 10 years from when they are made.  That also means that you can afford to buy a bunch at once as they are going to last quite a while provided they are relatively new when you buy them.

Why am I not recommending no-name batteries?  Simple – there is a reason why some of the tactical product companies say they will only warrant their products if you use certain brands – problems do happen.  At a minimum, you may not get as long of life from a cheap battery built compared to something from a reputable firm.  There are good niche batteries out there, but I am going to stick with the big brands.

I am careful to read the description and reviews before I buy on Amazon as there are unethical sellers out there.  Look for listings with lots of 4 and 5 star reviews – the more the better.  Beware of listings with few reviews of any type – no telling how long they will last.  Read the reviews – are they fresh batteries, counterfeits, or good to go?

Here are some examples to help you get started and I listed them in the order of what I would select – meaning my first choice would be the Surefire batteries [click here] and the second are the Streamlights [click here].

If you just search for CR123A batteries on Amazon, you will see a ton of products for sale with different brands, quantities and so forth.  Shop smart and you’ll save big time.  I hope this helps you out some.  I’ll list more from Amazon at the bottom of the post if you want to scroll down.

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

Gunsmithing, Tools

Great New Bandsaw – Milwaukee Portaband + SWAG Offroad Table, Incra Mitre and Foot Pedal

1 Comment

Folks, one of my challenges is that I have a small shop.  When making my grips and handguards, I use a bandsaw to cut off the sprue – the waste plastic from where the liquid is poured into the mold.  Since I started, I used the relatively cheap Ryobi bandsaws from Home Depot and would get about a year to a year and a half out of them.  The glass fibers in my plastic would dull the HSS blades pretty quick plus it would absolutely eat the unsealed bearings alive to the point that they would fall apart.  I can’t fault them too much – the bandsaw was intended for wood really.

So as my last Ryobi started to get worse and worse (even with teflon sprayed into the bearings to coax a bit more life out of them), I knew I needed to move to something better.  During surfing, I found a company called SWAG Offroad made a really cool little table that could hold a Milwaukee Portaband saw and let you use it then as a vertical saw.  Now this seemed like a perfect fit – small, portable, sealed bearings, metal cutting capability and Milwaukee quality.  So, armed with that, I bought the SWAG Offroad table with Incra Jig and foot pedal plus a Milwaukee Portaband (Model 6232-21 Deep Cut Saw) in January 2017.

There are only certain models of saw that the table supports so be careful to get the right one.  In fact, they say it fits:

  • Milwaukee 6232-20, 6232-21, 6238-20, 6238-21
  • Milwaukee Fuel M18 2729-20, 2729-21 & 2729-22

My 6232-21 saw has a deep throat and uses a power cord as I really didn’t need the portability of a battery model or having to deal with keeping the battery charged given the way I use it.

Set up was very easy.  I think I had it all together in about 30 minutes including using a square to get the blade trued to the table.  I have been using this combination for about three months now and love it.  The table is heavy gauge and has held up great and I really appreciate the excellent Incra mitre guide and the foot pedal.  I’ve cut a ton of grips, Kydex and even steel with this and am still on my first blade.  Another positive is that the blades are much more sturdy and don’t “walk” around as easy when I am cutting something.

The only con I have encountered is that the blade faces you.  This means when you feed something to be cut, it is going straight back towards the neck of the saw vs. parallel.  This is not a big deal for me as I can turn around whatever I am working on and come at it from the other direction if need be.

In short, I really recommend this combination of saw, table, Incra mitre and foot pedal.  They definitely work great for me.

June 2, 2019 Update:  Still going great.  I’ve cut a lot of steel, aluminum and composites with this unit.  It’s holding up great.  By the way, the foot pedal and Incra jig are totally worth it.

June 30, 2017 Update:  I’m still very happy.  Not one glitch and I have cut a ton of steel, aluminum, wood and the composite plastic I work with.  I had to cut a free float AR handguard to a custom length and that combination of the Incra mitre and heavy blade cut it as square as I could ask for with no wandering.

February 7, 2020 Update:  I use this almost every day and it is still going strong.  Other than changing blades, which is to be expected, nothing has worn out.  I’ve found Milwaukee blades hold up the best – at least of the brands I have tried – and Amazon is a very good source for them.

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

Gunsmithing

What wax to use on our grips and handguards to bring out the color

Hello folks,

People ask me why the color of our grips and handguards fades with age and that is a function of the thin liquid oil/wax finish I put on them. When I make a grip or handguard, it comes out a mold and then I need to sand it to get rid of seams. From there I blast it and just about any color winds up turning very white. To bring back the color, a top coat needs to be applied. I used to use Sno Seal, which works fantastic but after several thousand grips, it was too tough on my hands to work so I had to move to a liquid oil/wax finish that dries out over time.  I would definitely recommend that you folks use Atsko Sno Seal if you want the color to come out and stay out plus it does a great job on sealing boots 🙂

Also, you can also use any light wax you want such as shoe or boot polish – just be sure it has wax in it. Lot’s of guys use black polish, a color close to what they want or a neutral to just bring out the color of the plastic. Heavy floor wax does not work well – it’s way too thick – don’t use that.

I hope this helps you out.

If you find this post useful, please share the link on Facebook, with your friends, etc. Your support is much appreciated and if you have any feedback, please email me at in**@ro*********.com. Please note that for links to other websites, I may be paid via an affiliate program such as Avantlink, Impact, Amazon and eBay.

When Strength and Quality Matter Most