Fixtures and jiggs

Fixtures and jiggs are very helpful to get the job done correctly.I remember those I saw about the first time in Bob Terzuola’s book “The tactical folding knife”.He described several homebuilt  jiggs to grind and mill correctly.At that time he inspired me to make my first drilling fixture.I made one in wood and steel and it really helped me to drill the small pieces of my folding knives.

Slack belt grinding never has been a suitable manner for me to shape G10 handles .The belt blows the dust into the air and makes it all very dirt.There are possibilities to reduce speed while slack belt grinding but it’s still one of the most unhealthy and dirty operations in the shop.A fixture to sand the G10 into the right form could be an alternative to slack belt grinding so I tried following fixture.The hollow shape is based on the outer diameter of a 300mm wheel.The G10 piece is fixed with adhesive tape to a sanding guide.Each stroke removes plenty of material.Best results are gained by a complete stroke until the opposite end of the fixture.Here it’s possible to make a equal left and right handle .

I have been testing this techniques with different tubes and forms to get the right shape.Also sanding in a taper tube is possible but difficult.Most important is the set up of the G10 parts,it really must be centered on the sanding guide.Most difficult is to obtain the same shape for both handle parts.Below is another fixture I recently made in order to shape both handlepieces at once.Sanding both pieces together reduces the difference in shape and takes less time.This Fixture has a hollow shape based on the outer diameter of a 200 mm wheel.Ideal for smaller knives with a handle width up to 20mm.A simple guide fixed half of the fixture helps to sand it straight.A flexible sanding belt or long pieces of abrasive is enough to get the shape.This manner reduces the dust in the air.I guess it’s a true alternative to slack belt grinding when you are worried about the dirt and your health !

I also added a picture to show the removal of the G10 after the first strokes.Here you can see is quit important to keep the material stable and apply equal pressure while sanding.However it’s not a big thing to shape it equal.Best results happen with centered handlescrews.The G10 pieces are fixed with adhesive tape on the wood and one pin is added to avoid loosening while applying pressure.

The next picture shows the difference between one finished G10 handle and the next pieces almost ready to be shaped.

In the next picture you can see both handleparts together fixed on the sanding handle.The parts here are postioned on a centerline I draw with a pencil.I always position the knife handle- ends outwards.

I regulary check the shape after some strokes and when the shape is not centered I turn the guide 180 from the left to the right.Both sides of the sanding handle can be used to the guide.The turning of the sanding handle allows some correction of the shape.

Two knife handles done.The thickness of the G10 handles is different but can be adjusted if needed.

This fixture works and sure I will use it on the next knives and tools.Hopefully you could enjoy this tutorial.Feel free to try .