Reaming wood?

[hotponyshoes]

It's not difficult to cast a block.
Make a mould from a piece of 3x2 as a base + ends 6x1 (or 18mm ply) as sides.

Make up a batch of slow cure resin.
Dip strips of fibre glass or card, or cloth, or felt (or all four!) into the resin, then lay in the mould.
When it gets to about 3-4" thick, lay another piece of 3x2 on top, and tighten down with clamps/weights.

You'll need to wax/oil the mould to stop it sticking.
I use cheap margarine from asda.

If you want a *really* slow cure resin, use cascamite glue - takes about 24-48 hrs to cure

Felt + cascamite knife scale experiment:
View attachment 248979

I might try something like this, maybe I could put the counterweight at the bottom of the mold, fill with resin, lower the blade in.
Job done all in one.
I have a few catering knives with synthetic handles and don't really like them though.

 

[bigegg]

I might try something like this, maybe I could put the counterweight at the bottom of the mold, fill with resin, lower the blade in.
Job done all in one.
I have a few catering knives with synthetic handles and don't really like them though.

You need fibres as well as just resin
Even fiberglass "choppings" (short fibres just in a mess) would be better than nothing.

An amount of pressure is also useful - to force air out at low pressure, To shrink air bubbles at higher pressure.
I have a tank that i can put castings in, and fill with compressed air @50psi.

 

[bigegg]

<edit> ignore the bit about fibres.
For some reason, i was thinking you were making a long (3ft) handle.

 

[hotponyshoes]

The whole knife is only 16" long or so!
Although that's a long blade hence the need for a counter weighted handle.
I have got a vacuum chamber so I can degas the resin first. Or possibly vac bag the whole thing during curing.

 

[bigegg]

The whole knife is only 16" long or so!
Although that's a long blade hence the need for a counter weighted handle.
I have got a vacuum chamber so I can degas the resin first. Or possibly vac bag the whole thing during curing.

I made a knife with a solid counterweight once:
Threaded the end of the tang, matching threaded hole in the weight.
Hollow (25mm?) dowel over the tang, filled with poxy resin.
Screwed on the weight, then shaped the whole handle + pommel(! - i remembered the name ) as one piece with the angry grinder and belt sander.