How are you applying pressure and are you heat curing?
well...I was "clamping" them between two, two by sixes, by screwing them together. The first or top two by six, I drilled about six holes all the way through, face to face of the 2X6. The drilled holes were just a big enough diameter to let a 3 inch deck screw through. At first I drilled both boards at the same time, but on clamping up my first piece, I discovered I drilled too far in the second board to get enough threads to grip on a few of the screws. I used fender washers so that the pressure would be spread out and the bugle head shape wouldn't split the top board.
On the second glue up, I didn't drill into the bottom board. So I was about done "clamping" it up and all of a sudden.... CRACK!
The board had split right down the middle.
and with the epoxy quickly hardening up, I was like
I ran around the house and found a few clamps.
It turned out just fine. I let it out of the clamps after two hours.
As far as heat goes, NO! I am not supplying any heat. It produces heat on its own. The three glue ups I have done so far have been warm to the touch like 6 hours after the initial glue up/clamp up.
I think for next time though, I will probably just start out with two pieces of 3/4" thick plywood, probably 2 squares, about 14 inches by 14 inches, or maybe 16 inches by 16 inches. Then, instead of cutting the fabric into skinny 3 inch by 10 inch long strips, I will cut them into 12 inch by 12 squares. I would still use screws, though to clamp it together, with maybe a 2X4 on edge clamped across the top as like a clamping caul to ensure that the middle gets pushed down tight. I am thinking that a 12 inch by 12 glued up square of "micarta" would give me more options as far as orienting the "grain" of the grips any particular direction and/or to maximize the number of grip panels and minimize the waste.
But I will have to see how my first glue up looks, before I blow any more time, material and money on this.
Just scouring the web I have found several good websites/links, but they all seem to eventually trace back to one man, Argentinian knife maker Ariel Salaverria:
http://www.aescustomknives.com/docs/tutorial5.htmhttp://www.aescustomknives.com/docs/tutorial6.htmthat last link there shows his rag twisting technique which gives the zig zagging damascus steel look to the finished product.
This guy has 666 pics uploaded to his photobucket site, which I have linked as a slideshow. Go grab a coffee or a beer and watch this:
http://s185.photobucket.com/albums/x45/shadetrees/?albumview=slideshowSo I might try that too, and make a clamping jig out of a piece of channel iron, oh, about 4 inches wide.
I have been using wax paper and cellophane to keep the epoxy from glueing the whole sha-bang to the 2X6's. That would be really, really, bad....
If this produces good results, I might just break down and buy two steel plates, at least 3/8" thick, then some grade 8 bolts, drill matching holes all around the perimeter. Insert the bolts, tighten the nuts down, then weld the head of the bolts to underside of one plate. Then when it comes time to clamp them together, I will fire up the air compressor and use my air ratchet to quickly cinch everything down.
But, like I said....I will have to see how my first glue up looks, before I blow any more time, material and money on this.
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