Hey I have been wondering if spaces are needed or not? Part of me says it's just for look the other part of me says function. Whats your weigh in?
It is just for looks. I used to put them on every knife. Sometimes I even stacked 2 different colors. Now I only use a spacer if I want to break up the color of the handle. In many cases I prefer not spacer. It is definitely another one of those personal preference things.
I have used them a couple of times and just for cosmetic purposes, a dark handle needed a little color to balance things out.
One theory is that they act as a shock cushion between handle materials, e.g. wood and steel. I use them to thicken a full tang handle. Two 1/32" pieces can add 1/16" of thickness. Most makers simply use them for appearance.
Did it once between wood and steel with the thought of being a transition point for expansion. Well that was my grand theory anyway and if you worked out the expansion of inch per inch at temperature variation it might pan out.
That actually reminds me that I sometimes feel the liner material with my finger. It's as if it expands past the scales and tang or even between the handle material and guard. It may only be a few thousandths of an inch but it bugs me if I can feel any transition between scales, pins, bolsters, gaurds or tang.
OK thanks everyone one for the input. It basically answered my question because I don't use them and was told that I was building wrong that there needs to be spacers no matter the knife/sword you make. Thank you all for the input.
My first inclination is to say that whoever told you that was talking out of his rectal orifice. Once I get around to my first blade, I don't plan on using spacers. I'll just use some thick, meaty scales to get the handle size I want.
LMAO I read that as rectal Office I take these things as what is the fashion along the lines of Rambo-Tactical-Operator etc. There may be a benefit but you would have to have the expansion properties of each material then calculate the stress generated during thermal cycling. If the stress exceeds bonding strength of the epoxy then a spacer may be required to act as a transition.
