kbaknife

This is another piece of Walnut that I salvaged from a demise of doom in the fireplace! While splitting some firewood to sell two years ago, a friend of mine discovered a piece that had some strage "goin's on" inside it! So, I cut it into blocks and dried them in the ceiling of my shop for two years and then sent to K and G to be stabilized. My customer chose this one for his 5160 hunter to use in Colorado where he lives. Hot blued guard and finial in a take-down assembly. I just keep wishing I had a truck load of that walnut!

Well, fellas, here's my first Damascus blade etched. This ended up being 405 layers of 1084/15N20. I got a fantastic amount of chatoyance. (3-D) For those of you who may not be entirely familiar with forging Damascus, the 3-D effect going on there is the result of the hammer blows from the power hammer and the hand held hammers distorting the layers while forging, as well as the grinding between stacking and re-welding. Since you have to grind of the scale after each welding cycle, and the layers keep getting thinner and thinner, you actually end up grinding through the top layers of the billet. As well, while forging the blade, I went berserk on the bar of steel with a ball piene hammer before finishng out the blade. The blade is actually perfectly smooth. Next is to finish out the knife and then hot-blue the blade. The hot-bluing will make that knife come ALIVE!

A lot will depend on your heat source that you will be using and how high a temp is used. If you have control of your heat, and say you are using a propane forge, you can create a carburizing flame and experience little loss in carbon. If the blade you forge is left with sacrificial steel to grind off to finish the blade, you should/could have a final blade shape with full carbon content. And, by the way, 52100 is the "right" steel.

Then you and I think alike. I want in the 500 range. As far as what sells faster, I'd rather sell to a customer who prefers higher layer count.

Steve, what layer count would you rocommend for 1084/15N20? I have .075 15N20 and 1/4 1084. I also have large stock W2 that I can make whatever size. Should I double stack the 15N20?

The higher vanadium in W2 helps to inhibit grain growth and makes it easier to use high heats for clay backing/hamon work and pattern welding without AS MUCH fear of overheating the steel for long perods of time. Of course, some simple post-forging techniques, and grain growth is a mute point. I've used lots of both and enjoy them immensely.

And no one has even mentioned Daryl Meier.

Firstly, add the FeCl TO the water, NOT the water TO the FeCl! 1 pound of Fecl to 1 pound of water. Use distilled water. Now, that will give you what is called 42 Baume, which is a "strength" of solution. This solution can then be mixed with distilled water at about 3:1 - H2O/FeCl for a good etching mix.

I hope this thread isn't forgotten! I've read the previous question/answers with a great deal of interest and am now wondering if the German Silver Wire will be similar in rigidity to the 1/2 hard SS? Or will it be too soft? I would think this thread is now old enough that you have an experienced answer to that question! Thanks so much for your help.

I quit grinding handles almost four years ago and I'll never do it again. Files, friend. Files. Lock the blade in a knife vise, use the right files, and your results will amaze even yourself!

Oooooooooooooooh! Nice!

Here is a piece of Sambar Stag that I was able to keep 100% intact with no stock removal involved to make the various pieces fit! In other words, from the face of the handle to the butt, no tapering was done to fit the spacer or butt cap - get it? Now, the spacer is not a PERECT oval or circle, but, rather, made slightly out of shape to fit the face of the Stag. Additionally, the butt cap was shaped to FIT the handle butt. You get the point. Forged and clayed 9 3/4" W2 blade and stainless take-down fittings complete the 14 3/4" package! Soon available at: Individually Handcrafted Knives for the Outdoor Enthusiast

I don't want to turn this into a "For Sale" thread and get in trouble, so I'll just suggest that you click on my web site and go to the "Available Knives" section. Thank you for your interest.

Here's a 7 1/2" Short Bowie forged in 1084 with some of that miraculous End-grain Spalted Maple. This stuff is just so fantastic. Being end-grain, the stabilizing activity only needs to go about 1/2 inch or so, since it's going laterally through the material! Literally turns this handle into one SOLID piece of material. It's even difficult to file. Mild steel take-down fittings are faceted with polished and flattened surfaces, and then hot blued. I opted to not etch the blade, but rather, gave it an 800 hand rubbed finish. Headed for the Ohio Show!

Bruce, I'd use it on everything, but I think everybody else would get tired of it before I did!

Here's another one to drag along to the Ohio Custom Knife Show. Forged from 1" 5160 made back in 1984. I've had this chunk of Ebony for a while so thought I'd put 'er use! Took it to a 2000 finish and buffed it = shiny. 1903 Wrought Iron fittings assembled in a Take-down configuration, hand-filed to shape and etched. Then I "frosted" the stainless finial. Nuthin' but pure fun!

I know back-to-back-Bakelite might be a little much for some folks, but this was for a customer to pick up at the Ohio Classic, and I thought I might pass it along. He wanted a blade from one of my knife styles, a handle profile from another, and a hot blued "S" guard. Here's what we ended up with:

Every knife I make is made to the same standards. They're all made to be put to work.

You can get a whole gallon of FeCl that is full strength for I think $16.00. Probably enough to last a life time of etching. By the time you dilute it with water you've got a 5 gallon bucket! It's not expensive.

In preparation for the Ohio Classic, I made up another White Iron Hunter, with a slight variation or II! This one is made in a fixed assembly design, and I filed in a finger purchase. Basically the same knife. Forged from heavy stock 5160, selectively hardened, but I did an 800 hand rubbed finish instead of the etch. Early 20th Century Bakelite for a solid grip! (I tossed in the White Iron Hunter to illustrate the differences) Just an honest working knife - with soul.

I guess that would depend on how much heat you are talking about! I can't even imagine having a knife with a handle on it and getting it hot enough to soften epoxy? Why are you generating that much heat so late in the game?

Not sure why you guys are mixing other "things" with FeCl.? Depending upon the depth of etch and the time necessary, the only thing needed to alter its effects are varying ratios of distilled H2O: Most common being 3:1, H2O:FeCl.

I guess the higher quality of the epoxy the better, as far as long life is concerned. I use West System epoxy, which is for marine use. Keep in mind that many makers rely on epoxy to do too many things! Its most important role is simply to keep moisture and the environment OUT of the handle area. Don't expect epoxy ALONE to hold your handles on. Pins and bolts do the actual holding. Epoxy just fills in all of the voids and makes your handle water-proof.

Just a little preface on this knife: I took a little motorcycle ride this September to one of my favorite places in the world - The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness - in Northeast Minnesota, for a few days of down-time and some freash air. While there, I ended up on the radio and local television with over 2 hours of air time! After all was said and done, I was "handed" a project to design a set of knives which I dubbed the "Boundary Waters Tribute Knives". The on-going set of knives will be for a high-end Outfitter in Ely, Minnesota. I chose to name the three knives after three prominent lakes in the Ely area. They will eventually be the "Burntside Bowie", the "White Iron Hunter" and the "Shagawa Personal Carry". When the series is officially released, the three knives will all be offered in Stabilized Hickory. This is the first in the series, "The White Iron Hunter". For the design on this hunter I used a knife that I saw on a gun dealer's table at an antique gun show in Michigan. I know how time can play tricks, but the fellow had me convinced that the knife was from the late 1800s. I had no reason to doubt him. The knife seemed to be the ultimate in simplicity. Forged down from my heavy 5160 stock and selectively hardened. This knife, which will be available at the Ohio Custom Knife Show, is a take-down model with Macassar Ebony for a handle.

He uses his Paragon for spherodizing and tempering. The post forging quenches are done with the forge as the heat source.