jmhallrn

When she got me this one I was concerned it would be underpowered. My only other experience was with HF 4x36 sanders or handheld belt sanders. I was very surprised how quickly the 2x42 eats steel away. I can see slowing it down could keep my mistakes smaller, for sure. I have looked at building the 2x72, but the cost of variable speed isn't justifiable for me right now. Too many other toys to come first. And without the variable speed it just doesn't seem like that much of an upgrade for someone like me who can take their time.

My wife got me a Bucktool 2x42 for my birthday while I was in the midst of this project. It took a little modification to use the scotchbrite belts, but it is doing a good job until I get hooked enough to buy or build a variable speed 2x72.

Sorry, I forgot to post the specs. This started as .125 x 1.5 1095. Rough forged to shape including bevels, then finished on the grinder. The handle is purple heart and copper pins. It should get more purple over the next few days. Still trying to decide on the best finish for the wood. The oil/wax I did won't last long in the kitchen.

I just finished my first knife. Since much of the info I used to complete it was gleaned from this forum I thought I'd share it.

I see you are a man of good taste. Paladin would approve! In all seriousness, you and Frazer have just provided a wonderful explanation as to what the grain actually represents. Thank you! Thank you! That was a great video. I did get some Young Frankenstein vibes at first, but the bubble model was a great way to visualize what you and Frosty were telling me. I did get a chance to break a file today to compare. The grain appeared almost velvety. I now have a couple of benchmarks and a much better understanding of what the grain actually represents. Thank you, both! When I finally get a knife worth showing I'll be sure to post it.

Frazer- Thank you for the explanation and the photo from the other thread. Your comments on repeatability really struck home. I seem to remember some older threads about limiting use of embedded photos due to limited bandwidth in some members' locations. And apparently photobucket stopped their free service since last I was active on any forums. I will try to remember for next time. Frosty- I intend to do just what you have recommended, but I must admit that in my haste to begin learning (playing) with my new forge and steels (toys) I jumped almost straight into this blade with the understanding that it would likely turn out junk, anyhow. Once I proved myself right I just wanted to learn what I was looking at. As to your question, if I remember correctly the crystal growth has something to do with carbon and iron rearranging into various configurations that have varying strengths. I have read over the heat treating info from Mr. Sells but it has been a while. Not to spend too much time on that different discussion, but I was just talking to my nephew Saturday about being able to honestly examine opposing viewpoints and reevaluate what you think you know. I personally feel that is a defining characteristic of an "adult", which means not many legal adults fit my criteria.

Frosty- You are correct in that I did not expect a smooth refined grain. My experiment here was to see what I am trying to avoid later. To my extremely untrained eye the grain was much smaller than I was expecting from something that was not normalized at all (although I suppose it did cool from forging to room temperature once as it was the second day). I am trying to learn exactly what you guys are seeing when you look at the grain. This particular blade had some deep hammer marks in areas that I found unacceptable and I felt it was a good piece to "test the limits" of how much pressure I can apply, what a water quench will do to the grain, etc. I intend to snap off an old worn out file tomorrow to compare them which I expect will give me some better understanding of what good grain looks like. I did see a helpful photo in in this thread which helps, but the lack of scale is making it hard for me to figure out where my photo would fit in. It looks to me like my grain appears in between the 1x and 2x normalizations in that photo. The factory heat treat appears to be almost as fine as drywall powder? On a side note Frosty, I have read a lot of your posts over the past few years and I appreciate all the advice and knowledge you have unknowingly provided me. Swedefiddle- That is an interesting anecdote. I never would have thought about a piece of steel that large cracking itself open.

Hi all, I am very new to actually smithing but have been lurking here for the past few years. I finally got a forge and some 1095 (I have since sourced some 1084 that may be more forgiving) and took the plunge. I have forged a piece of 1/8" 1095 into more or less a blade shape and did a rudimentary quench in water (I do know oil is preferred, but I was really just experimenting). I promptly broke my blade about 10-15 seconds out of the quench trying to fix a slight warp. I had planned to test to destruction anyhow, so I'm not heart broken. I would however like to take the opportunity to learn about my grain. This was not normalized, the quench was done at only slightly above non-magnetic (much cooler a color than I expected), and it never made it to a tempering process. I have read quite a bit about grain but most of the photos on this and other sites that explained grain have been lost to time. To that end, please critique my grain... The tip section https://photos.app.goo.gl/6Wf4R62N7GvAYAGZ6 The rest of the blade https://photos.app.goo.gl/eWPXzhV4PYNV1aV49 The "whole" (I guess not anymore) blade https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZQrp88865vVf52eV6 Thanks, Jared