Damascus Mike Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 Hi its DM I just thought i should post a pic of my first knife i ever made and its soon to be handle, plz comment if you have any ideas of how to get it in the antler without cutting it or ruining the antler.the first pic is just the antler and the knife, the second pic is how i want the antle and the knife to be posisioned once inside the antler.thanx DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 Drill holes in the end of the antler and forge some small chisels from masonry nails and carve out between the holes, Rough up the tang, coat it and fill the hole with epoxy---you may want a "washer" to cover antler pith if there is any, insert and let harden, clean up. (I like to do preliminary clean up when the epoxy is "rubbery" and use a sharp chisel to remove excess as much as I can. Also masking or duct tape over the handle/grip part first so epoxy "spills" can't make trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 Looks like a nice start, but as this is a knife, shouldn't it have been posted in the "knife" section? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 You need a diffusion filter on your flash or angle it towards a reflector that bounced the light back from a different angle. The reflection off the blade makes the pic almost unviewable. A field expedient diffusion filter is a single ply of tissue paper over the flash. If you have an old school camera with flash attachment you can angle it towards a piece of paper and reflect the flash onto the piece. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecart Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 I didn't expect to get photo tips here! Thanks Frosty. My blade photograghy stinks! Oh, yeah, nice start on your knife-making journey, DM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjollnir Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 Mike, I have had success in the past by using vinegar. I know this sounds like an old wives tale but I heard about this in an excerpt from an interview with Ben Lilly. All you have to do is soak the handle in plain white vinegar from the grocery store for about a week. Once the inside of the horn is spongey run a screwdriver down in there a few times to losen the material a little more but not too much. Then place the knife tip on a solid piece of wood and push. Once you reach the desired depth stop and put a clamp of some kind so it cant back out. In a weeks time the marrow in the handle will be just as hard as when you started the project. I was skeptical too the first time I tried it but it works like a charm. Great looking knife in the works man, good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 wow thanx for all the compliments about my knife.well my tutor told me i should drill tiny holes all the way inside the antler so i can just heat up the knife and burn its way in.will that work or not?i just want the knife to be inside the hanlde without rivets or slites in the antler,it must go in through the middle of the antler where that funny sponge like stuff is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 Why not photography tips? This site is about metal working and a lot of folk hope to make a buck or even a living at it. How can a person expect to sell their work if they can't take a decent pic? It's not like you can meet and personally show your work to enough people you know. Competent photography is no different than competent blacksmithing, cabinet making or shoe polishing, it's knowledge and practice. Photographing polished metal is one of the more difficult things to do well. There are strong contrasts between the highlights and dark reflections and a lot of things to consider. Jewelry is a real bear. The simplest tip I know is a diffusion filter, it cures a lot of problems or brings them to reasonable levels. Heck, it'll fix red eye in portraits but it really softens shadows and highlights so it's a trade off. Background is also important, really important. You need a color that makes your work stand out without overpowering or clashing with it. Patterns work well as the colors tend to blear into each other and reduce the chance of competing with the piece. Unless of course you picked a pattern that clashes or camoflages it in one of many ways. Moving the background out of the depth of field works REALLY well if it's a well patterned background. If I can I like to stand well back and shoot through a telephoto lens with the apperture stopped down. This reduces depth of field so anything more than a little ways in front of or behind the subject is out of focus. This does something else as well, it makes any reflected things out of focus. For instance there was a pic of a chromed teapot for sale on eBay some years ago and I have a copy of the pic saved. Why did you save a pic of a teapot Frosty, you ask? And why not just post it here so we can all see what you mean? Is it a SPECIAL teapot? Is it PURTY? Why Frosty? Tell us why! Uh, oops. I got a little carried away there. Sorry. The reason I don't post it is the person who took the shot was buck nekkid and though distorted is plainly visible. So, reflections off the subject can REALLY make a difference! Glenn would kill me is the real reason of course. Anyway, just a few simple things can make the difference between a picture clear enough to make a sale and a glaring shape nobody recognizes. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 15, 2009 Author Share Posted April 15, 2009 is this beter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 15, 2009 Share Posted April 15, 2009 Better yes. Try a medium saturated green background. The dark gray(?) carpet and cream colored wall are messing with the speed and aperture settings so just a little reflection from the blade almost blacks it out. A bright overcast day is very good for shooting reflective surfaces like polished steel. Nice blade by the way. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share Posted April 16, 2009 thanx its gana be skining knife,its wierd tho, i etched it to see wat would happen and half of the blade looked like a faint form of damascus,it was silver and a funny grey colour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 It's probably a faint Hamon at the margin where the thin blade quenched harder than the thicker body. The harder it is the slower it etches (I think) making for a difference in luster. A proper Hamon is produced by coating the edge with clay to alter the quench speed and hardness. It polishes to a different luster. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share Posted April 16, 2009 the blade isnt tempered yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 17, 2009 Author Share Posted April 17, 2009 so how should i insert the back of the knife into the antler with out making cut lines on the outside of the antler? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 Mike, didn't you read the reply to this question the first time you asked? on the first page of this thread?:confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted April 20, 2009 Author Share Posted April 20, 2009 yes i did but i wanted to see many different ways to help me decide but ive finished it, i just used the blade of the knife to dig a hole inside the horn/antler and dug my way in with a leatherman saw.i know its wierd but hey i did it and ill post pics once ive glued it in with rezin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulpius Posted May 5, 2009 Share Posted May 5, 2009 May I caution you to not try to burn anything into an antler. The stink is horrible and the heat causes irreversable discolouration. The soaking method works, believe me. The tang is gripped solid. You may use a white epoxy ressin te let soak into the spoungy central material after it has dried if you want a smoother looking finish. Just a tip, next time, make the tang a bit longer and narrower. But it looks a really nice blade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Waldon Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 So, Soaking an antler in vinegar for a week will soften the center? mjollnir, who provided this tip, mentioned marrow, but there is no marrow in an antler, marrow is only in bones. (I'm pretty sure) So, I'm just trying to confirm that this works with antlers and not just bones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulpius Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 The reference to marrow is indeed somewhat confusing, I am sure the spongy material in the center of the antler is meant. There is no way marrow will grip a tang, I assure you. When using a bone handle, I would suggest passing the tang all the way through and peening on a buttplate, or maby filling the cavity in the bone with wood, leaving a slit, and tapping in the tang to set the wood solid in the bone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnr Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 For bone handles I fill the marrow cavity with epoxy and sawdust. While it is still not set I insert the tang. Finnr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damascus Mike Posted June 11, 2009 Author Share Posted June 11, 2009 well the knife is finally done and i have used a 2 pot mix epoxy rezin to glue the blade in place and its done,ill post pics once i have new batteries 4 my camera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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