BlissStreet Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Now that the anvil and forge have produced a pair of tongs, I figured I'd put them all together and try a small veggie knife. This took about 3 hours, and still needs touching up in the morning. Not as smooth as I had hoped for, but I'm willing to bet in 2 or 3 more tries, they will be looking closer to what I want. The tang is much longer then it needs to be, it helps in handling it in the forge. I'll keep you updated as it moves along. In the mean time, I'll be on the sofa with my Ibuprofen and icepack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beth Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 oh dear - hope you didnt cause yourself some Major pain there bliss - .... that looks like a right good start to me - you are clearly enjoying yourself!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BM454 Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 Ibuprofen is the stuff for us old folks. Blade looks good. I like the hammer marks on a blade. Seems everyone else likes them really slick and polished. I seen a clever on here someone made and used the round end of a ball peen hammer to make dimples on it. I really liked the look of it. As good as anything I've seen on here. Not to fancy but, looked really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy seale Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 that looks great, but being the voice of reason i'd be worried about cleaning it. but that is just me,jimmy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted September 6, 2011 Author Share Posted September 6, 2011 I should clarify, it's a work in progress and will go back into the forge to me smoothed out. Then filed and finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 Ok, it all happened really fast (or it seems that way). I got the knife back into the forge yesterday and managed to gently tap out most of the tool marks I put into it. I also annealed the blade and spent the evening filing the shape and profile. Today, Thursday, I picked up some clay and mixed it with some coal ash. Then I clayed the spine with an Ashi design, let it dry, got the whole knife up to critical temp and quenched it in light oil. It's in the oven now, on the first of 3 tempering cycles (@180/375). And I forgot to take pictures. I was kinda in the zone, and lost track of what I was doing. But once it's tempered, I'll be sure and post some pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caotropheus Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 Ibuprofen is the stuff for us old folks. Blade looks good. I like the hammer marks on a blade. Seems everyone else likes them really slick and polished. I seen a clever on here someone made and used the round end of a ball peen hammer to make dimples on it. I really liked the look of it. As good as anything I've seen on here. Not to fancy but, looked really good. Something like this? http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/21670-first-cleaver/page__hl__cleaver__fromsearch__1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share Posted September 27, 2011 Ok big update: The first blade turned out to be a steel that wouldn't harden in oil or water. So that was a failure. Then I started another, but the tip of the blade burned off in the forge. So, I started this thread. After some great feed back, I made some adjustments to my forge and decided to finish the knife. It was more the point of finishing it as a process then trying to end up with a daily use knife. My wife suggested it be a "look back and see progress" knife. So I took it this far: Then, as I was shaping the handle a hole appeared. I had drilled the hole for the handle freehand, and had gone to deep. This is attempt #2, and part of learning process. But I was still disappointment in myself. So, I set it aside to look back on later with laughter. I started attempt #3 and have it in the filing and shaping process. But, I'm feeling really good about this version I decided to go with a thicker blade in a Deba style, rather then the thinner blade I was trying earlier. And starting with flat stock really helped. I had by far fewer self inflicted hammer marks and forged the bevel in saving myself the need to file it in by stock removal. I think that should have the blade done today, with the handle and furniture roughed out. Wednesday I'll normalize it, harden and temper it. And hopefully Thursday have it assembled and epoxied. Thanks again for everyone chiming in in the other thread and for the advise that was given. It really did make a difference and was very much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathan Hall Posted September 27, 2011 Share Posted September 27, 2011 Cool, thanks for sharing I really like the deep belly in the last one you posted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted September 27, 2011 Share Posted September 27, 2011 I am not a blade specialist, but would like to voice concern on the undercut at the transition of tang to blade, It looks like a potential point for breakages, small radii on transition points are what I would aim for. Others more experienced may have an opinon here. Otherwise, its good to see the progress you have already made in your journey of learning. Well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share Posted September 27, 2011 I am not a blade specialist, but would like to voice concern on the undercut at the transition of tang to blade, It looks like a potential point for breakages, small radii on transition points are what I would aim for. Others more experienced may have an opinon here. Otherwise, its good to see the progress you have already made in your journey of learning. Well done. I 100% agree and I would be worried about it if it were used anywhere but in my kitchen. I don't have a spring fuller to start the tang and so I used a hack saw and the anvil edge to start the transition. I zenned out with the rhythmic cutting and went too deep. I am trying to file out the sharp corners and the notch. Obviously this will be something I hope to learn from and look out for in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted September 27, 2011 Share Posted September 27, 2011 Get a chainsaw file and open the cut up so it is a smooth radius. It will be fine. Looks good. Do remember that too many heats can chase all the carbon out of your steel...not a good thing. It won't harden then. Have you run test samples to make sure you are heating hot enough and quenching fast enough to harden this steel? Lower carbon steels need to heat higher than critical to get full hardening. Check some phase diagrams and see what I mean. (carbon/iron vs temperature, and TTT curves) Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted September 27, 2011 Author Share Posted September 27, 2011 I'll look for a file like that here, thanks for the tip. I'm finding that I'm heating less because the stock is holding heat longer and I get more work done with each heat. I did test a small piece after I cut up the stock into manageable sizes. I followed the "heat until non magnetic, and then let soak a minute more. quench in pre heated oil" and it worked a treat. I'm hoping to be able to be more precise then that, once I get settled...where ever that may be. You have no idea what it's like to be in limbo for his long, not knowing when you are moving or where or for how long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted September 27, 2011 Share Posted September 27, 2011 If you want more precision, order Tempil sticks. One below, one at, and one above the desired temperature. They are relatively cheap for the process control they offer. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlissStreet Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 Well, I just finished up the Deba. The danish oil is just dry enough to let me move it over under the softbox for a few shots. Yes, there are hammer marks left. No, the fit and finish aren't up to the standard I want to be at. But, I made it, it's wicked sharp, and it's making dinner tonight. Thanks for all the help and for looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesG Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Nice work look like you have a little hamon Along the endge. Nice work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Handsome looking Good job. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Hale Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 I have never seen carbon chased out of steel by too many heats. And have helped a lot of folks forge knives that surely would have qualified as too many heats in my mind. I have seen a lot of forged knives come out with a scale layer that was certainly too soft for knife steel. Fortunatly that layer was removed as part of the clean up process by grinding. Rockwell C scale testing showed the base metal was good to use for blades. The knife is cool. your comment on fit and finish tells me you are on track to make things right as you develop skills.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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