Hi,

 

I just started blacksmithing (It's something I've wanted to do for years), and just made my first knife (After practicing techniques for awhile). It's a large knife, too. My problem is that the tang sticks out of the handle, and I don't know what my options are for removing it or covering it up.

 

Any ideas?

Forge a washer and peen the tang. That's the way to hold the handle on. Cool watermelon chopper.

funny how almost everyones first few blades are bananas lol (mine included)

Sorry if you intended it to be bent :D

As for your extra end peening it over is prob a good idea, makes it stronger, unless you split the handle in the process.

If you can get the tang back out of the handle you could just cut it off, if you cant get it back out, you could add a little bit extra of either wood or metal pommel type thing and hold it on with a smal pin through the end of the tang.

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What type of steel did you make it out of?

Hehe, no, I intended it to be straight, but I honestly I don't really mind. I made the thing out of a rusty piece of 3/16" tool steel I found in my garage. 

 

What exactly is peening?

peening and upsetting like a rivet in this case would mean the same thing.

This is how I do it.  I silver braze or weld (must forge the weld) a threaded piece that comes within 1/8 or so from the end.  Braze or weld a piece of mild steel or brass for a butt cap.  Screw it together.  Done right it's much stronger than pinning. 

Note, if you do weld the bolt on, test it by bending it back and forth to make sure it wont break.

I'm going to try peening it. Should I harden and temper it before I peen it?

It won't peen if you harden it, you want it soft.  Heat the tange up red and then stick it in ashes let it cool slow.  Put the handle and pommel with a bit of the tang sticking up and hit it with a ball peen hammer.  Practice peening on some round stock or rivet some stuff together and practice.  Depending on what kind of tool steel you have it may be hard to peen. 

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. Not being a blade guy I dont have any advice to speak of. Decent bush blade judging by the function follows form school of thought.

 

Frosty the Lucky.

Thanks Frosty! I'm assuming you meant form follows function? 

 

@Momatt: after I peen the tang, how will I harden the blade? That part I don't understand.

Well you will harden your blade before you put the handle on.  Only quench the blade, not the tang.  You will want to temper (draw it back a little) either in the oven or with a torch (brighten the blade then heat spine till cutting edge is straw color).

 

PS I am not a very good blacksmith.  You would do well to read up on basic stuff--but I am like you just jump in and start learning.

Thanks Frosty! I'm assuming you meant form follows function? 

 

@Momatt: after I peen the tang, how will I harden the blade? That part I don't understand.

 

No, unless you intended this blade to look like that and had a use for that profile in mind. Making a thing THEN figuring out what it's good for is the definition of, "functions follows form."

 

My personal preference is "form follows function" but I have plenty of examples of the other. For instance I've been teaching a 10 year old, starting with nails. Well, his first attempt sunday ended up with a very distorted head soooooo, it's a picture hanger!  Function following form. As the day progressed Alex's nails got to be pretty normal hand forged nails.

 

And no, Alex is the youngest person I've ever taken on and only if one of his folks is present the whole time. His mom sat at a bench and did stuff on her I tablet thingy. It was a good day Alex has the fire.

 

Frosty the Lucky.

I gotcha now.