billyO Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Hello all. Hopefully it's cooler where you are (I have no understanding of how you S.O.Bs (Sole Occupation Blacksmiths) work in the summer months, especially you guys and gals in the more equatorial climates....)Well, I thought I'd do what I do best and jump in with both feet and bite off more than I can chew....My new life gives me the ability to get into my forge on weekends, and so I thought that's e a good way to do a WIP. As this is only my 3rd blade/knife I may make some mistakes, but I can't learn if someone doesn't teach me, so feel free to add suggestions/corrections as needed. Here's pic of where I am at this point. The billet is 352 layers of 1095/15N20 with a ladder pattern with grooves cut in with an angle grinder. The chunk for the finger guard is the tip of the billet after the initial weld when I didn't pay close enough attention and tapered the billet. It's 22 layers, and I need to do a little forging to thicken the piece for the guard line scribed. The handle material is some spalted maple from one of my trees I took down about 6 years ago and had stabilized this spring by K&G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheoRockNazz Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 WOW! Looks fantastic, can't wait to see more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T.J.watts Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 xxxxxxxxxxxxxx I am a welder/fabricator so I deal with the heat either way. I cant get away from it but even when its 90+ I still enjoy working on the forge even if only for a few hours in the morning. I like the profile, cant wait to see it complete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted September 6, 2015 Author Share Posted September 6, 2015 looks like I'm forbidden from updating...Very slow, sorry for that, but not much time these days...? Here's a pic of what I'm planning for handle shape and rivet positions.A couple questions/opinions/suggestions from the more experienced of you out there. Thanks in advance:1. Does the pin placement look good and what color pin would you suggest to go with the Damascus and maple handle? (or should I go through the trouble to forge out some pins with the leftover Damascus stock? which would entail making another spring fuller but then I'd have another tool)2. I was planning a full tang with the bolster, but after thinking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted September 7, 2015 Author Share Posted September 7, 2015 (edited) Trying again Edited September 7, 2015 by billyO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted September 7, 2015 Author Share Posted September 7, 2015 looks like I'm forbidden from updating...Very slow, sorry for that, but not much time these days...?2. I was planning a full tang with the bolster, but after thinking ...about this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitch4ging Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 I love yhe shape of it, nice overall flow!For pins, maybe copper or a mosaic?? You can order them already made, some with copper, brass and ss. I know Jantz sells them. Also carbon fiber or black micarta could look great.look forward to what you choose....Regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheoRockNazz Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 Personally, I think the pins should be moved 1/4" away from one another - the way they currently divide the handle material into equal thirds isn't doing it for me.Are you still doing a bolster with the leftover damascus? I think that'd look awesome.Mosaic pins all the way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted September 10, 2015 Author Share Posted September 10, 2015 forbidden What the F?? I can type forbidden but nothing else??? hard to see, but there's a pencil line between the indicating the final grind pofile, the blue is the handle and the black is the finger guard Is it as simple as fitting the bolster to the tang, mill the scales to fit the bolster, fix to tang and grind to handle shape, taking extreme care at the very end to merge the 4 pieces properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted October 6, 2015 Author Share Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) let's try this again, here's my progress to date Well, seeing as how I can post again, here's my progress to date. ground, filed sanded to 800 grit and quick etch. Not sure if I should go with the scales and a full tang, or should I use the little finger guard and a hidden tang using another piece of the same tree. What do you guys think? Edited October 6, 2015 by billyO wrong picture Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted December 18, 2015 Author Share Posted December 18, 2015 Hello all, hope the holiday season is treating you well. Not much of a WIP, sorry about that but with only 1/2 day a week in my shop/forge for the past 9 months.... Anyway, I'm making progress and am almost ready to glue on the handle and do final shaping, but have a question about final etching before gluing the grip on. I polished to a near mirror finish to 1000 grit, washed the blade, air dried then soaked in vinegar for about 6 hours while at work. Got home to a nice black blade, neutralized with baking soda, rinsed oxide off while rubbing with fingers under running water, and had a really dark, pattern like shown in the picture, only very uniform and not washed out at the tip. I wanted a sharp/bright contrast, so I gave each flat a few swipes with a hardened and polished block of 4140 and 2000 grit wet/dry paper. The pattern got really washed out and looked mottled and awful, so I re washed, re-etched for a few hours in the vinegar and after neutralizing and rinsing with mu fingers, here's where I am, afraid to go further and washing out the pattern again. Notice almost no etching on the guard and lack of black on the tip in the second picture. Any suggestions? Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted March 28, 2016 Author Share Posted March 28, 2016 Hello all. I apologize for starting this as a WIP, as it really hasn't been a great one, but this weekend I finally finished the knife. I added some ebony and bloodwood I had lying around to the handle, sanded to 5000 grit and wiped it with some citrus paste wax I had. Learned a lot and hopefully the next one will go faster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheoRockNazz Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 That came out fantastic! Kudos! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 One side looks like dancing Kachina dolls. Very cool. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyO Posted March 30, 2016 Author Share Posted March 30, 2016 Thanks Theo, hopefully I'll get to your level someday. Thanks Frosty. Are you referring to the area near the guard where the ladder 'rungs' don't quite go all the way across? Here's a few more pics of other views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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