Put this fella together with a leaf spring it's a little big and heavy for my liking hahaha the handle is walnut and Purple Heart and as you can tell I still need a lot of practice with my hammer work haha any thoughts would be great 

thanks grammer 

Neat. I'm assuming you left it as forged? The boxiness of the handle gives it some extra flavor. 

Thanks tubalcain2 ya I left er as forged this time around and ya the handle is pretty squared but does actually feel nice in the hand 

Nice lines overall, but it looks unfinished. The sharp corners on the handle are going to be a problem, and you really need to sand the burn marks off the end grain of the walnut.

 

17 minutes ago, JHCC said:

Nice lines overall, but it looks unfinished. The sharp corners on the handle are going to be a problem, and you really need to sand the burn marks off the end grain of the walnut.

 

He is after all the Grammar hammer. 

20 minutes ago, beech said:

He is after all the Grammar hammer. 

I was wondering how long it would take for someone to pick up on that. 

Hahaha thanks for the insight guys and I will get the sander out and get that baby tuned up nicely I appreciate the words as I'm just a hobby smith and obviously need lotsa practice but just a great way to spend time and learning piles every time I'm in the forge

thanks grammer

Well you don't really need that much weight in the tang.  If you are trying to shift balance point a small pommel will do it without adding as much weight in the middle of the grip.

Knives made to cut profit for smoothness of their sides, less friction.  I would run the grind a bit higher on the sides even if you leave it "rough from the forge" above that.

I would prefer a more rounded handle but it has to suit you not me, nice colour choice in the handle.

How did you heat treat it?

Hi Thomas 

thanks for the advice it's much appreciated And I never really thought about the smoothness up higher but makes alotta sense and that's what I will do my next go around for sure and it is comfy in my hand but I do think a rounder handle wood be better I used linseed oil fir the handle is that a good choice?

Boiled or raw?   Yes boiled linseed oil makes a good hand rubbed handle if you put *many* layers---the old adage was "Apply once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year, and once a year for the rest of your life! "

Tung oil also works well.

I have seen some amazing "perceived depth to osage orange---90 year old fence posts rescued from a developer's bonfire--- done with hand rubbed oil finish on the quartersawn wood.

Before hammering, use a stiff wire brush to remove the scale. That should help with a smoother finish

Speaking as a former professional woodworker, I definitely second the tung oil recommendation, if you want an oiled finish. Linseed oil isn't nearly as durable. 

Thank you guys very much I really appreciate it and I will take all of your advice into the next project BGD I do have a wire brush by the anvil but don't use it near enuff hahaha gotta remember to brush er clean and not drive er into the steel haha Thomas I will boil er next time I just rubbed er on once and I don't know much about it so great info and as you and JHCC have agreed on I will try the tung oil also all great helps and I really appreciate the help

thanks

grammer 

        Looks like it has been awhile since this was current, most people buy their linseed oil boiled, this is the kind that dries and should give you a good finish. We do not know if yours might have been boiled but it should say on the label. If you boil it yourself you need to be careful not to burn your place down, and what you breath.

7 hours ago, metalmangeler said:

        Looks like it has been awhile since this was current, most people buy their linseed oil boiled, this is the kind that dries and should give you a good finish. We do not know if yours might have been boiled but it should say on the label. If you boil it yourself you need to be careful not to burn your place down, and what you breath.

Commercial "boiled linseed oil" isn't just boiled; it's also had metallic driers added.

Hey metal mangeler 

I did look into the linseed oil after the posts and realized that the linseed oil I used was not boiled but I did have some in the paint closet that was boiled as you said on the label thanks for the help guys as you can see I ain't much of a painter Hahahaha 

thanks grammer

But it you want *real* boiled linseed oil without all the extra metallic additives that they put in the commercial one, look for polymerized linseed oil.

The stuff from Tried & True works great, though it doesn't stick as much to the material as the chemical stuff. However it is 100% food safe which is nice when you're making a kitchen knife (or IMHO anything that you hold for a long time in your bare hands).

Check out stand oil at an art supply store.

SLAG.

Right on hammerdon and SLAG I like the sounds of the food safe linseed oil for other wood work projects and I'll have a look into stand oil as well thanks boys 

grammer

For cutting boards we used mineral oil, which is also food safe.

Lee valley, Garret Wade, woodcraft etc. sell or used to sell, butcher block oil. It is food safe.

I do not remember what oil is used. But a little net search should supply that information.

SLAG.