Looks like im still a lil heavy handed with the hammer and the grinder.  These are currently hand sanded to 1kgrit.  Any tricks on how to get rid of the hammer marks beyond just grinding the crud out of them?

Well, the simple answer is: don't make them in the first place! Overlapping hammer blows delivered with even, consistent force will give you a smoother surface to start with, although some grinding is inevitable.

I agree with JHCC. Easier to never make the marks in the first place. If that doesn't work, though, grind the crud out of it. 

Don't know what your setup is like or what gear you have, but have you considered drawfiling as a way to flatten and shape your blades? It's not always as fast as a grinder, but it does give you a lot of control.

Good work. Nice blade and handle shapes going on.

Like has been said, not making the marks helps. Draw filing is laborious but works a treat to get things flat/straight.

You're going to have to file/sand until you can't see anything but the grade of file/paper that you are using until moving to the next grade of file/paper that you want to finish on. There were a lot of strokes in my comment not nearly as many strokes as I take filing/sanding lol.

All the best.

Don't screw it up in the first place is great advice, but advice I personally am rarely able to abide by  Once you're to the point you are with these, yeah it's kind of grind the crud out of them. Next round after doing the main forging you can do some "flattening" forging to fix up where you've over hammered some to reduce how much you have to do at the grinder. I'm jealous of those who have a proper flatter for this, but I do it with a small ball peen hammer. Using lighter more accurate blows I'm able to work down some of the high spots and bring things to a better place for grinding. If anything is way out of whack flipping the hammer over and using the ball end can help push down a mushroom etc. then go back over with the flat side to even out. This is also where I try best as I can to fix up any thickness or twist issues to again reduce grinder fixing needs.

1 hour ago, lanternnate said:

Don't screw it up in the first place is great advice, but advice I personally am rarely able to abide by

True lol. Hammer control comes with practice though. 

I find it effective, in lieu of a proper flatter, to use a fairly thick piece of flat steel,1/4 inch or better, as a flatter. Place the steel on one side of the blade as a top die, and the anvil as a bottom die. Make sure the steel covers the whole blade. You can generally get the blade pretty darn flat this way. 

 

Love the advice of big schunk of steel on top and whack away.  I am definitely capable of that.  Nit measing yp in the first place...sound and accurate advice.  However not in my nature.  I managed to get one of the knives cleaned up and done today the rest will have to wait for next weekend.

Of course, that only works if your anvil is flat!

6 hours ago, JHCC said:

Of course, that only works if your anvil is flat!

Yes, true. But there are ways around it, if yours is not. Place another piece of steel on the underside. Or, with a single piece of steel, rotate the blade every other heat. Or get a big block of steel to use just as a flattening anvil.

12 hours ago, Binesman said:

I managed to get one of the knives cleaned up and done today the rest will have to wait for next weekend.

Looking back at the photo, I am concerned about how close to the end of the handle the first rivet is. That creates a weak spot that will probably crack in time.

Jhcc 

 

Good to know i will keep rivets further back in the future.

The real alternative to meticulous plannising or using a flatter is to abide by old blacksmith wisdom. "Forge thick, grind thin."

I'm finishing one of Theo's collaboration blades, a long seax from the first batch. I was surprised how thick it was as forged and preform ground. As excellently as Theo and friends forged it I've done a LOT of grinding to finally get the last of the hammer marks out. I still have a couple of my early bobbles to grind out but that's my lack of skill on a grinder.

I'm thinking I wouldn't have regretted another 1/16" to correct my mistakes in.

Nice blades, 1st. rivet will also provide a failure initiation point for blade failure but MIGHT be far enough back from the edge.

Frosty The Lucky.

Frosty 

 

Not to worried about blade failure.  These are just steak knives for the wife.  If we manage to put enough force on one to cause failure i need to stop buying such cheap steak.

Uh. . . are you sure you want to talk about steak knives for the . . . WIFE  on a public forum?! 

Truth is they don't look like steak knives, I was thinking of more general purpose knives. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Lol yeah frosty i agree i think they are a little to big for a steak knife.  However i drew up a bunch of patterns and that's what the wife wanted.

Did you ask her what for?

2 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

Did you ask her what for?

Obviously for when he doesn't do a good enough job grilling the steaks 

Call them moose steak knives. Even the itty bitty back strap, "filet moosgnon" covers most of a plate and if you cut the thickness proportionally those would be dainty little knives. 

He's young Thomas it takes a while to learn not to ask if you don't really need to. 

Frosty The Lucky.

I suggest you make them really really sharp as it will hurt less! (Unlike a spoon...)