Rantalin Posted November 15, 2005 Share Posted November 15, 2005 The biggest problem I'm having with constructing a blade is the handle. I can't concieve the best way to craft and attach the pommel and the hand guard. The best I can come up with is to forge them directly into the blade, but that seems to me to be rather difficult. And nearly impossible if I wanted a different material for the handle. I have made two "blades" before. One was VERY poor quality, with a two piece handle poorly riveted to each side of the tang. I ended up melting that one due to poor attentive skills when heat treating :wink: The second blade was a dagger that I'm not proud of the blade of, but the handle came out much better. I used a single piece of wood from a tree in the woods, carved and sanded to shape. I used a drill press to drill out a slot just smaller and as long as the tang of the blade, then hammered it on with a mallet. Very tight fit, no shaking at all and the blade is straight out of the handle. I'm hoping to get some belts for the belt sander that are meant for grinding, and then I can polish my blade up a bit. Is there any disadvantage to using a 6X48" belt as opposed to one with a 2" width? Thanks for your time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 15, 2005 Share Posted November 15, 2005 Dan, the 2x72" belts come in every grit known to mankind from individual boulders glued to the belt to micron polishing belts I swear are just made up from the backing with *no* added grit...They also come in a wide variety of materials. The 6x48 belts are more limited in my experience. So have you read about handling in any of the great knife books that are out there? Your local library should be able to ILL them for you. I live *outside* of a town of 10,000 people and it's the biggest town in the county!---and my public library can get them for me... Thomas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPH Posted November 17, 2005 Share Posted November 17, 2005 Dan: Ok..here goes.. From your description it sounds like you are referring to(in the first grip) what is commonly known as a "slab" or "scale" grip. This is a very common method of attaching a grip to a blade and when properly done, can be quite pleasing to the eye. Your second method sounds like what is known as a "hidden tang" grip, here again, a very common method, and when properly done, can be very functional, beautiful and quite secure in its construction.. OK I have got to ask..how many knives have you done?? Just these two or have ya done a few more?? From the sounds of things, it seems to me that you are just starting out... If this is the case, then quit beating yourself up over this and accept the fact that like anything else, PRACTISE is what will improve your skills. NONE of us were "born knowing this stuff"..We all started out the same. Do some basic research into techniques...and doe a few "excerise pieces" where you work of attaching and "refining" the over all looks and function. This isn't hard at all, once you have a good grasp of what it is you want to do.. It takes some time to refine and perfect your own "techniques" as far as this goes and if you ask me..that time is well spent. There are numerous ways to attach a guard, and you have to decide which one(s) you are going to use. Some are pinned on, some are soldered, some are slid up from the back end//some use a combination of the three...and some are attached from the front and pinned or soldered into place (or both!!).. What are you comfortable with doing at this point in time??? Same goes for pommels//Some are soldered on..some are peined over, threaded on or some other methoid of securing it to the tang... There are so many ways to do this you couild wite a book (or three) on this subject... So, what I suggest for you right now is to sit down, take a deep breath and think about what you want to know how to do..RIGHT NOW...one step at a time...Take one single aspect of this and master that...and once you do..move onto the next part...So..what would you like to know how to do right now?? Is it the guard?/ Is it the pommel? Or is it a "slab" grip?? By all means man..ASK... I for one am NOT at all shy when it comes to helping folks... JPH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rantalin Posted November 17, 2005 Author Share Posted November 17, 2005 JPH, yes I have only made those two blades. Being a college student living away from home, I don't have a lot of forge time, which I am not quite happy with. I began blacksmithing in june of this year, but lacked the resources to spend as much time as I wanted to at the forge. I began working full time, which restricted the time I had to bang metal. Now that school's started up again, I'm not at home to have my fun. So all my forging right now is conception of pieces and methods. This way I have a much better idea of how and what to do over winter break. I've purchased "Practical Blacksmithing and Metalworking" by Percy W. Blandford, and "The Complete Modern Blacksmtih" by Alexander G. Weygers, a book which I have heard referenced many times and both books are quite helpful. I am trying to get a better feel for the how some techniques are performed and get an idea of what I'm going to do next time I can light up my forge. I appreciate the input and I thank you for your time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 17, 2005 Share Posted November 17, 2005 So tell your parents that you want a copy "The Complete Bladesmith" for Christmas; read it on boxing day and head for the shop! Thomas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPH Posted November 18, 2005 Share Posted November 18, 2005 Dan: Ok..I have an idea... You know you could always start out practicing on "kit knives". These require a minimum of powered tools (like a hand drill and maybe a buffer if you want to shine it up).. Have you considered this as a way to get to know how to do this?? I know a whole lot of folks who started with kit knives and then progressed onto making the total package... Most any decent knife maker's suplly house should have several different kits available.. Just a thought... JPH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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