Trying to get another knife to another nephew. Feather cable with nickel has become my “signature “ blade. I noticed that it appears during etching that nickel might be plating on the interstices of the cable welds. Steel is anodic relative to nickel so that doesn’t make sense unless the interstices are perhaps more passive. Anyone seen this before? I might try a regular cable blade electrically connected to nickel and see what happens.

 The handle is jute. Turk’s heads on either end and “rail wrap” in between. It’s too big for my vacuum chamber but I’m going to stabilize in UV resisting epoxy. Somehow.

Was the cable welded in a canister with nickel/high nickel powder? If so I can understand what I’m seeing. (Which looks great!) Otherwise I’m not sure what’s going on, but I works.

Keep it fun,

David

No, the left lay and right lay sections were consolidated on my inertia press separately, then I placed a strip of pure nickel (99%) between the two billets and forge welded them together. I drew it out with my 50# LG. The reason one side is darker than the other is because I edge quenched it. I put wax on the edge to protect it and etched for 24 hours in a coffee/muriatic acid mix. If this is repeatable it might be nice since most cable doesn’t take much of an etch.

Well I tried it on my first cable knife with a piece of nickel welding rod hanging next to the blade. This was made with larger cable and wasn’t consolidated as well. I don’t know if proximity influenced the results but I DID see some plating on some interstices. I may have also had some interference from brass and copper that was on the blade.

It's been almost a year since I was able to get out to the forge, injuries and then had a tree fall on the forge... but finally got the fires stoked back up and here's my latest creation.

Glad you weren't in the forge when the tree fell on it. Been under a tree, got the scars.

Frosty The Lucky.

By all reports it's not an enjoyable experience. I have heard it gets 0 stars on Yelp. 

But seriously I am glad nobody got hurt also, it was a serious situation. The tree was right at 2 foot in diameter, really dangerous getting it off the shop.  

That's a big one, what kind was it?

Frosty The Lucky.

Hi,

          Kitchen Knife forged from a File.

Red Oak handles with Loveless Bolts...

 

 

Nicely done.   

I’ve been laid up for a while, but gradually working more and more in the shop. This is another feather cable nickel strip for another nephew. He asked for a dagger but I convinced him this was more practical. I thought the full blade/half blade design was from the British naval dirk carried by midshipmen but I saw some similar at a knife show that were called Arkansas toothpicks. In any case, I like it and will probably make a few more. The handle on this is pronghorn. The brass fittings brazed up with brazing rod and ground down.

PB, very nice.  How did you do the fuller?

GNM

Thanks, George. I kinda feel like its cheating, but I used my mill with a round end bit. I’ve tried to actually “fuller” a blade before, but either I don’t have the skill or my tools need improving. One actually leads to the other doesn’t it? I’m starting to work again on my inertia press. A fuller with a fence might be a good project for it.

All blade shaping ends with abrasion. Whether you're just removing the forged surface or milling from a rectangular bar, the finished product won't show the difference.

You’re right, John. But *I* know and its another of those skills I’d like to do well even if I never “master” it. Making knives for nephews is just an excuse. I hardly know some of them. When I run out of nephews, brothers-in-law and friends at church… well I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.

The true Arkansas Toothpick usually has a coffin handle and no fuller. I would call it a hybrid Arkansas Tooth Pick. Still it's  very good looking knife, one to be proud of. I like Midshipman's Dirk.

I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.
Semper Paratus

 

Thanks Irondragon. It’s probably short for a midshipman dirk but I’ll call it a dirk until I find out otherwise. My next one won’t have the nickel strip all the way to the point so I can put a finer point on it. This one reminds me of an oyster knife but I felt the nickel needed some steel around it.

I rarely comment on blades mostly because I'm not a maker and anything I say is mostly a matter of taste. Two things. "I Know" is how I work. Many years ago when I spent a lot of time in the shop repairing and modifying our drill rigs a couple of the old timers used to give me guff saying, "I was wasting time, nobody'll know," about deburring, chamfering edges and corners, etc. on things that got hidden in the structure I was welding up. Unless it was a temporary field patch I NEVER left a torch cut as cut. My response was, "I'll know." 

The last time they said that to me was when they said it in the office to one of the guys in charge and they responded, "That's why everybody trusts HIS work."

I love the pattern in your blade, it looks gnarly but is obviously what I call a finished blade. I am NO FAN of the ones that aren't ground anywhere except the edge, they just look unfinished and unsafe for anything involving food.

Not knowing much about blades I'm happy to call it a dirk, it looks like an effective sticker or as the author Larry Correia would say, a good stabby knife. I'd be proud to show it off in a shadow box when at home and carry it on my belt. Well, it'd have it's own belt I normally wear suspenders. 

Frosty The Lucky.

The Scottish Dirks have a short blade.

I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.
Semper Paratus

 

Hi,

          Another Kitchen Knife, forged from a Nicholson File.

 

Looks very clean. is this an order or a present?

or even just for you?

Hi,

Thanks, it's for a divorced friend, that has to cook his own meals now.

These files are pretty good material to forge, as it is good steel and the right size to completely hand forge on the anvil.

 

looks great!

 

Finished today

Jason, Great job and nice pattern