Stradawhovious Posted April 8, 2021 Share Posted April 8, 2021 Howdy! Noob here hailing from the middle of nowhere central MN. I've been tinkering with forging steel jewelry for a few months, and now have started in on knives. I will be starting with stock removal (3 blades in, 4th in the tempering oven as I type this) but hope to graduate to forging blades once I get my feet wet so to speak. Here are a couple pics of my first three. Will be sticking with small skinners for the time being, as I figure it's better to practice the same thing over and over rather than throw a bunch of variables into the mix right away. Far from perfect, but perfect from far. I have a lot to learn, but have come a long way in a short time. Looking forward to learning from the lot of you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 8, 2021 Share Posted April 8, 2021 Intended use? Alloy? Heat treat? The handles look excellently sized and shaped for some uses! I'm not a big fan of lots of unground steel unless it will be used for prying; but that's a personal consideration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stradawhovious Posted April 8, 2021 Author Share Posted April 8, 2021 1 hour ago, ThomasPowers said: Intended use? Alloy? Heat treat? The handles look excellently sized and shaped for some uses! I'm not a big fan of lots of unground steel unless it will be used for prying; but that's a personal consideration. These are small skinners, OAL is around 6” on all of them. I know a lot of hunters, so these three have already found homes. The steel is 1084, thermocycled 4 times and quenched in oil, then tempered at 375f for two hours, twice. I carry one of them as an edc, and it’s incredibly handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 8, 2021 Share Posted April 8, 2021 By thermocycled; do you mean normalized and not one of the other thermocycles? For skinning knives I like something like bead blasted micarta or even Corian handle, perhaps mounted with cap screws to allow dismounted for a through cleaning, ++ on they kydex sheath for cleaning. (For messy users I have used the screw fasteners for leather work to make them able to really clean the sheath!) Handle shape and size looks excellent for that use, I assume the top of the tip is flat to keep from poking through in use? In your area I'd think they would be steady sellers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stradawhovious Posted April 8, 2021 Author Share Posted April 8, 2021 Yep, normalized, sorry new at this, still learning the lingo. The wood was used out of convenience on the first two since I already had it laying around, then I opted for the G10 on the third for convenience in cleaning and durability. After I knock a few more out I may look into the removable scale option. Kydex seems like a solid go to for the sheath on these. Scrub them out, dry and good to go. As far as leaving the top of the tip flat, it just seemed more conducive to the design for me, especially when working around things you don't want to puncture. I'm anxiously awaiting field testing notes from the folks that I'm giving these to, so I can modify the design accordingly (it's going to be a minute, with deer season 7 months away), so for now these are just an exercise in learning more than anything else being the first three knives I've made. I'm sure these will get refined, and better with every one, that's the hope anyways! Thanks! The handles really are incredibly comfortable and easy to index for their intended purpose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 8, 2021 Share Posted April 8, 2021 Are you drilling any holes in the full tang to lighten it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stradawhovious Posted April 8, 2021 Author Share Posted April 8, 2021 Not on the very first one "top pic", since I forgot (first knife jitters) but in the others I have a bunch of 1/8" holes drilled in addition to the holes for the pins. Not sure how much weight reduction that offers, but if nothing else it provides a place for the epoxy to grab... and these blades are pretty small and light to begin with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 8, 2021 Share Posted April 8, 2021 Looks like you are doing the right things already; can't wait to see where you go from here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stradawhovious Posted April 8, 2021 Author Share Posted April 8, 2021 Neither can I! Thanks! I look forward to soaking up the knowledge of the more experienced folks like a sponge, and learning from each one of my projects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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