FrontierForge Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 This is my first attempt at a dagger. It's a European Quillon Dagger with fluted Thuya burl handle. The blade is forged from 5160 steel. The cutting edge of the blade is 11 inches long. The guard, bolster, and pommel are mild steel. The handle is made from Thuya burl and has been treated with Carnauba wax. The flutes were hand filed. I definitely need more practice making double edged weapons. Any critique is welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Nice work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrontierForge Posted June 14, 2021 Author Share Posted June 14, 2021 Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Dear FF, Please allow me a few constructive suggestions: The blade looks good but I think you could improve some of the fittings. First, the quillions are obviously made from a piece of flat stock, bent and polished. I suggest that you start out with a thicker piece of stock and draw out the ends of the quillions. That will give a shape more pleasing to the eye. Grooves or other decorations on the quillions always look nice. Second, and this is sometimes hard for metal workers, you could improve the shape of the wooden handle. A) I suggest that the "lands" and "grooves" of the spiral cuts in the handle be symmetrical in cross section. As it is the grooves are round bottomed and the lands are flat topped. I think it would look better if the lands were rounded off to match the grooves. B. You may want to experiment with the "pitch" of the spiral to find the most pleasing angle for the steepness of the spiral. Is the pommel screwed on or secured by peining over the end of the tang? Certainly, this is much better than my first dagger. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrontierForge Posted June 14, 2021 Author Share Posted June 14, 2021 I definitely see what you are saying about making the lands match. Maybe if they had a wire inlay the flats would look better but as is I will keep that in mind for future projects. The pommel is screwed on and there is epoxy through the handle so there is both a chemical and a mechanical lock. I did the flat stock because I basically second guessed my ability to forge a symmetrical double quillon guard. I appreciate the tips and thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLAG Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Mr. F. F., Why must the quillions be symmetrical. Good job! Forge away SLAG. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 OK, here is how I would do it. Let's say you want 3" quillions, measured from the center. That is 6" total. And assume that you want them 1/8" thick at the ends. I would take a 3" piece of 1/4" or 3/8" thick stock and mark the center. Then, mark 3" on the face of your anvil and draw out one end until it is 3" long from center to end. Then, flip it around and do it on the other end. Bend to desired shape. Punch or drill the hole for the tang. File, grind, and/or polish to final shape and finish. You could be more accurate about how much metal you need to start with vs. how much you want to have when finished by using the dreaded math and calculating the volume of each. I just made a SWAG (Scientific Wild A-- Guess, much more accurate than a simple WAG) for the above example. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad J. Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 I actually like the counterpoint of the hard edges against the curves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 15 hours ago, George N. M. said: using the dreaded math and calculating the volume of each This is from The Artist Blacksmith by Peter Parkinson: This is a fancy way of saying: Tapering square stock to a point will triple the length of the starting stock. Start with stock 1/3 the length of the finished taper. Tapering round stock to a point will double the length of the starting stock. Start with stock 1/2 the length of the finished taper. Tapering square stock to a chisel end will double the length of the starting stock. Start with stock 1/2 the length of the finished taper. 17 hours ago, FrontierForge said: I basically second guessed my ability to forge a symmetrical double quillon guard. As George says, forge a double-ended taper and then bend to shape. If you don't think the taper is symmetrical enough, file it to shape before bending. Much easier to match flat than curved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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