2013 Christma/Winter KITH Final Edit of Rules

What is your heat treat setup? Maybe we can help you out, or there may be someone close by who can do the heat treat.
 
I got a little bit done this weekend, so just 2 pics for now.

First pic, .040" 410SS liners profiled, drilled and reamed along with 2 profiled blade blanks and my fixture for setting the spring for flush.
I put a 45 degree bevel on the blades to give me a guide for where I want my plunges to start.

The second pic is of the nail nick and the diamond wheel I use for putting it in.

Next weekend I'll hopefully get the blades and spring ground and fit, and braze and shape the bolsters. I'll take more pictures then.




 
I´m working on two knives, a Puukoo and a ~4" user/hunter but I won´t enter one before I have them back from HT and am sure I´ll have them done in time.
 
I got a little bit done this weekend, so just 2 pics for now.

First pic, .040" 410SS liners profiled, drilled and reamed along with 2 profiled blade blanks and my fixture for setting the spring for flush.
I put a 45 degree bevel on the blades to give me a guide for where I want my plunges to start.

The second pic is of the nail nick and the diamond wheel I use for putting it in.

Next weekend I'll hopefully get the blades and spring ground and fit, and braze and shape the bolsters. I'll take more pictures then.





Looks good!
I didn't get anything done on my Kith knives this weekend. I hope to start one evening this week. I have a half complete Bowie that I can submit if I get behind on time as well. I hit a snag with my friend's dagger, and I think I have the solution figured out now.
 
I´m working on two knives, a Puukoo and a ~4" user/hunter but I won´t enter one before I have them back from HT and am sure I´ll have them done in time.

I've had a finmark puukko for like 30 years or so. Love those knives.
 
The long sanding process has begun (and everybody knows this is aggravated by OCD), so here is a sneak peak. Just the tip

dA7JeFQ.jpg
 
Ok, now it looks like a some progress has been made.

Got the bolsters and the bone cut down to size.












Got the blade and spring ground and fitted.








Bolsters brazed.










And finally mill relieved the liners and roughly shaped the bolsters with a 60 grit belt.











Today I'll H.T. and give it a test fitting after.
 
Thanks quint.


Today I got the scales pretty much finished and the blade and spring in the oven and tempered twice.












Gave it a trial run too. The blade warped about .005" to the side, I'll try and straighten tomorrow with another temper. Other than that she seems pretty good.




 
Thanks quint.


Today I got the scales pretty much finished and the blade and spring in the oven and tempered twice.












Gave it a trial run too. The blade warped about .005" to the side, I'll try and straighten tomorrow with another temper. Other than that she seems pretty good.





Its looking good. I got my profiles cut this weekend, and the bevels rough ground in. If I get a chance to clean them up a bit tonight, I will post some pics.
 
I didn't get back out to the shop last weekend, but I snapped a pic of the profiled blades I am working on. The larger knife isn't the kith knife, just a nearly identical knife I had at hand when I snapped the pic. The kith knife has a larger tang. This one is going to be a knife for a female co-worker and she wants a smaller handle on it. The larger knife is 1/8" 1095, and will be clay hardened. The smaller one is 3/32" 15n20. I was going to do a raised clip on this one as well, but I am leaning against it. I haven't decided on the wood for either one yet. I will choose between the cocobolo, ebony, paduak, zebrano (looks really good dyed amber- just finished a knife with amber zebrano) claro walnut, tigerwood, or possibly antler. I find I need the knife nearly finished in hand before the handle chooses itself for me. Usually one just jumps out.

10413248663_ae9964a1b0_c.jpg
 
Here is the actual KITH blade. my friend's blade is already hardened at Rc60, but is clay differentially heat treated. My wife put the KITH knife in the cutlery drawer :confused::):p I was worried a for a bit it went in the garbage by accident. I am leaning towards the paduak or the dyed zebrano for the small knife, and the cocobolo or the antler for the larger knife. Any thoughts? I think the Ebony is beautiful, but I think the large pattern needs a larger knife to be proportional. Once I see the hamon, I may change my mind.I am also thinking about using a different piece of zebrano, and running the grain vertically, rather than horizontally.

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Still not sure which knife I'm going to enter. Hand sanded some today, my thumbs are sore. Ordered some 1095/15n20 from Aldo yesterday. If it turns out OK, I might use that. Just got a piece of S30V back from the surface grinder and profiled out a nice 7" Santoku. Nice and thin now, and I love a usable kitchen blade for KITH entries.
 
I´ve got a parcel ready to be send off for HT now.
5 weeks is do-able :)
 
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I've got a handful of blades on the bench as potentials for my KITH entry. Got my kiln last week so I've been playing around with that too much instead of finishing blades. They also happen to be all over the place in terms of what they are... ranging from kitchen knives to camp knives to a tanto (the Japanese kind, not an american tanto).

If I didn't make it quite obvious, I'm a tad bit ADD :P Knowing this, I'll probably end up submitting a different one entirely that I haven't started yet...
 
Here is the actual KITH blade. my friend's blade is already hardened at Rc60, but is clay differentially heat treated. My wife put the KITH knife in the cutlery drawer :confused::):p I was worried a for a bit it went in the garbage by accident. I am leaning towards the paduak or the dyed zebrano for the small knife, and the cocobolo or the antler for the larger knife. Any thoughts? I think the Ebony is beautiful, but I think the large pattern needs a larger knife to be proportional. Once I see the hamon, I may change my mind.I am also thinking about using a different piece of zebrano, and running the grain vertically, rather than horizontally.

10421621826_d18e5e6f1e_c.jpg



That black and white ebony is neat looking stuff. How is it to work with?
 
You need SHARP tools, and fresh abrasives. As with other ebonies, the grain is interlocked in places. Taking your time, and working with light pressure gets best results. The tigerwood is similar to work with. I really want to cut this piece and use it on a knife. If part of the grain flows with the knife, it may just be the handle for the kith. The Paduak looks so plain in a pic like this, but in hand it has a subtle chatoyance, and seems to come alive. Every knife I have made with paduak has been a hit with the owner. Its very dimensionally stable as well, much like a harder richer version of the Honduras Mahogany. I have some really nice Mahogany as well, but its a bit on the soft side unless its stabilized. I am so undecided with handles at this point!!!!
 
This is a great idea. I just sent a bunch of knives to be heat treated and I may be able to donate one. If I get the blades back in time to get it finished before 1 Dec, I will jump in. Hope I can get it done.
 
Pictures aren't on the memory card. I`ll have to check the internal camera memory. The large blade is Rc64 after the first temper (350f after quench) and the 15NJ20 is Rc62. I did two 15N20 blades, and three 1095 blades tonight. I am tempering the 15N20 a second time at 375f, If still above Rc61, I will try 400f. I will temper the 1095 blades tomorrow at 425, and adjust from there.
 
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