An Evening with The Bransons

Lorien

Lorien

Nose to the Grindstone
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Dec 5, 2005
Messages
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We had a nice family visit today, roasted weinies on the fire;

[video=youtube_share;uQ-AexaqWg4]http://youtu.be/uQ-AexaqWg4[/video]

Good way to usher out 2012 and set the sights on the future.



The future holds within it many excellent knives, and I've found yet another to accompany us on the march forward.



Stuart cleaned the scale reducer off the forged to shape knife he was working on, and put an edge on it;

[video=youtube_share;Wj9ma_dkqKA]http://youtu.be/Wj9ma_dkqKA[/video]


[video=youtube_share;sA0PLMR0788]http://youtu.be/sA0PLMR0788[/video]
 
Then we all went outside to play. Stu offered me first sap, but I could not be the first to try out his new blade. I mean, what if I broke it? How would that feel? Not very good, not good at all. If it's gonna break on the first swing, best it be the maker who finds out. Not that it was a concern, knowing what I do of Stuart's excellent attention to heat related details.

This is Douglas Fir. Not seasoned so still not too super hard, but I made it a point to cut into as many knots as possible. Medium heavy swing into this fresh branch. Good penetration, does not stick either. No change in the edge from when it was sharpened. Amazing performer!

dec2012008.jpg



Stuart, well he likes breaking chips out after chopping a knife into the lumber. Not very good for the knife, and brittle steel with show itself quickly due to this kind of abuse. Performed like a champ. Whisked the branches off like they weren't there. No lateral twisting, a nice light and lively feel. Easy to handle, even though the temporary cord wrap is far from ideal.

[video=youtube_share;XZnYvgSTVXc]http://youtu.be/XZnYvgSTVXc[/video]




I did actually hit this golf ball, and stuck it to the edge in midair. It was my third try at this somewhat stupid/fun thing to do with a knife. Didn't get it on video, but I took a picture. Believe it or not!

dec2012012.jpg


Trying in vain to recreate a lucky shot;

[video=youtube_share;Avzmu0RfQIw]http://youtu.be/Avzmu0RfQIw[/video]


So, we gotta figure out what kind of wood, (or perhaps green micarta) to use for the handle. I'd say we wait til the blade is polished and hamon emerges, but we got bog oak, stabilized and not, stabilized maple, virgin walnut, and virgin oak. I want a little turk's head in hemp at the front of the handle and an inset wrap over the palm swell area.

dec2012007.jpg


My pet name for it is The Stukhuri. This knife was a total surprise, I saw it for the first time today, and Stu kind of hurried it to completion cause he knew I'd like it. I am very excited by this unexpected opportunity!

I hope Stu will post up some of the pictures of the post forging process showing how near net his hammer forging skills are allowing him to achieve. Quite remarkable. The hamon promises to be exceptional, no clay. Just geometry.
 
Stukhuri!?! Ha!!

Hey.. I didn't know you were even filming me chopping there. :p:p What I meant by "not bad for green wood" was how easy the chips flew. Sometimes on green fir I find that there is enough "give" in the wood that the blade can kind of bounce or "tear" the wood. This one was sinking in deep and releasing cleanly.

Too bad you didn't get that first whack at the golf ball on film, that was pretty funny. :D

This was my first try at forging a khukuri and I started with a piece of W2 about 1 1/4" x 3/4" by 12" and a drawing. I was pretty proud of myself afterwards. I think this is about as close to finished I've ever forged anything and it has all it's bevels and distal tapers.
It did take a long time though...

IMG_54521_zpsdb49b4aa.jpg


Thanks for the post Lorien. It was a fun surprise to the end of a fun day.

Looking forward to the next time.
 
Good comfortable viewing. Super chopper!

Lorien: How far are you from Stuart's home?

(BTW - If you were a teenager, smacking that golf ball at the car, I'd want to backhand you and tell you what a dope you were. But you're not, so I won't.... ;)) LOL!

Thanks for this.

Coop
 
Stukhuri is a good name, but a blade like this deserves a sho' nuff handle. How about "WICKED BEAVER"???:D
 
SharpByCoop said:
Good comfortable viewing. Super chopper!

Lorien: How far are you from Stuart's home?

(BTW - If you were a teenager, smacking that golf ball at the car, I'd want to backhand you and tell you what a dope you were. But you're not, so I won't.... ;)) LOL!

Thanks for this.

Coop
Click to expand...

it's an hour or so of dark, narrow, winding roads. Really lucky to live so close, but neither of us get out much so if we get a couple visits in per year we're doing pretty good.

LOL re the van! It's my POS, and believe me, a golf ball is the least of its problems!
 
Very cool guys! Ditto to what Gregory wrote. :)

Next time keep the record button on longer than 16 seconds though. Please. :p :D

Stuart--- very nice hammer work, with your super cool styling!!! :thumbup: :cool:
 
any other handle material suggestions? I do like that light, antiqued oak look with hemp wrappings, maybe some elven runes...
 
Stu- your post excites me! I LOVE ideas...

To the rest of you, thank you so much for your kind words.
 
NickWheeler said:
Next time keep the record button on longer than 16 seconds though. Please. :p :D
Click to expand...
Actually I was quite pleased at the minimal length of these vids. MOST newbie videographers, ahem, spend more than the necessary time reshowing or with filler. There's a lesson here. :D ;)

(I'm going to experiment with vids soon, and my challenge is to include as much info as possible in a short time, without it being a 'music video' choppy, or repeating info. A tall order.)

Coop
 
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