Another on it's way to the desert...

Joined
Feb 6, 2001
Messages
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Here is one heading to the desert for service in the IDF. This soldier's guy wanted her to have a custom tool that will not only serve her well in the field but, remind her of home and what she's serving for.

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This piece is one of my Adirondack Hunter models in "antiqued" 1084. This piece has a integral guard, thumb drop and exposed pommel for comfort, safety and utility. The full tang is sandwiched in un-dyed/stabilized Curly Maple secured with stainless steel handle bolts. For changing carry options (depending on the situation and gear issues) I made a tan Kydex sheath with a large Tek-lock.

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Real nice looking, figure she will be proud to carry that one. Couldnt sneak in some pink liners :D
 
How did you do the finish?

No sweat, it's not overly complicated at all. You can finish your
blade up to a 400 grit finish and then coat it with plain yellow (cheap)
mustard. I usually coat the blade and then us a Popsicle stick to add
"highs & lows" to the mustard (kinda lightly smack the blade with
the stick). You can let the mustard sit on the blade for as long as you like
(I’ve left it on for as long as 2 weeks). If you leave the mustard on
overnight, you'll have a good dark finish. The longer you leave the mustard on,
the more patterning you will have on the finished project. Once you're ready to
move on, take Clorox bleach and heat the bleach to just below boiling (do this
wearing a respirator and in a well ventilated area) and put the blade in,
mustard and all. Leave the blade in the bleach for approx. 3 min., then pull
the blade out and scrub it down with course steel wool (it'll look like the
blade is rusting before your eyes). Now put the blade back in the bleach and
repeat this process 4-8 times, depending on how dark you want your blade. Once
you have achieved the depth of finish you want, put the blade into baking
soda/water and boil it for 15-20 min. to neutralize the blade, otherwise it
will continue to "rust". That's it, your good to go with a cool
looking, non-reflective finish that requires almost no effort to maintain.
Also, to date, I have used this same method on 1080-84-95, 5160, 52100, O1,
15N20, M4 & L6 with very good results.

I'm also planning on doing a YouTube video on this process soon, as well.

I hope this helps,
J.
 
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