Blade number 3 has a guard!

Milt

Milt

Joined
Nov 16, 2008
Messages
260
Hello Fellows-
I have finished #3. This one has a brass guard. I really hesitated tackling a guard, but glad I did. It feels really nice in my hand. Here are the details:

1095
8" OL, 3.5" blade
Maroon Linen Micarta 1/4" thick, very little thinning
1/4" brass pins and tube
Hollow ground all the way up
Cootes grinder with 8" wheel

You will notice there is no maker's mark. I have a stamp, but I did leave enough ricasso to stamp it. Make and learn! I was a tad amazed that the pins holding the guard on completely disappeared into the guard. Soldering went OK, but I used just a bit too much solder, as it accumulated on the bottom sides. It is certainly not perfect. There are some minor rough spots. My BIL says you can have perfection, but you will pay for it! I think that saying really applies in the knife biz!

Of interest- I heat treated this one a bit differently than my other 2. I hardened at 1490 degrees, and tempered at 490 degrees 3 times for 1 hour each. It is hard, but I don't think too hard. I have no testing equipment. I was able to cut paper with it.

I'm having too much fun! Comments and suggestions welcomed and considered.

Milt
 

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Guards are kind of a pain. But it gives me warm fuzzy feelings now that I'm starting to get them right. Nice job Milt!
 
Looks good.
On #4 try and round the handle more at the corners. The real sign of a good custom knife maker is that the handles don't look like a rectangle with rounded corners, but more like an oval.

Keep up the good work.
Stacy
 
Nice knife. I agree with Stacy about the handle but the guard is much harder to get right so you are well on your way there.

Thanks for sharing.

Pad
 
Milt said:
Of interest- I heat treated this one a bit differently than my other 2. I hardened at 1490 degrees, and tempered at 490 degrees 3 times for 1 hour each. It is hard, but I don't think too hard. I have no testing equipment. I was able to cut paper with it.
Click to expand...

Very nice looking knife! You can do the brass rod test to check whether or not you've acheived a good temper. For the brass rod test, you put a 1/4 inch brass rod horizontally in a vice. Then, run the blade edge across the rod perpendicularly, putting a little bit of pressure on the cutting edge so that it flexes slightly. If it chips, it's a little too hard and should be drawn a little further. If it flexes and stays bent, you've drawn the temper too far (too soft) and the blade will need to be re-hardened. If the edge flexes and returns to shape, you're in the ballpark.
 
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