Bruce Bump MS - Winding Feather Fighter - WIP

Really incredible skills shown here :thumbup:

Thanks very much Roger ....... and of course Bruce :)

I don't know about you guys, but I'm taking extensive notes.

When Bruce Bump talks, knifemakers listen ;) :cool:




:cool:
 
Thanks guys.

A bit more from Bruce on the oil finish:

"After getting the knife back from Robin I applied the first of many coats of Tru-oil and sanded it mostly back off again while wet using 400 grit. I can give it a coat or two per day for a week or two and sand it between going up in grits until I reach 2000. Be sure it is dry before applying another coat. note: this is thinned by 1/3 mineral spirits remember that. Peel the label off the bottle as the instructions are NG. I told you it was time consuming didnt I?"

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Roger
 
Bruce and Roger, Thanks for the pictures and WIP updates. I feel like I learn a lot from watching you guys!! Really great looking knife, maybe I am starting to like damascus after all. Really, thanks guys!
 
I don't know much about knife making.. but I would have never guessed the finished blade would have came from the first photo.
What was done to the blade to make the pattern come out? At one point, the blade looked like a basic silver color, then the next pic blew me away.. was it some sort of acid that brings the damascus pattern out?
 
Evan - yes, the blade is etched in acid to bring out the pattern. Since the two different steels (which are forge welded and manipulated to form the pattern) etch differently (one darker than the other) a dip in acid reveals the pattern.

Roger
 
Having done a fair number of gunstocks with Tru Oil (not my favorite) I would suggest that the amount of work can be cut in half by using Verathane's Poly Oil finish as a filler. The poly fills the wood much better than Tru Oil and gets hard. Tru Oil has hardening issues, and can often soften when recoated. The Poly Oil stuff works like an oil finish and can be used on it's own to do a better than average job, but using a hand rubbed oil over the top of it gives better results.

As for oil fishishes, I prefer Clive Lemon's products.
 
Roger, congrats to you and Bruce on a fabulous project. For you, watching this WIP must be like watching your own child being born, BUT OVER DAYS AND WEEKS!!

The extended gratification must be very thrilling. :thumbup:
 
^^^ Indeed - seeing the knife come together step by step adds a level of appreciation and enjoyment of the final piece, as does being able to share the process with my fellow forumites. It can't happen on every knife, of course, as it's very time consuming for the maker to photograph and explain all the steps. But it's a great benefit to us all when they can.

Further update from Bruce:

I formed and soldered the 1018 steel tip for the sheath today. This tip will be nickel plated the same as all the rest of the 1018 parts. I used high temp silver solder and a jewelers torch. If I had a tig welder this would have been a good one to use it on.

The two halves are .040" thick and are hammered around a 1/4" thick steel mandrel shaped exactly like the sheath tip and rounded on the edges. All the excess is cut off before soldering. The joint needs to be as flat as possible so theres no gaps to fill. These two parts are also tapered slightly. Care must be taken to make them the right size so theres no unsightly gaps around the top where it meets the leather. The leather is ground away enough to make room for the tip except for just a little at the top for a snug fit. I think I'll epoxy it and drill a small hole at the very bottom and pin it on with a nickel silver domed pin from the back side.

I should have mentioned that this sheet metal was stiff and moved hard until I ran the torch over it to anneal it. I had to do that twice as it seemed to work harden from bending it over the mandrel.


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An update on the black walnut handle. I'm up to 6 or 7 coats and at 1500 grit. Its nice and smooth and beginning to take on a deeper look. Its about 1/2 way done as I want to go to 2500 - 4000 grit and polish it.


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Roger
 
This is a great thread. Bruce it's very informative to watch you make a knife. Super job.

Jim Treacy
 
Just realized I hadn't commented on Bruce's and Roger's knife thread. Well, because I've been too awestruck, as is only right when following Bruce at work.

This is another B.Bump triumph. Good for you both.

John
 
Further update from Bruce:

"Well the handle is at 4000 grit pink jewelers polishing cloth now and ready to send out for the checkering. I spent some time on the spacers and coin edged them with a fine checkering file and polished the guard and pommel in preparation for the nickel plating process. I like a mirror finish on the nickel plating so I needed to mirror finish the 1018 parts including the tip for the sheath.
This knife is nearly finished.
Dont worry I'll try to get a couple better pictures of the knife especially after we get the nickel plating finished. The mirror parts are so hard to photograph."


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Roger
 
COOL. Another exceptional knife...no surprise there.

Question: In the second to last picture, what type of file is that? I'm assuming it is used to put the fine grooves on the spacers.

Thanks,
Peter
 
Peter that is a checkering file. They are made to do just that, put evenly spaced grooves in the work. They are made in different grooves per inch to get the desired look. Very handy to have around.
 
This thread has been so exciting to follow!
Thank you both for sharing it here for all to enjoy!
Bruce, you are amazing!
I am thrilled for you, Roger!
(Bet you are getting a TAD excited)
 
We're in the home stretch now guys. :)

A word from Bruce on the nickel plating of the fittings:



"My buddy Lon finally came home from vacation and we did the nickel plating today.

I needed to sand all the 1018 parts down to 2500 grit and double check for grinder marks. The parts were soaked in the cleaning solution and dipped into the nickel plating solution for 20 minutes. Lon is writing a detailed "How to" article on his plating procedure and will submit it to Blade Magazine. Steve Shakleford called me months ago and wanted to do this article so it is finally almost ready for him."




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"A quick buff and these parts are finished. I love this color and its very durable. I'll get a finished shot of the knife and sheath asap. I just really need to put the tip on the sheath and sharpen the blade and this knife will be put away until the Denver Show the 20th of this month."
 
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