Damascus belduque WIP

PDQ knives

PDQ knives

Joined
Oct 10, 2018
Messages
376
Good afternoon!
I've wanted to share with you my last work in progress.
There is not too much for this first part of the process, but i thought it could be interesting for you.
About three weeks ago i made a new and tinyer forge for miself. I've tested it forging some tools for the power hammer, and seeing i had some time left i decided to forge a leftover piece of damascus.
There was no much time to thinking about the design, it was some kind of free forging.
I grab the steel, threw it into the forge, and i thought: "i'm going to forge a belduque"...
This is what i got.
Xkzlk4c.jpg

The billet was about 200 - 220 layers, and as i didn't want to waste any material, i just forged it as a random pattern.
BOMpFDF.jpg

I cleaned it up with an angular grinder, and shaped it with the belt grinder. I decided to make some fullers, just because i thought they were going to look great, and i'm very pleased with that desicion.
I also carved the "bolsters" as i've never done before. It was too much work due that i made it all with files and hand sanding. I made a lot of gadgets (?) just for sanding it, some of it didn't work so well...
At least it turned out really good.
pcDOqlX.jpg

x39PDHH.jpg

And here is the blade heat threated, with finished polish and etched.
HIRoooG.jpg

I'm glad with the pattern, although there is no pattern at all, haha. I really like the random pattern, it is always fun to look up for hidden designs on it. In this case, there is a black line all along the blade, and i think this kind of details gives character to it.

Maybe today i will start with the handle scales.

Best regards.
 
Last edited:
Dusty One said:
Really nice looking....!
Click to expand...
Thanks!!
Templehound said:
The shaping You did on the bolster knocks me off my socks!...
Extremely beautiful!:thumbsup::thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Thank you! I'm glad you like it.
john april said:
wow, how did you shape that bolster ? there are inside curves.
Click to expand...
First i make a groove all around with a round file. Then i use a half-round file to spread the groove up and down the bolsters. After that, i use the round file again trying to copy the curved line of the bolsters, meeting the grooves in a point. From that point i use all kind of things to hand sand it. I should buy a rotary tool...
I hope you understan it. It is dificult to me to explain so specific process, due that my mother languaje is spanish. If there is something you don't understand, please let me know and i'll try to explain myself better.
 
Yesterday i continued with the process.
Here is a pic with the blade and the handles materials. I decide to put some natural guayacan wood scales with brass domed pins.
zre2ndq.jpg

That wood doesn't shine in these pictures, but once it is finished is amazing. It is brown with a redish tone.
Cutting the block with a handsaw. I cut it slightly tapered counteracting the tapered tang. This way, i can make the holes in the scales easily.
b4MkO7f.jpg

I use a planner and then the grinder to flaten the surfaces.
wLRgPcl.jpg

Starting to adjust the scales to the tang. I round the edge with the belt grinder first. Ones it "copy" the rounding shape between the tang and the bolsters, i use the same knife to rubb it againts the scales as you can see in the next picture.
PgCn8Vj.jpg

This marks the scales where it gets in contact, so i hand sand this marks and repeat the process till the they grow enough to consider the contact is ok.
glmC898.jpg

Here i show you the scales in position.
bd8iusf.jpg

I was thinking to make a fuller in the scale trying to continue the one in the blade. Something like this:
QCziK6t.jpg

And maybe add some texture to it, as shown at the picture.
Let me know what do you thing about it ;)

Best regards.
 
Good morning!
Starting with the holes. I use a "G" press to hold the scale in position, then i make a hole and put a pin on it to insurance the position, repeat the process till all the holes has been made.
ldm94rh.jpg

Pre-form the scales with a handsaw, just to use the less i can the belt grinder.
cqajpKu.jpg

Shaping the scales in the belt grinder
G0QT649.jpg

Controlling it in the blade
Fn3qeO1.jpg

I decided to make the groove in the scales, i hope not to regret it... I use the belt grinder with a 35mm rubber pulley. This is what i get.
KTR0yaf.jpg

Then i start to rounding it.
l8RZcjj.jpg

And here you can see a issue that i was already had in mind. I was thinking to put some domed pins, but the thing it that the have to fit in a round surface, so i don't know how to do that. The only thing i beleive i can do is to drill a flat surface in every place for the pins.
I would like to know what do yo thing about it, if you have ever had the same issue.
3tDPGYh.jpg

deiO06b.jpg

Hope to find a solution before the afternoon.

Best regards.
 
You'd actually need to dome your pins in place after the scales are fastened.

You'd peen the head of the pin down to match the angle of that rounded surface.

Fantastic details on this knife.
 
Pablo, actually You just have to peen on.
A few weeks ago I postet a knife where I faced the same challenge.
If I may invite You to take a look here
https://bladeforums.com/threads/the-warrior-monk.1718479/
Like You I had six pins, especially the two near the ferrule had to be peened on a very steep slope.
I recommend to You to try this,
let the pin stay Your desired measure above the slab and give it on the ends a 90 Degree flat.
Because the holes are the more of less oval and the pin is on the upper point already at the rim of the hole,
You have to push 2/3 of the material downwards first, then finish perpendicular to the head where its needed to form a roundhead.
English is also not my mother tounge so I hope You got what I mean.o_O;)

In my opinion doomed and riveted pins are mechanically the strongest and best technique to attach handle slabs to a flat tang.
so doomed pins are a must for a such a stylish and classic knife....back then they had no epoxy to rely on.

they shallow fullers in the blade and! in the handle slabs are superb...:thumbsup:!
I am very excited to see it finished.!
Cheers

ps: well John replyed a bit faster and his advice is valuable as well:thumbsup:
 
eric brinkerhoff said:
Maybe counter-sink for some small ,brass "washers"and dome the pins onto that. Maybe a little file work on the washers?
Your work is outstanding!
Click to expand...
Thanks for your feedback! I'm not following you very good, sorry. Do you have any picture as example of that?
J. Doyle said:
You'd actually need to dome your pins in place after the scales are fastened.

You'd peen the head of the pin down to match the angle of that rounded surface.

Fantastic details on this knife.
Click to expand...
Thanks John! Maybe that's the best way to do that, but also the most stressful. I imagine i should make some tooling to make that.
Templehound said:
Pablo, actually You just have to peen on.
A few weeks ago I postet a knife where I faced the same challenge.
If I may invite You to take a look here
https://bladeforums.com/threads/the-warrior-monk.1718479/
Like You I had six pins, especially the two near the ferrule had to be peened on a very steep slope.
I recommend to You to try this,
let the pin stay Your desired measure above the slab and give it on the ends a 90 Degree flat.
Because the holes are the more of less oval and the pin is on the upper point already at the rim of the hole,
You have to push 2/3 of the material downwards first, then finish perpendicular to the head where its needed to form a roundhead.
English is also not my mother tounge so I hope You got what I mean.o_O;)

In my opinion doomed and riveted pins are mechanically the strongest and best technique to attach handle slabs to a flat tang.
so doomed pins are a must for a such a stylish and classic knife....back then they had no epoxy to rely on.

they shallow fullers in the blade and! in the handle slabs are superb...:thumbsup:!
I am very excited to see it finished.!
Cheers

ps: well John replyed a bit faster and his advice is valuable as well:thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Thank you!
First of all, good job with that knife, it looks great!
As I replied to John, I will need to focus more to do it, there is a high probability of ruining it. I'm not that good at making dome pins, and doing it there is a double challenge. We are going to find it out.

Thank you all for the help!
 
Im sorry I didnt get back to you. I failed to find a picture. What I do is put a piece of round stock a little bit bigger than my pin stock in the lathe and drill out the center to fit my pins. Then I cut off a short piece to fit in a counterbored hole in the handle material. Often I will add some filework to the face of these "bushings"then epoxy them into the counterbored pin holes. Then when I peen the pins they come up against these little "bushings instead of directly against the handle material. I hope that explains it...
 
eric brinkerhoff said:
Im sorry I didnt get back to you. I failed to find a picture. What I do is put a piece of round stock a little bit bigger than my pin stock in the lathe and drill out the center to fit my pins. Then I cut off a short piece to fit in a counterbored hole in the handle material. Often I will add some filework to the face of these "bushings"then epoxy them into the counterbored pin holes. Then when I peen the pins they come up against these little "bushings instead of directly against the handle material. I hope that explains it...
Click to expand...
Thanks! That's what i thought.
I think that the space between the pinhole and the "fuller" is too short, so i believe this is not the best solution for me.
 
Good morning everyone!
Well, i missed up... I had to re do the scales due that i over sanded following a wrong line. The scales in the pictures should be "taller" than the bolsters.
ibhJYEw.jpg

i missed like 3 or 4 hours on redoing the scales.
Here's a pic sanding the scales.
4Xm2OIm.jpg

And here is the final result after buffing. I think this pics doesn't show very well the results. I made a video also, it is way more appreciable on it, maybe I'm upload it to instagram.
kmWpRjY.jpg

aEzRIyX.jpg

Then i modified my pin jig to adapt at the scales curve. That way i could make the half of the work outside the scales, at least that's what i thought...
kzpFu11.jpg

Here is one pin in the scale
gF5NJbL.jpg

From that point i start to practice make pins. I had too much troubles with it. The brass is too brittle, if you miss one blow, it breaks, even if it is softened. I would love to have some cooper wire or bar.
The last pin i done is made of stailess steel. I had to grind a bigger bar to the right size, due that i hasn't got it. The problem with stainless steel is that it is too much resistens to deform, and even if i wanted to use it, i don't have the right size of it.
I have to say, I'm really tempted to glue it all and sanding the pins to the level of the scales. I'm loosing my patience with this, i think already spent a great amount of time on this project. I'm going to give it a few days more, if i can't make the domed pins the way i wan't, i'm going to do plan B.
In the next picture you can see the two pair of scales, a bunch of broken pins in the bottom, and a few average well made pins in the right.
VyxN88m.jpg

Maybe I'm over hitting and going too far. The head spreads a lot, i believe it is cause by the curve, it is difficult to control the material to flow in certain direction.
I will continue making some pins today... what else...
 
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