Damascus maker challenge - maybe

SVanderkolff

SVanderkolff

Joined
Oct 31, 2002
Messages
979
Or at least I think it will be a challenge. What I need is a bar of damascus that once ground with a deep dagger grind will have a pattern inthe steel like the picture. Now I know my drawing skills are really bad but the idea is to end up with a fairly regular saw tooth pattern with each tooth being roughly 3/4 of the distance fromt the center line to the edge. Very few layers as I want each layer to be very indivualistic and with a large degree of contrast between layers after etching in the ferric. Is this a doable project, is this a difficult project and is anyone interested.
This will end up as the blade of a highly engraved and themed dagger.
Thanks
Steve
 
have you seen Devin Thomas's work? I am not attempting to speak for him, but if you go to his website, add a dot com to his name, he has a herringbone pattern that, given the correct "cut", might be just what you are looking for. I have a Devin Thomas Raindrop pattern blade in a Chris Reeve Mnandi that is REAL sweet! In addition to looking good, mine takes a very nice edge.

There are other forgers out there too. Maybe someone can even produce EXACTLY what you're looking for, but take a look at what you might be able to acquire "off the shelf". You might be surprised.
 
That looks like the product of a low-layer-count ladder pattern. It would be symmetric side-to-side, but exactly out of phase front-to-back. If you want it symmetric front-to-back as well, I'd imagine that you would need to do it as a mosaic, although that's just a guess as I'm not a smith, let alone a damascus-worker.
 
Opposing twists would lead to more of a chevron pattern. What this looks like to me is a modification on the old "wolf's tooth" pattern. If you set up two bars of wolf's tooth and welded them at the center you might work something like this out. I wish I had the time to play with it....

-d
 
Or, a san mai billet of 5 or 7 layers, with a thick core. Pressed with ladder dies, ground flat, then ground into a blade.
 
The pattern is as Rob and Salem descrobed...a coarse laminate ladder pattern. It would require a precise ladder die to make the pattern even. With some experimentation on the depth of the ladder pressing, the pattern should be able to look like the one shown. However there would be a learning curve. I think this would be a fine project for a maker to do in his own shop, but not one that would lend itself to an order of a single billet for a damascus maker. If ordering a billet to be made, I would specify the billet thickness and ladder spacing. The rest will be a product of the grinding. You also must realize that your pencil goes in straight lines and the metal layers bend in curves. The final pattern is not going to be perfect triangles in a row. That could only be made by a complex mosaic billet or an even more complex composite billet.

My suggestion is to order a bar of ladder pattern damascus from a supplier and make one of the daggers you want. This will give yo an idea of the final pattern. Then you can get with a damascus maker and explain the differences in the pattern you want to get, compared to that blade.
 
From the sounds of it I should look for a low layer count ladder pattern with a fairly wide pattern and see what that looks like first. I am not looking for the triangles, that is more a product of my inability to draw. Deker mentioned a"Wolf's tooth" pattern. Does anyone have any pictures of a knife withthis pattern.
Thanks for all the help.
Steve
 
Steve, some of Mike Norris lader patterns may be close to what you want. I will see if I can send you , at your email an attachment of a finished blade. Frank
 
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