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Design Critique - for a Marine - FINISHED!!

Thanks guys and thanks for the tips Mike! My tastes lean towards the simple, clean and subtle but that's not to say that I won't experiment in the other direction. My first batch of knives should be coming back from HT any day now and I'll see how it goes finishing up this one before I make up my mind to send it to him. Overall I am fairly happy with it but I won't be satisfied until it comes out like the vision in my head and I doubt I left enough steel on this one to really get it there. We shall see. Even if all else seems okay I would still need to be happy with the plunge (my nemesis) before I let it go out and have people judge my work based on an example I wasn't satisfied with. So, most likely I'll work on a next batch with the same pattern and maybe end up with something I am proud to lay claim to.

I don't think I left enough material to trust myself on the grinder post HT so I will most likely finish it by hand. I have yet to work on a post HT blade but I think the biggest lesson learned so far is to leave more material so I can finish them slower on the grinder. The second lesson is to more deliberately drill the locations for the tube placement. Rookie mistake but possibly fixable.

Obviously I am talking about the bottom one. photo.jpg
 
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Why not stock removal CPM C3V for steel choice? If I was in combat, I would want the best possible, and from looking at the charts its the best thing going. I'd also prefer a shorter blade but that's personal and I'm not a soldier. I do like the idea of serrations or clip point for extra penetration.
 
As good as it is, I really would hesitate to call 3v the best. Since I am not doing the HT myself I plan on buying a different steel on my next order when I finish up my 1084. I haven't decided on what to get but 3v is on my short list although the difficulty to work with it may put off me trying it until down the road. More than likely I will go with either CPM-154cm or Elmax. I don't yet know enough about the disadvantages of moving to a stainless and will they outweigh the benefits in a combat/survival midsize knife.

BTW- I edc a 3v knife and it chips fairly easy at (IIRC) 59-61. Not the ultimate test and it won't dissuade me completely from its use but personal experience always holds weight for me.
 
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Finally finished it. Phew, that took awhile. I ran into many unexpected challenges due to me trying out etching. I polished it then etched a pattern into it then polished that out then re-etched with no pattern then... you get the idea. The strange "artifact" in the blade was something I posted about on another thread and the end result was that I decided to just roll with it. The darkness in some areas of the ricasso are from the same reason and I just couldn't find a way to get rid of those. It was a little darker before but i am okay with the way it is now. All in all, I like it but I didn't make the handle wide enough. To compensate for that I added a spacer/liner which thickened it up a little to fill out the hand more. I keep telling myself that it was not meant for my big hands but for his tiny hands :).

I haven't sharpened it up yet and I will hold off on that until I finish the sheath. I won't even attempt the sheath until I order some molle-lok system so I can get the spacing exact.

This could either be considered my second or third knife depending how you keep stats. I made this somewhat in tandem with another which I put a handle on first but then put aside while I finished this one up. I have pictures of that one if anybody cares.

I like the fact that I learned some different skills on this one and more importantly I learned what not to do.

I did go with the 1084 as that was what I had from my original order from Aldo but after I finish up the rest from my first batch I will add some CPM 154CM to the order and maybe some Elmax if I can find the size I want from somewhere.

For anyone like me who is starting out I would like to throw this recommendation out to you. Don't make your first batch too large. I still have 6 more to put handles on and my mind expanded beyond my initial grinding phase and I want to try out some different things but I feel that i am now stuck with finishing up what I already have. Probably not a big deal if I had ten+ hours a week to work on them but when you have only a little time it seems like an eternity before I will be able to stretch my designs.

The blade is 5.25" and the OAL is 10". 3/16" thick and the blade is 1.25". Anyway, comments and critiques are welcome as always. I can take it.

Thanks for all the help!

bran left.jpgbran close.JPGbran ricasso.JPGlong.jpgphoto.JPG
 
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(Disclaimer: sections of this post are graphic and describe the intended use of this type of knife. If this makes you uncomfortable, skip ahead.)

Speaking from the point of view of a guy who teaches this stuff to the guys who teach this stuff, that's a good fighter size and shape. There are as many types of fighting knives as there are ways to fight with them. That said, these days we focus on simplicity and direct threat response fighting. I teach Krav Maga tempered with a little old fashioned street fighting... We hold a knife the old fashioned way, and use it the way that feels natural. There will be a moment your son may have to use this knife to defend himself. He will instinctively respond and fall back on his training. I know the USMC teaches a very aggressive and instinctive fighting style with a knife, and this design is right in their wheelhouse.
Handle size seems to be spot on, I personally like wide and short versus tall and thin. A lot of finishing techniques rely on being behind your opponent. This requires reversing your grip to draw the blade across their neck or into their chest cavity. A rounderish handle makes this easier. Hence the shape of the good old Ka-Bar USMC fighter...
I am in the process of developing an entry knife for a fellow SWATty who practices Silat. He likes the karambit style, but we tried to design something almost anyone can use, but honestly does favor the Silat fighter... To that end... there is nothing that compares to producing a knife someone very well might have to trust their life to. I know I have never before put so much thought, care and design in a knife. The guy it is going to is like a brother and has honestly saved my bacon before, but I can hardly comprehend it it was going to my son. It also appears you kept in mind that it will be used for much much more than just self defense and designed that in.
Short story, nice knife. I for one think you did an outstanding job. I wish your son the best of luck.
 
Thank you very much guys. Lucy, you gave me a lot to think about. I like the idea of a more rounded handle and I think I will try out some thicker g-10 or micarta liners in the future.

Not that it makes much difference because the sentiment is really the same but the knife is for my cousins son. I have only daughters and as proud as I would be to have a son who is a Marine, I would also be walking through life scared shitless so I guess it's a relief not to be in that boat.
 
Good job, man. Looks like you got your flared tubes fixed up. Nice looking knife.
 
Strider, you stated that you have an edc that is chipping. I have made quite a few blades out of 3v and were tempered to 61 by Paul Bos and no reports of chipping.
 
strider214 said:
Thank you very much guys. Lucy, you gave me a lot to think about. I like the idea of a more rounded handle and I think I will try out some thicker g-10 or micarta liners in the future.

Not that it makes much difference because the sentiment is really the same but the knife is for my cousins son. I have only daughters and as proud as I would be to have a son who is a Marine, I would also be walking through life scared shitless so I guess it's a relief not to be in that boat.
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Sorry, I misread that it was your son, but none the less it is family, and family in harms way always rattles a nerve no matter how you're related. If you are close enough to make him a knife, you're definitely close enough to care.

I won't get on my political soapbox here, but the young men and women we send to police the world's idiot countries need all the good tools they can get. And all the support we can muster here at home no matter how insignificant the gesture may seem.

Cheers.
 
Good looking knife, he should be proud to carry it. I like the design, clean and simple and rugged.
 
LucyCustomKnives said:
Sorry, I misread that it was your son, but none the less it is family, and family in harms way always rattles a nerve no matter how you're related. If you are close enough to make him a knife, you're definitely close enough to care.

I won't get on my political soapbox here, but the young men and women we send to police the world's idiot countries need all the good tools they can get. And all the support we can muster here at home no matter how insignificant the gesture may seem.

Cheers.
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Amen brother! I have a few friends in service, and I thank and pray for them every day. Great looking knife! He will love it.
 
The knife came out great, awesome job. That looks just about perfect for a marine, let us know his reaction when he gets it.
 
Thanks a ton guys. Wanted to respond sooner but I was working on my boat all weekend. It's never taken me this long into the season before I was able to get her in the water. Missed the whole Spring striper runs. :(

Leif - The tubes thankfully did come out okay. I did epoxy them in as Dan suggested and also cut them barely wider than the knife handle this time.

Walt - I had to check out the 3V blade under some magnification and saw that there were flat spots rather than chips. Maybe my knife is softer than it should be rather than being too hard? I think is was 59-60 and I belive a 3V folder should probably go a little higher but I'm no expert. I'm kinda wishing it was 60-61.

Thanks again guys! These comments let me know I am on the right track but feel free to throw me the negatives as well.
 
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