Finish to fine?

Dale Baxter

Dale Baxter

Joined
Sep 16, 2003
Messages
171
At what point is a finish to fine for a working knife?
99% of my knives are hand rubbed to 2000+ grit, (that's simply the way I learned to finish)
I was talking with other makers at the Spirit of steel show and I was told that my finishes were to fine? Now I kind of pride myself with the ability to show a frosty temperline with a lot of activity without etching the blade in some sort of acid.

To me, it's a working knife because of the style and materials...not the finish. When you use the blade in the field the finish will hold unless you his something hard, in that case a 400-600 finish would receive the same amount of damage.

Just a thought...

Dale Baxter
www.baxterknives.com
I posted this thread in the main area and I guess I should have posted it here...sorry for the trouble
 
i go to x100 to x45 which is 150 to 240 grit.once in a while to 400g. i admire mirror finish, and your are right that a scratch is a scratch, it just shows up so badly on a 2000g finish that it looks terrible to me. IMO
 
I don't think I'd let anything out less than 1200 grit. I did a couple at 600 and was embarrassed - I felt like I hadn't finished the job. Normally I take it to 1200 than mirror polish. When hand rubbed I take it to 1200 and often have thought I should go to 2000. Sigh. I guess that's next, now. :D

Yes, scratches will show up - but that's the owner's issue, not the maker's. I understand we're talking about working finish here, not that on a high end collector's knife. But to me they are the same thing - my work has my name on it.

I have to admit my customers are not paying fully for that finish. Taking it so far adds 3 to 6 hours minimum to the production time, and my prices don't reflect it (yet). But it's definately part of what I make and I have to believe the price will follow eventually.

Just my .02.

Dave
 
Originally posted by ddavelarsen

Yes, scratches will show up - but that's the owner's issue, not the maker's. I understand we're talking about working finish here, not that on a high end collector's knife. But to me they are the same thing - my work has my name on it.
Just my .02.
Dave
Click to expand...

good for you Dave
I agree
if your name is on it you need to finish it.
some guys do a very good job hand rubbing and looks very nice
as well it should anything less it's your rep..
I mirrow or bead blast most the time and I'm messing with acid ecthing too.
 
Dale,
You don't need to take your knives any finer than a worn 60x. Leave 'em tough looking. :D I was thinking along the same lines about 1am this morning while I hand rubbed a field knife. I could leave my blades at 600x and most of my customers wouldn't care, I could leave most of my blades at 1000x and just about all of my customers wouldn't care, I rub to 2000x because I care.
Course I have to explain to some people that the frosted line isn't a blemish that it's the temper line. Ahhh well ;)

Wifey signed off on my visit this weekend if it's still on. Should I bring my Irish Red Ale?
 
I usually stop at 400 grit.
I mostly build knives that are intended to be carried and used. IMHO, if it leaves with a nice scratch pattern, bead blasted, or stone washed the customer will use it. If it's all shiny it might get used but more than likely it will never see the light of day.

If you refurbish for free like I do, and you get 2 or 3 back in a week that need refinish back to 2000 grit, it won't take long before you are driving for J.B. Hunt Trucking :D
 
Hey Kit is J.B Hunt hiring, I might need to check them out.

I like a mirror finish, I've carried and used one on a bowie for 2 years now and it looks great. I understand the issues with a mirror finish over other finishes, time is a big factor, but as a maker if that is what you like and prefer to do then do it. A bunch of your production knives are still mirror finished when they're new and most buy to use.All my knives are made to use,mirror finished or not. In my opinion, and we all have one, there's nothing prettier in a knife then a shiny mirror finish. They can be a pain in the butt, I agree, but I like them.

Bill
 
Hey, where can I get me one of them Kit Carson knives that are finished to 2000 grit? :)
 
Danbo,
It happened during one of those moments I sometimes have, and thank goodness it passed :)

Guys, I didn't mean don't do shiny. I love em too. I just know some makers that refuse to do anything but that and I think they are loosing sales. If you are in it for the long haul, you gotta offer every type of finish a customer could want, even if it's a gray ****. :) (t*rd)

(and no, Dan, the use of the word gray had nothing to do with you:) )

It edited out the gray(starts with a t and ends with a d):)
 
are you sure Kit? I caught a hint of something there :confused:
man was I bummed out .....just kidding :D

...I see..... the color grey.... not the name gray :eek:
it's one of those four lettered words:D :D
My great Grand Dad would jump on anyone miss spelling the word.

:( you had to be there to appreciate it :D :D
 
Dale, I think your knives are great. Your finish is your trademark style. I will say that I think a lesser finish on a tactical knife is fine, but for anything else any degree of finish is up to the maker.
 
Originally posted by Graymaker
are you sure Kit? I caught a hint of something there :confused:
man was I bummed out .....just kidding :D

...I see..... the color grey.... not the name gray :eek:
it's one of those four lettered words:D :D
My great Grand Dad would jump on anyone miss spelling the word.

:( you had to be there to appreciate it :D :D
Click to expand...


Main Entry: 1gray
Pronunciation: 'grA
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English gr[AE]g; akin to Old High German grIs, grAo gray
Date: before 12th century
1 a : of the color gray b : tending toward gray <blue-gray eyes> c : dull in color
2 : having the hair gray : HOARY
3 : clothed in gray
4 a : lacking cheer or brightness in mood, outlook, style, or flavor; also : DISMAL, GLOOMY <a gray day> b : prosaically ordinary : DULL, UNINTERESTING
5 : having an intermediate and often vaguely defined position, condition, or character <an ethically gray area>
- gray·ly adverb
- gray·ness noun


Main Entry: grey
variant ofGRAY


I never could figure which was which, and it looks like Merriam Webster can't either.

:confused:
 
Man, that Hull character sure is a smart a$$...PAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ;)

Dale, I agree, it's up to you...to determine what fits into your style and what you want to make. If you get to a point where you can't seel them, then it's time to rethink it.

I have been fortunate to spend time in the shops of two makers that are absolutely specific on how a finish should look. I have seen a lot of makers finishes in the lower grit that didn't look too swell.

But if you REALLY put your all into it, and get an absolutely EVEN scratch pattern with no "start-stops" or "j-hooks" even a 320x looks very nice (IMHO). That's the ticket though, even many of the headliners still have stray scratches and j-hooks.

I used to do a mirror finish but just don't care for it anymore. I am all about crisp and clean, and I feel a very well executed hand-sanded blade is the way to get that look.

My clay-hardened blades I take to 2000x, and some of them I VERY lightly etch then spend a BUNCH of time rubbing it out with polishing compounds by hand. I don't know if they're getting used hard, I doubt it since most of them are fighters.

The bottom line, is that design and finish are subjective. I don't think maker X should ever tell maker Y that their knives are wrong because they don't like the subjective elements. If blade grinds are uneven, or fit is poor, etc., that's another story.

Nick
 
DULL, UNINTERESTING that's me :)

Mike where did you get that C@@L is it on line?

it's a Scottish/English thing
in history the queen Grey
changed her name to Gray to save her neck
( which didn't help her a lot):eek:
so both were a/the name at one time.
I've never seen the name, as grey in the U.S.
just with the spelling Gray.

Crayola even spelled it as Grey for the color years back
and now I see they don't :confused:
Oh well what can I say?:D maybe I'm loosing my mind :) :footinmou :)
 
Originally posted by Graymaker

some guys do a very good job hand rubbing and looks very nice
as well it should anything less it's your rep..
Click to expand...
just for the record :)
 
Originally posted by Graymaker
DULL, UNINTERESTING that's me :)

Mike where did you get that C@@L is it on line?

it's a Scottish/English thing
in history the queen Grey
changed her name to Gray to save her neck
Click to expand...


The spelling has always confused me, and when I saw you post above, I just punched grey, and gray, into Merriam-Webster online.
My American Heritage beside the keyboard says about the same thing.

http://www.m-w.com/

I saw that Nick Wheeler!! :eek:
But, I agree with your assesment of handrubbed finishes.;)
 
I generally go between 320 and 400 depending on the knife and how it looks as I'm doing it. I'm starting with 120 grit scratches from the grinder (bench grinder) so it takes a good bit of effort just to hit the 220 mark. I think they look plenty good for what they are. If I was going to make a display peice or something I might go for something different.
 
I am a traditional kind of guy and the finish in important to me, after all it's my name on the blade...well I think it is? Wait...let me go ask the wife...yup! She said it could be my name, but I would have to do the dishes first. ha ha

I enjoy seeing the temperlines evolve as the polish goes up, I think that's the way I keep excited. And there is you guys too.

Thanks for the help (you must admit it's fairly intimidating when a BIG name critique's your knives and says the finish is ti fine)

Will,
This weekend looks good to me, fine me online tonight.
 
Originally posted by Dale Baxter

Thanks for the help (you must admit it's fairly intimidating when a BIG name critique's your knives and says the finish is ti fine)
Click to expand...

One way to look at it is, that you got your finishing down great. ;)
 
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