Finishing After HT, Wood Suppliers

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SteveGallo

Joined
Apr 29, 2014
Messages
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Hi guys,

I've made a few kitchen knives at this point, and now I'm trying to hone in on the best way to make 'em super thin. I've been working with 15n20 and 1084.

It seems a lot of guys recommend doing most of the work post HT to avoid warping, which has been my biggest problem. I only have a 1x32" cheapo grinder, and it really isn't up to grinding anything hard. Is there any way to do this without a real grinder, or am I forced to do 95% of the work pre-HT?

Secondly, I'm trying to find a local wood supplier to save money. I know very little about hardwood. I found a guy that says he has plenty of 1x10x12 maple that's been drying for 2 months; is this too short of a time to use for knife handles?
 
I don't imagine that doing most of the work after heat treat is a MUST, but then again I rarely use stock less than .125 inches thick.

As for wood, I'm no specialist in that area, but the general rule-of-thumb for wood is to let it dry for 1 year per inch of thickness (if a board is 2" thick, it would need to sit in the corner of the shop for about 2 years). Also, woods like maple don't necessarily have to be stabilized, but it will need protective coatings regardless. If you don't want to wait for it to dry out, you might try checking local hardware/lumber stores. It's rare, but sometimes you can find slabs of hardwoods like oak with fair grain figure at these places
 
I've done several kitchen blades in .063" and .070" stock with no warping. I do all the grinding pre-HT. I had one that kinked where the blade meets the handle because I didn't quench the handle (I think) but it was a simple fix. There's probably always some potential for warpage but if your grinds are even I don't think it's that likely.
 
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