First knife FINAAAAALLLY done!/Takeaways!

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Wowndeye

Joined
Apr 15, 2014
Messages
88
Here are the pictures of my (nearly) complete, first knife. This knife is going to my dad and all I have left to do is run the blade through a scotchbrite belt (once they arrive) to even out the finish and then a final resharpening after all I've put it through.
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Here's the info on it:
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1080 1/8" x 1 1/2" bar stock from Kelly Cupples.
Triple normalized.
Heat treated in improvised charcoal forge to 1500(ish) and quenched in a little over a gallon and a half of canola oil.
Left the finish that was there following heat treat except for cleaning off decarb. I liked that it looked old and rough.
Handle is made out of a piece of Mahogany and treated w/ 4 coats of Tru-Oil and then two coats of Mothers Brazilian car wax.
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<a href="http://s201.photobucket.com/user/wowndeye/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184217.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa45/wowndeye/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184217.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20140531_184217.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s201.photobucket.com/user/wowndeye/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184553.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa45/wowndeye/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184553.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20140531_184553.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s201.photobucket.com/user/wowndeye/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184612.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa45/wowndeye/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184612.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20140531_184612.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s201.photobucket.com/user/wowndeye/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184627.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa45/wowndeye/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184627.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20140531_184627.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s201.photobucket.com/user/wowndeye/media/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184652.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa45/wowndeye/Mobile%20Uploads/20140531_184652.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 20140531_184652.jpg"/></a>
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Please share any thoughts/criticisms, I'd be happy to hear them. To be my own worst critic:
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Things I became aware of that I know I need to improve on is my grinds. I intended to leave about a 1/8"-3/16" grind line along the top of the blade but due to the learning curve ended up taking the plunge line just shy of the spine, I'm getting better/more control though.
My drill press is a HF 5 speed and doesn't run true which I believe over sized the holes in the wood, or at least made them a little uneven (even though they felt tight) which left a small epoxy ring in a couple spots around the brass pins.
I think my distal taper could have been a little narrower being that the knife is a drop point hunter.
I like the mahogany for the handle but hoped the color would have popped a little more. I had applied some nitrocellulose lacquer to a piece from the same cut which really brought out the color. Another couple coats of Tru-Oil may have helped, but I thought maybe the wax would help. Color does look a little better in real life compared to the pictures.
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That's all I've got for now! ;)
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Takeaways from this experience (forgive me if I state the obvious for some):
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The learning curve for knife making is waaaaayyy steeper than I expected. I have 14 years construction experience, 5 of which were finish carpentry for a Mega Yacht fabricator where I learned a ton about working with different materials, and I'm accustomed to and capable of very detail oriented work, but knives are a whole new world! :)
I was lured into knife making from an article on Facebook I saw that said you could make a knife from a file, which is entirely possible and I will try at some point, but if you want to produce a quality product and get predictable results, going with a known steel is a wiser way to start.
Each steel has it's own personality and needs to be treated just right to enjoy it's full potential.
Before choosing a steel to work with you have to consider the tools you currently own.
Good results can be obtained from less than ideal/efficient tools, but will require more time/work.
If I want to be rock solid on my heat treats and advance to more particular steels, I need to begin learning and invest in a gas forge and eventually one with a PID.
Play around with different belts, equipment, etc...
Read, read, read and re-read all the stickies/tutorials on this forum and elsewhere.
Be willing to accept your mistakes and if possible work around/adapt to them.
It's not likely that you'll produce a Bob Loveless on your first try, and that's okay! ;)
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Anyways, I'm sure there's plenty more but I wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to all the people who invest in all the newcomers here and patiently answer their questions! I'm also grateful for those who ask all the questions and think of things I hadn't thought to ask.*As someone in an earlier post stated, newcomers are producing some pretty good stuff thanks to this group, myself included. I would hate to think what I would have ended up with had I not had this forum. There was much frustration during the process and I'm sure some more to come, but I can't imagine how much I was spared because of everyone's willingness to share their experience here. In fact, I wouldn't have made anything probably because I wouldn't have had a clue where to start. I literally knew nothing about steels prior.*It was because of browsing through here that I gained the confidence that if I made this attempt, I could actually produce a functional knife.
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All frustrations and setbacks aside, I've had a blast learning and think I'm hooked! I don't know how many knives I'll make and how far I'll go but I think I'll be around for a while! ;)
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Thank you all again!
 
Looks great for a first knife. My only suggestion would be to make certain you remove all the scale and decarbed steel on the next one. Not sure why you needed to normalize three times, unless there was one normalizing heat and two grain refining heats...

My best results with mahogany were by sanding to 800 grit, then using Watco Danish oil for the first coat or two, then a coat of a heavier oil - you can use Tru-Oil, I use Permalyn.

Welcome to knifemaking! Prepare to spend every last dime you have on pursuing it! ; )
 
Thank you for the kind words!

@Matthew - My understanding for triple normalization was indeed to refine the grain before the quench as well as remove any stress that could possibly be in the steel. I don't know if it's as critical for a stock removal knife, but I thought for the little extra time it took to do, it would be worth it if it improved the strength/edge holding. Does it matter that it was stock removal vs. forged or is there another reason why it may or may not be beneficial for me in this case?

As for the scale, I liked the look of it at first, at least part of it because it made it look old, but the more I look at parts of it, the more I wish I'd sanded it down. But my dad loves the texture he said although I think he'd like whatever I gave him because it was a gift! :) I'm in process on my 2nd and 3rd knives and have already sanded down the decarb/scale following heat treat and am liking it. I've looked for options for finishing 1080 and haven't found much other than the boiled vinegar. Any suggestions?

Thank you for the tip on the Mahogany, I'll try that on the next one I do with it.

And I've been dreaming about a 2x72. I already hate my HF 1x30. It's never consistent on where it holds one belt from the next and makes it difficult to get even results from side to side. That and a forge are the two things on my mind but I'm sure I'll find a need for more! ;) I've termed this knife the million dollar knife because of all the tools/equipment I've bought not to mention the hours I've put in on it! But I feel like I have a better grasp on the process now and believe things will continue to be a little more efficient as I move forward!

Thanks again!
 
Sorry I'm responding to this so late - completely missed it!!

There's nothing wrong with normalizing it, but usually we refer to a single heat (temperature depends on the steel) that effectively creates similarly sized grain uniformly throughout the piece. THAT is normalizing. Subsequent heats at temperatures below that initial treatment and air cooling following will reduce and refine grain. All of these steps have effects on stress reduction.

The better portion of my knives are stock removal, and I still normalize and refine grain through multiple heats. Fact is, we have no clue what state the steel we buy is in, usually. Simple carbon steels like 1084, 1095, and your 1080 are easy to process this way, so as long as you can make sure you don't decarb the snot out of the steel and have accurate control over temperature, I say do it!!!

Can't offer much help on finish options for 1080... I always hand finish it to 600 grit or above. Wear resistance is next to nothing with these simple steels, so might as well make 'em look right.

Fastest way to have a million dollars by making knives is to start with two million.

; )
 
Now I'm the one to reply late! ;)

But that's exactly what I was thinking in regards to the steel Matthew. Not knowing what condition it came in, what effect the heat from grinding may have had on it and again, it didn't add much time to the process so I thought why not. While I'm still young at this, the decarb didn't seem bad following. Overnight immersed in vinegar cleaned them up nicely with little scrubbing.

Thanks again for the input! :)
 
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