Thanks, Falcon. All responses to the hostility that seemed to be coming initially are dispensed with, and gladly.
You bring up very good questions, and that's why I came here to start with on this. I've ground maybe a dozen or a little better blades, mostly flat ground, but several hollow ground when I had access to a good Burr King grinder. The one I have is a cheap little Taiwanese 2x48" grinder that the motor went out on and I replaced it with a washing machine 1/2 HP motor that's been running well for some time now. Have setups for 4 polishing wheels, and have done a fair amount of polishing on guns as well, but round gun barrels and flat receiver sides don't "grab" the wheel like knives can. Learned that when I did an "oops" while polishing one of the blades I'd ground, and it stuck through my shoe into the concrete touching but not piercing my toe! I know a sword would be, at least potentially, likely to cause a lot more damage in polishing it. Does keeping the sword at a 45 degree angle eliminate that very effectively? Found that tended to work in my gunsmithing, so long as I was VERY careful with the wheel and whatever I was polishing. Getting the surfaces dead flat, when doing a good polish job/bluing, was always the crucial part.
My grinder will need a new and good, dead flat platten, which I will be adding before even thinking of tackling this or other knife projects I have in mind. I'm retired, so putting in the extra time and care isn't a problem. I'm kind'a anticipating (?) having to do the final grinding/sanding/polishing by hand so as to cut slow enough to get the center line down good and straight and centered.
As to the heat treat, I've done some in the past, and pretty well know what "cherry red" and "straw" colors look like from that experience, and from talking with blacksmiths and knifemakers I've known. I MAY (???) attempt it myself, but if I get the blade down good, I'd hate to have all that work wind up being for naught, so will likely have someone who's experienced do that for me. I'm looking at it taking a year or more to accomplish this. It'll be a project I take up and work with, and do a lttle along, and then rest and go to other projects I have. I have some health problems, and my hands aren't as steady and my eyes not as sharp as they once were, but I think I can deal with that by mounting fixtures to the bench where I can steady up my hands. I have a little neuropathy in my hands, but still have a pretty delicate touch most of the time, and that's when I'd apply myself to the sword project.
As I said to begin with, I realize this is kind'a a grandiose thing for me to attempt, but again, what's life without a challenge. I can get 5160 for $18 + shpg. for a blank, and my time's always well spent if I do nothing but learn from it, and at the price of 5160 blanks, I can afford to take a couple of stabs at it before I get a workable and decent blade. With these type things, it's always the challenge that makes it enjoyable, and I don't intend trying to become a general sword maker. Just do this one-off job, mostly for my personal satisfaction in meeting what I know will be a VERY great challenge to me and my skills as they stand now. But they'll never be any greater if I don't challenge them.
Made my first blade for my son with the equipment I have now, and a guild member was very complimentary of it as a first knife. He still uses that blade now some 26 years later as his main blade when afield. My knifemaker friend up in the mountains did all my heat treating of the 440C, and that taught me the difference between what 440C is from the stores, and what really well heat treated 440C can be and do.
Basically, I'm just at a point where I'm ready and willing to at least give it a whirl, just to see if I really CAN do this. And that's why I came here for help in it and advice. It'll all ride on my own judgment calls and skills, and I know that. All I need here is just some advice about things I definitely do NOT want or need to do. More or less, things to keep me out of trouble. I know to grind slow and not to turn the steel blue. I know about heat treat and the polishing wheels grabbing the blade, and that a sword CAN cause some grave injuries. Recently read or heard about a knifemaker getting killed by a blade while polishing. My sense of touch has always been a great asset for me when I've had the time to try things like this and in gunsmithing. Have a good amount of time with polishing wheels, and have learned to do a REALLY good polish with them - smooth and straight and flat and bright when that was what was needed.
I'm honestly just hoping I can pull it off, because I DO know it's one whale of a big project, and I don't want to waste my time, but have lots to put at risk in such a project,a and again, kind'a like the robber in "Dirty Harry," I "gots ta' know."
For at least 30 years, I'd always wanted to learn to forge damascus and make at least some fairly decent versions of the old Samurai swords, and have read up on them as much as time would allow, and every issue of Blade and Knives I found that had info on those, or other things I found interesting, I bought off the news stands, plus the old Viking swords. I just don't have the oomph in me any more to build or operate a good forge, but I figure I still have the wherewithall to do a stock removal blade, if I don't try to hurry it up and am patient with it.
Does this give you a good idea of where I'm at with this? All the blades I ground from the 440C were each better than the last, and I sold them all for about what I had in them in steel, belts, etc. and the last I heard, they're all still in use today and going strong and holding up very well. Having a friend who is in the guild really helped. He got me off on the right footing. My grinder isn't pretty or nearly what I'd llke. I really like the Burr King. MUCH quieter than the Square Wheels I've seen, and I just like the way it has both wheel and flat platen readily available and quickly adjustable to get either. If I ever get a really good grinder, it'll be the Burr King, or at least that's the plan right now. Have access to a Burr King a gunsmith friend of mine's, but it's 5 hours away now, one way. I do like to visit him as much as I can, though, so it'd probably be available if and when I need it on a temporary basis. My grinder has produced most of the knives I've made, and it ain't pretty, but with care, it can be done with it. The washing machine motor is powerful enough for me, at this stage of my "knife making career" if you can call it that, and I just find it satisfying to engage in doing something "the hard way" sometimes, just to see if I can pull it off. So far, thanks largely to my guild member friend's early advice and instruction, I've done pretty well, and at least have come to know what all is involved. I remember reading David Boye's book, where in the final pages, he notes that when you've completed your first knife, and done well, you then realize that the NEXT one you make will require just as much work as the first one.
I think I have about 5 books on knifemaking, both forging and stock removal, and have read them all more than once, and tried to "go to school" on them as much as one can from just reading a book. Learned a long time ago that reading and doing are two vastly different things, but the reading CAN at least guide your efforts, and with knifemaking, that's important, especially at first. The rest is experience, and the "school of hard knocks." That knife through my shoe that touched but didn't pierce my toe was a really good lesson. Can't get a lesson any more attention getting than that without paying in blood. The blood came from the grinder, and that was minimal, but very good as a "reminder" now and then.
If I didn't think there was at least a decent chance of pulling this off, I wouldn't be wasing you guys' time here, but of course, I COULD be overestimating what I can do, even with the greatest of care and advice. Again, I've just got to see for myself, and you guys' help and advice is VERY much sincerely appreciated. Mostly, though, I think I've just got to get the blank and see what I really can or can't do.
I could jokingly call you all a bunch of zealots but I hope some may see what my points are.
