H.I. Skean Dhu?

Very nice, Sarge.

Now, just make a model (or someone send a version) of the Shrade Sharpfinger! It's been around long enough to-I believe- be public domain...

John
 
sharpfinger is an underrated blade. I got a couple at a garage sale, knocked the handles off, blued the blades, paracord wrapped them, wrapped some kydex and presto! nifty little "tactical" knives.
--Dave
 
Sylvrfalcn said:
Still plugging along, here's two rough ground blades made from one big old bastard, uh, I mean mill bastard file. :D

These blades will finish out to; 3 3/4" long, 15/16" wide at the hilt, and 5/32" thick at the spine. Grind profile is full convex, with distal taper, and no ricasso. Man, I love making these little boogers, rough grinding both of them only took about an hour and a half total. 'Course, finish grinding, polishing, and hand cutting each notch of the jimping with a chainsaw file is where the persnickety, time consuming work is. Why'd I make two? Obviously one's going to Nepal, and the other's going in my sock, duh. ;)

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Sarge
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I was about to put a full convex to my karda. But....I think I might not be good enough for this nor the patience. :o

Thanks Sarge, there is a lot of work you have done for us. :)
 
munk,

I don't remember if I ever showed you what a Sharpfinger looked like. One was my first fixed blade...
104154-03
.

The design is over 100 years old, and Schrade is now out of business.

John
 
Those look great Sarge. I am very excited about this run. I am very impressed with your grinding speed. It still takes me a few hours each.
 
Hard at it guys, went from this;
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to this;
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Top has a curly maple handle, center is ebony, and bottom is the basswood model. I like this design, it's simple, straightforward, feels good in the hand, and would lend itself readily to owner customization. Gotta stitch up scabbards tonight, and will have the whole kit and caboodle off to Yangdu soon as I can. I know, I was going to keep one for myself, but the way I figure, you get back what you put in. Besides, there are subtle variations in all three of the knives pictured. That's intentional, so the kamis can handle them, look them over, and then apply their considerable knifemaking skills to the final HI version.

Sarge
 

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looking' good. :thumbup: I'd be interested to see what it looks like in your hand, though - I have problems visualizing the size of a knife on a plain background. :)
 
Kaz, at an OAL of only seven and a half inches, they're pretty small. I've got fairly big paws, as do a lot of the folks here, I kept that in mind when working this one up. Had to be small/compact to stay within the "sock carry" parameters of a true sgian dubh, but I made sure the handle gives a good grip regardless.;)
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Sarge
 

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Super nice work, Sarge. Thanks.

Handle DOES look comfortable.

With the Celtic knotwork on the M43 today, you never know.... could become a beauty- Skean Dubh from the Lost Tribe of the Himalayan Celts.


Mike
 
Celtic knotwork, mount a clan crest, et cetera, that was my intention in keeping the handle area aft of the hilt plate as a good sized, fairly flat, section that just begs to be decorated. I worked a bit with the "thistle" design, but didn't like the way it handled and gripped. Beside that, the more I worked on it, the more it started looking to me like a "belly button sgian dubh", as in belly buttons, everybody's already got one. ;)

Sarge
 
Thanks for the extra picture, Sarge. Looks like a nice size - small enough to carry without scaring people, enough edge to be useful. :o
 
VERY classy.

Nice "back-up" knife. We all know how Rusty liked back-up protection.

Nice, Sarge; very nice.
 
Rusty would definitely want one of these in his sock, but I'd also make him a longer, skinnier, one, with a sheath that straps to the inside of your forearm where a shirt sleeve would conceal it. Rusty would have liked that. :D

Sarge
 
Sylvrfalcn said:
<snip> Gotta stitch up scabbards tonight, and will have the whole kit and caboodle off to Yangdu soon as I can. <snip>

Sarge
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:eek: Stitch? OMG! :foot: I always though a wood scabbard for the true sgian dubh. :(

Spectre said:
munk,

I don't remember if I ever showed you what a Sharpfinger looked like. One was my first fixed blade....

The design is over 100 years old, and Schrade is now out of business.

John
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I don't have mine anymore, but have always loved the Sharpfinger design. They don't seem to be going for less than $15USD on eBay these days.

Jerry The Dinosaur Mings
 
Man this thread is more and more exciting. Those are very nice Sarge. I haven't yet tried to grind a Sgian Dubh. I need to get on that.
 
jmings said:
:eek: Stitch? OMG! :foot: I always though a wood scabbard for the true sgian dubh. :(
Jerry The Dinosaur Mings
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I currently own four "true sgian dubhs" that were made in Sheffield, England and Dykeshead, Scotland. They all came equipped with leather sheaths. If you prefer a wooden scabbard, one shouldn't be at all difficult to make or have made. What I'm hoping to try and avoid is a fat, bulky, leather over wood scabbard with a brass chape (that we could likely get anyway:rolleyes: ).

Sarge
 
Ah the curse of the small hand rises again to bite my butt . 6 foot one and over 73 inch wingspan . I try to tell people that hand strength is important . Being able to encompass that which you wish to control or squeeze is just as important . I couldn,t even use full size klein pliers for my job . I had to settle for the 9 inch version .
I,d hide my head behind my hands in shame but they are too small ! L:O:L
I can,t imagine a Skean Dhu having too large a grip for me ? My hand usually fits on larger handles . There is just room to spare . Its the diameter thats the killer .
 
jmings said:
:eek: Stitch? OMG! :foot: I always though a wood scabbard for the true sgian dubh. :(
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I have collected skein dhu's for 15 years or so and have never seen one with a leather/wood sheath. have any examples?

--Dave
 
Kevin, the handles are by no means huge, should'nt be a problem. It may have been nice to have insisted on a snazzy, thistle shaped handle, with decorative carving, and brass ornamentation at each end. But then you're pretty much stuck with what you get. The beauty of a partial tang, simple wooden handle, with a minimum of metal fittings, is that you can carve it down smaller, reshape it, etc., to your heart's delight. Can't put wood back on, but it's easy enough to take off, if you see what I mean. A lot of the folks here like to sand their handles down and apply their finish of choice anyway, so one of my goals was to insure that option would be accomodated. I've tried hard to avoid pandering to my own personal tastes, and come up with a "everyman's" sgian dubh. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

Sarge
 
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