Heavy Bladed Field Bolo

mcswood

mcswood

Joined
Jul 2, 2005
Messages
762
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Just finished this.
It's 17.3/16" overall and weighs 28 oz.
The blade is 1095 spring steel 12.1/8" X
2" X 1/4" thick.
The guard, bolster, and pommel sides are 1018
steel welded to the full tang.
The handle is 4.3/4" long with scales of
Curly Maple.
Tomorrow it gets sharpened and sheathed.
Then it goes.

Thanks for looking,
Mike
 
I'm really starting to like your work. Beefy, a little intimidating, and a little dirty all around good stuff.
 
Thanks for the kind words.

Marion David Poff said:
Wicked!

How do you get that finish on the steel?

Marion
Click to expand...

I quench the roughly beveled blade in
strained, used motor oil. This leaves it
in a thick, burnt oily slag. I wirewheel
the slag away, and bring it back up in temp.
slowly until the color just begins to change.
I then attempt to hand file the edge every
10 minutes or so until the file bites.
Once the edge is filed true it's wirewheeled
again. Lightly sanding the surface by hand
leaves the finish.
The oil has to be USED. The blacker the better.
Clean, new oil won't work.
Motor oil flames up. Be ready for it.
The edge holding ability is amazing for such
a low tech. method.
And there's an added bonus. They don't rust
easily.
Mike
 
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