Help with design

OutdoorsFamilyMan4

OutdoorsFamilyMan4

Joined
Jan 20, 2012
Messages
2,278
I too am looking for a beefy all around knife like Saluki2003 posted previously. I didnt much care for handles of the Crusader Forge knives he linked to. I want it too look like a mix between the Ontario Bush Afghan and the Ontario Bush RBS 4. I like the size of the RBS 4 and the extended pommel for hammering purposes but I much prefer the drop point of the Afghan or the clip point style of the RBS 4. I am mainly gonna be using it for a camp knife (cutting, chopping, batoning, etc.) I will leave the smaller tasks like skinning to my Mora.
 
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I was given some nice materials (free of charge) by a fellow generous member so I have specific dimensions I have to stay within. The bar of stock he gave me is 11in x 1.5in x 1/4 thick.
 
tn.jpg
 
These are the two designs I came up with. The top one is my newest and (in my opinion) the better of the two. I was afraid my hand was gonna slip down and hit the blade so I extended the handle a little. I also added a bit of a choil and a small thumb ramp. The top part of the handle has a little more curve and the palm swell isnt so drastic. I know there isnt alot of curve but I am trying to keep it simple as this is my first knife and will probably be doing most of this by hand. Let me know what you think.
 
First question: Have you cut it out of either a paint stick or cardboard and felt what it is like in your hand? That will help you decide what feels good or what you would like to change.
 
i cut the first one out of a thicker paint stick and glued some handles to it. It felt decent for balance but I can adjust that when i move on to the steel. I do want the balance slightly forward so I will probably have some cutouts under the handle scales. I felt like my fingers were too close and exposed to the blade so thats why i made that change in the handle to give my self some protection
 
It is your first one. Make it and then change what you don't like. You will learn plenty and be able to apply to the next one.
 
I like a general camp knife to be a little more pointy. I'd clip the point about 3 times further back and at a slightly more pronounced angle.
 
Just a thought about balance, since you want it weighted forward you may be able to re-examine your handle to see if you really need it as large as it currently is. MAYBE... it could be made a little more narrow, or shorter, or taper the tang (something I've never done) to remove metal in addition to drilling a bunch of holes in it. I wonder what a light weight but durable handle material would be. Horse stall mat???

I agree with Spareparts about the point. Use a French curve to draw a more gradual transition up to the point. I took the liberty of playing around with your original design. The results, the good, the bad, and the ugly, are below.
knifedesignoutdoorsfamilyman4.gif


Don't overthink it. Just do it. Each knife gets a little better. Good luck
 
OutdoorsFamilyMan4 said:
does that compromise the strength of the tip in any way?
Click to expand...

Depends on how you grind it and to what hardness you temper. I'm just a hobbiest maker so someone else could probably better describe the compromises in blade geometry better. From my pov, on a non-tapered blade under normal circumstances, I don't see it compromising the tip any more or less than what you would already experience with the designs you drew above if you keep the primary bevel relatively the same. Try making a couple or a few knives all at the same time. The more you make the more you will figure out what you like and the pros and cons of each blade.
 
if the top one in your tweaks is mine then i wold definetly say i like the 2nd and 3rd down much better--I like the longer sweep of blade. The 3rd one is kind of like my first design. Im afraid my hand my slide up on the blade even though the choil is there---but i still like it alot. I dont really have the time or the money right now to experiment. This is a one shot deal so I am really throwing up a prayer here. My father is a die maker so he does have some really nice files and a few grinders ( mostly disc, i dont think he has a belt) and he is use to measuring things to the nearest millionth of an inch so he is precise. I am more of a framing carpenter so i round off to the nearest foot-lol
 
....11"×1.5"×1/4"? If you want to go with it chopping is more important task than camp knives chores,
but stock is not wide enough so that you have to keep its blade as wide as you can,
and limited length need to adjust weight mass to make it work as a small sized chopper,
also it have to work with utility tasks against its thickness...?

This is what I imagined, 5.5" blade, 11" OAL
2012-06-09%252006.28.08.jpg
 
#3 will be the best choice. You will not like the dip in the top of the handle in #2.
 
Outdoorsfamilyman4
Regarding image #3, you could change the shape of the front dip where your index finger goes so that the front has a sharper curve to it to better keep your finger from slipping out. In fact, that is what I did on images 4 and 5, in addition to making the handle more narrow. You may want to make it more sever than I've drawn it though.

#1 Original
#2 Changed the cutting edge curve and replaced the top straight clip with a dropped point.
#3 Made the handle more narrow and rounded the butt a little. Dropped the thumb ramp. Eliminated the choil. Started the dropped point farther back for a more gradual transition.
#4 Made the handle even more narrow and completely rounded the butt.
#5 I didn't like the looks of the handle so made the back dip less so. I tried to reincorporate some of your original ideas back into the design.

The problem I see with making a large choil is that inevitably you end up using it as a finger notch when you choke up on the blade. To me, many of the Scandinavian style knives look like accidents waiting to happen because the handle transitions right out to the cutting edge with nothing to prevent your hand and fingers from moving forward.

- Paul Meske
 
#3 is definetly what I want. Do you think there is enough transition there to keep your fingers from sliding up on the blade?
 
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