Hey, why is your clay hardened blade so much $$$?

Awesome finish Nick....and well worth the effort.

THANKS for showing...!
 
Thanks Nick. I just really never knew. Damn I see a lot more work in my future. That is just gorgeous and right.
 
Nick that is a true labour of love.
I hope you are well compensated for it....you sure deserve it.
 
That is just stunning. Truly stunning.

I had some idea of what was involved ... did not realize it went quite this far.

From where I sit, I'd have to say it is worth it.:D:thumbup:
 
That's beautiful Nick, thanks for the peek. I think I see the guard and handle silhouette in the yellow card stock? If so, I'm super excited to see what materials you choose, it'll be a gem.
 
Just beautiful, Nick!

A few random thoughts:

The artists we remember from centuries ago are often associated with a select few pieces. No sane person looks at Michelangelo or DaVinci's best work and then starts asking questions like "Well, that's pretty good, but did he crank out 50 of those every year?"

Present collectors, quite understandably, would like you to produce more. And it might be a very good idea, if you want to be a fulltime maker. But it is by no means a measure of your own gifts, nor of the art you produce.
 
Thanks Nick, for letting us have a look at your process.

A lot of work but you can see it in the finished product.

Take care

Charles
 
Thanks Nick. I've learned a lot from you. And now I've learned little more in this thread. :)

That hamon is intense. You do it justice.
 
that looks pretty easy, any hack could do that.



;)
 
Hi Nick, lots of thanks for all the show and tell :)

It's a real fantastic work :thumbup:

And lots more of thanks for making me realize that I have to really appreciate each and every custom knife I have because it carries many untold thinkings and feelings in the making of it ;)

mohd
 
Holy crap ! That's a really beautiful result ! :thumbup:

I always like your hamon.
 
anybody with questions about how you justify your pricing need only see this thread.

being a person who finds it easy to really 'get into a groove' with tedious and monotonous tasks, i know what it is to put hours into what most people would think of as the small aspects of a craft.

it's a sign of a craftsman who cares about the things he produces.
 
canid said:
it's a sign of a craftsman who cares about the things he produces.
Click to expand...
Produces is being generous. ;)

Nick, I see you need a deadline to really kick them out. This ABS Show helped. Good to see!

Is this a third knife on your table for the show? And is it also a commission?

Coop
 
NickWheeler said:
.. The slurry (crud) on the blade is 1500 grit Silicon Carbide powder and either oil or Diamond compound thinner/lubricant. It depends on how the moon is positioned for me to determine which to use that day ..

.. Eventually it comes down to just my thumb anyway.... to get the most feel for what the abrasive powder is doing... i.e. how it's "cutting," how thick or thin the slurry has become ..

standard.jpg
Click to expand...
I'm a curious type, Nick ..

NickWheeler said:
.. It's incredibly time consuming.... it takes longer for me to sand a blade to a clean enough 2500 and etch/polish it ..
Click to expand...
And I ended up having a stupid question, Nick :D
What will happen if you apply the same technique to a damascus blade? Do you think it will show the damascus pattern in a more refine appearance?

mohd
 
Thank you for looking and the kind words everyone!!! :)

It is definitely a labor of love (and sometimes hate!) lol ;)

Eli, GOOD EYE! That is the pattern I drew up.

The handle is put together and needs to be shaped/finished. I surface ground black micarta and copper down for 0.025 thick spacers, and grabbed a primo, golden block of ironwood out of the stash :)

Joe, you can get the powder on ebay. Only about $10 for a pound!

mohd, you probably could use it on damascus, but I don't know that it would be of benefit...because you want to eat into pattern welded steel pretty darn deep.

Coop, no commission, just something that was drawn up on paper one day. I actually had this blade heat-treated and rough ground on my table at Blade in '07, lol.

Thanks Matt! You're a hell of a lot better at this stuff than I am, so that really means a lot!

Well, the southwestern rib tickler isn't getting done with me on here so I best get back to it.

THANK YOU!!! :)
 
I'm still looking for the j-hooks by your name.

That's absolutely beautiful.

Is your approach more traditional? I think I recall a respected Japanese Sword Maker hand polishing a blade using lemon juice in a way similar to how you do it.
 
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