Hobo Knife

Sean Yaw

Sean Yaw

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Feb 26, 2019
Messages
417
I'm thinking about trying to make some folding knife/fork/spoons ("hobo" knife) for my nephews and I have three questions:
1 - What is a good stainless steel to use for a folding fork and spoon? I probably don't want to dig into my MagnaCut stash for that.
2 - How would you go about making a spoon? I was thinking of cutting it out flat, handling the tang end as normal, and then somehow pounding the spoon bowl in cold with some sort of doming block or something and then heat treating. I do not have forging capabilities. I would love advice or insights if anyone has experience related to this.
3 - What target hardness would you recommend for a fork and spoon? Spring temper? Higher - low/mid 50's?

Thank you.
 
Jantz sell a knife/fork kit with a belt-loop carrying case. You have to make the handles. I have made several with curly koa handles for friends who camp.
knifemaking.com

Camp Knife And Fork Kit

Perfect for outdoor enthusiasts, this Camp Knife and Fork Kit from Jantz lets you craft your own camping cutlery. Kit includes material for a sturdy knife and fork.
knifemaking.com knifemaking.com
camp-knife-and-fork-kit-182707_5000x.jpg


Or, get some stainless mess utensils online and rework them into a folding Hobo knife.
 
Natlek said:
Why would you use hardenable steel for fork and spoon ? Why not stainless like 304 ?
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Good point. I was thinking that hardening it would make it a little more durable (less prone to being bent).
 
Sean Yaw said:
Good point. I was thinking that hardening it would make it a little more durable (less prone to being bent).
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304 , 316 , 18/10 are food grade stainless steel and used for that purpose , I mean for forks and spoon .
But I can t see any reason why would you not make them for HT steel , more fun ;)
 
I think 1.4034 (420HC) woul be a good (cheap) option for it. Other 420 steels with less carbon as well (good corrosion resistance). Maybe you could get the fork and spoon as spare parts from some other folding knives and base your design around that? Fork should be easy enough to do by yourself.
 
I think if you started with a thin stock (1mm) you could probably press the spoon shape in. The spoon bowl probably wont be too "deep" if it should fit in a folding knife. Mild steel positive and negative in a vice, maybe even micarta or a piece of hardwood.
 
FredyCro said:
I think if you started with a thin stock (1mm) you could probably press the spoon shape in. The spoon bowl probably wont be too "deep" if it should fit in a folding knife. Mild steel positive and negative in a vice, maybe even micarta or a piece of hardwood.
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Yeah, I bought a junk Case knockoff off ebay to use as a template. The spoon folds onto the outside of the knife, but I imagine it is not too deep. Pressing the spoon shape is a good idea. I'll explore that.
 
You can forge a bowl pretty easily on a metal dapping/swage block or make one from a piece of hardwood. End grain works best. Router out the bowl shape and hammer away. The steel can be red hot - the wood will char but will work fine. You could also screw a junk tablespoon so trhe bowl is over the routed depression and use it as a mold to forge the hot steel into.

I also agree that a 400 series stainless would be good. Go thin. .060" max. I would probably use .040".
 
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