How many knives are you working on?

Patrice Lemée

Patrice Lemée

Joined
Aug 13, 2002
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I am a very part time maker. I usually had only one knife I was working on at a time. Of course we all had a few things started that never got finish but how about real knives that will be finished to completion?

I ask cause for the first time I have 2 different knives going at different stages. I like the fact that, let's say after being a little tired of shaping the handle on one for a few hours, I can leave that there and go work on another part of the other knife. I feel that I can spend more time on parts of the process that, if I were working on only, I would maybe cut a little short.
It may come at the cost than slower production of course, having to change and setup for a different task. But hopefully there will be a gain as far as a better finished end product.

Anyone else doing this, on purpose or not? Is my epiphany real or like Rick said, did somebody spike my “poutine” again? ;)
 
3 knives finished that need sheaths, 3 that need handles & sheaths, 2 that need post heat treat grinding & sheath, and one piece of bar stock that needs forged......
 
13 blades ht'd, 5 w/handles glued on. 3 or 4 forged ready for grinding, 5 different damascus billets ready for next step. That is what I love about knifemaking, you can do something different when you feel like it. But then there is the show crunch. Have to finish some for the show next week.
 
I've been working on repairing and sharpening knives for a long time, but am pretty new to the actual making part. I don't do my own heat treating yet, so right now, I have eight knives that I'm "working on" that are in PA at Peters getting their heat treat and three more that I'm already grinding here in my shop while I wait to get back the other eight, several of which have homes they need to go to.

I agree that it's nice to have several going in different stages of completion, so if your hands get tired of the grinding you can go do some sanding on another, or maybe drill some holes or glue up some handle slabs, etc. I tend to bounce around from task to task in the shop.
 
I usually grind, heat treat, finish/polish and do handles in stages. I usually grind 4 to 8 blades before I heat treat, and HT them all at the same time. Then I finish them up one or two at a time. I mostly do it that way because it costs just about as much to fire up the oven/forge/temper oven for one or two blades as it does for 7.
 
I have 4 folders in the works. All have frames made and the blade heat treated. Next is building the handles one at a time. They range from tactical to high end art.
 
I usually have 4 to 6 knives in process at any given time. I forge all of my knives and when I heat up the forge it's just easier for me to work multiple knives. I also do the grinding in batches, all knives the same grit, then move to the next grit.
For me, this is more productive than one at a time.
Mike Broach
 
Let's just say that it's safe to say that I have more blades unfinished in my shop than the Loveless shop! I think I have what's called Knifemaker's Attention Deficit Disorder. I just can't seem to get myself to concentrate on one at a time.
 
I am full time, and I think working in batches is key to profitability. I had my apprentice profile 82 knives in October. On the 20th I started drilling the blanks. Then on to grinding and heat treating. I've ground and heat treated a batch a day since last week, and have 14 left to grind. My goal (unattainable, but fun to have a goal) is to finish all 82 before Christmas. I usually finish 30 knives a month. I've got 17 knives going to get glued up today. I'll finish those by Wednesday of next week. By then I'll also be done with pre ht grinding, and heat treating of the entire 82 blades. After that, it will be choosing blades for batches, and finishing work. Repeat.

Lots of sanding days (all day sanding) before Christmas.
 
82 blades at once sounds ludicrous. So how about a pic?

201011100_3190-vi.jpg


201011100_3191-vi.jpg


201011100_3194-vi.jpg
 
As a hobbyist, I have 2 waiting to be laser engraved, 6 blanks profiled, 1 blank beveled waiting for HT, 8 old butcher knifes sitting in the sand blasting cabinet waiting to have rust removed, and two multi-blade folders that Dave and I are working on together still acquiring materials for(come on Deker(JK). . .). Oh, and a blade that I forged at Ashokan waiting for inspiration. On top of that, a Bocote cutting board, a damascus putter and pitching wedge, and a mini-bike just like Sam's!

I guess 11 of the 20 are mine, since the refinish is really making a knife and Dave is making one of the folders. I only plan on having 6 of them done by Christmas but they aren't really difficult designs. Only the multi-blades are difficult, but they are small blades, about 1.5" so actual grinding time will be short. The others might not be done until spring, or they might be done by Christmas. It just depends on how busy I am at work.

Hopefully the putter and pitching wedge will be done by Christmas also.
 
Jeez, Fiddleback. You're a busy little spider, aren't you :D.

I've got 6 in various states of grind/heat treat/forging. They've been in the same state of grind/heat treat/forging for the last 4 months :D. I gotta find some shop time :(.

--nathan
 
82 :eek: Sheesh! and I thought my 4 was alot to juggle! Glad your blessed with work though! that's awesome!

Jason
 
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Two that I need to have finished this month.

Four cut out blanks that will be next up (well, one of the "blanks" is just a length of steel at this point but it will be part of the batch).

Two 13C26 utilities that are about 2/3 ground + a profiled 3V parer. These will be part of a large bunch of stainless and 3V blades that I actually plan to send out to Peters Heat Treat instead of doing myself. That's planned to be the next project after the above.

Two heat treated kiridashis from last year that I need to get around to completing.

A couple of partially forged blades waiting for me to get an induction forge next spring or so.
 
I like working on multiple (just 2 or 3) knives at once, for the reasons aleady expounded upon, but also it make the glueing more efficient I hate making up a bastch of epoxy, and leaving half of it on the mixing surface.
 
I think I have about 10 going. I have a very short attention span, so if I get bored with one I just rotate to another that is in a different stage.
 
I have 9 in the pre HT sanding stage, 2 drawn on steel waiting to be cut out and 1 on paper. I need to finish 2 this month and 2 more before christmas, possibly 2 more by end Jan. It seems that when I have time in the shop, it just gets frittered away on little things. Hopefully I can HT the blades this weekend then its just a matter of finish sanding and handling.
 
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