I need some knife making help

B

benchmadebob

Joined
May 12, 2008
Messages
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I know why did you post it here. This is were i spend my time and the makers here are more my style rustic/functional. I was walking home yesterday and i found a partial leaf spring from a car or truck it is pretty thick and about 1 1/2 to 2 feet long i was wondering how i could straighten it out i know i have to heat it up but how do i flatten it. And should i use this because it was broken Is it still good and how could i tell i want to make a good 9-10 inch blade chopper out of it. And im going to get a harbor freight belt sander and i have a anvil so what other tools would i need and im going to put micarta or osage handles on it. Also is spring steel oil or air hardened steel. And should i harden the whole thing or just the edge.

Thankyou in advance for your help.
 
Bob-buy(or go the the library and check out) the 50 dollar knife shop book. It has a lot of good info in it. I would say you can still use the spring,however, the fact that it broke means it's very hard. If you have a grate of some kind you can straighten it very easy. just build a fire and put the spring on the grate over the fire. Make sure your fire is hot enough that the spring gets glowing red all the way through. Then let it air cool, you get straight and annealed all at once. You can do this by putting the spring in the coals of the fire but it might not come out straight. If you do put your spring in the coals then when it is good and hot you can lay it on the grate or you can lay it on the anvil and tap it straight with a hammer.

As for the harbor freight belt sander...it's ok for finishing but you'll need a bench grinder and a file to rough shape with. You'll also need some way to cut your shape out with. A drill and a hacksaw can work, a pneumatic cuttoff wheel works even better if you have an air compressor. Another good option is an angle grinder with a cutting disk.

It's a lot of fun and very rewarding project to make your own knife but be prepared to break a few (or otherwise ruin them) before you finish one to your satisfaction.

Hope this helps
David
 
Benchmadebob, if you go the the 'Shoptalk' section here on BF, right at the top there's a sticky titled "Newbies-Good info here" or some such. Start there:) I'll also second Wayne Goddard's '$50 Knife Shop'. Spend some time perusing the shoptalk section, reading a lot (back at least a month). I don't mean to put a damper on things, but there's a lot of info out there, and you owe it to yourself to get a better understanding of what you're getting into.

As far as tools, you'll need a forge for working steel that big, probable something bigger than the 'one-brick forge' in Goddard's book, but you can make one pretty cheap. Hammers, anvil, and tongs for the hot work (Don't for get safety equiptment at all times-safety glasses, hat, I wear steel-toed boots, long sleeve shirt if you don't like little burns up and down your arm, respirator for grinding, keep a fire extiguisher handy, etc) You can forge mostly to shape, though it will take some work. An angle grinder can help profile, or cut the steel in smaller pieces. If you do a decent job forging, the HF sander should work ok. I've got a Delta 1x42 that I used for my first 10 or so knives, and it's still running, mostly to shape handles now. Get some good belts-ceramic belts (you can get almost any size at Supergrit.com) will work much better than Aluminum Oxide!

There's more to it than you might think, but it's a lot of fun once you get into it. It doesn't take a lot of equipment, but it will take up plenty of your time! Good Luck:thumbup: and have fun at it!
 
You can use that spring but it's not going to be easy to straighten out a big leaf spring. Maybe if you cut it into small sections first like 12" or so. Personally, I would rather buy some steel that's already straight. You can get 1095 or 5160 online and they're not expensive.
 
Like Ray says, buy some new steel.

In the long run it will be much less work and you’ll know what you have when it comes time to heat treat whatever you make.

That piece of spring steel might be fine for practicing your knife making skills, but I would not try to make a finished knife out of it.




Big Mike

"Scaring the Tree Huggers."

Forest & Stream
 
raylaconico said:
You can use that spring but it's not going to be easy to straighten out a big leaf spring. Maybe if you cut it into small sections first like 12" or so. Personally, I would rather buy some steel that's already straight. You can get 1095 or 5160 online and they're not expensive.
Click to expand...

I'm with Ray.. I'd rather start with a known straight piece of steel..
Not to mention the abrasives and time it will take to get it into blade form will cost as much as a decent piece of steel to start with IMHO..
 
How hard can it be.....Benicio Del Toro made a knife outta some with a little fire on a beach in the Hunted and he didn't even have a hammer or anything !!!!!:D
 
Thanks guys where should i buy steel from i have searched on google before and havent found any good knife naking web sites. And you guys usually have good sites.
 
Check out Tim Lively website... http://www.livelyknives.com/

Specifically, his knifemaking video.... http://www.livelyknives.com/knifemakingvideo.htm

You can download it for $10..... http://www.filmbaby.com/films/1835

This is the simplest way I know of, to begin making knives, period. And you can use your found spring. I don't plan to heat treat like he does with conduction, but other than that, I think he absolutely on track.

Email me if you want more info, I am not an expert, but a motivated amateur - mdpoff@hotmail.com

There is a whole movement of people who are taking their cues from village smiths in the third world, said village smiths making effective and sometimes beautiful cutlery with very few tools.

But, there are not many at Bladeforums who go that route, though you can make a fine knife that way. I can direct you to some other resources, if you like.

Marion

PS - For me, the issue is cost.... The average paleo type forge setup will cost you max a couple hundred bucks and some time scrounging parts. Doing it any other way will most likely cost you a bunch more, 2 times, 4 times, I don't know. I have a friend, and he just sunk 7 grand into his shop. I scrounged my constituent parts out of a farm dump, bought a leg vise for $40, and I imagine I will have to spend a hundred buck in misc parts....
 
Here's a Good Deal on Wayne Goddard's Book "The $50 Dollar Knife Shop" on E-Bay,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=350180199094

Plus there Ton's of Good Info. here on Bladeforum's In some of the sub Forum's like here http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=794 also Steel for Sale In Knife making supply's sub Forum http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=765 , Here's another good Forum section Shop Talk http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=741 There's a Gold Mine of Info. here on BladeForum's "You just got to get In there & Mine the Gold !
 
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I decided to make a small knife insted out of 01 or 1095 i dont know what steel yet. But its going to be a 4 inch blade bush craft knife. And im going to use maple for the scales.

Thanks guys
 
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