i want to make a knife

J

jason41987

Joined
May 9, 2012
Messages
174
hey everyone.. id like to make a knife.. not from scratch yet, but id like to get to that at some point.. for now though id like to purchase a blade to use and im looking for the 7" bowie style blade with a stack grip...

im not sure how i feel about stainless steels vs carbon steels.. i did find one blade in the shape i wanted listed has "high varandium stainless steel" which apparently are supposed to be good at holding edges.. but i dont know enough about them to be sure... this is the "classic bowie" on knifekits.com

another blade im interested in is the "alaska bowie" blade on the texas knifemaker supply website, however, this appears to be a half tang, but doesnt look normal, not sure what the deal is with that blade

so... im looking for recommendations for a blade.. my idea is to use a leather-stack grip for it.... i was also considering getting a cylinder of water buffalo horn as well as grip material, or stacked rings of hardwood... anyway, i havent decided on this aspect yet.. but i need a good blade recommendation... so.. suggestions?
 
Blade shape is very personalized. If it suits your fancy go for it. There is no perfect steel, and they will all need to be sharpened eventually. To pick steels figure out what you will be using the knife for. Read the stickies there is a wealth of knowledge there.

Anyway most guys around here refer to what you are going to attempt as assembling a knife. It will still take craftsmanship, but not nearly as much knowledge or practice as changing the physical properties of the steel to suit your needs. :thumbup:

Good luck and if you have any more questions post them here. Someone will pop in with an answer. ;)
 
It would be helpful to post links so we can see the knives you are considering. The classic bowie at knifekits is good for a stacked handle, the alaskan bowie at tx is made for a hidden tang and is not long enough, they do have the rio grande and short bowie which can be used with a stacked handle. I think any of them would be a good first project. I would not worry about the steel, there is so much we dont know about the steel and heat treat it is really tought to know just how good of an edge it will accept and keep. Both are good companies and I would guess that they will perform fine. If you decided to continue in knife making, you can use them to judge the performance of your own blades.

In addition to the blade you will need a front guard and pommel. Looks like tx makes everything you need.

If you complete your profile there may be a knifemaker nearby!!
 
Well I'm a noobie and liable to great scrutiny for my input but here's my comparison of the two bowies you had listed.

The first one from knifekits.com: Pros: cheaper, has more tang material (and a hole) to work with so you might have an easier time with the handle, and it is stainless steel so you won't have to periodically oil it like the 1095, and you could either use a nut or peen the end of that tang into the butt of your handle. Cons: it's shorter, it might have more tang material than you want for a handle (depends on the handle size you want) but you could cut it.

The second from texasknife.com: Pros: larger blade, COULD be harder but who knows without the specs listed. Cons: less tang material to work with, no holes for pins so if you want a pin you'd have to drill a hole, expensive (compared to the first one).

If I were to pick from the two I'd go with the knifekits.com bowie. Be aware though that I am very new to knife making and I'm making all my blades myself.

Also if you do find other blades you want opinions on; please post the direct link so we don't have to go hunting... that's my guess as to why you've had to wait for a response.
 
doesnt assembling a knife seem like a good place to start before building the blade from scratch?.. i was looking at properties of the high varandium stainless steel, how they hold an edge almost as well as high carbon steel... seems like it could be a good material for an outdoor knife... then i can use teh shiny blade for a mirror if i needed to
 
one thing i did with a sword scabbard which would work here as well for a high carbon steel blade, was line the inside of the scabbard for this sword with fur, to hold oil... this way you oil much, much less and the very act of putting the blade back in re-oils it so you dont have to... wonder if that same principal can be applied to a high carbon steel knife blade as well.... maybe cut a couple pieces of fur to the shape of the blade sewn together, and with the blade inside it, fiberglass or composite the outside of the fur and voila
 
The VG-10 steels are OK for kit knives. Style is whatever catches your eye. A kit knife is a good starter point.

Your sword scabbard idea has major flaws in it. The worst is that an oily inner fur lining will attract and hold dust and grit as well as oil. Swords should be cleaned and oiled and then placed back in a proper scabbard. It is pretty hard to re-invent a thing that has been perfected for a few thousand years.

Filling out your profile with all the info - age, occupation, interests, and location - is the first step to getting good answers.
 
I have manufactured some knives, but i dont know that how that i pack them to deliver to other so that i may not lost while handling, can any body help me?

Possible Spam. Please do not hijack another's thread. - The Moderator
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Jayger said:
I have manufactured some knives, but i dont know that how that i pack them to deliver to other so that i may not lost while handling, can any body help me?
Click to expand...

I suggest you start a new thread for that question. Also fill out your profile so we know where you will be shipping the blades. Someone in the US shipping to the US is going to have a different answer than someone shipping overseas for example.
 
The knifekit is a good place to start, maybe ask them what guard will work best with this blade. You will end up with a very nice knife and very usable. They list the hardness as 56 - 58 which is good and should work well for you until you start making your own blades. I have done business with knifekits and they are very responsive and ship quickly, I would recommend them to anyone. Texas Knife is also a very good company and I have ordered from them for several years.

BTW, you can take you knife to an engraver and get you ititials and date engraved if you wish, just to show off a bit and a reminder of when you did your first knife. I have my first several, but really cannot remember when I made them.

Just wanted to remind you to update your profile, right now you are getting advice from California (I lived in deadwood city, many years ago) and Oregon, maybe someone in your state will post and help. Also always nice to see where everyone lives.

Ok last edit, I ship everything US Postal Priority Mail, you get a free box, good rates, and delivery confimation, and its cheap. Put a cork or other on tip, wrap in a nice tissue, wrap is newpaper, fill box with newspaper arround the knife.

Good luck
 
so.. anyway, i think im going to start out with that classic bowie for now, havent really decided on the type of guard or pommel yet, but i will probably use varying colors of leather to put together a stack grip with some patterns added to it... unfortunately knifekits doesnt seem to have as wide a variety of grip parts as texas knifemaker supply does, so i may just order the blade from knifekits and the rest somewhere else

one question... i read something about a "hidden nut" construction... any idea what this is referring to?
 
jason41987 said:
so.. anyway, i think im going to start out with that classic bowie for now, havent really decided on the type of guard or pommel yet, but i will probably use varying colors of leather to put together a stack grip with some patterns added to it... unfortunately knifekits doesnt seem to have as wide a variety of grip parts as texas knifemaker supply does, so i may just order the blade from knifekits and the rest somewhere else

one question... i read something about a "hidden nut" construction... any idea what this is referring to?
Click to expand...

I get my kits from kinifekits... but order my scale material from usaknifemaker... I haven't ordered anything from texasknifemaker yet.

I'm not sure about the hidden nut thing, but you may want to read up on hidden tangs, the bowie kits from knifekits are all hidden tangs IIRC. In fact there's a lot of good reading to be had here.

In any case, welcome and good luck!
 
I've ordered knife making supplies from Jantz. They have patterns that might interest you. They also have the guards and pommels listed with the blades. You should get a full length tang for a stacked handle.
 
Jason,

You have received a bunch of great help here. You probably would have received it a bit sooner had you filled out your profile, at least where you live. I know there are those who do not think this important and possibly even an invasion of their privacy. We are inundated with spammers and so forth here. I like to at least have an idea where in the world you are. Might even result in an invite to a shop to get you on the road. I am sure the Count will chime in here soon with his standard post. Good luck and keep on it.
 
jason41987 said:
hmm... looks like someones trying to start an arguement
Click to expand...

That wasn't my intention at all. Re-read what I said, and do so with an absence of ego. If you drop the entitlement mentality and use words like "please" and "thank you", other people will be far more wiling to assist you in your endeavor.
 
where i live now isnt where im going to be living in a couple months... right now, PA, in a couple months, wisconsin, and i dont know how long ill be there... ive even stayed in europe for a while

as for usaknifemaker, ive never heard of them, only texas knifemaker supply, knifekits, and jantz up till this point, but ill give them a look too and see what they have to offer
 
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