Is anyone interested in 1/4" Zwear?

kuraki

kuraki

Fimbulvetr Knifeworks
Joined
Jun 17, 2016
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Since thicker Zwear isn't available from our favorite retailers I got a quote from Zapp on a 24x50" piece. That's north of $2,000 which I personally can't justify myself. But the price per lb is quite reasonable in that quantity. I need to get a freight quote to know for certain but I believe our ultimate cost would be about $21/lb (about $70 for 2x24x.25) For reference, it's $28/lb elsewhere. (About $108 for same bar size)

What I'd really like is to find 3 people to split this 4 ways with me but that may be a bridge too far. I'm willing to divvy it up however needed and cut the sheet into strips on the laser at work. If I do this it's just a one time thing, because I want to make some ZW choppers and possibly a sword.

This is not a sale thread. You're not committing to anything. If you'd be interested in getting your hands on some thicker ZW at a decent price just post here how much you would possibly be interested in. I'll assume the risk of buying it out right and then getting with those interested if I feel interest is sufficient.
 
I might be interested. That 24" length doesn't seem great though. If you are not going to make a 24" knife or death sword there will be a lot of waist. Or would you take it off in say 16"ishx2" strips?
 
I like sheet stock because you get to decide how to cut it up. With nesting the blades, you can get several extra knives from a sheet that you wouldn't get from a stack of 2" strips.One fourth of a 24X50" sheet is 24X12.5" The 12.5" side is a pretty good size for many knives. You would get over a dozen blades 12.5" from that.

If you do some 16" blades, then cut off 8X12.5" piece for smaller blades and you still have a 16X12.5 sheet for long choppers. Personally, i would lay them out and cut one at a time on the 24X12.5" sheet.
 
skillgannon said:
I might be interested. That 24" length doesn't seem great though. If you are not going to make a 24" knife or death sword there will be a lot of waist. Or would you take it off in say 16"ishx2" strips?
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The sheet comes to me 24 wide 50 long. I'll cut it however anyone wants. I was debating whether to offer cutting profiles. I could but I'm trying to do this neutrally when it comes to money and that can add a boat load of time to what I'm doing if I have to do the drawing or even just fixing of dxf files. But rectangular size? Whatever you want.
 
Just do to work being slow and kinda wierd this year I can't commit to a large piece. If it would help someone with the cost I would be interested in a something that I could make a couple of 10 to 12" blades out of so 14" to 18" overall. If work gets back to normal i would like more. Dont feel like you need to reserve the steel but hit me up if it would help.
 
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I believe it would come .290" thick. I have to clarify how it's surfaced, I was assuming sheet blasted.
 
Yes it comes around .290 to .300 surface is dark with some small pits but it surface grinds easy and cleans up nice. You can easily clean it to .270 . I use it for my big trail knives.
 
kuraki said:
I believe it would come .290" thick. I have to clarify how it's surfaced, I was assuming sheet blasted.
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Wow, 16% over the nominal thickness - which means your $70 0.25" x 2" x 24" bar is in fact a $83 0.29" x 2" x 24" if you sell at scale weight.
 
P.Brewster said:
Wow, 16% over the nominal thickness - which means your $70 0.25" x 2" x 24" bar is in fact a $83 0.29" x 2" x 24" if you sell at scale weight.
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Yeah that's a really good point.

I'm trying to estimate the freight to me with those dollar estimates, but was using .250 when calculating weights - that was my error. To be perfectly open here's the quote I was given:

upload_2018-5-24_11-24-19.png

So even with their quote and freight aside I don't have an actual firm price, just an estimated weight and price per pound.
 
I won’t be able to buy a lot, but would be interested is a sword sized piece. I rarely make knives even as thick as 1/8” anymore.
 
I couldn’t afford to buy much, but I would definitely be interested in a few bars, at least 12 inches long by 2 wide, or there about!
 
kuraki said:
Yeah that's a really good point.

I'm trying to estimate the freight to me with those dollar estimates, but was using .250 when calculating weights - that was my error. To be perfectly open here's the quote I was given:

View attachment 911932

So even with their quote and freight aside I don't have an actual firm price, just an estimated weight and price per pound.
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My comment and corresponding mild frustration was directed at the steel mills, not at you. They do this intentionally to fluff up the sales.
 
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