Its been a while...

P. McKinley

P. McKinley

Joined
Jan 27, 2008
Messages
2,010
Rumors of my demise, although becoming increasingly more likely with each passing day, are still greatly exaggerated. I'm still making knives and I thought I'd show a selection of my work of the past while. My apologies for the reallllly blurry photos.

-Peter

Unnamed
3 3/4" of 1084, Ebony and Oak:






"Send It" (built for a "retiring" JTF2 soldier):
4" of 1084, Cape Breton Red Maple burl, Moose bone, ebony accents:











Barachois Hunter #1
5" of 1084, African Blackwood, and figured Red Palm:








 
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Peter: Thanks for sharing - very clean work. My favorite is the rasp knife. :)
 
What a great variety! I love the warmth your knives have with the more "raw" and natural materials you use.

Just for fun, my favorites of the bunch are:

The Growler, Wrought'n Belle, Unnamed (rasp knife), and the Fusion Searle.

The Fusion is the most intriguing to me. I love how the shinogi (or grind line) carries through the habaki, guard, and all the way through the handle; it's very beautifully done and looks great. I also love how the pommel resembles a coffin, it goes perfectly with the dark and sinister feeling the knife evokes.

I hope you don't mind my asking, but what process do you use to etch your wrought iron guards? I'm actually just about to reach this stage on a pretty special knife that I've been working on for a while, and your etching looks perfect; light enough to keep the overall clean look of the work but still deep enough to show off the character in the grain. I guess I'm mainly wondering if you use ferric or vinegar to etch (and then go over with a scotch brite pad or something?). Also, do you use a resist in the guard slot? Sorry for the questions, but they really do look great lol.

Thanks for sharing, it's good to see your work here again. :)


~Paul
My Youtube Channel

... (It's been a few years since my last upload)
 
Thank you guys.

Paul, The iron is polished to 600 grit then etched in a relatively strong ferric chloride solution for about four hours to give just a bit of texture, neutralized, then lightly polished with 1500 grit to bring out the highlights. I hope that helps.

Peter
 
Peter, your knives are very clean (as always), and I particularly like the rasp knife. I know you said your photos were going to be blurry, but for some reason they all appear to be miniature knives to me. What did you take the photos with?
 
P. McKinley said:
Thank you guys.

Paul, The iron is polished to 600 grit then etched in a relatively strong ferric chloride solution for about four hours to give just a bit of texture, neutralized, then lightly polished with 1500 grit to bring out the highlights. I hope that helps.

Peter
Click to expand...


Oh wow, that's a longer etch than I was expecting you'd say, at least in a strong ferric solution.

And thank you, that does help.

Oh yea, one more quick Q if you don't mind. Do you happen to use a resist (nail polish etc) in your guard slots for the etch, or does it not make a difference for you with guard's the fit up whether or not you do? I'm just a bit worried it may create a gap if I don't protect it, but also a bit worried it might somehow cause it to etch evenly around the slot area if I do, just not sure.

Thanks again!

~Paul
My Youtube Channel
... (It's been a few years since my last upload)
 
coldsteelburns said:
.
Oh yea, one more quick Q if you don't mind. Do you happen to use a resist (nail polish etc) in your guard slots for the etch,
Click to expand...

Paul - Yes, I use nail polish on guard/spacer slots and contact surfaces. I use the industrial strength Pink Glitter version I borrow from my 10 yr old daughter.

-Peter
 
P. McKinley said:
Paul - Yes, I use nail polish on guard/spacer slots and contact surfaces. I use the industrial strength Pink Glitter version I borrow from my 10 yr old daughter.

-Peter
Click to expand...


lol, ahh yes, the glitter must be your secret to keeping such a clean fit up! :D

Thanks for the help, it's much appreciated! :)


~Paul
My Youtube Channel
... (It's been a few years since my last upload)
 
I love seeing your work. Thanks for sharing.
 
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