Japan Fighter

B

bullet101

Joined
Dec 1, 2003
Messages
267
It's me again :).

Finished something else today.
Encouraged by your positive feedback I advanced a love hate project once more.

Love and hate, because on the one hand I really like the blade, which worked out great during grinding and heattreating (first time HT myself) and because the fit of the guard is also very thight.
On the other hand I had massive problems getting out deeper grinding and filing scratches in the guard by hand. Thats probably because of my lacking knowledge of the craft, because it was the first time I rounded the guard sides and because I took the guard to close to final dimensions before assembling the handle.
So it was quite tricky to get a clean transition from the guard to the wood.

Next time I'll leave some more meat on the guard and grind it down after epoxying everything together.

A big time thanks goes out to Nick Wheeler, who explained me in several mails, that probably took quite some time to write, how he rounds his guards. So :thanx: Nick :).

The fit of the guard is actually a thing I'm quite pleased with, one could nearly say it's a hairline fit ;). If anyone would have told me a year ago that I could achieve a fit like this only with files and my skill, I wouldn't have believed him. I hope it'll be the same with finishing guards in a year :).
On this one I used JB weld to seal the joint and I really love that stuff, no comparison to bubbling epoxy. Another big thank you goes out to Terry Primos for his great tutorials on fitting guards and the mortised tang construction.

As you can see in the pics I did it "the mortised way" for the first time. I have to get me one of those disc sanders to get everything dead flat for the perfect fit.

Now just some specs and then I'm looking forward to your opinions:

Lenght: 28 cm
Blade: 16 cm
Steel: 1.2842 (O-2) differentialy clay hardened
Handle: SS, ebony, red mallee and SS Pin

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Regards Marcus
 
Thats about as fresh and clean as Ive seen. Nice work all around.

By the pics those small checks in the wood should be sealed with super glue
 
Whoa... Man that is some kinda clean work. I really like your handle shape too. Way to go, that's a good first knife to look at this year!
 
Very nice. About the cleanest work I've seen lately too.:eek: :D


Edited to add; I wouldn't go any thicker on the guards, and I'd go thinner in the handle cross section, but that's just me.

Now a question; Why is it called the Japan Fighter? It just doesn't look like anything that people are doing lately and calling Japanese. It looks like it comes from way west of Japan.
In fact, I wasn't going to click on your thread as I don't particularly care for the so called eastern styles some makers do now, but I'm glad I did.;)
 
well, other than the fact that the bevel are distinctly western, the shape is kinda like a tanto.
 
Very good work Marcus. Didn't I hear somewhere that you're about 17 years old? All I can say is wow. :eek: I'm impressed.

Thanks for the mention by-the-way. I appreciate it. The cleanup on the JB Weld is done differently now from the way I did it in the tutorial.

I no longer wait for it to partially set. I get the excess cleaned off immediately now. It's even easier, and works just as well, if not better. The second change is that I sharpen a tongue depressor or Popcicle stick to a fine point, put toilet paper over the point, spray with WD-40, and thoroughly clean the joint (right after I've removed the excess).

With the pointy stick you can really get down in that joint. You will get a cleaner joint. In most cases it will be pretty much invisible. Of course you need to have the good snug flush fit like you got on this one. As you know, there's no cheating when you use the JB Weld. It's either right or it's not. There "ain't" no middle ground.

Again, very good job Marcus. I look forward to seeing your next project.
 
Outstanding! That is beautiful, clean work. Very nice fit and finish.
Great job! Thanks for sharing.
Ed
 
I don't care what you call it -- that is outstanding. :eek:

Are you marking your blades?
 
Incredible joint. I too am primarily a hand tool user (though I do have a Sherline mini lathe/milling machine and mini jeweler's drill press) and have to really admire the precision and the time and patience it took to do that.

As for the finish of the blade, it's really good. You wind up getting the files clogged once in a while and a nice gouge came up, right? I hate that. Just have to clean the files alot with a nice brass or stainless steel wire brush. Edges are nice and crisp. Your final polishing was with a wheel?

Proportions of the guard look pretty good as well. Styling lies somwehere between a camp knife and a fighting knife.

Nice, simple, neat, clean, perfect.
 
Mike Hull said:
In fact, I wasn't going to click on your thread as I don't particularly care for the so called eastern styles some makers do now, but I'm glad I did.;)
Click to expand...

hey now. . . :(
 
an't that thang nice :)
I like it..

Marcus
can I ask why the mortising and not drilling it out?

one of my first knives back in 1974 I did that way
just wondering your view on why you choose to do it on this one?
 
Thanks a lot for your positive feedback.

I named it the Japan fighter because the blade was supposed to get a way more eastern style handle, but I then changed my plans on it and I made the handle more western styled.

I somehow prefer the mortised tang method because I can work far more accurate and precise. Especially with long and curved tangs I had to drill out huge amounts of wood to get the tang in there. Now I just have to take out the wood really needed and the fit is way more tight now.

I'm not marking my knifes yet as I still struggling if I should go for etching or stamping, maybe I should decide in the next time before making anymore blades :D .

The final finish on the blade is a 600 grit hand rub and the handle was polished with a loose cotton wheel.

I hope I didn't miss any questions now.

Thanks again and best regards,
Marcus
 
very fine work, and a nice choice of handle material too. I think I woudl listen to Master Bump though, and fill the checks with superglue or something.

I really like that handle shape. Looks like it woudl provide a nice grip....very solid feeliing in hand.

Doc
 
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