Khukri and Convex... a match made in Heaven...

[SamuraiDave]

So, instead of doing homework, tonight I shaped and sharpened.

Starting around 5 and finishing around 8, I ground and polished and finally buffed the wire edge with a home made (YVSA style ) strop. The knife is my beater CS kukri. I dont like it much, a 12" bladed machete, but I love the steel.
This is the knife that I test finishes on. Cold Bluing, cold blu remover, mustard patina, mayo patina..etc etc... about 20 different patinas on the thing and alot of steel wool... the thing was ugly and pitted from the beginning, it is what CS hides beneath that epoxy finish I stripped off with paint stripper. Oh yeah, did I mentioned that I ground a Cho on it so that it really would be a khukri??? (I also need to do that neat V thing to it that HI forges into theirs, but I dont have a grinder or that much spare time to burn behind a stone. And another thing I need to think about replacing the rubber grip on this thing... it is so frigging rough and ugly! And I could use the practice.)

This is my first kukri to completely regrind the edge. I have been too busy to experiment with the others and I feel that I need to use my "experimental series" of knives that I really dont care if I destroy (although destroying them would be fun) before I move on to those that I love (Read: M43).

Guys, if yall dont have strips of mousepad glued to pieces of Yardstick, and sandpaper glued to the mousepad in order to make a convex edge...yall need to.

 

[Yvsa]

A man after my own heart!!!!
Way to go Dave!!!!
Dave, didn't you also have a problem with the convex edge in the beginning or am I thinking of another?

I know that it's possible to post 10 smilies now and thought I could get away with just posting ten smilies, but all I got was ten : d of those.

 

[Nasty]

I'm lazy Yvsa...I stopped by Lowe's on my way home from work today. Now I need a beater Khuk to practice on! ;-)

 

[Yvsa]

Nasty, when you reach a certain age and social status it's customary to be lazy.
I achieved the age but not the social status and I'm still lazy.

And I just may have the khuk for you. It's an HI WW II that Bill sent me to play around with and I've never gotten to it.:grumpy:
Just as well be you.
When you get done with it it will be a Sirupati instead of a WW II.
However it won't be there in time for the Khon, you'll just have to get one outta the BBB.

 

[hollowdweller]

So tell us how the Cold Steel chops now. I got this nice Phillipine Bolo. Very sharp when I got it, but seemed to stick a lot. I did the strop and sandpaper treatment and it was better. I chopped some and went over it again. I could see the edge getting more polished and convex on the second go around. I couldn't believe how much less it got stuck once the edge was more polished out.

 

[Nasty]

When you get done with it it will be a Sirupati instead of a WW II.

Why thank you Yvsa...if I can make it a pretty enough Sirupati, I'll return it to you...of course, then you'll have to see if Terry can make a super skinny sheath! :footinmou

BTW, did you get your DVD today?

 

[Yvsa]

I couldn't believe how much less it got stuck once the edge was more polished out.

How long have I been saying, "Convex and polished is the best edge on a khuk?"

 

[SamuraiDave]

Yvsa,
I dont remember if I ever had a "problem" with it. I know I was wary at first... I mean who would use sandpaper and a mouse pad to sharpen a $100 knife ... I mean really!

The only problem that I have now is that I tend to scratch the hyell out of the knife on the lower grits and cannot seem to get it out all the way as I go to the higher grits. Even though I plan to beat them to death, or at least give them a run for their money, I dont like ruining their nice and shiny finish. (One reason my M43 has only eaten a light diet and hasnt been beaten to death. Speaking of light diets and why not to talk down to them...now we all know that Richard Simmons can hold his own... so dont talk down to light diets...)
But the finishing thing is all apart of learning to make knives, or in my case to take what someone else has made and make it better.

Now I have this thought... to convex the edge of my Benchmade 710 McHenry & Williams in ATS34... but I think I will wait. I stropped it last night and is doing peachy keen right now. Perhaps the CS SRK that I put a new handle on needs a convex edge... it is one of the other knives in the "experimental series". Hmmm...

Nasty,
You can convex just about anything, Kitchen knives, pocket knives, the screw driver you use as a choke for the carburator on your car.... just think of the possibilities. Just do the mouse pad trick...start with 150 grit, then jump to 250 or so. At 250 you start to polish the edge and remove less material. Tonight I went from 250 to 400 then to 800 and then 1000, finished up with 1500 and finally red cutting compound on a leather strop, Yvsa style, the less coarse side of the leather up. It is near a mirror polish on the edge, and it only took me around 3 hours.

P.S.
Oh yeah, speaking of cool convex edges Yvsa, the GRS that I got off you still shaves. It dosent see much use here in central Texas, but when it does I wipe her down and put her away. I cant remember when I last used the Chakuma for good measure. Just thought you would like to hear about your sweetie, simply an amaizing edge.

 

[Yvsa]

Why thank you Yvsa...if I can make it a pretty enough Sirupati, I'll return it to you...of course, then you'll have to see if Terry can make a super skinny sheath! :footinmou

BTW, did you get your DVD today?

Nope, didn't get the DVD.
As for the Sirupati.... Naaaw, it will be yours to keep, perhaps as a keepsake, but yours to keep whatever the reason.
After taking off as much edge as I think may have to be taken off to make it useable it may be too soft for anything except a scary knife, but if it's like my FF you can take one helluva lot off and still have a lot of hard edge left.
If you do a good job it may be useful in one of T-Bones breakaway scabbards.

 

[Nasty]

Yvsa and Dave...thanks to both of you!

The DVDs went out two days ago, better be there tomorrow or the Post Office is gonna learn the meaning of PO'd!

 

[Daniel Koster]

Nasty -

tried to sneak this one past me, eh?




Why am I bringing my sander? It probably won't even survive the trip home...it's so worn out and beat up...you guys and your "new stuff"....gonna make me look like crap...

 

[Nasty]

But you know how to use them! We are counting on you to teach us how to wear ours out too...

 

[Mykl Clark]

I'm a strong believer in using your POS blades to practice on. Everytime I switch to a new system I break the mora and the old hickories before going to the good ones. Speaking of which I just received pen's vid a day or two ago and have to get sharpening.