Knifemaking fact and fiction....

scottickes said:
[*]The most important part of knifemaking is the heat treat process. This is fact. No matter how good of a choice you make for your steel, if you heat treat it improperly, the knife will not be as good as it could be. In fact, it's possible that a poor heat treat could result in a knife that would be no better than one made with low carbon Home Depot or Lowe's steel.
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Have to disagree , even with good steel and good heat treat , without correct geometry it will not be a good knife. I would instead say it is an important part of knifemaking , but not the most important part , since you need all aspects working together , steel , HT , geometry and execution.

:D
 
Fact, when your co-workers find out you make knives you will be deluged with requests for a variety of cutlery until they find out how much a knife costs. Everyone of them will have worked in the past with someone that made the best knives on the planet while at work and sold them for $10. They can't believe you spent $25 on some WSSI stabilized scales much less $50+ on a block of ironwood burl.
 
Right you are, Will... then they'll talk smack about you being a greedy so-and-so while they struggle to cut twine with a dull Chinese piece of crap...

To these people I say, here's the best knife for you. :D
 
John T Wylie Jr said:
Have to disagree , even with good steel and good heat treat , without correct geometry it will not be a good knife. I would instead say it is an important part of knifemaking , but not the most important part , since you need all aspects working together , steel , HT , geometry and execution.

:D
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The thing about heat treatment is that it is the second easiest thing to get right, the first being steel selection, and once these two items are taken care of; you can focus all of your energies on getting that edge geometry right where you want it. That will take 1000 times more energy on your part than steel selection and heat treatment done properly. The last and hardest(for me) is the design, getting it just right.
That said I firmly agree with Scott
Del
 
Will Leavitt said:
Fact, when your co-workers find out you make knives you will be deluged with requests for a variety of cutlery until they find out how much a knife costs. Everyone of them will have worked in the past with someone that made the best knives on the planet while at work and sold them for $10. They can't believe you spent $25 on some WSSI stabilized scales much less $50+ on a block of ironwood burl.
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Quoted for truth.
:thumbup:
Later,
Iz
 
Fiction: Steel is not Molecular.

Facts:
1. Iron has a crystalline metallic bond and does not form molecules.
2. Metallic Carbides are primarily covalently binded molecular compounds that participate in the metallic bond with their outer shell electrons.

It takes both to make steel.
 
Steve Hayden said:
Fiction: Steel is not Molecular.

Facts:
1. Iron has a crystalline metallic bond and does not form molecules.
2. Metallic Carbides are primarily covalently binded molecular compounds that participate in the metallic bond with their outer shell electrons.

It takes both to make steel.
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Huh? Are you telling me that even though my knives have carbon in them, they aren't a carbon based life form? :confused: :rolleyes:
 
"these aint no 'sissy' knives"... saw your work and just had to give you props! Absolute stroke of genious using the snap inset on the scales for the neck knife. Really great design!
 
scottickes said:
Please add your own facts and fiction to this thread. It should help the newbies here.

  • Steel has a molecular structure. Fiction. Steel has a crystalline structure.
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LOL and is the crystalline structure not comprised of molecules? I thought carbides were molecular compounds
 
Fact: The bush knife you make for chopping 1" branches and saplings, will be used for chopping firewood (not kindling) as well.
Fact: When this knife breaks you will learn a valuable HT lesson.
Fact: The friend of the one who bought and broke this knife will make sure to bring it up at least twice a month.
 
1) Fresh burns always look worse than they really are. FACT
2) If you keep telling youself that it won't hurt as much.... FICTION
 
I particularly liked Nathan's observation: "Half of being a master at something it knowing how to take the time to do something right. It isn't so much a skill as it is a mindset."

I'm nowhere near being a master knifemaker, but one of the things I like most about making knives is that there are so many aspects of the art that are dangerous unless I pay very close attention, so I do pay very close attention, and that helps the quality of my work.

Fact: You know you're a real knifemaker when you refuse to eat anything in a restaurant until you've seen the chef's knives. And after you see them, of course you refuse to eat anything he cooks because his knives are crap and so how could he possibly be a good cook?
 
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