Lauri blank blades knifemaking

D

DSTiamat

Joined
Feb 4, 2011
Messages
53
Hello,

I am bloody new to knifemaking, would like to try my luck, making a knife from a lauri blank blade, i think they are throgh-tang, can someone guide me to some intsructions, tutorials?
BIG TY
DST
 
I guess you are talking about these blanks.
All a hidden through tang scandi bushcraft type...

http://www.thompsonsknives.com/lauricarbon.html

Specific to that blade type, this is a good book, but out of print and crazy expensive.
http://www.amazon.com/Knifemaking-C...les-Sheaths/dp/188737437X/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1

The Standard Reply to New Knifemakers v13

The answer to a 13 year old student is different than to a 40 year old engineer.
We may recommend a local supplier, or you may have a helpful neighbour; but that depends on where you are. We have members worldwide.
Fill out your profile with your location (Country and State at least), age, education, employment.

Look at the threads stickied at the top; many are expired, but not all.

The basic process in the simplest terms
Absolute Cheapskate Way to Start Making Knives-Printable PDF-Right Click and Save
Absolute Cheapskate Way to Start Making Knives-Website


Web Tutorials
Detailed instructions by Stacy E.Apelt

The Things I Advise New Knife Makers Against-Printable PDF

Handle Tutorial - Nick Wheeler-Website

http://www.engnath.com/manframe.htm

Books
A list of books and videos

BladeForums - E-books or Google books


I like:
David Boye-Step by Step Knifemaking
Tim McCreight-Custom Knifemaking: 10 Projects from a Master Craftsman
These are clear, well organized, widely available and inexpensive too.

Knife Design:
See the Google books thread for Lloyd Harding drawings & the Loveless book. Google books thread


Forging Books:
Lorelei Sims-The Backyard Blacksmith
An excellent modern book with colour photos for forging in general - no knifemaking.

Jim Hrisoulas- has 3 books on forging knives. Check for the cheaper paperback editions.
The Complete Bladesmith: Forging Your Way to Perfection
The Pattern-Welded Blade: Artistry in Iron
The Master Bladesmith: Advanced Studies in Steel

Machine Shop Basics -Books:
Elementary Machine Shop Practice-Printable PDF

The Complete Practical Machinist-Printable -1885-PDF
It’s being reprinted now, you can get it for $20 ish

The $50 knife Shop
It confused me for a long time.
Forging is NOT necessary; you can just file and grind to create a knife (stock removal)

The goop quench is total Bull, commercial quench oils are available, even grocery store canola oil works much better.

Junkyard steels require skill and experience to identify the steel and heat treat it properly.
You can buy proper steel like 1084FG from Aldo very cheaply.

I like cable damascus, but that advanced project has no place in a beginner’s book.

The grinders are the best thing about this book, but there is a huge amount of info for 2x72” belt grinders on the web, including free plans.


Videos

Heat Treating Basics Video-downloadable
Right click and save this. Watch it once a day for 10 days.


Many specific how to knifemaking videos are available, some are better than others.

The best overall Knifemaking video I have seen is
“Steve Johnson-Making a Sub-Hilt Fighter”

The best video on leather sheath making I have seen is
“Custom Knife Sheaths -Chuck Burrows - Wild Rose”
-(Paul Long has 2 new videos, his sheath work is fantastic. I hope the videos are too)

Green Pete's Free Video
Making a Mora bushcraft knife, stock removal, hand tools, neo tribal / unplugged heat treat.
"Green Pete" posted it free using torrent files.
Be sure to look at the other titles too-The account index has disappeared, but search for LOTS of info.
Greenpete Knifemaking Basics-on TPB

You can see a list of videos and reviews at this rental company; some are worth buying, some renting…
http://smartflix.com/store/category/9/Knifemaking

Draw Filing Demonstration
YouTube video -Draw Filing-for a flat finish

Steel
The “welding steel” at Home Depot / Lowes… is useless for knives.
If you send out for heat treating, you can use O1, A2, D2, CM154, ATS34, s30v, 440C, plus many others.

If you heat treat yourself, find some 1070, 1080, 1084,
1084 FG sold by Aldo Bruno is formulated just for knifemaking.
http://njsteelbaron.com/
Phone # 862-203-8160

You can find a list of suppliers here

Heat Treating
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9143684&postcount=7

You can send blades out for heat treating at $10 or $15 per blade for perfect results, and avoid buying the equipment.

This PDF brochure gives a good overview
http://www.buckknives.com/resources/pdf/Paul_Bos_Brochure.pdf

http://www.petersheattreat.com/cutlery.html
http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/privacy.php#services
http://www.knifemaker.ca/ (Canadian)


Grinder / Tools

Hand Tools
You can do it all by hand with files and abrasive cloth like the Green Pete video.
Photo of a nice bevel filing jig

Entry Level Grinders
Many makers start with the Sears Craftsman 2x42 belt grinder

Commercial Production 2 x 72” Belt Grinders
http://www.prometheanknives.com/shop-techniques-3/grinders

Mapp arm – Grinder Toolrest


DIY 2 x 72” Belt Grinders

KMG Clone Free Plans
http://www.dfoggknives.com/PDF/GrinderPlans.pdf

NWG No Weld Grinder
http://www.usaknifemaker.com/plans-for-the-no-weld-grinder-sander-nearly-50-pages-p-723.html

EERF Grinder (EERF =“Free” backwards)
http://wilmontgrinders.com/EERFGrinder.aspx
http://blindhogg.com/blueprints.html
http://www.atlasknife.com

Buy the kit
http://polarbearforge.com/grinder_kit.html


Safety Equipment
Protect your -Eyes, Ears, Fingers, Lungs - take off jewelry and put on safety gear.
Respirators
Chronic lung disease and cancer really suck the joy out of life.
The minimum I would consider are the 3M 7500 and North 7700 silicone half masks with a P100 Filter.
Use a VOC & P100 combo cartridge for protection against acetone and solvents.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=788837
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=726309


V13 Edited dead links
 
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Hello,

I just began to work, but I have a big problem, the blades that i have are Lauri blades, exactly like in the nice reply. The problem I have is the form of the tang, its not an regular rectangle, the part of the tang near the blades is thining like a bevel of a blade, its getting pretty thin. I dont know how to shape the hole in the handle this way, as I dont think i have such a fine file.Should i grind the tang to a perfect rectangle, I know it must fit tight.
Thank you
DST
 
DSTiamat said:
Hello,

I just began to work, but I have a big problem, the blades that i have are Lauri blades, exactly like in the nice reply. The problem I have is the form of the tang, its not an regular rectangle, the part of the tang near the blades is thining like a bevel of a blade, its getting pretty thin.

I don't know how to shape the hole in the handle this way, as I don't think i have such a fine file.

Should i grind the tang to a perfect rectangle, I know it must fit tight.
Thank you
DST
Click to expand...

You may get better answers from others, but don't hesitate to grind on a file to make it suit your needs.
Smooth "Safe edges" and thinner or tapered profiles are pretty common modifications to a file.
 
You might want to check out this tutorial on Brisa web site. These blades are very popular in Finland and there are many people making knives this way. One thing that seems to be missing at least on the first page of the tutorial (although you can see it in photos): put some tape on the blade when working on an attached handle. These tend to come very sharp from the factory.

I'm not sure what to make of the bevel going into the handle, it's not traditional in Finnish knives. I suspect most people will just make the slot rectangular so it'll slide over the part of the tang that doesn't have a bevel, and the "gap" will be filled with epoxy when you glue it up. This may actually work to keep the tang more securely inside the handle as the epoxy will grab the plunge line inside the handle.
 
Another useful tool is a reciprocating saw blade ground as narrow as possible to fit in the hole the drill leaves. I have one with fairly coarse teeth ground down to fit a 3/16 inch hole, and another finer toothed one that fits a 1/8 inch hole, and a handle... I do 99% of my tang fitting this way. Needle files are useful for the last little bit of cleanup, but the saws are wonderful when you've got a lot of wood to remove.

Edited to add: when grinding down the saw blades, keep them cool so as not to remove the hardness.
 
Hello,

The saw blade sounds like a really good idea, may I ask how did you grind it down to that size? Could I cut it with my dremel?Is a jig saw blade aslo good?
TY
DST
 
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DST,
I'm guessing that you are young and haven't read much on knifemaking. Filling out your profile will be a good start to getting better help and answers. Reading some books on knifemaking, and reading the stickies will help answer a lot of questions, too.

Drill the hole through the handle block, and wiggle the drill bit off center to widen the hole until it fits the tang. On wider tangs, you may have to drill two holes and then drill out the web between them. It doesn't have to be the exact shape of the tang. When assembling, use epoxy to fill the hole. Use slow setting epoxy, to give you time to work, and not rush the assembly.

A sawz-all blade can be re-shaped into a tool to saw the slot more rectangular, but will break easily. There are special tools for this task, but most people don't use them, they just use the drill bit to make an oval hole as described above. A saw blade will have to be shaped on a grinder or belt sander. It will have to be cooled by dipping in water every few seconds to avoid ruining the temper and making it useless as a cutting tool. A sawz-all blade is long, and will work, a jig saw blade is too short.

Tape up the finished blade when doing all handle work to protect the blade and keep from cutting yourself. It also keeps the blade from getting epoxy all over it in assembly.
 
I have read some knifemaking books but have not found that specific information and thought that the hole should fit the tang really tight, thats why I was worrying, to shape the hole with the drill bit sounds really too easy, nice to hear this, and yes im new and young, with not really much money for this hobby, but allready got the fewer:).
TY
DST
 
You can get a guard filed for a tight fit.You will just have to bevel the rest of the tang so the guard will slide on. Another trick I've used with Lauri blades is to use an antler guard.You can get the hole as close as possible then pack some of the antler dust mixed with super glue into the cracks.use a single edged razor blade to trim the excess. If your antler guard is solid so the color dust blends well it will look like the blade grew out of it.
 
Is there a secret in shaping tang holes this way , I just broke my 150 mm drill bit this way, should I only use short drills and drill from both sides? This are secrets that I dont find in books?
TY
 
DSTiamat said:
Hello,

The saw blade sounds like a really good idea, may I ask how did you grind it down to that size? Could I cut it with my dremel?Is a jig saw blade aslo good?
TY
DST
Click to expand...

I use my belt grinder to modify the saw, but you should be able to do it with a dremel.
yyg.jpg

A jig saw blade might be too short for most tangs.
 
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Edited to add: yes, the do break easily when they've been ground down this much... easy on the pressure, take your time and you can cut a very presice slot.
 
Is there a secret in making the oval shape with the electric drill? I just broke my long drill bit again this way, should I drill and enlarge from both sides with a short drill bit? Is there a dremel bit that could be used for creating the oval tang hole like some reamer or rasp? Im living in an god damned country in Europe where I must get any tool from the internet, even a long rasp.
TY
DST
 
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Holes in handles for hidden tang knives are generally made by drilling multiple holes and connecting them, not by drilling one hole and trying to extend it. Once you have multiple holes with very small "bridges" between them you can use needle files or a broach to clear out the bridges and smooth the sides.

By the way, there is another thread in this forum that talks about how to make your own broaches. Instead of ordering this tool, make it.
 
Hello,
Is there a way in just building and hardening your own long rotary rasp bit? Juts like the ones you can buy , that are 1 inch long for making the process of tang hole shaping easy? I broke 3 bits by now trying to connect 2 holes i drilled parallel in the handle.
DST
 
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