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Like a hole in the head.......

B

BadKarma62

Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Messages
7
tried my hand at making a couple blades to throw while I'm learning so I wouldn't risk the good ones.





There should be a warning about this!! :eek: All I wanted was a few inexpensive blades to throw, now I have a whole nother hobby!!!!! :(

crap :grumpy:
 
For a first attempt, I am rather pleased even though they are very rough and crude. But I'm on the search for good steel and am reading all I can get my hands on to learn the annealing/heat treating process for throwing knives.

Should keep me busy and out of trouble. (yeah, right)
 
I like em!

I also like that they look rough enough finished handles that you have control without handle wrapping. Some I've bought are so slick I just can't seem to really nuance (is that the right word) them at longer ranges without keeping them wrapped.
 
I'm not sure I would know the difference, slick or rough. ;)

I'm watching Pat Minters videos and doing all I can to emulate his throwing style. It seems sooooo effortless. I seem to like the bigger blades a lot more than the others, so that is where I'm heading I think. Once I get the designs and the process down better, I'm gonna cut loose and see if I can make a really nice set of throwers. Should be interesting.
 
Good job, and they look great. You beat me to it.. I've been "sacrificing" the good ones, and plan to make some of my own pretty soon. I have access to a couple local machine shops I used to work for and buy from (long manufacturing background) so I'm looking forward to making something useful and fun.

Keep it up, and I think yeah it's a whole other hobby, and very addicting! :D
 
I just mean that when I started I was trying to use plain bought metal knives and they seemed slippery to me, some more than others, particularly after cleaning or oiling. The painted finish on Condor knives was the slickest to me. So I started wrapping the handles. This greatly improved my control and release of them but now the unwrapped ones feel so odd in my hand that I am constantly renewing wraps. This led to me using lots of different targets because I could not damage my own handles if the knives never struck one another. This has preserved the blades as well. The handles on yours look like they have some roughness to them and may be tactile enough to give you good control.

 
Windwhistler said:
I just mean that when I started I was trying to use plain bought metal knives and they seemed slippery to me, some more than others, particularly after cleaning or oiling. The painted finish on Condor knives was the slickest to me. So I started wrapping the handles. This greatly improved my control and release of them but now the unwrapped ones feel so odd in my hand that I am constantly renewing wraps. This led to me using lots of different targets because I could not damage my own handles if the knives never struck one another. This has preserved the blades as well. The handles on yours look like they have some roughness to them and may be tactile enough to give you good control.
Click to expand...



I had a similar experience but mostly with raw steel grips wiping oil on and off for protection. There were a few thinner stainless and even painted carbons that I had to get used to. As of late I got a hold of some real nice Flying Steel knives, and even though oxide coated, I had issues oiling, wiping etc.. especially with winter coming on, with heat cold, condensation etc.. so I modded them using the last of some duracoat (left over from firearm refinish project) with a 'soft sand texture' in the mix that turned out real nice. Now they are more corrosion resistant and easier to grip.

Your wrapped handles look great, but when I wrapped some of mine, I kept hitting, cutting, and rewrapping more than throwing. I read some other guy used "plasti-dip" for some handles, and then there are textured spray paints in standard cans buy Rustoleum and Krylon.. I may look into that. I'm also currently using colored duck/duct tape as well. That seems to be working.. At least there are some different options to look at.


Here is a pic of the duracoat with soft sand texture. Feels like a plasticky (yeah I know not a word) sand paper. Just enough to grip, but still slides and releases easy. If I stay with this type finish, I'll switch to an off the shelf (more affordable) one.



"
 
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Those look great!!

Not too sure I'd like wrapped handles, but I ma looking into some thinner micarta or leather scales to keep them thin. Not too sure yet.
 
Viper, very very very cool. Is the "soft sand texture" something that is intended to be mixed with Duracoat or is it your own recipe?

I've wanted to do something like this but it seemed cost-prohibitive. Wrinkle-coat (which I think is a type of powder coat) is something similar I want to try.
 
BadKarma62 said:
Those look great!!

Not too sure I'd like wrapped handles, but I ma looking into some thinner micarta or leather scales to keep them thin. Not too sure yet.
Click to expand...


Thanks BK and WW. If you choose DIY textured paint, I'd suggest Rustoleum Textured. I've use that in the past on painball guns, misc gear and outdoor patio furniture. When applied over a self etching primer, it's almost as good as this duracoat I used.. At least as far as knife handling and finish top coating. It all wears off in contact places eventually ..
 
P.Brewster said:
Viper, very very very cool. Is the "soft sand texture" something that is intended to be mixed with Duracoat or is it your own recipe?

I've wanted to do something like this but it seemed cost-prohibitive. Wrinkle-coat (which I think is a type of powder coat) is something similar I want to try.
Click to expand...


Thank you Patrick, and forgive me, I just made the connection between you and my recent Flying Steel FB page purchase. :o I plan to do a full review of these great knives, and forgive me for modding them.. lol But I'm spoiled with modern surface finishes after years of traditional raw and oxide finishes especially on 'every day use' items like guns and knives for instance. Okay, I just like to mod stuff in general.. :)

But to your question. This was a duracoat semi gloss black (shake and bake kit?) along with some left over duracoat "Soft Sand Texture" additive I mixed with the paint in the air sprayer. It was all left over from a pistol refinish job I did just about a year ago, so I just thought I'd use it up before the temps dropped. Did it 2 weeks ago and just in time. went from the 50's to the 18 degrees now.
I didn't have the exact ratio for proper mix, but close enough to use it up on the 5 knives. I also baked them on the second day of drying at 120 degrees (my own best guess based on past use) for 2 hours, and after they cooled they were nice and hard, and the suspended sand particles felt more like hard polymer than rubbery. So just enough extra traction in gripping, but smooth enough for no effort on release.

As far as your use or commercial grade stuff, yeah cost is always a strong consideration, along with the strongest finish for the cost and effort. Any of the thinner textured powder coats would be nice as a resin based baked on polymer is pretty resistant to corrosion. That wrinkle finish you mentioned would be nice as well. It reminds me of my Kennedy and Craftsman tool boxes. Good strong finishes. Not sure what you have for a prod facility, but a small spray booth and small oven booth might make extra finishes more affordable for you and the customer. You'd have to probably stick to a couple colors and folks would have to accept what you offer. After the ROI, you could look at other colors textures, etc... Or just farm them out. I'm sure it's difficult with hand made qty's verses mass produced. Not enough qty for good batch pricing, and if you do it, your hand working time is valuable. I remember the days making sci fi props and paintball marker accessories.. So yes, I understand the costs of any added processes.

Btw, you're adding Cerakote is a nice alternative to matte stainless, or hard chrome look and very corrosion resistant. Many in the firearms community are using that for their refinished guns.


Lastly here is an example of the wear after 2 weeks and hundreds of throws after the coating. Yes into my hardwood log round, and yes hitting other knives now and again. Nothing seems to last on the tips, but I like the look! :)


This is just throwing about an hour ago. Temp outside was 19 degrees, light snow on ground, grass and dirt slightly wiped off but wet.





And a minute later, wiped off and ready to be put back in storage pouch. Note the abrasions and wear. Not too bad!




"
 
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