boduke said:
Im trying to find somewhere to find materials for making knives and whatnot.
Hi Boduke, Welcome to Bladeforums!
If you want to get into knifemaking inexpensively, or try it out as a possible hobby/career (hence the search for free/cheap materials?), there are a couple of possible alternatives. One is kit knives and the other is to start out with some rather minimal hand tools like a hacksaw, some files, and sandpaper. Steel for a knife can be bought very inexpensively.
Knife kits allow you to practice the techniques of assembling a knife without the expense of buying a bunch of machines for a shop or even the hassle/effort of machining or forging the parts of the knife. As your skill grows, you can modify the kit parts or use alternative materials to personalize the knife beyond what is provided in the kit. Your experience and enjoyment level will tell you when you're ready to move beyond kit knives into making the whole thing yourself.
Probably the best-known of the kit knife vendors is
http://www.knifekits.com/ They have kits for both fixed-blade knives and folders utilizing a variety of materials.
If you are interested in pursuing knifemaking, spend some time reading books on the subject and read the info in the Shop Talk forum here on Bladeforums (link below). Shop Talk is the forum where knifemakers ask each other questions about "what & how", post pictures of their blades or shop setups, give each other grief
, and also enlighten folks who are just starting out on the bladesmithing path.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=741
FWIW the materials you list are not what is typically used to make knives. The standard materials used in knifemaking have become the standard because they have proven themselves over time. I would recommend cutting your chops and getting good with those standard materials before branching out into unusual materials.
The link to Texas Knifemaker from Chett is a good start for knifemaking materials. Some other vendors of knifemaking supplies are:
Koval's Knives
http://www.kovalknives.com/
Knife & Gun Supplies
http://www.knifeandgun.com/
Jantz
http://www.jantzsupply.com/
Pop's Knifemaking Supplies (gets very high marks from his customers)
http://www.popsknifesupplies.com/
Brownell's
(aimed at gunsmithing, but has tools & accessories that will work for knifemaking too)
http://www.brownells.com/
