Mad at myself, or knowing when to stop

B

Brian.Evans

Registered Member
Joined
Aug 20, 2011
Messages
3,267
You'd think I would know by now, if I'm off, just stop and go inside. Ruined two blanks and three hours I could have been sleeping and all I have to show for it is two more burned fingers, ruined belts, and a bad attitude. Man I hate this sometimes!
 
The next time you finish a knife and it turns out well you will be doubly rewarded for all the cuts and burns. At least with knife making you have something you can see and hold that you have achieved. I was a "white collar guy" for 38 years and have nothing to show for it but a pension.( yes, I am grateful for that) Being a knife maker is much more rewarding to me because I can see the product of my labor.
 
I know the feeling. When I'm off, I find it better to not start a demanding task but just spend some time cleaning the shop.
 
Yeah that happens.
Ground a handle to narrow last night. Got the shape I wanted but ground trough the material and epoxy showed :(
 
This is a hard one to figure out. I have a zone that I really need to be in when doing finely detailed or artistic work. If I'm too tired or my mind is somewhere else, my chances of making a mistake go up at least 70%. Unfortunately, I am best from mid-morning to mid afternoon which tends to be when I have to run errands and do farm chores. Very seldom do I get to work on knives when I'm in the zone.

Bob
 
Mistakes are normal, but if you're not in the right place, mentally, those learning experiences turn into aggravation, and aggravation and power tools are a recipe for destruction.
Basically, for me, it comes down to how I react when I make the inevitable mistake. If I start to feel aggravated I have to make myself step away for a while and come back with a clear head. This sucks because I don't have a lot of time to spend working on knives, but it's better in the long run not to ruin progress I've already made.

Bear in mind, this is coming from a new guy with less than a dozen finished knives under his belt.
 
Last edited:
How were the blanks ruined? Can you post pictures? Maybe they just need a design revision. ;)
 
I know this feeling. I think it's an ego thing, it's like "I know I can do this and even tough it's not coming out right damnit I'm gonna do now anyway" Kinda like how we won't stop and ask for directions or read instructions when assembling stuff. It's a guy thing lol
 
Ron Lake made a comment in a book once "I reserve hollow grinding for
first thing in the morning with a fresh cup of coffee"
Ken.
 
I usually can feel when to stop the dangerous work, but it's the detailed work that sometimes I push through and end up with a basket weave stamp painfully placed incorrectly. File work I just do until I cant look up and re-focus on something else. Cross-eyed=bad.
 
I agree with others, it is good to have a variety of knife making things to do , so you can choose what to do depending on how focused/refreshed you are.
 
You gotta practice. Sometimes that means messing up blanks. Keep it up. Thats how you figure it out. You're probably building to one of those moments when things slow down and make sense. You gotta chase after those with lots of failed attempts. At least, thats how it works in my house...
 
I really appreciate your "keeping it real". Sometimes on the internet/forums it's easy to put on a front and pretend that it's all good. Hope you find your flow again soon!
 
I have realized a flaw in my plan to manage this. When I get fatigued with the detail work, I cut out blanks and rough profile bevels. I have too many started knives, and not enough finished knives. :thumbdn:
 
I really appreciate your "keeping it real". Sometimes on the internet/forums it's easy to put on a front and pretend that it's all good. Hope you find your flow again soon!
 
Andy is right .. Sometimes when you think you are messing up you are really improving or right on the edge getting better. Keep working through it. One thing I won't do anymore is chase a blade that is destined for disaster if that makes any sense. Know where to cut your losses . $10 or $15 dollars worth of steel is not worth the extra time it's going to take to get half of what your original intention was.
 
That is what a lot of the problem was. I was chasing a grind and chasing a grind and chasing a grind and finally it just got way too thin and I said the heck with it.

Then I messed up the next one the exact same way. That one became a sailing knife. It sailed across the shop.

I was just really down on myself because I knew I could do it, it just wasn't coming out. I try really hard to not make every knife about my knifemaking career as a whole, but it's hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel when you're slogging away sometimes. When a guy wants something so bad it hurts, it REALLY hurts when there seems be no reason why something messes up so badly. I'm trying really, really hard to get the money saved up to complete my 2x72, I really hate when I burn belts and steel for naught. I know it technically isn't wasted money, but it sure feels like it sometimes.

Nothing went right last night. Blanking, grinding, drilling holes, nothing. I know for a fact when I get that way that I need to stop and go inside, but I don't get uninterrupted time in the shop very often and I was pushing hard. Pushing hard and power tools make for as dangerous a combination as alcohol and motorcycles. I forgot that last night. I didn't get schooled too badly, but there were definitely a couple close calls I failed to heed.

It used to happen when I was single and played guitar for four or five hours a day most days. Some days I'd sit down to write or work out a chord progression and it was like magic. It all just came out, rainbows, angels singing, light from above, you know the drill. Then other times I'd tune up and that first chord was fingered right, but sounded like mating cats. I'd just put the guitar back in the case and try later.

Anyway, thanks for letting me vent. I needed to talk (type?) to people who could understand. My wife looks at me like I've three heads when I talk about this stuff.

By the way, I think I figured out what I did wrong/differently. It came to me right, and I mean seconds, before I fell asleep last night. Now, to put it into practice.....in a few days.
 
rcetroy said:
I really appreciate your "keeping it real". Sometimes on the internet/forums it's easy to put on a front and pretend that it's all good. Hope you find your flow again soon!
Click to expand...
Buddy, I'm real. That's just who I am. What you see is what you get, good, bad or ugly. Ask my work partner. Between regular shifts and overtime we saw each other about 340 hours last month. They're are only 720 hours in a month. The fifth call after midnight when you've been awake for 20 hours already, stuff gets really real, really fast. Lol.
 
We all have off days sometimes. Whether you've been making knives for 20 years or 20 days you will still have a couple of throw aways.
I'm sure you've heard this before but I'll say it again, because it is some of the best advice that I have ever been given. Use belt's like you stole them! The cost of a belt is a lot cheaper than the cost of a knife you ruined by trying to get the most out of a belt. Not saying that this is your problem, but it was definitely a problem for me a few times in the past.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top