Making a knife and have a question

halfsquelch

halfsquelch

Joined
Jun 19, 2012
Messages
110
I have been looking for quite some time for the right Karambit and after much searching learned that what I was searching for did not yet exist, so I have decided to make my own one. I have the equipment and experience to make the blade and grips myself but what I do not have is a furnace that can hit 1500F and the technical expertise to properly cool the blade. So I was wondering if anyone knows of a good place, locally preferred (I live in Anchorage AK) but I am willing to ship it somewhere, that would be able to deal with the hardening and tempering. If not I know there are a few custom knife makers up here that I am sure I could get to do it but I would prefer a shop that someone has dealt with before and had a good experience with.

Here is the rough drawing that I made today while bored out of my mind at work, the next step will be modeling it out of clay so I can hold an actual size version of it to see what I need to change before starting to work with steel.

20140330_150936_zps9a5e95bd.jpg


Oh and I am planning to make it from damascus steel with either a dark wood or black horn handle.
 
It will be a few months at the least as it is just a design concept at the moment and I have a few other projects I am working on but if pics are wanted pics will be shown.
 
Probably just as easy to make two as it is to make one. Hmmmm think Bawanna! I dig damascus blades and have had a strong hankering for a kerambit for quite awhile. The minute I read damascus (think word association) I thought STAG! Frankly my britches are sticking out in front just thinking about it.

I'll help sponsor what I can and of course provide mental and emotional support.

Maybe some of our knifemakers here could work with you on the stuff you need to have done.

I know Ndog recently got a knife from Bensinger (I'm sure I screwed up the spelling on that with no disrespect of course). He was quite impressed and he made me very very jealous too. Think it would have looked way better at my house.

Maybe shavru is right I really am a greedy person.
 
Unless someone knows of a place to get "metallurgically better" yet still beautiful damascus I will most likely be buying a billet from Alabama Damascus for this project which are made from 52100, 5160, 203E, and 15N20 and most of them are large enough to make 3 or even 4 of these toys. So yes if time permits whenever I get to that part of the process I may make more than one.
 
I was gonna say the same thing Bawanna and I think you did spell it correctly. My little Khuk came very sharp and I havent touched the edge on it and doubt I will for a long time. No you cant have it! Im kinda attached to it now! Nice Kerambit btw. I also would love to have one so you might want to make three of them so we can do some testing in different climates:D
 
Good thinking introducing the climate test. We have the harsh cold far north, the not quite so harsh but moss grows between your toes especially if your barefoot a lot and the hot warm climate of the Walker Texas Ranger state.

It's for science!
 
LOL. Bawanna, Nothing wrong with it as long as you are aware of it. Being greedy isn't a crime, it is what we do about it that could be. Like I said, I only recognize it so well in others because I look in the mirror occasionally.

That looks like an awesome karambit, I do wonder how the spike on the end of the hilt will feel when you get the clay model made. Might want to drop the point fo the spike a little bit instead of having it proud of the top of the grip, but that is for working out once you have the model inhand.

I love the shape and the idea of damascus for it. As for the handle, I personally love a dark reddish wood with it like cocobolo or the dark almost black stained version of something like buffalo bone. Stag while beautiful might be a lot of pattern and kind of overwhelm the steel, it depends on how "busy" the steel you choose is. As for the tempering, let's hope on of the many knifemakers who spend time frequenting the cantina will contact you with either local to you folks they would recommend or an offer to work with you on that part. Perhaps you could work out a trade deal for the tempering with someone like JW Bensinger, maybe PM him with a question about if he would be available to discuss that sort of thing?
 
I agree on the hilt point, I'd round it off given the option. Just seems like a poker on the wrong end to me. I got no experience with any kerambit so my input probably isn't worth the cyber bytes it's written on.

I did tell auntie if they ever made anymore I'd sure like one of hers. She said they would when / if things normalize over there.
 
That end will get rounded off a bit so as to not stab me if my thumb goes over it but not enough to get rid of the point. The Karambit is meant to be a hand to hand combat weapon so the reason for having a point on that end is to make both sides of the weapon deadly instead of just one. My plan is to, with the exception of the sharpened edges, have every surface rounded off so there aren't even any lines showing in the steel or the handle.

I just started to work on this two days ago so I have not put much thought into what I will use for the grips but yes a dark red hardwood like cocobolo would like great with damascus.
 
image.jpg the protrusion on the ring is for thumb support on extended cuts:
image.jpg. If you shift it to the edge side of the ring it'll do both-though if the fits right (so you can get your finger out if you need to) smackin stuff with the peak will not feel nice.
Regarding heat treat, either a charcoal grill (using some kind of blower) or an acetylene torch will get you to nonmagnetic.
I do 99% of my hardening with oxyacetylene- it also allows you to differential harden without clay.
Keep a magnet handy to check, and find another piece of high carbon to practice on.
 
Perfect I'll take it, EMS sent! Oh cool your jets bawanna, go to your room. Make the little people shut up. Make me!

You might want to hit the Salvation Army JW and get ya some nice leather gloves. From the looks of your hands, your blades self attacked you more than once.

That's a nice looking kerambit. I never seen one deployed like your doing there but it makes that little point on the hilt make perfect sense which in my case is a bit scary.
 
LOL Bawanna-most of those cuts are from pulling hard on artificial sinew stitching sheaths today...image.jpg
And one or two are from grabbing the littke skinny cord on a flexi-leash trying to untangle terriers...
Those extended cuts aren't something I'd likely do, but learning them is A:fun, and B:part of Silat so it's in the curriculum.
And If you can pull them off the other stuff seems much easier.
 
Wasn't saying to get rid of the spike. I just think in the drawing it looks like it is actually slightly forward of the base of the handle and that might make it too far forward so it hits the side of your palm.

Bawanna, Careful you are getting so fast at trying to acquire blades so that I can't exersize my greed anymore LOL. GOOD FOR YOU!!

JW, Untangle terriers? Isn't that sort of like trying to negotiate peace in the middle east? An ongoing permanent project? LOL.
That is a nice looking kbit you show there, I love the curves of the blade. Is that your own work or someone else's? and if yours are there any available? hehe gotta beat Bawanna to sending an email if there is...
 
A few updates...

After a bit of reworking, the clay model is almost done and almost the only thing I had to change was to move the location of the point farther down the ring. I am at work for the weekend but when I finish the model next week I will post a picture. For a mental picture as to the relocation of the point, if you where to rest the blade on its edge with the tip and the ring touching a table the end of the point would also touch.

The damascus blanks I have decided to use are the Alabama Buckshot pattern from Alabama Damascus with a thickness of .19" +/- .01 and I will be ordering enough metal to make 4 of them (that is not to say that all 4 will turn out as I have not done this type of metal work before). The thickness of the finished product is not yet set but I wanted the blanks to be thick enough so I could hit them with a fly cutter on my mill to I have a smooth surface to work and so I could decide the thickness at a later time.

As for the handles I could not decide on one type of wood so I am going to be ordering Diospyros Crassiflora, Dalbergia Retusa, Peltogyne, and Ilex to make a different colored set for each one of them. Now, without using google who here can name the non-scientific names of those woods?
 
Ah, I am glad the clay model gave you such great feedback, it must have been pretty dramatic since you moved the point so far. Sounds like it will fit your hand/style incredibly well.

I know the one I recommended is on the list and I know which one it is. Total I know 3 of them. The other I would need to google (AND will now that I won't be cheating since I gave my answer which was I don't know them all) Don't want to give away the guessing for others LOL. We have some serious woodworkers here so I don't doubt there are a few that know them all.\



Edit: Oh wow, I looked up the one I didn't know (Peltogyne) . That is going to make an INCREDIBLE set of handle scales. Can't wait to see how they turn out.
 
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I thought I was a wood guy but I never heard any of those before. I'm not gonna cry since they are probably like the scientific name for a butterfly or whatever.

Guess I better sign up for metal shop next quarter.
 
halfsquelch said:
A few updates...

After a bit of reworking, the clay model is almost done and almost the only thing I had to change was to move the location of the point farther down the ring. I am at work for the weekend but when I finish the model next week I will post a picture. For a mental picture as to the relocation of the point, if you where to rest the blade on its edge with the tip and the ring touching a table the end of the point would also touch.

The damascus blanks I have decided to use are the Alabama Buckshot pattern from Alabama Damascus with a thickness of .19" +/- .01 and I will be ordering enough metal to make 4 of them (that is not to say that all 4 will turn out as I have not done this type of metal work before). The thickness of the finished product is not yet set but I wanted the blanks to be thick enough so I could hit them with a fly cutter on my mill to I have a smooth surface to work and so I could decide the thickness at a later time.

As for the handles I could not decide on one type of wood so I am going to be ordering Diospyros Crassiflora, Dalbergia Retusa, Peltogyne, and Ilex to make a different colored set for each one of them. Now, without using google who here can name the non-scientific names of those woods?
Click to expand...
I wish I had more than nothing to guess but I don't know the materials :(
But good luck on making it
 
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