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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Micro Bawanna Bowie Folder concept.
- Thread starter ndoghouse
- Start date
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2010
- Messages
- 7,751
Whhaaaaaa!!!! Im Done!!!!! What the heck am I gonna do now? Crank up you Hays 1200 baud Smart Modem! Ya wanted more pics:thumbup:
Since those last pics I polished up some internal guts and did some fine tuning, cleaning, and lubing.
Heres the final specs:
Over All Length: 9.5
Blade length: 4.0
Blade made by Min Kami which was an apprentice of Bhakta Kami.
Handle length: 5.5
Weight: ready for this? ONE POUND!!!
Equal to one KLVUK minus one KLFVUK.
Scales are Stabilized Oregon Maple and are removable. 1911 handgun grip bushings were used to secure them to the brass frame. Special thanks to Bawannas expertise in getting them installed. Also a special thanks to Bookie for providing the brass sheet for the frame. Gracias Mi Amigos:thumbup:
For evey part you see here there were probably a half dozen made you dont see piled up in the shop. The lockbar by far being the hardest piece to fabricate. You can see I finally got the third hole placed properly. You dont drill that hole till your all done btw. The lockbar and spring were quenched and heat treated via the Bookie sardine can method on his Toad Hall website. I will take that little trick to my grave:thumbup: A few springs were broken while testing so spring making wasnt the easiest of task for a newbie either. What I couldnt buy I fabricated from drill bits or whatever I had on hand. Most folder parts are not anything near the size I needed for this monster. That lockbar by the way was supposed to be about five times thicker than it is where you push it but it seemed to keep loosing weight during fabrication and trimming. Ill remake one someday but no dang way im doing it anytime soon. It works and you know what they say about that
Overall I am very pleased with it and the action is even better than I expected. I even picked it up backwards a while ago and was going to flick it open to show my wife and it opened with a loud snap but backwards pointing at my gut. She laughed of course. Hey it works!
You can see the bearings in there if ya hold your thumb out and close one eye.
There is a little bit of a gap in between the scales and bolster but not enought to worry about. I had them perfect but when I drilled the bushing holes I musta got off a bit on my cheap Chinese drill press. I let it be and went ahead and trimmed the meat off the scales down to the brass and called it done. Next set of scales will be perfect! Ha!
A little bit of trimming on the spine to match up to the lockbar. no biggie there.
The spring is on the right there and was made from a piece of drill bit. I flattened one end bent it, hardened it again and then tempered it to spring temper...duh...its a spring. You may also notice the cuts on the bottom of the lockbar. I thought id need the clearance so the blade wouldnt hit in that area but turns out i didnt need to do that.
I did have to trim the area behind the cho to make it work. That was mandatory. Everything in that area was really tight. My plan was to use a Bhakta blade but when I ordered I got a Min blade which is wider. That required a complete new model.
Theres a bit of scale for ya!
There it is folks! Thanks for everyone's comments and suggestions on this project. They really have been helpful. Next one is going to have my blade and then I can call it mine all mine!
Since those last pics I polished up some internal guts and did some fine tuning, cleaning, and lubing.
Heres the final specs:
Over All Length: 9.5
Blade length: 4.0
Blade made by Min Kami which was an apprentice of Bhakta Kami.
Handle length: 5.5
Weight: ready for this? ONE POUND!!!
Equal to one KLVUK minus one KLFVUK.
Scales are Stabilized Oregon Maple and are removable. 1911 handgun grip bushings were used to secure them to the brass frame. Special thanks to Bawannas expertise in getting them installed. Also a special thanks to Bookie for providing the brass sheet for the frame. Gracias Mi Amigos:thumbup:
For evey part you see here there were probably a half dozen made you dont see piled up in the shop. The lockbar by far being the hardest piece to fabricate. You can see I finally got the third hole placed properly. You dont drill that hole till your all done btw. The lockbar and spring were quenched and heat treated via the Bookie sardine can method on his Toad Hall website. I will take that little trick to my grave:thumbup: A few springs were broken while testing so spring making wasnt the easiest of task for a newbie either. What I couldnt buy I fabricated from drill bits or whatever I had on hand. Most folder parts are not anything near the size I needed for this monster. That lockbar by the way was supposed to be about five times thicker than it is where you push it but it seemed to keep loosing weight during fabrication and trimming. Ill remake one someday but no dang way im doing it anytime soon. It works and you know what they say about that
Overall I am very pleased with it and the action is even better than I expected. I even picked it up backwards a while ago and was going to flick it open to show my wife and it opened with a loud snap but backwards pointing at my gut. She laughed of course. Hey it works!
You can see the bearings in there if ya hold your thumb out and close one eye.
There is a little bit of a gap in between the scales and bolster but not enought to worry about. I had them perfect but when I drilled the bushing holes I musta got off a bit on my cheap Chinese drill press. I let it be and went ahead and trimmed the meat off the scales down to the brass and called it done. Next set of scales will be perfect! Ha!
A little bit of trimming on the spine to match up to the lockbar. no biggie there.
The spring is on the right there and was made from a piece of drill bit. I flattened one end bent it, hardened it again and then tempered it to spring temper...duh...its a spring. You may also notice the cuts on the bottom of the lockbar. I thought id need the clearance so the blade wouldnt hit in that area but turns out i didnt need to do that.
I did have to trim the area behind the cho to make it work. That was mandatory. Everything in that area was really tight. My plan was to use a Bhakta blade but when I ordered I got a Min blade which is wider. That required a complete new model.
Theres a bit of scale for ya!
There it is folks! Thanks for everyone's comments and suggestions on this project. They really have been helpful. Next one is going to have my blade and then I can call it mine all mine!
Last edited:
ndog: This is breathtaking. I'm not a folder fan in general but I've seen many photos of folders on the Bladeforums Exchange, and I've never seen one as flat out desirable as this one. The process that you went through seems in the spirit of the handmade blades of the KI kamis, even though you used equipment that they don't have. Also, compliments on your photographic skill.
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2013
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- 1,730
Just got done swapping out drool buckets.
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2010
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- 5,431
Reading this thread has been educational, inspiring, and fun. Awesome creative powers at work here. I like happy endings.
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2014
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- 2,045
I can not believe the beauty of this. It is amazing! I agree with Steve, this has been one of the most fascinating threads I have ever read through. Step by step the process evolved and went from an interesting idea to a simply incredible piece of blade art. I am thankful that you let us come along on your journey to completion. Thank you!
cul4u01
Gold Member
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- Dec 5, 2012
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- 4,100
I'd like a pound of "OMG!" to go, please...
Thank you!
One word "AWESOME!"
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2009
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- 2,228
That's beautifully done. You're gonna have to buy some suspenders now, and reinforce a pants pocket or two...
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2010
- Messages
- 7,751
Ha! Right JW! I should have put d-rings on it for baldric carry
Bookie: actually the brass is one of the things that worked out very well. I still have half of it left. I think I had to remake one little piece of the bolster but definitely a few more projects left over. That was an awesome idea btw. The color once polished is like gold! Just beautiful.
Really glad everyone enjoyed this thread.
Want some fries with that Berkley? Or I can mash up some taters with this thing in a jiffy!
Bookie: actually the brass is one of the things that worked out very well. I still have half of it left. I think I had to remake one little piece of the bolster but definitely a few more projects left over. That was an awesome idea btw. The color once polished is like gold! Just beautiful.
Really glad everyone enjoyed this thread.
Want some fries with that Berkley? Or I can mash up some taters with this thing in a jiffy!
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2014
- Messages
- 1,602
Truely a stunning piece kami dog... I love it and the 1911 bushings were a great idea. That has to be the nicest folder I have seen in a very long time.
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2010
- Messages
- 7,751
Thanks gb! Yeah that was Bawannas ideer. Great but now I gotta make another set of scales for it
I think ill make some zebra wood scales next. Not anytime soon tho. Gotta let this project age some first.