Moran by Bump

Bruce Bump

Bruce Bump

Joined
Dec 2, 1999
Messages
9,910
Here is one with some of Don Hansons W2 steel. It is made from Bills directions from an old book I have called "How to Make Knives"
 
What in *#^- is the reflection in the ricasso!!!!!!!:eek: :confused: Looks like a killer cat from here!!:eek: :D

That looks like it was a bear to grind!!! Lotsa belly!!! Sweet!!!
 
Great job, Bruce. Now I can tell the secret to getting it to look exactly like one of Bill's ST23's His handles were put on "crooked. The don't come back in a straight line from the guard. They are slanted slightly downward, but not "curved" down. The axis of the handle almost lines up with the "swooped" part of the spine near the guard and not with the bottom of the ricasso. Ii took me a LONG time of looking a a bunch of pics of old ST23's to figure that one out. And to answer a previous question, yes it IS a bear to grind. I got the shape sort of right one (out of probably 7 or 8 attempts so far) back in '05, but it was too thin. I showed it to Bill at the '05 hammer in and he said that the ST23 was one of his tougher knives to get the grind right on and that I had actually gotten pretty darn close. Getting those slanted plunge cuts right is a bear. That is where most of mine died. You just inspired me to try it again.
 
Another compliment for Bruce. He is one of the few smiths in history that has ever been able to decipher that part of the book....lol Did you weld the mild steel bar to the "scarfed" tang and use the giant old emery wheel to rough grind it, Bruce? hee, hee:D I have a couple of Bill's videos and it amazes me how intuitive forging and knifemaking was to him. I seems like the would put the hot bar of steel on the anvil hit it once and BAM!!!! a blade jumped up off the anvil.....lol His videos are amazing to watch, but I would never try to make a blade like he did......I would be at the forge and the grinding wheel for the next ten years and still never get it right. Thank God for KMG's...lol
 
Man Bruce, you're just on fire this week! I bet Bill would've been proud of that one!

-d
 
Hey guys is that book availiable anywhere, maybe a rare books type internet
store?
 
jdm61 said:
It is the the Loveless/Barney book.
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yip it is the Barney and Loveless book. It isnt the easiest book to follow and Bill left out some steps but it was a fun project. I think even Bill learned allot about bladesmithing after he wrote his section in this book. The sheath is also made from his instructions.
 
Bruce Bump said:
yip it is the Barney and Loveless book. It isnt the easiest book to follow and Bill left out some steps but it was a fun project. I think even Bill learned allot about bladesmithing after he wrote his section in this book. The sheath is also made from his instructions.
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I think those steps may have gotten edited out. After all, it was Bob's book. Bill definately learned how ot differentially heat treat after that book was released. No need to weld up the 1018 to the stub tang after that. The ST23 is such a cool knife and quite a departure from Bill's previous fighters. I look at it and can almost beleive that the knife is the result of a series of fortuitous accidents or slipups.. It is quite an unusual design and if you look at some the the parts seperately, they just don't look "right" in some way, but put together,it is one of the coolest custom knives ever. How did you cut the shoulders for the guard, Bruce? I knowthat Bill did it with a bandsaw and I have done the same thing because that is about the only way you can rough out the cut. Nothing bigger than a mid-sized triangular file will fit in the transition on the bottom.
 
polish avenger said:
Bruce, is that the same knife that's up for bids on a certain auction site?
-Mark
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Yes Fitzo just PMed me about the ebay auction. The problem is that it says its a "take down" model, it doesnt come apart. I hope somebody doesnt try it or I may get a repair job. The nut on the end is peened over and the handle is epoxy filled.
 
That is excellent Bruce ! :thumbup: A great tribute for sure :thumbup: I always loved the pic of Bill holding the ST-23, that slim profile of his holding that big ol Blade. It looks massive in his hands. I've always wondered about his handles and the comfort of them. Is the handle shape carved in a manner that a of a lump of clay would take on if squeezed in the hand ?
 
rhrocker said:
Hey guys is that book availiable anywhere, maybe a rare books type internet
store?
Click to expand...

Like Shawn Fu, I just found it recently. I got mine at Barnes and Noble this past winter, it shouldn't be hard to find. Amazon shows 42 copies available for order. Great book, although there are parts I don't quite get.

You can tell it was written in a different era from all the references to "your wife won't like it if you stink up the house" and stuff like that;)
 
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