My first kitchen knife. Please critque

S

Spucknit

Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Messages
22
I've been lurking around here for close to year now, and put my first steel to paper about 7 months ago. This would technically be the fifth knife that I have completed, but the first that I really put solid effort into. Until now I really have just been experimenting with different techniques and designs and trying to have fun while learning as much as possible. I think its safe to say that I am completely hooked on the "hobby". I hate to use the word "hobby" referring to blade making because I feel that it is a highly skilled art form, but at my novice level I would consider myself a hobbyist. I am using an angle grinder, and a 4x36 that I stretched into a 2x48, and a HF 1x30. This knife is made out of AEB-L from Aldo, and I had Peter's do the HT to 61rc hardness so at least I know the steel is in good shape.
Let me know what you all think.


The blade is .09 at the scale, and .0065 at the edge. It has "full" distal taper according to the caliper, but really only noticeable in last 1 1/2".




I made the mosaic following Walter Sorrels tutorial on you tube. I'm very happy with it. Aside form the pins not being perfectly spaced, I think it looks pretty good.



I made a saya out of some scrap walnut I had laying around. I'm fairly happy with it. The pin was a headache for me though. It doesn't stay in very well either. A little lathe would be nice to have.


A few flaws that I am aware.
The clean up between the scale and the blade is fair at best. I'm irritated about it because I had taken great care to avoid this. It was looking pretty good to the naked eye before I applied the CA finish. I wonder if the CA allowed the pigment in the epoxy to bleed? Or maybe it's just Macular Degeneration. (Just as I am previewing this post, I see scratches in the wood. I can't see them at all when I look at the knife. I guess I should make an appointment with the optometrist.)



There is a gap between the scale and the tang all the way around both sides, and it is much worse on the top left hand side as you can see in the pic.
I don't know how this happened. I thought I was being careful on the tang grind. I did hit it with the scotch brite pretty good before sending to Peter's in order to be sure it was free of any burrs. Could that have rounded the edges enough for the gap? The larger gap obviously is an issue with the wood. There it seems I just need to be more careful.



I hand sanded it to 400 following Nick Wheeler's tutorial before I put on the scales. I wrapped the blade in thin cardboard and masking tape, but still got a little scratch somehow. The scratch came out easy enough, but now the nearly perfect sanding lines are messed up. There are little J-hooks near the scale that I cant seem to get rid of. The photo doesn't really show them. I'm hoping a little more TLC will take care of it.
 
I like it. I'm not an expert my any means (yet) but I can't see anything wrong with it that you didn't already point out. What type of wood are the scales?
 
First off, that wood is freaking stellar! I love the way it looks. You definitely did a thorough self-critique. I would suggest putting a black liner between the wood and the handle. It would help clean up that transition a bit.
From a design point, I would drop the tip a bit and flatten the edge profile. The belly gives it a lot of rocking potential, but way more than it needs for a knife that size. If you were to rock the knife up all the way to the tip, imagine how big of a piece of food you could fit in there. I reckon it’s way bigger than you’d plan on cutting with that guy. I’d also round the butt of the handle.
Just my opinions, but a great looking knife! Awesome saya as well :)

-Alex
 
I think it looks great. I use a "sharpened" brass rod to scrape off any excess adhesive on the blade, it won't scratch the hardened metal and can be used to get in the corner as well.
 
Nick EBK said:
I like it. I'm not an expert my any means (yet) but I can't see anything wrong with it that you didn't already point out. What type of wood are the scales?
Click to expand...

Yes, Spalted Tamarind. I really like the overall look of it, but it does have grey splotchy areas that make it look dirty.
 
MusicSmith said:
First off, that wood is freaking stellar! I love the way it looks. You definitely did a thorough self-critique. I would suggest putting a black liner between the wood and the handle. It would help clean up that transition a bit.
From a design point, I would drop the tip a bit and flatten the edge profile. The belly gives it a lot of rocking potential, but way more than it needs for a knife that size. If you were to rock the knife up all the way to the tip, imagine how big of a piece of food you could fit in there. I reckon it’s way bigger than you’d plan on cutting with that guy. I’d also round the butt of the handle.
Just my opinions, but a great looking knife! Awesome saya as well :)

-Alex
Click to expand...

I thought about doing a liner but all I had was some 1'/8" material, and I thought it might a bit aggressive looking for kitchen knife. Next time maybe I'll go with something thin.
I'm not quite sure what you mean by flattening the edge profile. Do mean like this?
 
gratmars said:
I think it looks great. I use a "sharpened" brass rod to scrape off any excess adhesive on the blade, it won't scratch the hardened metal and can be used to get in the corner as well.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. I'll try that.
 


This is just my personal taste for a similar knife of that size. Your mileage may vary. Just make a bunch and go with what feels best to use :)

I bought a 0.03" thick sheet of black G10 from USAKnifemaker. For $15 it'll last for a loooong time if you only use it for liners!

-Alex
 
It's a great looking knife, but me personally, I like a little neck on my knives, meaning the heel of your knife is too close to the handle.
Also, maybe is me again, but I'd like less belly on a kitchen knife.
 
I see what you guys are saying about the belly. To be honest it started out flatter, but while working on the blending from the tang to the bevel I ended up removing too much material at the end of the edge.
 
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