My first tries with mild steel

Excellent work.

As others have said, it's a crying shame that you used mild steel to "practice". You could just have easily "learned" on scraps of wood and, at least, had something you could burn for warmth.

Those pieces show that you have a good eye for design and detail. I'll certainly look forward to the proper knives you start turning out. You've got a lot of promise.
 
Thanks for the photo of the other side - good looking grinder. I imagine you'll do as I do, grind small things inside where there is not a "lot" of dust, but outside for the heavy grinding to keep the worst of the dust outside. When inside put a 5 gal bucket 1/2 full of water right below the tool rest to catch a lot of the dust. That won't catch all the dust, but it does help a lot. You can also use the water in bucket to dip metal in to cool between grinding passes.

Ken H<
 
Ken H> said:
Thanks for the photo of the other side - good looking grinder. I imagine you'll do as I do, grind small things inside where there is not a "lot" of dust, but outside for the heavy grinding to keep the worst of the dust outside. When inside put a 5 gal bucket 1/2 full of water right below the tool rest to catch a lot of the dust. That won't catch all the dust, but it does help a lot. You can also use the water in bucket to dip metal in to cool between grinding passes.

Ken H<
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Thanks for the tip about the bucket!

Tried my first heat treat this weekend. Very exciting and I think it went well. I used a propane gas forge and my steel seem to have hardened as planned (tried with file before and after).

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So now I have completed my first actual knife (it's been sharpened to about 22 degrees with slack belt).

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The next one will be more refined, now that I understand the most basic parts in the process of knifemaking.

/CH
 
That is a good looking knife! Only thing I would add is to sand the flats a little more to at least 400. But from what I can see it looks great.
 
Welcome to the madness and congrats on what I think is a perfect start. :thumbup: You definitely have a good eye and talent and I look forward to seeing your progress. Glad to have you with us.

As far as mild steel, I am on the side of whatever gets you making. My first 2 or 3 were mild steel and it makes absolutely no difference now. Most people give this a slow try first to see how they like it and budget is always a concern. Knowing that you are using a good knife steel, no matter how inexpensive, can stress you a bit more at the grinder and when you are first learning to grind, the more relaxed you are the better. (Anytime you grind actually) So if mild steel helps with this, why not. My 2 cents.
 
scubasteve4sq said:
You must be a surgeon with such steady hands for your first knives haha, excelent work man!
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Haha. Many thanks, but I'm just using the bubble jig. I decided to try to learn as much freehand as possible. And I think the bubble jig is a good hybrid.
 
Hi!

I felt it's time to try and make a kydex sheath now. So I made a new knife to be my sort of utility knife equipped with a tight kydex sheath. I want the handle to be without scales, but as a newbie I have a few questions for you.

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1. HT obviously leaves decarb on the steel, which is easy to remove, except in the holes. I don't want to mess up the roundness of the holes, what would be the best way to get the holes shiny and nice?

2. Should I round the edges of the steel handle for better comfort? If so, how should I make the transition from the tang to the spine?

On this knife I made the grind line higher since the carbon steel I got hold of is 6 mm (about 1/4 inch?). And for my next one I think I will use a file guide for a cleaner plunge line. This one was done free hand (delusions of grandeur?).

/CH
 
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