Need help with this, my first fighter

[Brian.Evans]

I decided to take a step back from all the absolute stress in my life and work on something fun and challenging just for me. I've gotten so caught up in work and family that I've lost myself and I have to step back. However......This thing is so far outside my comfort zone I'm not even sure where I parked the car......

Any advice, help, smacks upside the head, etc. are appreciated.

I'm thinking curly maple or similar wood, maybe cocobolo, I don't know. I've got some 1/8" nickel silver for the guard, but I don't know if that's thick enough. Where do I start with steel? My options on hand are 1/8" D2 and 3/32" 52100. This is all stock removal. I know, I know....but I don't forge. This is my first hidden tang as well. Big bite for sure, but let's just see what happens.

So I'm putting my self out here, throwing myself on the mercy of bladeforums with the goal of becoming a better knife maker. Be gentle, or don't. I'm good either way.

Bring it on gentlemen.

 

[Overmountain]

She looks a bit fat in the midsection, but otherwise not bad... My only comment, and it is purely a taste thing when talking about a throwback, is that I would call this a hunter and not a fighter. For me, a fighter has more of a curved spine, and a forward dropping feel to it. I can't post pics to BF from this computer, well I can't access my pics from this computer... but yeah, that's my $.02

Not to toot my own horn or anything, but dig into my posts or go to my pintrest site and look at the sketch of the ghost jade hidden tang funter (fighting hunter) I am working on. Has the same basic shape you have there... I have a bit more beef to the blade to fighter it up a bit, but otherwise very similar styles. Now if I could only find 10 minutes to work on it...

1/8" for a guard is going to be very thin, not to my taste, but I have seen guards that thin. I like a big beefy guard, but the old school fighters and bowies had very thin and flat guards... so again, just a taste thing there as well.

Cheers, and good on ya for taking a big bite. Best way to learn IMO...

Eric