need help!

S

S knive's

Joined
Sep 24, 2008
Messages
15
Hi, I'm new to the forum and new to knifemaking and could use some help and tips, like where to buy steel, heat treating, how make knives without a beltgrinder and what kind to make.
 
Ohboy. 0_0

Well, steel is easy. If you want to buy bar stock, your best bet is probably admiralsteel.com -that's where I shop when I want something clean. Otherwise, if you're not picky or need something with a bit more heft, ye olde junkyard has (most) everything you need.

Heat treating... is a subject for another, larger thread. But you can have it done if you can't/don't want to do it yourself.

Making knives is easy! You can make a knife with nothing but a pair of rocks and some wrought iron (or copper, or brass...) -and with a little skill using the rocks, you'd be surprised at what you can come up with. What you make is entirely up to your imagination and skill; it's how you make your knives, and what finish you're able to give them that depends on the tools you have and your skill with them. You can get very good results with bench grinders and angle grinders, and in the end a good file will never fail you.
 
I would say read as much as you can on this forum, do some searching as there is so much good stuff that has been posted befor. a good search tool is google. go to google and type in this

site:bladeforums.com ???????????

replace the ??????????? with what ever you want to search for. like say you want to search for heat treating O1. type it like this

site:bladeforums.com heat treating O1

it will do a good job finding stuff for you.
 
S knive's said:
what kind to make.
Click to expand...
I think no matter how much you learn about knife making, only you can answer this question for yourself. If this is something you're serious about, then you have come to the right place. Plenty of great people and information here if you take the time to search for it. Nice to have you here. -Cliff
 
There are many makers who are willing to invite new makers to their shops to answer questions and demonstrate how it is done. If you could let us know where you live there might be someone close to you willing to share.

Jim Arbuckle Yorktown, VA

ABS JS
 
fill out your profile you would be surprised who is within fifty miles of you If you are like me You learn better by seeing it happen and what do you want to do forge or stock removal regardless on what you decide soak up as much info on both you would be surprised how the go hand in hand
 
First off, read what has been suggested. Maybe visit your local Hastings or Barnes and Noble and look for knife making books in the crafts section. Buy what you can find and read up.


After you have a good foundation from that, pick your steel. A great beginner steel for a home-brewed heat treatment would be something like 1084. O-1 is great, but requires a bit more accuracy in your heat treatment.

After you've determined the steel you want to use, search or ask for advice on how to heat treat that specific steel. Each steel has its own process for heat treating. One size DOES NOT fit all in that regards.

As for what kind to make, start simple. Draw some sketches. Cut out some cardboard shapes. Make something you like that is fairly simple. Make sure it feels good in your hand. Every knife I make must be comfortable to hold and use, and I check that often throughout the process of making the knife. Hang up the profile you cut out of cardboard against a window and stare and the silouette. See if the shape pleases your eyes. If not, make changes.

After that, try your hand!!

Learn as much as you can, take your time, and over all else, have fun (and be safe).

--nathan
 
Read.
If you are looking for steel check out the for sale section on these forums. There is some of the best steel around for sale there...beating Admirals price, quality, and customer service.

Read some more.
Mace

P.S Do some reading.
 
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