New knife projects

panch0

panch0

Joined
Jun 16, 2008
Messages
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Hey guys, I am about ready to make my first two knives. I am planning on taking things slow. I don't have anyway to heat treat the steel but there are some real knifemakers not to far from here, so I will be contacting them to see if they can help me with this. I dont have a belt grinder so I will probably use files. Since this is my first knife and not having any experience, I wanted to start off by asking some advice on the steel that would be good for the knife and easy on this rookie. I don't want to be cheap on materials, I was thinking ATS34 for these. I will probably use some sort of wood for the 12 inch and micarta for the 9.5 inch for the handles. I have been reading the newbies section for a while now. I figure its time to jump in and do it.

The top one will be for cutting beef brisket and pork spare ribs. I go to BBQ cook offs and I just wanted to make a knife I could use for this purpose. It is 12 inches long and 1 inch wide.

First I want to assure that these are designs that I sat down and sculped around until I got a grip that I thought was good for me. Then I looked at it for awhile and cut out a blade shape that I liked.

The second smaller one is a knife I will use for hunting and camping. It is 9.5 inches long 1 inch wide.

So the first advice I want to ask yall is what knife steel would be good for these. I was thinking ATS34 or maybe D2. Any advice would be very much appreciated.
-frank

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You should get the heat treat question answered first, make sure whoever is going to help can do the heat treat. You can send your knives to Paul Bos for heat treat and its not expensive. ATS34 will make a good knife.

Make sure you drill the pin holes prior to heat treat.
 
I will seriously consider Paul Bos. The guys around here may be good but I don't know anything about them. Thanks for the heads up.
-frank
 
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If your in south Texas, I think that TKS heat treats ATS34. You might check and see.
 
TKS in Houston did some D2 for me with the cryo and it was really reasonably priced.:thumbup: Top knife looks great..I'm not sure about the handle on the second one...
 
Well I ordered 4ft of ATS34 from Tex Knifemakers Supp last night and also ordered the handles screws. I didn't get any lanyard tubing since I am basing the layard hole and handle on the RAt-RC-4. I feel like a little kid again waiting for santa to bring me my building blocks.
-frank
 
Those look like some pretty fun designs. Make sure you post some pictures once you get those done.

Allen
 
Well I got the ATS34 in today and started at it. Drilled holes then used hacksaw to remove steel. Then hit it with a file. Man! This is tough work. I am going to take it slow. I may still curve the tip a bit more. Anyways for those interested this is just an update. Thanks.
-frank

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If it is not too late, I would suggest you move the thumb rest forward on the smaller knife. Make a wooden trial knife and try to find the proper place for the thumb rest. If it is in the wrong place, it can be very uncomfortable to use (Hot in the hand). Making a mock up first in wood or stiff cardboard (wood is better) is a smart way to go when learning (and after learning,too!).
Stacy
 
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