- Joined
- Oct 1, 2013
- Messages
- 901
Hi Guys,
It's taken a couple of weeks but I'm just about done with my knife workshop. I though I would post a little summary of my journey so far.
I am primarily a collector of high-end customs. I have some higher-end productions but mainly just customs.
I am also a mechanical engineer (not much engineering anymore after I got my MBA, mainly in management). While ordering from some of these makers, I got to learn about knife design and started doing 3D models of them. I was lucky enough to get mentored by a couple of them and thus started my knifemaking journey. I have done a couple of designs for some newer makers, which have been well received, so I figured why not do my own knives. This is only a hobby for me, I have a wonderful career and will always be primarily a collector.
Like most I started out with my anodizing setup and simple mods. I have built 2 anodizing setups now, the 2nd is 120v @ 5amp power supply that can pretty much push any Ti up the color scale. I also started doing acid stonewashing, now I have 4 different darkness levels, with 3 different types of scratch profiles. I've been spending the last couple of months practicing and getting better at the finishing side. I even do blade re-profiling and knife repair.
My first grinder was a 1 x 30 cheapo from HF. I went crazy and bought about 30 different belts for it. Eventually, I machined a new platen for it and reached the limit of what I can do with it. Now mainly it is used for sharpening and stropping.
I reached a point where I either needed to get serious and purchase better equipment or just stay at my level. It was a tough choice, I could spend $5k buying equipment or order 1 custom lol. After much thought, I wanted to be able to make my own custom knives for myself and friends.
I had a couple of tough requirements though:
1. It had to be in my garage and the boss (wife) said both cars still needed to fit.
2. It had to be safe so my son would not be in any danger in the garage.
So in the last 2 weeks here is what I purchased and built:
-KMG-10 2 x 72" belt grinder with 2hp motor & VFD wired for 220v, 3 tooling arms, small wheel attachments, .5-2" wheels, platen attachment, $500 worth of belts, tool arm holder.
-Micro-Lux mini mill
-4 x 36" grinder
-disc grinder
-2 die grinders, a crap ton of different wheels, 3m wheels, wire wheels, polishing compounds etc.
-metal vertical/horizontal bandsaw
-bench bandsaw
-2200F heat treat oven
-aluminum quench plates
-2 drill presses
I also had to build 3 work tables to fit along the walls of my garage.
You may ask why I am doing this. Its mainly because I don't like doing things halfway and if I'm going to make my own knife, I want to be able to make everything besides the raw materials and bearings.
I have started grinding out some blades as practice, currently I'm projecting about 1.5 years before I will be at an adequate level to produce a custom knife. I will only give a knife to someone when I feel it is at an acceptable level, unfortunately, it's going to take a while for me. Fortunately, I have time and patience to practice, buying small amounts of material each month to practice on.
I am very fortunate to have the guidance by some of the top makers around and have a plan to develop my skills. I figured I would start this post and in a couple of years I'll have an online documentation of my journey.
Here are some pics of my journey so far, I hope you enjoy!
Knife collecting (beginning):
[/URL][/IMG]
Knife designs:
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
Knife modding:
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
Knife Workshop:
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
It's taken a couple of weeks but I'm just about done with my knife workshop. I though I would post a little summary of my journey so far.
I am primarily a collector of high-end customs. I have some higher-end productions but mainly just customs.
I am also a mechanical engineer (not much engineering anymore after I got my MBA, mainly in management). While ordering from some of these makers, I got to learn about knife design and started doing 3D models of them. I was lucky enough to get mentored by a couple of them and thus started my knifemaking journey. I have done a couple of designs for some newer makers, which have been well received, so I figured why not do my own knives. This is only a hobby for me, I have a wonderful career and will always be primarily a collector.
Like most I started out with my anodizing setup and simple mods. I have built 2 anodizing setups now, the 2nd is 120v @ 5amp power supply that can pretty much push any Ti up the color scale. I also started doing acid stonewashing, now I have 4 different darkness levels, with 3 different types of scratch profiles. I've been spending the last couple of months practicing and getting better at the finishing side. I even do blade re-profiling and knife repair.
My first grinder was a 1 x 30 cheapo from HF. I went crazy and bought about 30 different belts for it. Eventually, I machined a new platen for it and reached the limit of what I can do with it. Now mainly it is used for sharpening and stropping.
I reached a point where I either needed to get serious and purchase better equipment or just stay at my level. It was a tough choice, I could spend $5k buying equipment or order 1 custom lol. After much thought, I wanted to be able to make my own custom knives for myself and friends.
I had a couple of tough requirements though:
1. It had to be in my garage and the boss (wife) said both cars still needed to fit.
2. It had to be safe so my son would not be in any danger in the garage.
So in the last 2 weeks here is what I purchased and built:
-KMG-10 2 x 72" belt grinder with 2hp motor & VFD wired for 220v, 3 tooling arms, small wheel attachments, .5-2" wheels, platen attachment, $500 worth of belts, tool arm holder.
-Micro-Lux mini mill
-4 x 36" grinder
-disc grinder
-2 die grinders, a crap ton of different wheels, 3m wheels, wire wheels, polishing compounds etc.
-metal vertical/horizontal bandsaw
-bench bandsaw
-2200F heat treat oven
-aluminum quench plates
-2 drill presses
I also had to build 3 work tables to fit along the walls of my garage.
You may ask why I am doing this. Its mainly because I don't like doing things halfway and if I'm going to make my own knife, I want to be able to make everything besides the raw materials and bearings.
I have started grinding out some blades as practice, currently I'm projecting about 1.5 years before I will be at an adequate level to produce a custom knife. I will only give a knife to someone when I feel it is at an acceptable level, unfortunately, it's going to take a while for me. Fortunately, I have time and patience to practice, buying small amounts of material each month to practice on.
I am very fortunate to have the guidance by some of the top makers around and have a plan to develop my skills. I figured I would start this post and in a couple of years I'll have an online documentation of my journey.
Here are some pics of my journey so far, I hope you enjoy!
Knife collecting (beginning):
Knife designs:
Knife modding:
Knife Workshop:
:thumbup:
