Old Hickory mod

thriller100 · Jan 22, 2012

Well im not sure if this is the right place to post this,but im currently "making" my first knife/knives.Ive had this old ontario old hickory knife for awhile,finally getting around to working on it.It had some real bad chunks out of the edge.I traced the shape of it onto paper,drew up a design i wanted,taped off the blade,transfered the shapes,went to town with my trusty hacksaw,did some serious shaping with a medium-ish single cut file(havent done anything with the cut-off piece yet),now im wondering if i want to attempt re handling it.The stock handle isnt bad at all but i would like to do something with a little more look and feel to it.I have an old axe handle i would like to use the butt from to do it.Again im new to this and dont know alot yet,i dont use any power tools and am currently reading up on re-handling knives.

here are some pics:

thats where im at so far...

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

TIA

tryppyr · Jan 22, 2012

I'd suggest you fill out your profile. Might be that someone nearby could send you something better than an axe handle to work with. I have a lot of stabilized burl wood that would make a better handle, for example... I just don't know whether it's feasible to send it to you.

thriller100 · Jan 24, 2012

ok so here is what i ended up doing with the tip bit

i really like this lil' one

Dixieblade57 · Jan 24, 2012

While the point on the knife is kind of blunt it is a good use of a damaged blade. The fact that you are able to work the steel without annealing it should tell you two things. It is low carbon steel and it is not hardened extremely well. How ever it may be hardened to the full ability of that particular steel itself. Those type of knives were made of a lower grade steel for two reasons. It saves the company money in the long run and even if they don't hold and edge well it is much easier for the consumer too sharpen at home.

I like the shape and the use of the front piece of the knife. It shows you have a good eye. That is a great shape for a small dedicated skinner. Everyone has too start somewhere and it looks like the knife making bug has bitten you. You might think about a kit for your next project and then progress to stock removal from 1080. Most of the work on 1080 can be done by you at home. If you don't have what you need to do the heat treatment, you can always send it out at a small cost.

At any rate keep up the good work and learn from everything that you do!

Seals · Jan 24, 2012

Nice job! I like the Old Hickory and other antique kitchen/meat cutting stuff.I pick them up at flea markets and stuff every chance i get.Its heat treated and tempered soft so it will sharpen easy and often on stones or those old peddle grinders like my grandma had.I wouldnt say it is low grade steel.I have some that have been used and abused for 80 years or more and they are still great knives.

tryppyr · Jan 24, 2012

Since I see you are in Oregon, if you want some stabilized burl to use for handle material, send me a PM or email with a shipping address and I'll toss a couple of pieces your way.

Dixieblade57 · Jan 24, 2012

Don I hope I didn't give the impression that I thought the knife was made from bad steel as I wasn't trying to say it was bad steel but that it was of a lower carbon grade, for the purpose of it makes it easier to sharpen that way.

My wife's Grandfather was a knife and gun nut from what they say. I never got to meet him. He was 1/2 Creek Indian and ranched here in Florida, back when there was open range. When my wife's mother finally sold the farm I found a collection of knives that my wife's Grandfather had. Some are homemade and some are store-bought. I cleaned them up and they are now on display in my shop. Most have is Initials carved into the handle. They use to have get togethers at butchering time and all the neighbors helped one another. I suspect that is why he carved his initials in them.Here is a pic of them. Notice the Skinner, the second from the last on the right, I think it maybe a green river skinner. I suspect it had been sharpened on one of those ole pedal stones you are talking about. Some of them appear to made from a handsaw. The one third from left has a hole at the bottom where the handle of the handsaw had been.

So I do believe in the use of this kind of steel, and actually prefer it for some uses. The carbon content is enough to make it take a good edge and when it dulls it easy to throw and edge back on it. That is why I encouraged Tia to keep up the good work. My very first knife was a remake from an ole throwing dagger some one gave me. We all got to start somewhere and a remake is a good place to start! I think some times we do not do enough to encourage young makers on these sites.

thriller100 · Jan 25, 2012

Thanks so much everyone:thumbup:
Dixieblade57,the steel was actually extremely difficult to work i completely toasted 2 simonds files that were about half in the grave and another brand new nicholson working these 2 frankenknives. i went and dug up a sandvik that was in really good shape still from the shop to finish off the little one

I have been trying very hard to do everything by hand with hand tools as i feel its important to know those skills.Im a machinist by trade and do have access to a full machine shop and all kinds of steel,so i will be doing alot of "projects" in the very near future.But first i wanted to do a few knives completely by hand to really learn the craft.Im not affraid of putting in the work,because i feel the knowledge im gaining is more than worth it.Im gonna do another old hickory mod here real soon(same butcher)

I also found this piece of scrap at the shop,im not sure exactlywhat kind of steel it is(i can find out) but i know it breaks bandsaw blades like nobodys business.Im gonna carve a blade out of it after i finish the next OH remod.Thanks again for the encouragementI'llkeep making and posting my work:thumbup:

Seals,thanks and yes these knives and other old kitchen cutlery are awesome(im partial to the ontario OH)

I've been buying them whenever i see them,ive found several at local gun/knife shows....although ive only bought one that i saw.Let me know if you have any suggestions for this blank piece i have:thumbup:

tryppyr,that would be freakin awesome!!!!!!!!! ill send you a message as soon as i figure out how to

THANK YOU!
The support on this forum is amazing

.....here is the piece im gonna work on,still working on a shape...

Dixieblade57 · Jan 25, 2012

I got a feeling we will be seeing more of your work. Doing the work by hand is good you really learn more about what you are trying to accomplish. Plus you can appreciate the machines when you start using them in the process!

My first knives were all made by hand and I learned some things that may have not been apparent if I had been using machines.
A note on the mystery steel you mentioned. Different steels must be treated differently when heat treating them for knife purposes. With mystery steel if you don't get the process right you will find the result is a knife that doesn't harden or is hardened improperly, or possible one that become brittle. Sometimes with mystery steel if you have a bunch of it, that makes it worth taking some where for an analysis, but the cost for just one piece is really too high to make it worth while.
One thing about steel if you know what it's make up is there is a chart that tells you how to handle that piece of steel and whether it has enough carbon in it too make a good knife.
It sounds like you have been bitten by the knife making bug. Hang on and enjoy the ride. Good luck with the knives you make in the future. Each one is a learning process and I never make one that I don't learn something new!