Pre forged blades

R

Rsq

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Aug 7, 2011
Messages
162
I am already in discussion with a member of this forum regarding making a blade according to my design, but i'm wondering if there is somewhere reputable and reasonably inexpensive (ie less costly than buying a finished piece with similar blade characteristics) to find really fine blades that are already ground and heat treated. I dont have the tools to do that myself. I can finish, polish and sharpen them myself. I want to be able to pick my blade style, then dress it myself-- partly to cut down costs, and partly because i enjoy the art of it.

Thanks
 
Now why didn't I think of that? Coulda saved myself $50k and still put my mark on a knife.

Brilliant!!!









Just teasin :D :D :D

I think there might be more involved than you would think.

You might try "knife kits". Just google it. It's an actual business where you might find just what you are looking for.
 
Knowing what you would be buying from who is the big thing, and then getting what it in the shape you want sure can make it difficult. If your chosen contact here is known and he will do what you want as you want it, it seems to me paying a few bucks more would be worth it. Frank
 
you might want to look at spyderco mule ,enzo knife banks,ive even seen fallkniven f1 blanks,thats my 2 cents
 
There are hundreds of blades out there. Depending on how conventional your design is, you might be able to find one that is similar. Also, how important is the steel to you? If you are looking for a specific steel you may have to have it custom made. Google knife kits or knife making supplies.
 
Gene Martin in southern Oregon has many different blanks on his site, plus all kinds of related materials. He is on here as well.


-Xander
 
In addition to what I explained in my email:

If a maker is going to make a completed custom blade, he is usually going to mark it with his name/logo. If he sells it as is, he has no idea what the final product will be....and that would be a problem for many makers.

Also, if he goes 90% of the way, which is about what a finished blade is, then he is smarter to just finish the task , handle it, and sell it as a finished knife.

There are lots of inexpensive and reasonable quality pre-made blades for sale from all the knife suppliers. You can go from a cheap kitchen blade to a damascus bowie....all ready for the handle.
The stickys have most of the suppliers listed.

Here is a blade from TKS something like you want:
http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=119_299_470&products_id=647\

The suppliers also sell knife kits with a pre-made blade,all the materials, and instructions.

Knifekits is a good kit supplier - www.knifekits.com.
Here are a couple possible kits;
http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?products_id=408
http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?products_id=422
http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/product_info.php?products_id=822
 
My design is more or less a hybrid drop point bowie. Bladsmith critiqued the design for me, so i am going to modify it according to his comments and post it here to get some feedback. The steel is very important to me. I would like something like ats34 Or ats55 or d2.
 
ATS 34 is 154CM. The CPM-154 is a particle metallurgy improvement over 154CM. ATS-55 isn't one most can get. It is just a Spyderco hype steel that is basically ATS-34 with a few tweaks. No real difference ,otherwise. D-2 is a semi stainless, and while good for some things isn't the perfect steel for a general user. CPM S35VN is a nitrogen modified stainless steel that is a bit better than CPM 154. There are all sorts of steels out there, but 99% of all quality knives are made from about six of them.
If you are hell bent on the "best" steel, try Cowry-X. It isn't cheap, easy to work, or easy to HT.....but it gets crazy hard aand sharp. You won't be able to work it by hand. Few knives are made from it. Just a small bar costs about $200.

Here is a comparison chart I put together. This site is good for comparing different steels.
http://zknives.com/knives/steels/steelgraph.php?nm=CPM S35VN ,ATS-34 , D-2 , ATS-55&hrn=1&gm=0
 
That is really an awesome comparison tool, Stacy. I've seen it before, but never thanked you.

Thanks a Bunch for the charitable contributions you freely give. They are all most appreciated!
 
In didn't make the chart ...just this build.

Use this chart and enter the steels desired in the window with a comma separating them. Click "BUILD", and the graph forms.

The same site has all sorts of metallurcical and knife blade info. I suggest that everyone read the "Steel Element Effects" info as well as the glossary, and the FAQ pages.
In the "KNIVES" section there is also a lot of great info, especially on kitchen knives.
 
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Wow, that was informative. I think either s30v in stainless, or else l6 sound ideal
 
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