Project 14

P

PoolQs

Joined
Feb 5, 2014
Messages
93
I have been talking to many of you great makers out there upon my journey as a knife maker.

Scotchleaf just started a tread and got a great response from James Terrio,
"If it was easy, everyone would do it.
My advice is to start with a couple (dozen?) small shop/utility/EDC knives, with basic wharncliffe/sheepsfoot or drop-point profiles and blades no longer than 4". Keep It Simple, Son! *

This was the exact response that I received from another Mastersmith last week. I have been on vacation and stayed home. I told my wife that my vaca was to be spent
in the shop all weekend long and invisible. Let me start my journey. She and the kids let me have my vacation.

I have started a new project in which I want to try to make one of each simple style of knife. Here are the pixs of what I have
started from Friday to Sunday:

Cutting 1084 3/16"x3"x48"
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Putting on templets that I made and with help from D.Comeau knives, Ray Rogers, Lloyd Harding..thx again:
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Cut and colorized paper for MyCarta - handles, spacers, and bolsters:
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Cut all my burlap for canvas handles:
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Got 7 to finsh cut - 3 ruff cut - and 5 still to cut out:
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Had to tape up 1 just to see how it might look .. still need HT, grinding, shaping and finishing.
Paper MyCarta:
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This will give me a start on learning all my grinds, tapers, bolsters, finishes, sharpening, etc ...
I am going to add to this as progress continues to let all of you help me refine my new craft and help me NOT to make the same mistake twice (or more)

All advice is sincerely welcomed !
Thanks to everyone's help here on the forum !!!
Troy
 
Slow down Grasshoppah!

Do one knife at a time - start to finish. That way you will learn things that will make the next one better. After knife 14 you will have learned a lot. Working on 14 knives at a time will just teach you the same mistakes 14 times.....and make it 14 times as hard to un-learn those mistakes.

I know you said it still had work to be done, but be sure to put in some distal taper.

I usually advise making ten identical knives one at a time and comparing the first to the last. The difference can be amazing.
 
bladsmth said:
Slow down Grasshoppah!

Do one knife at a time - start to finish. That way you will learn things that will make the next one better. After knife 14 you will have learned a lot. Working on 14 knives at a time will just teach you the same mistakes 14 times.....and make it 14 times as hard to un-learn those mistakes.

I know you said it still had work to be done, but be sure to put in some distal taper.

I usually advise making ten identical knives one at a time and comparing the first to the last. The difference can be amazing.
Click to expand...

Oppsss ... I missed that part from ALL 3 of you. ALL IDENTICAL . I am just going to work on one at a time but I just wanted to get all the
blanks cut out and put away. Guess I need to buy another sheet of steel and make 9 more of 1 and hide the rest.
The handles just have double tape on them and I haven't even surface ground the steel yet or HT'd. This was my second attempt at MyCarta and wanted
to make sure when sanded down that I didn't have any bubbles running through the center.

I am noticing a trend that most makers are putting a distal taper on both ends. Is this more of a consumer requested trend or a makers for weight?

Thanks AGAIN Stacy for your help and clarification.
Troy
 
Thanks John,

I am reading his book now but haven't read that part yet. Still in his bio section. Thanks for the link and answer !!
Troy
 
Tapered tangs are really nice (but not necessary), and add another level of difficulty to a new maker. Tapering the blade portion is necessary on most all knives. I wouldn't recommend tapered tangs on first knives.
 
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