- Joined
- Nov 30, 2010
- Messages
- 5
alright, after all my talking and boasting that im going to start my first project soon, i believe i finally have all my materials and my process memorized.
first, my materials: two mill bastard files, a grinder of unknown make and model with a rough side and a fine side (medium work will be done with my file, im starting from scratch so i bought two, one to make into a knife another to.. well, file i guess lol) 1 x 4 - 12" app grade lumber (dont know much about this either, the only identifying mark is the phrase 'weathershield premium wood' on the bar code and the abovementioned measurements, its to be expected i suppose, as it was purchased from a scrap bin at home depot) a rather dubious looking weber grill (might put the body below ground, for safety since im fairly certain the legs are broken) a bag of kingsford competition charcoal briquettes, and three separate whetstones with different degrees of coarseness for the finer work.
now, my process: first i anneal the file in the charcoal, heat it until red hot and let cool very slowly. next, i use the grinder and file to shape the knife body and remove all excess metal, form the bevel and get as sharp as i can make it, then polish as best i can so that i am better able to see the colors of the heated metal. next, before hardening, drill holes in tang for handle material to be attached via pins inserted through the holes. now for rehardening, which is accomplished by bringing the annealed file back up to red hot temperature and quickly quenching it in motor oil or (as may be the case for me, as i might not be able to acquire the motor oil) lukewarm water wwith salt added (one cup of salt per gallon of water). next comes tempering, which from my understanding needs to be done as soon as possible due to chemical and structural stresses within the blade which may cause it to spontaneously crack or break; at this point ive researched several different theories, feel free to correct me on any point ive made or am going to make during this entire tutorial, any kind of criticism is openly welcomed and encouraged: tempering can be done by holding a gas or propane torch to the spine of the blade until the entire spine becomes red hot then you either a: let it cool slowly or b: quench it again, i was never able to figure out for sure which is the correct method. anyways another way to temper your blade is to preheat your oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit and place the blade directly on oven rack and let sit for one hour, allow to return to room temperature at its own pace (im not sure how this gives the flexible spine and hard edge that we want, i was never able to contact the person who wrote that guide but theoretically his knives are being used in different scenarios)
finishing steps: clean, polish and sharpen your blade. attach handle material and insert pins,, use epoxy between the blade and material if you wish but personally im not going to, thats just my choice and is not intended as a recommendation or suggestion, lord knows ive stalked the forums long enough scrounging up alll the information i can. you guys know worlds more than i do, i cant wait to show you all my first handmade bushcraft/survival knife no matter how good or bad it turns out, wish me luck!!
a couple notes: obviously im from america, in case nobody could tell, i say this as a matter of etiquette as this is a u.k based site so in case one person or another isnt familiar with our system of measurement, im sure you can find a reliable table online somewhere.
i know this post may seem unnecessarily long or perhaps not detailed enough, but given the amount of trouble ive had in understanding the entire process even with all the help ive received i dont feel at all ashamed of the questions ive asked or the points ive made, no progress is made until someone asks a question my point is that id like to write a guide from my point of view, to bring the craft to a wider number of people because i know that if even i can make all the dots connect in my head, anybody can.
im thinking of using this post as a template for my guide, this is why criticism is so openly welcome in my case, because i still have a lot to learn and if i can revise my guide then anybody who may read it will benefit.
i believe that about sums it up so thanks again to everybody whos helped me out and answered my questions, i cant wait to start tomorrow, which in my case will be december 1st 2010
first, my materials: two mill bastard files, a grinder of unknown make and model with a rough side and a fine side (medium work will be done with my file, im starting from scratch so i bought two, one to make into a knife another to.. well, file i guess lol) 1 x 4 - 12" app grade lumber (dont know much about this either, the only identifying mark is the phrase 'weathershield premium wood' on the bar code and the abovementioned measurements, its to be expected i suppose, as it was purchased from a scrap bin at home depot) a rather dubious looking weber grill (might put the body below ground, for safety since im fairly certain the legs are broken) a bag of kingsford competition charcoal briquettes, and three separate whetstones with different degrees of coarseness for the finer work.
now, my process: first i anneal the file in the charcoal, heat it until red hot and let cool very slowly. next, i use the grinder and file to shape the knife body and remove all excess metal, form the bevel and get as sharp as i can make it, then polish as best i can so that i am better able to see the colors of the heated metal. next, before hardening, drill holes in tang for handle material to be attached via pins inserted through the holes. now for rehardening, which is accomplished by bringing the annealed file back up to red hot temperature and quickly quenching it in motor oil or (as may be the case for me, as i might not be able to acquire the motor oil) lukewarm water wwith salt added (one cup of salt per gallon of water). next comes tempering, which from my understanding needs to be done as soon as possible due to chemical and structural stresses within the blade which may cause it to spontaneously crack or break; at this point ive researched several different theories, feel free to correct me on any point ive made or am going to make during this entire tutorial, any kind of criticism is openly welcomed and encouraged: tempering can be done by holding a gas or propane torch to the spine of the blade until the entire spine becomes red hot then you either a: let it cool slowly or b: quench it again, i was never able to figure out for sure which is the correct method. anyways another way to temper your blade is to preheat your oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit and place the blade directly on oven rack and let sit for one hour, allow to return to room temperature at its own pace (im not sure how this gives the flexible spine and hard edge that we want, i was never able to contact the person who wrote that guide but theoretically his knives are being used in different scenarios)
finishing steps: clean, polish and sharpen your blade. attach handle material and insert pins,, use epoxy between the blade and material if you wish but personally im not going to, thats just my choice and is not intended as a recommendation or suggestion, lord knows ive stalked the forums long enough scrounging up alll the information i can. you guys know worlds more than i do, i cant wait to show you all my first handmade bushcraft/survival knife no matter how good or bad it turns out, wish me luck!!
a couple notes: obviously im from america, in case nobody could tell, i say this as a matter of etiquette as this is a u.k based site so in case one person or another isnt familiar with our system of measurement, im sure you can find a reliable table online somewhere.
i know this post may seem unnecessarily long or perhaps not detailed enough, but given the amount of trouble ive had in understanding the entire process even with all the help ive received i dont feel at all ashamed of the questions ive asked or the points ive made, no progress is made until someone asks a question my point is that id like to write a guide from my point of view, to bring the craft to a wider number of people because i know that if even i can make all the dots connect in my head, anybody can.
im thinking of using this post as a template for my guide, this is why criticism is so openly welcome in my case, because i still have a lot to learn and if i can revise my guide then anybody who may read it will benefit.
i believe that about sums it up so thanks again to everybody whos helped me out and answered my questions, i cant wait to start tomorrow, which in my case will be december 1st 2010
