Tapered tang question

K

knife chop

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Feb 11, 2014
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I apologize if this question has been asked before but is there a general rule on how much you taper certain thickness? For example, a .25" thick stock tapered to a 3/32. Is that too thin or what's apropriate?
 
You can taper it as much as you want too. You know the saying "thin is in" applies to knives too! If I taper a tang I try to mimic the distal taper. Just my opinion.
 
It's a good question, I usually taper it as much as I can, I take allot of mine down to almost zero. 3/32" wouldn't look to bad on a 1/4" thick stock but if your starting with 5/32" and taper it to 3/32" it wouldn't look that pronounce. I wouldn't say there's any "to thin"

I hope that helps a little bit ;)
 
I've been taking my 1/4" stock to about .08" and 3/16" stock to about .027". I like to leave a little strength at the end of the tang. If I need to relieve more weight for tuning the balance I can still drill more holes. If you taper too much and the tang is paper thin you may get some flex under hard use which could lead to epoxy failure or scale separation. This is more of a risk if you use thin scales. Just do whatever looks good to your eye.
 
I like a 50% taper on the tang and about 20% to the tip. But that's just my guide. What really happens can be different. :-)
 
Knife chop, I don't think there any rules when it comes to creativity. It is just my opinion but I decide myself when and how much I taper a tang depending on how I feel at he moment. I suggest you please yourself and only look at other knives for their functionality and beauty. Just my opinion. I make some knives with tapered tangs when I think he design merits it. Guess what? You really only have to please yourself unless you are dependent on knife sales for a living. I find knife making a wonderful endeavor because I get to control the project and revel in it's success when it occurs. I say "have some fun." Larry
 
Anymore, I mark a centerline and go until they look right to me. I used to plan and measure them out, and found that my eyes never agreed with the plan. The last one I did was .156 to .03 over 4 inches.
 
i think the thinner it is, the better it looks, anywhere between .025 and .050 looks good. i dont go below .025 for fear of warping during heat treat.
 
Yep I taper as much as I can as well. Current knife I'm working on will be like .02 and starts at around .100. Don't really know yet as I just forged it out last night.
 
Thin is in man...I remember seeing on of Salem Straub's knives with a distal taper so thin it almost blended in to seam. It looked great..
 
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