The Making Of Mentor`s A.C.E.K.

JK Knives

JK Knives

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I thought that Mentor`s design of the A.C.E.K. (Algonquin Combi-Edge Knife) was unusual enough to deserve it`s own "Making Of" thread, so here goes.

This is the drawing Mentor posted a while back. The specs are: 10 1/2" overall length, 5 1/2" blade, 3/16" thick O1 steel, and 2" tall at the tallest point. It will feature 2" of scandi edge closest to the handle, with the rest being a standard grind.

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Here is the cardboard cutout I made last night. I always start with cardboard, if a design proves popular I make a wooden pattern.

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Here I`ve traced it out onto the 3/16" thick steel.

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The last one (for now) shows the ground out blank.

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Stay tuned, there is more to come!
 
Time to start on the scandi portion of the blade. In my infinite wisdom, I realized that I could not grind a 2" edge with a 2" belt, just could not get it straight! So being the clever guy that I am, I figured I would use a 1" belt from my little grinder that I use for shaping handles. I don`t have that grinder set up to use my scandi fixture, so I thought I would put it on my 2" grinder. Wrong! The 2" backing plate would not allow me to move it back and forth, so.....

I taped a piece of 1" stock to the front of the backing plate, crude, but it worked! Here you can see the scandi fixture I made, along with my improvised solution to the problem.

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This shows the little guide I made to set my scandi angle.

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Success!

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More to come!
 
Hi Stomper -

Neat! I really like seeing how they are made - I can imagine my Kephart being there....

Thank you for taking time to take pictures and posting here for us.

best regards

mqqn
 
Here it is with both blade grinds done.

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This is the little jig I made to do the thumb serrations.

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All ready for heat treat, which I will do later this week. That`s all for today!

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This thread is unbelievably cool. It is exciting to see the design come to life, and to see the various stages in the process. The combi-edge looks like it came out really well, which is particularly impressive given that it was the product of some MacGyver-esque improvisation at the grinder!

Thanks so much for posting the in-process pics, John.

Next stop - heat treating. And then tiger maple handles with brass pins, and a nice pair of leather pants.

How does it feel in-hand?

All the best,

- Mike
 
Mentor said:
This thread is unbelievably cool. It is exciting to see the design come to life, and to see the various stages in the process. The combi-edge looks like it came out really well, which is particularly impressive given that it was the product of some MacGyver-esque improvisation at the grinder!

Thanks so much for posting the in-process pics, John.

Next stop - heat treating. And then tiger maple handles with brass pins, and a nice pair of leather pants.

How does it feel in-hand?

All the best,

- Mike
Click to expand...

Well, I did use my swiss army knife to cut the tape. :D It feels really nice, good balance, and a comfortable contour to the handle. Good design! :thumbup:
 
Right on. Also, I'm glad you used 3/16" instead of the 3/8" I accidentally mentioned in my original post! :D

Best,

- Mike
 
Great stuff John, I love it when ya post these progress pics !

I know this was asked before but can't remember seeing an answer, why do makers often add a secondary bevel ? What's the purpose ?
 
cmdionne said:
You going with John or Noah for the pants?
Click to expand...

John for this one, but I would definitely like to get a Noah sheath for one of my future knives. I'm going with a leather belt sheath. It was tempting to opt for one of the rustic riveted sheaths (like I have for my HB), but I wanted to mix things up a bit.

All the best,

- Mike
 
Thanks for posting this up, John--the knife looks awesome, and it's always great to see works in progress

~Noah
 
Here it is heat treated.

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Ground and ready for handles, which will hopefully be here today.

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I'm guessing that the heat treat place is close... or do you have a way to do it in your shop..?

Ski
 
I do all the operations myself, I`m kind of a controll freak! :eek: I grind out each blade myself, one at a time, and do all of the operations myself.
 
This is great! I look forward to seeing how this one turns out, and how you like it in use Mike :thumbup:
 
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