there's nobody to tell

You'll look back at your first knif as a starting point at which you will someday outwardly express digust - although it will always hold a special spot for you. Don't let go of it.

The extreme convex grind is interesting and I'm not sure if it was intended. My first looked a bit like that because I did not know about draw filing.

It looks like the handles may have given you a few moments of grief. If you drill pin holes while the scale is still flat both sides - and use a backing board, you will reduce chipping out the pin holes as the drill breaks through.

Not sure if I can see a crack at the front of the handle. If so, it may be realated to heat or to thin stock. You'll find that almost any wood with figured grain needs professional stabilizing. The stresses set up as the wood expands and contracts can only have one result.

Those things come to mind from what I think I see in the photo - but I may be completely wrong. (I may have been wrong once before too.)

On the positive side, I like the blade shape and that sure is a pretty piece of wood. I especially like that you had the guts to "Just Do It"

Nice start!

Rob!
 
I like the blade shape. It reminds me of a clovis point. Rob touched on some good points, which I agree with. For a first knife, I think it looks great, but the important thing to remember, is that you are on a journey. Make it a point to improve on every one going forward.

Personally, I would focus on getting your grind lines in order, or for convex blades, getting them more and more refined. Once you see improvement there, put more focus on design, flow, and then fit and finish.

Don't be in a hurry to become great, and you will become great before you know it.

Damn, I think I'll keep that quote. I like it. :)

Dave
 
try to get closer to your knife when taking a pick. i try to get as close as i possibly can on mine. from what i can see it looks pretty good.
 
Hey great start! This forum is a great place to hang out at and gain knowledge on knife making. One thing that helps is drawing lots of ideas and maybe even trying to make some knives that look like some of your favorites.
I like convex but if you work on flat grinding you will find your knives will look more pro. Then go back to convex if you want.
Having a steep bevels will not make a great cutter. Thats why I started doing full flat grinds. Think least resistance!
I had no help until about 6 months ago when I started posting on this forum. It sure did help, at least I think my knives got better:)
Keep trying be patient and dont be afraid to F@#$ up some trying to make good knives.
Good luck!
 
I agree about the refined look of a flat grind vs. convex. My first knives didn't even involve bevels since I used very thin saw blades that I just put an edge on. Makes me shiver to look back on them!

I personally love a convex grind when I'm thinking about a heavy heavy use chopper. If I'm thinking camp knife, I'll often lean more towards a thicker flat grind though, as it lends itself to more uses. Recently, I've begun putting the two together and mostly flat grinding the blade and finishing with a slight convex grind. Makes for a really slick looking blade with a *slightly* more robust edge (a little more meat behind the edge) while still having the geometry to slice well. And it looks pretty :D.

Something I did to begin improving my plunges (where the blade bevel meets the handle portion) was to take two square pieces of steel, drill holes on either side for bolts and sandwhich my blade between the two pieces as I began to grind my bevels. I don't take them off until 99% of the bevel work is done, and then I smooth everything out with a very flexible belt after taking the "grinding guide" off. It's kind of like a filing guide, except I just used scrapped 440C I had laying around not hardened. If you're carefull, you won't have to worry about needing a hardened steel for the guides. That really evened up my plunges and made them sharp until I have the skill to do it all free hand.

As for a critique on the knife, I like the overall design and the size looks like a great user. A personal taste for me would be to smooth the spine of the handle so that it doesn't dip in behind near the top of the handle. It's totally a personal taste thing, but I like a handle spine that flows right into the spine of the blade without any excess convolutions. If I think I need a bit extra purchase, I will file in some patterns or lines on the spine of the blade. The finger portion of the handle looks great to me, however. Would love to see a picture of the knife in your hand for size reference and to see how it all fits.

Good work, and keep going! Every single knife you make for a while will teach you something and improve the next effort. If you learn your lessons and take your time, each knife will improve greatly over the last. God bless!

--nathan
 
I like that knife. What will you use it for primarily? What is the steel? What is the wood? Keep it. It is something that you can actually belongs to you and with you. I started out by myself and I can't think of a better way. Starting out alone testifies that you really want to make knives. Drive on!
 
a piece of 1095 my buddy had. I'm sending it to my son , and a heaver one made of (spring steel) which i don't know but ht like 1095 and it turned out ok,
So i told him to take them to the mountains on his hiking trips and tear them up or try anyway.
just tell me how they worked.
i said don't be a wimp. i will make many more.Hope !

vern
 
Looks good, I hope I have the guts to show every one my first real knife!

I don't know for sure but I think that the handle would look better if it did not have that indent on the top of it... It seems off balance or something? I am not judging at all, I think it is great but that is the only thing I would have done differently and that is my taste, not yours. That wood looks great, I only hope my first looks so good. Keep it up!
 
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