Well, Gentlemen, this is it.

T

TheOTBalisong

Joined
Jun 28, 2012
Messages
288
I'm diving into Knife making next week. Any last tips you guys can provide?

I'm making a very simple Bushcraft, Drop Point, Scandinavian Grind.
I'm using simple hand tools such as Files and Sheets of sandpaper.

Wish me luck.
 
Hand sanding is your friend. Do not rush any prosses it is easier to take material away, putting it back on is a hole other subject lol

Take your time and pay attention to detail.

Remember drill all holes before heat treating it sounds stupid but i was so eiger to finish my first three knives that i kept forgetting to drill any handle holes before heat treating and finally decided to take the time to write out the knife making prosses and check off each step as i went. It is an easy thing to forget because alot of ppl think that the handle is the last thing that you do but in all reality it is one of the first things.

Grind shape of blade out

Clean blade shape up

Cut handle blocks out fit to handle so that there is enough material on all sides of the handle to work with.

Clamp handle material to handle

Drill holes through material and steel

Rough grind handle to shape

Finish blade grinding/ contouring

Heat treat

Finish handle grinding and sanding

Finish blade sanding

Screw, pin, and glue handles to finished knife

Clean glue off with wd40 before it drys if pinning and gluing
 
chad2 said:
Hand sanding is your friend. Do not rush any prosses it is easier to take material away, putting it back on is a hole other subject lol

Take your time and pay attention to detail.

Remember drill all holes before heat treating it sounds stupid but i was so eiger to finish my first three knives that i kept forgetting to drill any handle holes before heat treating and finally decided to take the time to write out the knife making prosses and check off each step as i went. It is an easy thing to forget because alot of ppl think that the handle is the last thing that you do but in all reality it is one of the first things.

Grind shape of blade out

Clean blade shape up

Cut handle blocks out fit to handle so that there is enough material on all sides of the handle to work with.

Clamp handle material to handle

Drill holes through material and steel

Rough grind handle to shape

Finish blade grinding/ contouring

Heat treat

Finish handle grinding and sanding

Finish blade sanding

Screw, pin, and glue handles to finished knife

Clean glue off with wd40 before it drys if pinning and gluing
Click to expand...

Thank you for all the helpful information :)
 
Another thing I didn't know when I started was that you need to chamfer any holes you drill prior to heat treat, and you don't want to take the edge down too far prior to heat treat because it can warp.
 
crimsonfalcon07 said:
Another thing I didn't know when I started was that you need to chamfer any holes you drill prior to heat treat, and you don't want to take the edge down too far prior to heat treat because it can warp.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry if I sound stupid, but what exactly did you mean by "chamfer," and I was told to take it down to about a nickel's thickness.
 
TheOTBalisong said:
I'm sorry if I sound stupid, but what exactly did you mean by "chamfer," and I was told to take it down to about a nickel's thickness.
Click to expand...

Chamfer holes also = countersink you can search that.


Especially if you are doing this all by hand, a nickel is VERY thick.
measuring US coins I haven't that much US coin about.

Quarters
.066
.070

Average .068


Nickels
Haven't got one, so I used Canadian Nickels - close enough
.069
.071
.071
.071
.072
Average .071


penny
.057
.063
.060
.058
.061

average .060

Dimes
.057
.055
.053
.056
.054

Average .055


The usual recommendation.
is a dime's thickness, but this depends on the steel used and heat treat
and cutting geometry
Thin will slice and thick will splat

I say that even a dime is way too thick if using hand tools
It will take a long time to hand sand that hardened blade down to thin after heat treating.

If you're using a carbon steel and heat treating in fire, you need to leave material to grind off to lose the outer layer of decarb where carbon is lost to fire scale.
If you're using a stainless that is vacuum heat treated, you can go to final thickness and just finish at fine grits.
 
Cut up all your credit cards and take your name off of your checking account.:p If you don't all your extra money will be spent on knifemaking tools and supplies.:D Just kidding, welcome to the addiction. As far as edge thickness you're gonna want to go as thin as possible when using hand tools only. I suggest .025"-.030" if you have access to calipers. If you don't then use a #70 drill bit which is .028" as a guideline. If you're using high alloy steel such as stainless or CPM you can go even thinner. Just dive in and have fun. You'll make plenty of mistakes, just learn from them and try not to make the same one twice. Each knife will be better than the last. Remember that no matter how bad they look 99% will still make a good usable tool. If you don't have access to heat treating I'll be glad to do your first one for free. This forum is a wealth of info., I'm pretty sure someone here will have an answer for just about any question you may have. Don't forget to show us some pics.:thumbup:
 
darrin sanders said:
Cut up all your credit cards and take your name off of your checking account.:p If you don't all your extra money will be spent on knifemaking tools and supplies.:D Just kidding, welcome to the addiction. As far as edge thickness you're gonna want to go as thin as possible when using hand tools only. I suggest .025"-.030" if you have access to calipers. If you don't then use a #70 drill bit which is .028" as a guideline. If you're using high alloy steel such as stainless or CPM you can go even thinner. Just dive in and have fun. You'll make plenty of mistakes, just learn from them and try not to make the same one twice. Each knife will be better than the last. Remember that no matter how bad they look 99% will still make a good usable tool. If you don't have access to heat treating I'll be glad to do your first one for free. This forum is a wealth of info., I'm pretty sure someone here will have an answer for just about any question you may have. Don't forget to show us some pics.:thumbup:
Click to expand...

Wow, for free? To be honest Mr. sanders I was about to send my knife out to you at a price,
Thank you for being so generous. For some reason, I couldn't reach your E-mail, so what would be the best way to contact you?

And Mr.1234, Thank you, as I just realized that I meant to type a dime but accidentally said nickel.
Thanks for the help.
 
I don't mind doing your first one for free, just pay the return shipping. You can PM me here or call me at the number below.
 
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