What is your most, and least enjoyable part of making knives?

This might sound weird ... but bevel grinding is both my least and most favorite. I’m always nervous and procrastinate starting a grind (fearing messing it up). But once I start, I can’t stop! It’s a Zen thing - grind a little, check and correct. Grind a little more ... check and correct. Before I know it, several hours have gone by, and the grind is done....

hand stitching ... I don’t really MIND hand stitching ... but it is SO hard to get nice clean straight stitches! But a reasonable machine is just so darned expensive....
 
I hate it when my knuckles hit the 36 grit belt at 5000 fpm. Or when a dangling finger tip gets sliced while sharpening on stones. Maybe the blood sacrifice adds to the knife's mojo.

I think I most enjoy inspecting a finished knife.
 
Cushing H. said:
hand stitching ... I don’t really MIND hand stitching ... but it is SO hard to get nice clean straight stitches! But a reasonable machine is just so darned expensive....
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I really like hand stitching. I'm awful at leather work but I do enjoy the zen of hand stitching.
 
I love grinding in bevels. Once I get in the zone its awesome. Especially when you get that perfect satin finish off the grinder after HT. That instant gratification is awesome.

Drilling holes can be tedious. But I can manage. The thing I hate most is making kydex sheaths and shipping.
Kydex is easy to work with but making sure everything is perfect then noticing the blade got scratched is infuriating. Back to square one. Thankfully thats rare. Even more so with high carbide steels.
 
My favorite is the learning curve and getting proficient at each step. Making fixtures is a lot of fun for me. What I hate most is when something goes side ways at almost the completion.
Making sandwich knives just is no longer fun for me. I enjoy making Tantos and slipjoints currently.

Also "F" making sheaths, what a pain in the ass for almost no return.
 
AVigil said:
My favorite is the learning curve and getting proficient at each step. Making fixtures is a lot of fun for me. What I hate most is when something goes side ways at almost the completion.
Making sandwich knives just is no longer fun for me. I enjoy making Tantos and slipjoints currently.

Also "F" making sheaths, what a pain in the ass for almost no return.
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Well... a number of people I have made sheaths for don’t have a knife block or other means to protect the blade. They have appreciated having the sheath to serve that purpose ... much as a saya does
 
Cushing H. said:
Well... a number of people I have made sheaths for don’t have a knife block or other means to protect the blade. They have appreciated having the sheath to serve that purpose ... much as a saya does
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Oh, I make great sheaths. I just hate making them. Probably why I started making slipjoints LOL
 
Ha, of course, on a thru tang knife. I only make full tangs and was really confused why you’d peen one of those. Lol. I feel sheepishly stupid right now.
 
Things I like about knife making: Having a finished knife that I fits my needs, grinding bevels, handle shaping
Things I don't like: Kydex, grinding bevels, handsanding, profiling, kydex, heat treating, buying belts, and kydex. I really, really hate making sheaths!
 
I rarely bother with a sheath, but if the knife is good enough to deserve a sheath, then it deserves a Paul Long sheath!
 
Love: profiling out blades. Grinding that perfect bevel

hate: sheath making (kydex). Having to be massively neurotic through the whole process to make sure I don’t develop scratches or discoloration/rust over the duration it takes me to complete the knife (sheath included)
 
Favorite part: Handle work everything from deciding the shape, to seeing it go from a block, to the end result.

Least favorite: Making sheaths
 
Thanks for all the replies, I have read them all even if I didn't reply to them all. I just wanted to add one to the list. My most labour intensive act of knife makind so far, that took hours of work to achieve what some could do in 5 mins on a 2x72.
I ground a FFG blade with hand files from a 8mm thick piece of 1095 bar stock with no secondary bevel on my filing jig.
Boy was that a long process, I didn't even knock any off with a grinder, and I also did a sabre grind blade out of the same 8mm stock. But the full flat grind one takes the cake, and when I finished I swore to myself that I'm never hand filing an 8mm FFG knife ever again, next time I'm using no more than 3mm stock.
 
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