What Kind of Knife to Make

Big Chris

Big Chris

SAHD/Knifemaker
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Apr 1, 2010
Messages
3,273
What kind of knife would you make for someone not into knives. The fella I am referring to owns a wood shop up the hill from the machine shop I work at. I do several side jobs for him a year and he has recently found out I make knives. He has given me a lot of wood for handles lately( pieces with nice figure and several burls), scrap for him but enough for fifty to seventy-five knives, and wants nothing for it. I said lets make a trade and he said his five dollar flea market knife worked just fine. I still would like to make him a knife out of appreciation, so what kind of blade style does a woodworker/custom cabinet maker find most useful. Any suggestions or ideas would be great.
 
There are several things you can make:
A marking knife
A small bench knife
A chisel ( if your skills are up to it)
A kitchen knife.

Also, I'm moving this to Shop Talk, where it will get more response.
 
a Froe is always a handy tool and rarely seen now a days. It's used for splitting wood by batoning it. An old truck leaf spring makes a MEAN froe if you can forge. if not a handle wouldnt be hard to make.

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Jason
 
If he likes the style of his

" five dollar flea market knife "

replicate that as best you can in decent steel & use some of his nice wood
 
A light, thin handy shop/EDC knife with a wharncliff/sheepsfoot blade, no more than 4" long, preferably 3" or maybe less. Very handy for marking, fine cuts, opening mail, etc. Choose a steel type he's familiar with, so he'll be comfortable with sharpening and maintenance. I'd use O1, most experienced woodworkers are familiar with it and know how to take care of it.
 
Since he isn't into knives you might think about using some of the nice wood he's given you to make him a nice box... into which you can place a $5 flea market knife... or perhaps a letter opener you made.
 
I once heard of something called a sen which is kind of a 2 handled draw knife. it looks like it would be useful for taking off long strips of wood, and may be a good novelty tool for him.
 
If he does a lot of work with hand tools he'll appreciate a marking knife, or even better a pair of right hand and left hand marking knives like bladsmth suggested.

If he's gung-ho machinery perhaps he'd rather have some of the other suggestions.
 
I like the idea of replicating his cheap-O knife but with good materials! :)

A nice hand made chisel would be cool too. If you're in a machine shop you've probably got access to a bin full of A2 or D2 laying around that would make him an heirloom chisel. :)
 
Any woodworker worth his salt will like a handmade marking knife.....or as woodworker221 suggested a matched pair.
A bench knife is what James described, and you can't have too many of them.
A simple leather pouch sheath to stick such custom tools in protects the blades when in the drawer.

For a really nice gift, make a matched handle four piece set with L&R markers, a bench knife, and an awl. Make a leather four slot pouch or a roll case for them. Have a jeweler mark the knives with his name. If you are a proficient woodworker, make a presentation/storage box for the set.
 
As a former wood wooker, a marking knife is great, typical marking knives get a dull tip pretty quick and then splinter the grain, and after a few sharpings you looks the tip shape. I would use some of the nice burl he gave you and make a marking knife.
 
As I was writing the original post I was thinking about a small sheepfoot fixed. I don't feel comfortable making a folder just yet but that would be a great gift. After reading the posts I really like the idea of the idea of the marking knives. Thanks a lot for the responses.
 
I find people not into knives still love a good kitchen knife. Few knives get used more then a kitchen knife!
 
Good thick plane irons for wooden planes can be hard to find but are easy to make. A 1-2" or so sheepsfoot blade with a stout handle makes a nice little carving/shop knife that can also be used as a marking knife. If he mostly does kitchen cabinet type work he probably wouldn't appreciate a marking knife all too much though. If it's fine furniture then pretty much anything sharp will find a use. If you have the skills to make a good chisel I'd say that would be the best bet. In my shop at least, 3/8" chisels see more use than all other sizes combined.
 
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