What's going on in your shop? Show us whats going on, and talk a bit about your work!

Erik- That is frick'n awesome!!! :cool: :thumbup:




I've been tool'n away at this beast... :)

Had to forge some 416 down to about 3/8" thick X 1-1/4" wide to make the pommel. Parent bar of 416 on the right. Note how clean the sacrificial wood piece came off of the tail end of the handle after the glue-up process.
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You can totally eyeball this... but I have to justify buying some of these tools, so I gotta at least use it for a photo! ;)
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This is a quick and dirty, RedNeck Engineering move. If you were really concerned about the set-up you'd use math and a sine bar and all that crap.
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Putting the initial slot through the pommel.
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Generally speaking.... round end mills don't make square cornered slots, but hands and square files do... :)
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And there it is... a rectangular slot.
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Huh... it fits! ;)
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Started knocking the bulk off with a 60X belt on the grinder.
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A quality control expert is never very far away at Wheeler Custom Knives. ;) :D
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It's like carving.... with a grinder.
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Get'n a lot closer to the goal. You know it's killer Koa when you can see this much figure/color at 36X! :o :)
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I thought it was time for files, but Bentley told me otherwise... ;)
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These are supposed to be blade heavy, but I don't want it to be a boat anchor. I can tweak this some more before it's all done, but it feels pretty good at this balance point.
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well I cannot compete with the grown ups on here but this is what ive been at the last few evenings, its just my first try and not the final product,more for figuring out the workings of a whittler than anything else



 
ummmmmmmmmmmm

errrrrrr

uhh

Squeazy, errrrrrrrrrrrr squazy, you mean the working of a LOCKBACK whittler!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

VERY, very, very advanced pattern there..................... I'm curious how you many folders you've made before and what led you to this project. I'm also curious about the materials you're using. Blade steel, liners, bolsters etc. I have a tremendous affection for this pattern.

I'll be very interested to see what you do with this. So far it's looking good.

Corey "synthesist" Gimbel
 
well I seen a picture of a lockback whittler made by Tony bose and thought it was the nicest pattern I had ever seen! unfortunately the asking price I seen on these knives was above my budget so I said I would make one. I asked tony for the design,and to my surprise he mailed me a plan view of all the components,ive made one knife previous to this but that was over ten years ago and it was all steel and is long lost,grew up in a garage so always making stuff. I made a texas toothpick while I was waiting for a bushing for the whittler,im not fond of the toothpick design so very little effort went int it,I was just bored.
more of the whittler attempt
 
tony was very helpful and encouraging with this task,he answered quickly any questions I had to ask,very sound guy and I would never have even got this far with the project without his instruction.
 
More tools, and more parts. that is what I got done last week.

Pin stock, stainless, reamers, and files.
 
We are in the first stages of developing new knife this week. This one is going to be a paring knife (kitchen). Here are a few shots of some very early profiles in wood. This is a method we use for quick cheap prototyping in the early stages. We draw up a bunch of designs, mill them all out, then pick the ones we like and refine them further.

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Working on a 7.5" kitchen knife for a friend. 440C with cocobolo and a carbon fiber for the handle

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Between Pinewood Derby cars for two boys, 14 birdhouses, and making a chainsaw cut log/candleholder centerpiece thingy for cub scouts I have hardly even seen fit to say I work with steel at all these days. I do have several blades sitting in a holding pattern as is typical, but even the usual car/motorcycle work and knife/tool repair work is slacking. Sheesh. You guys are making me feel like I've dropped the ball.

But, I did have time to finally make a tool for the shop. Last year my Grandfather-in-law decided he needed his anvil back. Why? I dunno. Not like he actually uses it, but of course he won't sell it either. And I had given away my post anvil to another maker. So I was relegated to using a section of rail, flat plate and such for forging. I broke out the welder, grabbed my longer section of rail, a chunk of AR-500, and a RR bolt and nut and went to work. I used the RR bolt and nut as I have a whole 5 gallon bucket full of bolts, and can make dies with them and attach them easily.

It's odd looking, and ugly as sin (but the welds are clean... yessir...) but has surprisingly good rebound. Not quite as snappy as the anvil, but darn close.

Here she is in all her ugly glory...
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The overhang is going to be angled down into a quasi-horn as soon as I can muster the nerve to grind on that AR-500...

-Eric
 
You guys have some amazing work in your shops! Here is my humble attempt at a Nakiri.

Steel: .08 AEB-L @ 61hrc
Wood in the background: Heavily burled Box Elder


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I don't know what a Nakiri is, but that sure looks like it will be a monster in the kitchen! ;) :D


Eric- That's odd he took the anvil back if he won't be using it. It is what it is eh? LOL So what is your plan with the RR set-up you've got going? Do you plan to use the bolt as some type of stake anvil?


sqazy, you must just be one of those guys that naturally has talented hands/eyes... For that project to be your second-ish knife (third in 10 years) and have it coming out like that??? Dang. Very nice. :)

Northarm, Adam, Droptine--- cool stuff! I hope you share more photos as those projects progress. :)



BTW- Has anybody else noticed the guy that started this thread has only posted in it like 1 other time??? :p :) I'm really glad to see it going so strong still! :) :cool: :thumbup:
 
Too much awesome to comment individually, looking great everyone.

Heres a new one I freehanded out of a bar end, wish i could design on cue this well. :/

Getting pretty close, some more strip sanding by hand then back to the machine and once more after that, then refine the choil shape.


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