Joe found a bunch of bearing rollers and they are the perfect size to make knife blades from. So we forged out a bunch of them. The first ones we did we just let air cool and they were to to hard to work with and cut. So we got a little smarter the second time and put them in vermiculite to cool. There are still quite hard but at least you can drill and cut them. After heat treating I lightly etched in acid and then did the mustard patina on the blade. I have made a lot of knives but this one has got a SCARY edge. You don't want your finger in the way or it is going to end up in the soup ! The knife is 14.5 inches long Blade 9.75 inches Width 2.125 Thickness 0.1000 Flat on one side, ground on the other made for right hand use. Handle linen Micarta
Coolest is that before and after shot. Roller bearing becomes chef's knife in 200 easy steps! Really pleasing to the eye Cal. I am fond of the asymmetrical grind thing too. Dan
Yes Dan it all looks so easy but if you don't have a press it is real tough to hammer out 52100. It is one of the hardest steel I have seen to move. So 30 tons and a rolling mill make a big difference.
Very nice knife! I snagged one of the rollers out of a very big bearing. The whole assembly probably weighed over 300 pounds and i was told it was out of a ball mill at one of the local gold mines ....basically a rock tumbler but on an industrial scale. The roller I have weighs 5 pounds or more and is bigger than a coffee mug but at first glance it looks to me like it may be just case hardened or might just look like that due to work hardening.
Try forging that stuff by hand! I've got a ton of them in 1.5", 2" and 2.5" but lack the equipment to turn them from round to flat.
