One last knife before the Christmas break. Then I get 11 days off! Yooo-hooo! This is a drop-point made from 5/32" CPM154 stock. It's the 8-1/2" version of pattern DH44 if you like it. This one has stainless bolster. Unfortunately, CKMS didn't have any 1/8" stainless rod to match. Sort of scrambling, I opted for something which hopefully makes up for it, or at least doesn't look like a mistake. I had some wee mosaic pins. Hopefully the brass and stainless will make a good contrast and not look out of place. The scales are stabilized brown curly maple from Don and Karen at Woodstabilizer.com. Here I am doing a bit of wet sanding on the bench (helps keep the dust down). Memo: Windex doesn't freeze at 0°C like water. I'll post some more photos when I am sitting on the couch, wearing my slippers and sipping a cup of coffee. Happy Holidays! Dan
Looking good so far, Dan. Clever idea, using those mosaic pins in the bolster. Looking forward to seeing the completed knife. Jim T
Thanks Jim. I hope that San D.Claus is good to you this year. ;-) The latest. Now to the sheath! Merry Christmas everyone. Dan
Sheath done and off to customer just in time for the big day. I left some of the heat treat oxidization on the spine of the blade. Several people I showed it too thought that was cool. Merry Christmas! Dan
Wait, you're San D. Claus, Dan?!?! Well, thank you so much for the kindness and generosity! In case anyone else is wondering, I received a Christmas package in the mail out of the blue last week. It contained brand new box of Acraglas. No note, no card, just a mysterious return address listing "San D. Claus" as the sender. I was scouring my contact list of knifemakers, trying to figure out who sent me the anonymous gift. Well, thank you, Dan! It was a totally unexpected and very much appreciated gesture. I'll remember that kindness and will be paying it forward when the opportunity arises. Merry Christmas and the best of the season to you and your family! Jim T P.S. Oh, and the knife and sheath turned out beautifully. Really nice work as usual.
Not sure how I missed this... Very nice knife! This is totally not my style, but this is one of those knives that I feel I would like to take in my hands... You know what I'm talking about? As to the sheath, I can see two problems there: 1. Stitching is a bit uneven. You are using white thread on dark leather. Color contrast multiplies impression. This might be absolutely beautiful IF it is done perfectly. If it is a bit less than perfect color contrast makes it look messy... 2. The mouth of sheath. I can't really see it, but from what I can see it looks "hairy" and rough. Burn those fibers on the open fire before stitching and round the edge a bit and you will see the difference...
Thanks for the feedback Roman. What thread do you recommend using for stitching? I have waxed artificial sinew in natural and black, but I fell like it's too thick. Dan
Dan, I use 50lb braided fishing line. If you feel it's too thin you can fold it twice. Before that I used to use bowstring serving thread - I just had it and it worked fine, though sometimes I had same feeling that it's too thick. Also you can get thread from Tandy leather. I think almost any nylon or dacron twisted thread would do the job... I would not recommend artificial sinew for a simple reason - it's not twisted and, as a result, it's not even. Which means slightly uneven look on otherwise perfect stitch.
