Hello guys just read the spring kith thread i would like to throw my name in the hat this is something i just started on the steel is 1095 haven't thought of a handle material yet.I have some nice walnut and some iron wood the iron wood is kinda plain but not terrible.Thinking of using stainless corby rivets and a brass thong tube.Like i said i just read the thread and this piece i was just playing with but i think it will be ok. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated
Excellent to see what you are up to. Looks like it's going to be a proper bushcraft knife to me! Sometimes the simple design and simple materials survive the best under working conditions.
so i managed to get some work done took my grind line up higher than i planned have some hand sanding to straighten it out still having a hard time trying to keep grind lines straight on belt sander. Might try putting a taper on it or maybe some file work along the spine see how things go this weekend.Tell me what you guys think
Looks like it's going to turn out well! And fairly close to your original layout. Have you done the heat treatment on it yet? After heat treatment, seems there's always some more finishing to do. One suggestion: as you've removed more material from the blade area than planned, you could review and decide if you need to take away more from the handle to balance it out. By holding the bare knife and feeling whether it wants to fall backwards (butt heavy) or fall forwards (blade heavy). It can kind of roll it on your index finger and you'll feel it want to move one way or the other. Then imagine it with the scale material and pins in place as they add weight to the handle end. You can make a good estimate of how balanced it is going to turn out when it's done. Tapering the tang is one way to remove mass from the tang, as is drilling some more or larger holes (or a combination of these two). You want to do this before heat treatment as drilling hardened steel is a pain! Although it's not crucial, a well balanced knife really is a pleasure to use. Dan
no i have not heat treated it yet and I'm gonna attempt to taper the tang it is definately butt heavy might even do some file work along the spine might even fill the file work voids with coloured epoxy see how time works for me
Looking good Jeff. Another thing you can do is to lighten up the handle is grind out the middle where the scales will be. I actually do that along with the drilled holes. If you are not sure what i mean i can post a pic. It helps with balancing the handle but also gives a little bit more space for the epoxy.
I haven't had much experience with tapering tangs. Hopefully someone that has can join it. Something I'd like to do as well. Never a problem to ask. I have never done coloured epoxy yet, so let us know how it goes! Dan
yes i know what you mean Icho seen a few videos where guys will do that before they taper the tang. My biggest concern is trying to line up the pin holes accurately. Ive also seen a video on how to do that as well looks pretty easy. But I'm sure it will be challenging when i get that point. And yes Dan i will definitely be posting pics of my progress
So i managed to get some time on my spring kith. I tapered the tang had a few problems along the way but i got it figured out. Its now belt sanded to 220 grit ready to send off for heat treat.I am using black and red fiber spacer and iron wood for the handles.
Nice choice of colours. I tried working with that vulcanized spacer material and found it to be a bit of a pain. It does look good when it's finished. Thanks for posting. Dan
Well i got my knife back from heat treat today. Unfortunately it did not survive I ground it way too thin on the cutting edge made a mess of the tapered handles. Now its warped and the cutting edge is a windy road.I am afraid i will have to back out of this kith. Tried doing this knife all by the belt grinder my belt grinding skills are lacking at best.I have another knife i sent in at the same time its in better shape might be able to use that for the kith. I will keep you posted on 2nd knife.
