New Knives

[a.priddy]

hey everyone, would appreciate your feedback good or bad.

i'm thinking of making knives- stylish yet function as the main goal and using high quality blades (the highest i can find) and using materials like horn, pewter for weight with finer detail blades, epoxy resins- so on. (anything that forms a comfey grip) does anyone like weight added to detail knives? i find i have a bit more controll with a pen grip and weight to it. i also like a left and right bevel for feathers.

i've found some Japanese laminated blades Rockwell 63 for detail work with left hand bevel, right, and center. problem is, they are pretty expensive- but would make a fine knife. reworked cold- handle added.

i'm thinking of reshaping alot of blades i am finding, problem is- i'm finding alot of crap at rediculous prices... i don't mind spending some money on quality, don't get me wrong.

i would really like to know "what's in your toolbox" and why. also, what do you consider a 3 or 4 blade kit, and what do you carve (including wood type)

geez, i'm asking alot aren't I?

[Ron T]

Hello and welcome a.priddy.

I've been making my own knives for a few years and tend to use whatever comes in handly. My latest batch was made out of concrete nails. Out of neccessity, I carve small, don't have the strength or stamina for anything large. I don't like heavy tools since they tire me out so I don't use any weight in mine. A member is sending me some metal cutting hacksaw blade material and I will try to make some knives out of it.

I just finished some straight razor knives and have to say, I love the steel. Of course if I was better at shaping the bevels, the knives would be better.

My knife shapes include a lot of experimental stuff, some worked, some didn't. I made them trying to find a tool for a specifric problem. You can see an assortment in the gallery of my website.

My kit is a bag of most of my frequently used tools including knives, gouges, etc, that are packed in boxes and trays in a canvas bag I haul out and put away every time I carve outsied.

My favorite wood is boxwood but it's expensive. Recently I've been carving basswood given to me by a friend.

Yeah, that's a lot of questions but how else do you find out.

[Dan S]

There are any number of sources for good cheap steel. Like Ron T says the comercial bandsaw material is supposed to make a great knife. Go to a metal shop and see if they have a broken blade you can have. If you can get to a machinest shop they may have some scrap tool steel for little if anything. If you live near any paper mills the used blades that they use to cut the rolls are made of fine steel as well. I read somewhere that a person was using pieces of "Old Hickory" kitchen knifes found at swapmeets for a source of steel.
I have used old jointer knives and straight razors as well. My latest was made from a really old jointer blade and is freakishly sharp.

Have fun,
Dan

[CarverFromNoWhere]

If your looking for some really excellent blades that come pre made at a decent price look at cape forge the mini blades they make are awesome. I don't own any personally but I have used them and they are great, I make my own and have started using O-1 tool steel bought from McMasterCarr.
Carl

[a.priddy]

awsome info, i just ran accross cape forge and like what i saw. i also just finished a detail blade out of 1/4 inch round stock and cut the snot out of myself. love it!

[Smee]

I don't care for the majority of knife handles I see. Large and bulbous towards the blade, they get in the way of your carving. I prefer the handles on the Denny knives that taper down towards the blade. But that's just me!

[a.priddy]

thanks Smee that's good info for me too. would a knife ofset in the handle work also?

[Ed Redwine]

(Quote: i also just finished a detail blade out of 1/4 inch round stock and cut the snot out of myself.

Uhhh, noses and knives are not a good mix. (Grin)

[Smee]

I would have to try it. Would it try to twist in your hand? Give it a try. If it doesn't feel good, just rehandle it.

One of my favorite knives has a handle like a Denny, but the blade is inserted on the diagonal. So two corners are at the top and bottom and two on the sides of the blade.

[a.priddy]

hey Ron, like the knives and creativity. just got a blade done and stuck it in carverformnowheres post!