Doug Lester

I wondered how people were getting around the restrictive knife laws in the UK. I too would be interested in reading more about it. Great imaginative work there. I'd hate to have to decide which I liked the most

I'll vote for the one with the G10 scales, though both are top notch. I'm also with Josh on the dovetailed bolsters. Doug

Very interesting. You're getting there. Doug

There's only so many ways to make a functional knife and they've all been seen before. Doug

I like the rough resembling to the kukri. What goes around comes around. Doug

Well, at least there was one good thing about it. You got the grain the way that you want it. Too bad about the blade though. Doug

The birch bark and carved antler handle really make a statement. Great work. Doug

Outstanding work there. Doug

That's a nice little user. The handle looks spot on. Doug

I can't say that it's to my taste but the workmanship looks good. Doug

Looking good, keep at it. Doug

Oh yah, don't wear good T-shirts or jeans when working with African blackwood or the won't be "good" anymore. They will have a brown stain that won't come out. Doug

I have run into an ABS Mastersmith who earned his Journeyman's stamp with two Grisslies. I have a Coot and it does well. You do have to buy motor separately and fabricate a mounting board/plate for the two of them. Use step wheels with them and you can have a simple speed control. Doug

As Joshua said, it can definitely be used to forge knives as cutler's anvils usually didn't have a horn. However, you don't give us much information such as dimensions and weight. Doug

And the name if the book is? Doug

You've been given lot of good information by those above. I agree with Alan to take your grind all the way to the spine. As mentioned, make sure your belts are sharp and treat them like they are free. The edge of that knife looks like you might have been applying too much pressure with a dull belt and burned the steel. Move your blade across the belt in a steady motion and use no more pressure than it takes to get the belt to cut (not all makes and grits are the same) If the blade is getting too hot to hold it is getting too hot to grind so keep a container of water to cool the blade in. Doug

Thanks for your reply. I appreciated it. Doug

Spot on! Doug

Kevin Cashin was also on the Nova show about the Euthburt sword with Ric Furerr. If you watch closely you can see him duck off camera when Ric did the flaming blade trick after the quench. Doug

Jeroen, how fresh does the antler have to be to boil it and press the tang in? Doug

Ebony is like a concrete driveway. Eventually it will crack of move. If you like the look of black wood try using African blackwood. That wood you couldn't stabilize if you tried. Doug

Joshua, you must have a match made in heaven if you are using your wife's primary forge. Doug

I have a butcher knife with a Lignum vitae handle. It is NEVER tossed into the sink with the rest of the dirty dishes 1) I don't want to soak the handle in water 2) I don't want to find the blade the hard way. It's also assembled with cutlers rivets and nothing has budged since I made it. Doug

I looked around, as I imagine that you did too, and couldn't find suppliers that offered anything over 1/4". You may well have to consider forge welding flat bars together. Doiug

I'm trying to remember who the smith was but it's just been too long. He found some horn that was clear enough for the pattern of the damascus to show through. Doug Now that I've had five hours to mull on it I think that the person who did that was Ed Caffrey.