Jon Stokes

Awesome, thanks! I'll check it out.

Joshua, thanks for the info. Wow diesel fuel?! How do you go about applying it without burning your eyebrows off? Also when using the graphite spray I assume you just apply it between all the meeting surfaces while the billet is still cold?

Ok, thanks Alan. I just noticed as well that in the right light I can see subtle lines from my 15n20 layer welds.

So i'm making a hunter/fighter with a twist and stripe pattern core made from 1095 and 15N20. I then used 15N20 to jacket both side of the core. It's my first build like this and though most everything went well, i'm concerned about my tip. To keep the pattern bordered by 15N20 at the tip i did a fork cut on the tip, like i've seen multiple people do on this forum. The tip did give me some trouble welding but seems like it did weld up in the end. However i have a "weld" line at the tip thats visible but doesn't seem to be a crack. None of the other 15N20 welds looked like this, which is what has me worried. Still, worst case scenario i grind it off and my pattern runs to the tip which isn't all bad. I'm trying to get myself in the habit of purposefully drawing and designing my work before making it and this one came pretty close so i really don't want to grind off the tip lol. Any critique and advice is welcomed.

Nicely done. I love that bolster!

I've been playing with the forge more than ever lately and it's awesome. I've since completed my first damascus billet and knife, but now im hooked. I've since made another small billet ( I want a power hammer) and got two knives out of it. So far I'm liking how they are turning out. I tried cutting in to the billet with my angle grinder before hammering out the blade shapes and this seemed to do alright. I think i didn't cut deep enough on some parts but over all a neat affect. Thanks for looking. Jon Sweet pics are working now!

Simply stunning. The planning and execution... (slow clap)

Looking forward to it!

Nicely done Sir!

That is just... wow! Great job. What an inspiring piece.

I'm dying here! Is there any update!? Lol

Kevin that sounds interesting. I'll have to try that.

I love this. The pattern and blade design are just beautiful.

I used 70% water, 20% ferric chloride and 10% sulfuric acid. I may have the acid percentages mixed up. I'll have to look when I get home.

I love the tear drop fullers. Looks good!