Hogan Baker

That looks really spiffy! Good job Michael.

That is going to be very cool! I thought that it looked great even before I realized that it was going to be damascus.

That will work very well! I wish I had made my charcoal forge that deep. On my forge there are two HUGE cracks. But they haven't expanded at all. Mine is made of cement, and I have had several pieces flake off. I am not sure why it does, but it still works well. Make sure you wait long enough for the forge to dry, other wise you risk it exploding, or at the very least breaking more. Good luck. ~Hogan

Thank you everyone for the compliments! It means a lot coming from all of you! Contrary to how the photo looks, the spine of the knife is actually straight. I got the .22 caliber because it made the knife look bigger . ~Hogan

Wow! Those are very cool! At least you don't have to worry about losing your grip . ~Hogan

This is my first time posting any pictures of my work. This is probably the 8th knife that I have forged, but the 3rd that I have finished. And the first that I am proud of. The blade is made from a 3/4 coil spring. The handle is oak with brass pins, and the guard is made of mild steel and left as forged. The over all length is 12.5 and the blade is 7. Oh, and I made this without power tools, except for my drill press. I am sorry about my terrible camera work. Lets hope this uploads correctly.... (and isn't to big)

Those are looking really good so far! What type of steel are you using? Could you give us the measurements of the blades? I am sure that you will be able to pass the test. You are a very good maker! Thanks for posting some pictures of your process. ~Hogan Baker

Wow, I really like that knife! That D guard looks really good, I complements the beautiful steel! What kind of sheath ( if any ) are you going to give the knife? ~Hogan Baker

Sure! I always like seeing pictures like that. Just make sure that you resize the files before posting them. ~Hogan Baker

Is there a spot where we can view the finished knives? It was a really interesting thread BTW.

Nice file work! I did some more reading on distal tapers, and it seems I was incorrect, sorry about that. It really is a great looking knife! ~Hogan Baker

That looks amazing. I love how you positioned the osage so that the end grain is showing! Also I think that your sheath work is very good. The only thing that I think could be better is the blade shape. I think that the way the blade gets wider toward the tip would make it hard to sharpen, plus I think it might render the distal taper useless. Could you show a picture of the file work on the spine? It looks to be quit interesting. Great work, Hogan Baker

That looks very good! I love the silver inlay! Does triple tempering make a superior blade than a single temper? Also, how long is it? Nice work, Hogan Baker

Sorry about that!

Wow, Lewis Shaw does some truly amazing work! It is a wonder that I have never heard of him. Thank you for introducing his work to us.

That looks great! One question though, you say that you had a little bit of warping, but that you could fix it. How did you straighten it after it was hardened? And that hamon is going to look amazing when it is fully polished!

It looks to me that you are changing you personal picture and not you avatar. Go your control panel and make sure that when you are uploading your picture you actually click on 'Edit Avatar Settings' and not 'Change Personal Picture'. Hope it works for you! P.S. I just got myself an avatar, it doesn't look to cheesy does it?

I like it a lot! You have a very steady hand to do that. Do you carve it with a knife, or do you use some sort of rotary carving device? Nice wood burning. BTW how did you learn to write runic (or runes, errr... actually what do you call it?)?

Very nice tutorial! I have been wondering about some of the techniques involved with sheath making, but you cleared them up. Thank you for giving such a clear explanation of everything! MDJForge- No, it is Bose-Einstein condensate beans

Petr, That looks great! How are you going to seal the handle?

Yes, blacklion is correct, scale is the fasted way to ruin a file. The fire scale gums up the teeth, so I normally start with a rasp. Also, remember to only use the file with strokes in one direction, it makes them last longer than a back and forth motion.

Wow, very cool video. I had no idea the blade did things like that when water quenched ! I am no longer surprised that my blades always break in water quenches.....

That looks really nice. I like the low layer count damascus. You are really getting good, what number is this one?

James, I love the rough and ready style that you have been making! A very cleaver idea to use wrought iron as a blade. I would never had thought of it, but it does look great. I had not realized that vinegar could be used as an enchant. Does it take a very long time for it to do anything?