Kevin Colwell

you are going to love/hate the grinder. You can screw things up fast with a good grinder. I hope you have variable speed. That extra control is really worth the money. It just makes it like an extension of your mind after you get enough practice. Nice knife. Learn from the mistakes and move forward. It is what we all do.

Hi Zeb, I believe it is worth one pattern welded modern hunting knife or bowie knife from me. Between 4 and 8" blade, wood handle, nice aqua fortis staining on curly maple handle. I like it. I am not sure what they are worth. Alan may know more. I would only add that, if I were you, I would keep it as-is. You know this, but maybe someone reading this will not know this, so DON'T POLISH ORIGINAL METAL ITEMS, THE RUST AND PATINA IS IMPORTANT IN DATING AND VALUE. I had to say it. thanks for sharing the pics with us. I just love this sort of stuff. I need to get a Fairbairn-Sykes. I really do. Plus, the early gerber, (Mark I?). on and on I ramble. Nice score.

I like it. Sometimes the whole "fusion" thing misses me. But, this looks good, and the hamon is an interesting touch which could have been on originals and just not polished to emphasize. Glad you are back (I sort of drifted away, too.). keep posting. kc

good to see your work again. I came back after time away (like a salmon, returning to the place of my birth, only I won't lay eggs or die). really good work with the bronze. I never learned to cast anything but ingots so I can recycle cutoffs. keep posting your work, it always makes me happy to see it.

I mortise every handle. It may not be correct for this sort of knife, but you can shape the result into anything. Split the handle material in half or get two thick scales, chisel and/or mill or route a slot in them to fit the tang with almost no gap around it. Almost. There will be a tad bit of gap, especially in that the slot will be just a little wider side-to-side that the tang. Rough the tang up with sandblast or rough file or checkering file, or 100 grit paper. Put epoxy in the hole wihle open, put either epoxy or wood glue on the mating surfaces, and clamp the whole enchilada around the tang. Or, skip the epoxy in the hole the first time and just do the mating surfaces. Clamp around the tang, then remove the tang so you can shape the thing off of the blade. When time to epoxy, just do what you described, but focus more on having a healthy amount of epoxy dripping off all parts of the tang if it is cool or poured into the hole if it is warm. put it in place, clamp. If possible, you can also put a pin hole through the whole thing prior to this, and put a pin in at the time of epoxy. Put a small countersink into both sides of the wood, peen a small rivet head onto one side of the pin, shove it through and seat the head. When the epoxy is set, clip off excess and peen the other side to set it. I love to pin handles while the epoxy sets, especially on swords, because it can be a real pain to clamp the handle. nice forging, welding, grinding on that seax. I like it a lot. forgive the long answer. I am wordy in the morning.

I am always afraid to use a buffer, for fear of ruining lines. of course, sometimes they can't be beat. I just don't think to use one when I am not making jewelry. I never took the time to really learn how to use a buffer, or go get enough different wheels to really get full benefit. Filework is something that I would enjoy, but it never comes up on Chinese stuff, so I haven't learned it. I like the filework you have done. Interesting design. Two needle files, right?

fast and new belt on wood. New belt is most important, so it doesn't just scorch it.

oh man, you are going to love that thing. Love/hate actually. They are great, but I dislike the noise and dust. Still, I am not giving mine away. It changes how you can work. It is also the fastest way to ruin a knife or a piece of one. Good for you, though. This will be fun to watch as you break it in, and learn it. I see it is variable, and that was a great choice. forgot to say that the knife looks sweet, too.

I like it. The handle wrap is a good touch, if not traditional.

this is wonderful. I arrived late, but I have loved this thread. There was a lot of great tips and tricks. I enjoyed your breakdown of what craft and craftsman mean to you, also. These are some great knives. Important to document the fact that things just don't work right the first time in many cases, too. Great message for new folks. You are sharing your processes and a little of yourself, and I appreciate it greatly. Thanks. Plus, I learned a lot.

that is nice. what was the style on fullers going under the guards on originals? it may not have mattered, but it may. Different cultures were very firm with this (Chinese would not dare, Europeans do about half the time, Japanese do not I believe). That is a very good looking messer.

good ideas. I never would have thought of the wood screw trick in a million years.

good use of the material, for sure.

i like it. It is a unique shape and not so modern. nice work.

Tim, good to see you here. That is a great looking knife. I love the blade and the guard. They have style. kc

Dave - what a great way to make sure you work slowly. Only have one, total. That blade looks great, though. There is a lot happening. nice welding. kc

that is wonderful. I love that control of the material. the spacers work just right, too. At first, I thought it was wire in channels.

that came out splendid. Good work, and thanks for documenting so much of it for us

off to a great start on those. looking great.

outstanding. The dagger with light handle is the best. Hey- so why are you working in your front yard? Their must be a story here. You have had a shop since before I thought of it.

awesome. great to see you here, too. I love the work.

haven't been here lately. I miss it. That is a really lovely handle.

John, do you use files at all on getting the grind lines just right? I think I would have to. I am impressed. Great job. kc

Jake - I have always been inspired by your work. For years. This demonstrates that you are moving up in a serious way. Thanks for showing this to us!

That rocks! Everything about it is just right. Seriously, great by both of you.