Gary Mulkey

These will all end up being hunters, some being clip point and some drop point . This time of year they're hard to keep in stock. This cold snap has everyone thinking about deer camp.

It was a beautiful day here in the Ozarks for starting up the forge and I got three more damascus hunters forged out. That makes six unfinished blades for me. I guess that I know what I'll be doing for a while.

If you are worried about corrosion then check into the various stainless steels. Anything with 13% or more chromium is considered stainless. The more the chromium-the more corrosion resistant it is. Note what Alan said about N/S. It's basically white brass with it's main ingredient being copper.

Thanks, Alan.

I intentionally set this one aside for 48 hours. Once going back to it I decided that the ricasso area was too long and took about 1/8" off of it as well as doing some subtle changes to the shape of the ivory. Here's what I ended up with:

I've been busy working on other knives for some time but finally got around to getting this toothpick to the dry fit-up stage. I had a hard time deciding on what type of guard this one needed. (this is guard #3). The handle is a nice piece of fossil walrus that was originally some type of Inuit pick. After removing both ends it had just enough material for this handle. The fittings are all 416.

We must be thinking alike as I have been thinking the same thing. In fact, I started making an entire new guard last night. There were just several little things that didn't feel right about it. I'll try to post a pic when done with the new one.

Thanks. It's milled.

I finally got around to slotting the guard for this dagger. This is a new design for me. I be interested in whether or not you like the design.

I'm with Alan. $350 may be a little high for the condition. It's hard to see much about the pits & dings in the face but the edges are pretty rough. If the face is flat and not too pitted then I would try dealing with him.

Brian, You'll enjoy doing some of it. It's a good idea to do a quick etch on the ends of each of the four pieces before welding the 4-way. This will allow you make minor adjustments to the pattern if necessary. Also it insures the orientation of the patterns.

The only reason that I suggest testing it is to make sure that no repairs have been done to it. If it's original then I have no reservations about a Hay-Budden. (I recently sold my 144 pounder for twice that amount.)

Hay-Budden is a quality anvil and in the shape that you describe worth that price. 112 lbs is a little light but still very usable. I used a 144 lb Hay-Budden for years and was very satisfied. Just to be certain, test it with a steel ball bearing for rebound and tap it with a hammer on the face to check for ring.

That is the result of forging the tip to shape.