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I recently got over a broken leg, so I was finally able to get back to my forge after 4 months. I went in with the idea of making an ulu, but got sidetracked and decided to try a karambit instead. I started with a broken farrier's rasp. Don't know the exact content of the steel. The first thing I did was drift a hole for the finger ring. I'd never done this before, so it was a neat experiment. It turned out pretty well, but I learned I need a bigger drift. After that, I bent it around for the hook of the blade, and then did some shaping with the grinder. Looking back, I could have done more shaping with a hammer (in less time, too!) but I wasn't confident enough in my hammering skills, and after all the effort to shape the hook, I didn't want to screw it up. It still needs some shaping. I fee like the handle is a little too big, and it obviously needs bevels. And right now, for a karambit, it's pretty heavy. I planned on pinning hardwood scales on when it's finished. Does anyone have any other suggestions?

I started this last year, and finally got around to finishing it. It was nice to finally make a knife for myself. This knife began when a friend of mine got a karambit, and asked if I could make him a wooden one to train with. Let me say now, plywood is NOT my normal choice for any kind of bokken. I prefer hardwood like walnut, oak, or rock maple, but with the ring in the end, I couldn't see a way to get around the grain crossing the ring and risking it breaking at some point, and I don't make weak tools. So, plywood with maple scales. But when I was done, it turned out so comfortable I decided I needed one for myself. It took me two tries. On the first, I managed to break the side out of the hole by drifting it while the steel was too cool. The second time I used a lot more patience. The main challenge was putting the curve into a piece of farrier's rasp (tool steel). Once I got the basic shape down, a couple of friends who have done a lot of security work looked it over and made suggestions. I'm glad I was humble enough to listen to their advice, because it fits my hand much better than it would have otherwise. Grinding the teeth off the rasp and then all the curves was a challenge, but I got it done with the wheel on my belt grinder and finally a half-round file. When it was all polished up, I drilled holes for the pins and shaped the scales from maple (actually some hardwood flooring scraps I scrounged. I'm lucky enough to live near a Bell Hardwood Floors and Lumber Liquidators, and they don't mind me dumpster diving.) The pins are simply 1/8" brass rod. Nothing fancy. In retrospect, I should have test fit everything and ground the steel and scales down to an exact fit before the next step: adding the cerakote. I have a friend who owns a custom gun shop, and he let me pick any color scheme I wanted for $30.00. I decided just to go with basic black, because this knife has one purpose: to protect me. I'd rather no one saw it coming. I added some blue plastic-impregnated paper just to make it look a little classy. My boys had also watched the most recent edition of Jurassic Park and named it "Blue," after their favorite velociraptor in the movie, because it reminded them of the raptor's claws. When all was said and done, my friend knocked $5.00 of the price, and earned himself a permanent customer. So here Blue all it's glory: Not fancy, just effective. Now I just need to figure out how to make a sheath for it. I'm thinking Kydex, which is something I've never worked with.

Here's my latest, a karambit. Normally, I wouldn't make these because I just don't care for this blade style, but a good client of mine asked so I made one. Most of the shape you see was forged out from a piece of leaf spring. Another first for me was bluing the blade as I have never actually blued any of my blades. The handle scales are walnut with 1/4" diameter brass pins.

A fellow student in my dojo asked if I would make him a wooden karambit to train with. He traced his knife out, and I made a training version based on that: It's hard to make plywood look decent, and the maple scales didn't take the stain like I'd hoped, but after playing with it, I really liked the way it felt. I used plywood primarily because at some point the ring in the end would be parallel to the grain and would snap off. And please keep in mind, the actual knife is pointier, but I rounded the edges off because it is a training too. Just based on this, I'd like a little more hook in the blade, and some jimping where your thumb presses on the spine (at least, I was told the fancy little file marks on the spine of a blade are called jimping, and it's easier to say than "fancy little file marks.") I got some smaller pieces of steel (broken farrier's rasps) for Christmas and I decided to make myself a karambit. Before I totally committed myself to this design, though, I thought I'd do a google search and see what else was out there. I found this... My first thought was "Good gravy, Gil Hibben built a karambit!" My next thought was, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! I'm sorry any and all Hibben enthusiasts may be offended. Okay, really, I'm not. I feel a person ought to be able to just reach out and pick up their blade without having to worry about it stabbing them to death. I don't know who made this, or what they were on (burning a little too much galvanized in the forge, perhaps), but... WTF? I think I'll stick with a simpler, more user-friendly design.

Hi All, Something a little different from the Mongrel Knives shop today. How about a Karambit or if you prefer a Hawkbill fixed blade. The specifics: Steel : .156 thick, 154-CM to a Rockwell 61 Pins: 3/16 416 stainless Scales: Black Canvas Mikarta. Overall length: 9.75 inches Blade length: in front of the scales 4 7/8 inches, convex grind Cutting edge: 4 inches Handle thickness: 5/8 inch Weight: 7 oz. Finish: Mirror on the edge, spine and around the scales, black oxide on the flats. Finish on the canvas Mikarta is through 1200 grit. (looks like carbon fiber) Kydex sheath can be worn inside or outside the belt, handle forward or backward or cross draw. Price is $150.00 sheath included plus $7.50 for Priority Shipping to the lower 48. Thanks for looking comments are always appreciated. Ken