2nd knife

[charles cooper]

same materal as last time 1045, s7, and mild steel. smaller blade . any ideas on what to change or improve on ?

 

Thanks ,

Charles Cooper

just a Blacksmith

 

 

just sold that knife . $190.00

 

think ill make more

Edited November 16, 2008 by charles cooper

[KPeacock]

This is just personal preferance, but I prefer a nadle that is a bit larger towards the end and small near the blade. I'd be happy as a clam in 6' of mud if I could make a knife that compared to either of those. I like the look of the darker colored blades. Nice work!

[atakach]

i agree with the handle comment, but again thats just a personal preference, it's good to be different, i always strive to be different. one other thing, i'd switch up the materials your welding, or loose the mild steel. seems like to much low carbon,

 

andrew

[Doug Lester]

Those are great looking knives but I would have to ditto Andrew's comment on the steel selection. Depending on the carbon content of the structural steel that you started out with, the thickness of the various steel bars and their ratios in the welded billet the toughness of the blade is probably way up but the edge holding ability (wear resistance) could be minimal for a knife blade.

 

Doug Lester

[GEzell]

Those are great looking knives but I would have to ditto Andrew's comment on the steel selection. Depending on the carbon content of the structural steel that you started out with, the thickness of the various steel bars and their ratios in the welded billet the toughness of the blade is probably way up but the edge holding ability (wear resistance) could be minimal for a knife blade.

 

Doug Lester

A good rule of thumb is, if it doesn't make a good blade by itself, don't use it in damascus (there are times you may wish to bring the average carbon content of the billet down a little bit, but otherwise there's no good reason to use mild in a blade). Some still like a softer blade for ease of sharpening and toughness, but the majority of the hand-made knife buying public expects 57+rc for a small utility blade). I like a 1095 or 1084 and 15n20 mix, the 15n20 gives great contrast, while both steels make excellent blades by themselves. Nickel is good for bright layers, manganese is good for darker layers... Some steels don't like to play nice together (avoid 1095 and 5160 together, for instance).

 

I for one like the handles you've made for them, they have rustic charm. They do, however, look a little small, if I guessing the sizes right. I like a handle at least 4" on a user, unless it is specifically intended to be a two or three-finger knife. Honestly, a handle that tapers the other direction is a bit more comfortable, as has been pointed out...

 

One other thing, and again this my be the photo being deceptive... the edge bevel looks a bit high on the blade, which often indicates a fairly thick edge. I often take the edge down to a burr while I'm in the last sanding phases, then when it's finished I give it a very small secondary bevel just to perfect the edge. If the bevel is high like your's appear to be, resharpening can require a good bit of metal removal to get a good edge back. It depends somewhat on the intended use of the knife, but generally speaking the thinner the edge, the better it cuts, but the thinner the edge gets the more fragile it becomes...

 

I like the blade shapes very much, they almost have a scandinavian look to them. For your first two blades they are outstanding, they show enormous potential. I'm guessing number 10 will be a viking style multiple bar opposing twist with an edge wrap, at this rate...

[charles cooper]

A good rule of thumb is, if it doesn't make a good blade by itself, don't use it in damascus (there are times you may wish to bring the average carbon content of the billet down a little bit, but otherwise there's no good reason to use mild in a blade). Some still like a softer blade for ease of sharpening and toughness, but the majority of the hand-made knife buying public expects 57+rc for a small utility blade). I like a 1095 or 1084 and 15n20 mix, the 15n20 gives great contrast, while both steels make excellent blades by themselves. Nickel is good for bright layers, manganese is good for darker layers... Some steels don't like to play nice together (avoid 1095 and 5160 together, for instance).

 

I for one like the handles you've made for them, they have rustic charm. They do, however, look a little small, if I guessing the sizes right. I like a handle at least 4" on a user, unless it is specifically intended to be a two or three-finger knife. Honestly, a handle that tapers the other direction is a bit more comfortable, as has been pointed out...

 

One other thing, and again this my be the photo being deceptive... the edge bevel looks a bit high on the blade, which often indicates a fairly thick edge. I often take the edge down to a burr while I'm in the last sanding phases, then when it's finished I give it a very small secondary bevel just to perfect the edge. If the bevel is high like your's appear to be, resharpening can require a good bit of metal removal to get a good edge back. It depends somewhat on the intended use of the knife, but generally speaking the thinner the edge, the better it cuts, but the thinner the edge gets the more fragile it becomes...

 

I like the blade shapes very much, they almost have a scandinavian look to them. For your first two blades they are outstanding, they show enormous potential. I'm guessing number 10 will be a viking style multiple bar opposing twist with an edge wrap, at this rate...

 

 

wow. thank you for the reply ! All of what you said is fantastic . See I didnt now about any of that. lol of for my next blade I plan on doing a jelly roll of some sort. I might twist it long ways and wrap it like you said. Thats next on the list. off to work , Again thanks so much.