neil gagnon Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 very beautiful piece. Thank you for sharing "One who is samurai must before all things" Keep constantly in mind, by day and by night. the fact that he has to die... -Dai Doji Yuzon- 16th Century http://sites.google.com/site/canadianliveblade/home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niko Hynninen Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Man....that looks realy great. Thanks for showing. Niko Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athanor Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Wow I love it it is outstanding, Dirk Bourguignon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Stier Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Dave, That is a very beautiful blade. The handle is simple with its copper and smooth wood, but yet simplicity done to perfection is all that is required. This blade looks like it would flow nicely in a fight. You should be very proud of yourself, those lines are great, the pattern is beautiful and just the whole combo is superb! Do you have any process pics? Practice random acts of Viking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Colwell Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 D**n Dave, That is great. I was impressed with the RR spike spear, but this is in an entirely different league. I like the pattern, it is like a large grain ladder pattern, or a ladder with long steps. Looks cool, and the swelling toward the tip is "just so." I love rosewood, and this is shaped and polished well. The copper is a superb touch. Nice, crisp ridge down the center. I started grinding a dagger earlier today with a similar general shape , and I now have a tremendous appreciation for the lines on your sword (I quit staying high and drunk years ago, but you can't tell it by looking at the lines on this dagger!). Very good work. Thanks for showing it. Kevin please visit my website http://www.professorsforge.com/ “Years ago I recognized my kinship with all living things, and I made up my mind that I was not one bit better than the meanest on the earth. I said then and I say now, that while there is a lower class, I am in it; while there is a criminal element, I am of it; while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.” E. V. Debs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Longmire Posted April 4, 2009 Share Posted April 4, 2009 Oh, now that's just SWEET! I think the title says it all, but no doubt it will be surpassed soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted April 4, 2009 Author Share Posted April 4, 2009 Thanks for all the compliments gentlemen and Dee. Mad Dwarf David -- Thanks bud. I'll post photos of the scabbard when it's done. I'm going to try an interesting technique in which I embedd the blade in an epoxy putty inside the scabbard in an attempt to create a perfect interior fit. My prediction is that it will either work very well or be a complete disaster. I'll let you know either way. Mike -- I selected the Brazilian Rosewood because I thought the color of the grain complimented the copper furniture and black micarta spacers. I found a nice long board of it on Ebay that I picked up for under $40. There's enough left for the scabbard and the stand I plan to build for it. Jared -- I do have a lot of WIP photos of this. I'm putting them together and posting on my blog later this weekend. I'll post a link when it's done. Kevin -- Yeah, getting compound curves to parallel each other on a double edged blade is maddening. Try this trick: Take the dagger you're working on and trace it onto paper. Cut the paper profile out and place it on the knife, then flip it over. The side with "extra" should be obvious. Mark the extra steel with a sharpey and grind off. The trick with this, however, is making sure the paper profile center is squarely on the centerline of the dagger. Otherwise it'll just make things worse. Best of luck. Alan -- Thanks for the optimistic outlook! Hey, by the way, I recently purchased the Trend Airshield you recommended a few months ago. Wow! What a difference. My lungs thank you. Cheers! --Dave -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Sexstone Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 nice one Dave, I have a vision of the blade being permently stuck embbeded in the epoxy inside the scabbard cause of the blade shape.... I know you are a smarter doggie than to do that.... Hope you show us the "epoxy fit" Dick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 (edited) Happy Sunday All -- I've posted some WIP photos of this project on my blog: http://www.stephensforge.com/2009_04_05_archive.html (Click on the photos for larger versions) Also, below is a photo of the sword on the stand I just built for it sitting on the mantle. The photo above it is a painting of Cordova, Alaska (my home town) as painted in 1910. Cheers, Dave Edited April 6, 2009 by Dave Stephens -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Stier Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 just sexy Practice random acts of Viking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.Knowles Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Very Very Nice Dave, Beautiful Shape and attention to detail. Shawn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdsmith02115 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Nice job! Have you ever considered finishing your blade edges without a secondary bevel? You know, taking it all the way to the edge; takes more time, but IMHO looks so much better, as well as very much improved cutting geometry. Study the edges of the bladesmiths you most admire; pretty much you'll see the edges ground w/out secondary bevels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 Nice job! Have you ever considered finishing your blade edges without a secondary bevel? You know, taking it all the way to the edge; takes more time, but IMHO looks so much better, as well as very much improved cutting geometry. Study the edges of the bladesmiths you most admire; pretty much you'll see the edges ground w/out secondary bevels. Thanks JD. You know, that idea never occured to me. I've been doing it this way for so long. How does one go about doing that on a compound curved edge with a flat or hollow grind? If the edge was straight you could take the bevel all the way to the edge, but on a curved edge one area would meet before the other. Do you convex the edges at that point? I appreciate the advice. Dave -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillG74 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 I get back from Batson's and this what I see. My brain can't take much more. I need 3 days of R&R just to assimilate all this. That is one sweet piece of work. Your work never ceases to amaze. Great Job!!! Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wannabeswordsmith Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 You know when Darth Vader says in Empire strikes back to Luke as he flips backwards from hanging on some cables during their duel..."Impressive"... well dito here. This is impressive, the furniture is gorgeous and the lines and shape is out of this world. Cool blade. I am just staring at it dude. Great work. Scott Scott Hale - www.halestormforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Salvati Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 (edited) Thanks JD. You know, that idea never occured to me. I've been doing it this way for so long. How does one go about doing that on a compound curved edge with a flat or hollow grind? If the edge was straight you could take the bevel all the way to the edge, but on a curved edge one area would meet before the other. Do you convex the edges at that point? I appreciate the advice. Dave I flat grind, leave about an edge of .050, then slack belt. For all intensive purposes it is a flat grind that is just slightly convex. To polish, just act like you are sharpening a VERY wide bevel. Edited April 7, 2009 by Sam Salvati Let not the swords of good and free men be reforged into plowshares, but may they rest in a place of honor; ready, well oiled and God willing unused. For if the price of peace becomes licking the boots of tyrants, then "To Arms!" I say, and may the fortunes of war smile upon patriots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Pikula Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 Good job Dave! I really like the pattern you got and love the leaf shape you got. The way I get rid of my secondary bevel is to grind in your edge when the piece is at 80ish grit, and then just keep grinding down to the edge, but not hitting the edge. When that grit is done do a super light fast pass on the edge just to polish it up, you will have to use water to cool the edge in your higher grits or you will over heat the edge very fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jarrett Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 DIDDO to everyone elses comments. Really nice. CUSTOM KNIVES BY JL RHODES JLRKNIVES ------------------------------------------------------------------------- God bless you. I thank God every day for the freedom to spend time with those I love, and time to pursue this craft. "Adversity is a test for strong men." "What one man can do, so can another." "NO excuses, just do better next time." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdsmith02115 Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 Thanks JD. You know, that idea never occured to me. I've been doing it this way for so long. How does one go about doing that on a compound curved edge with a flat or hollow grind? If the edge was straight you could take the bevel all the way to the edge, but on a curved edge one area would meet before the other. Do you convex the edges at that point? I appreciate the advice. Dave Dave, like some others I grind to about .40-.50 before heatreating; however, unlike most others, I take the blade to an ordinary benchstone, the kind you get from the hardware store that's "coarse" on one side and "fine" on the other, you know the $5 jobs in shrink wrap. After a successful heat treatment, I take it right down to a cutting edge with that stone. I then finish the blade with die maker stones removing ALL tool marks and scratches to a finish suitable for etching (1000 grit or higher), after etching, a swipe or two on a fine arkansas stone will produce a shaving sharp edge. It takes a lot more time to do things this way, but the results IMHO speak of patience, quality and attention to detail that is instanly recognized by those who know what they're looking at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 Dave, like some others I grind to about .40-.50 before heatreating; however, unlike most others, I take the blade to an ordinary benchstone, the kind you get from the hardware store that's "coarse" on one side and "fine" on the other, you know the $5 jobs in shrink wrap. After a successful heat treatment, I take it right down to a cutting edge with that stone. I then finish the blade with die maker stones removing ALL tool marks and scratches to a finish suitable for etching (1000 grit or higher), after etching, a swipe or two on a fine arkansas stone will produce a shaving sharp edge. It takes a lot more time to do things this way, but the results IMHO speak of patience, quality and attention to detail that is instanly recognized by those who know what they're looking at. Thanks JD. I will try this. I'm in the slow pursuit of perfection; taking a long time to finish a blade doesn't bother me. Thank you for the advice. Your work is of a caliber I hope to achieve some day. --Dave -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 Thanks Sam and Michael for the technical advice. Next blade I'll try these techniques to produce a blade with no secondary bevels. Should be interesting. Cheers, --Dave -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Helmes Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 awsome work dave. http://www.jeffhelmes.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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