What did you do in your shop today?

[Jeremy Blohm]

On 7/28/2020 at 12:59 AM, Tim Cook said:

Not heard about many people using black locust, but it is sure a hard and a beautiful wood. 

I've used black locust for knife handles. It is extremely dense but kinda plain in my opinion. It doesn't shrink at all and is very rot resistant. My buddy has a whole vineyard that he used un-treated black locust for his vine supports. I've been meaning to try it for hammer handles but havent gotten any more from my friend to try it. 

The lighter part of this handle is black locust

[Joshua States]

Got the camos on today?

[Bill Schmalhofer]

Stopped by the local lumber supply house (a real lumber place - NOT Home Depot) on my way home from work this afternoon and (I feel) scored big.

 

8/4 x 6" x 97" of beautiful, knot free, as near straight grained as nature will allow you, radial cut plank of hickory. I can just see the handles (and maybe another bow) in this piece. $7.50 a BF with S2S.

 

[Gerhard Gerber]

Back in the ranks of the smokers since November 2019, brilliant timing, and when lockdown was extended I lost the plot a bit.....the knives came to standstill and I started eating for 2....

 

I started exercising at a friend's place this week, similar to crossfit only not so dipshitty , and it's been a brutal wake-up call about the state of my upper body and cardio.

 

Appetite is already reduced and I got myself back in the workshop, busy with the handle of a 14C28N hunting knife for the last two days, a Tuffnol, Rosewood and micarta combo.

 

Had to come to the office on the Holy Saturday, but once I'm done here I'm glueing  that handle, and I have two chef's knives that have been done for ages and just needs sharpening.

It makes me sort of hopeless because both were gifts for a cousin and my roommate from technicon, both live in the Cape province of South Africa and I have no way of getting it to them.

 

This week I just figured get them done so they stop poking a finger in my eye, and let the rest take care of itself.

 

For now I need to quit smoking, get down to the heavy weight limit, and make lots of knives! 

[billyO]

2 hours ago, Gerhard Gerber said:

it's been a brutal wake-up call about the state of my upper body and cardio.

I hear you, brother.  I've been putting off finding out about the state of my cardio for a couple of years now (been using the fact that my 15 y/o husky can't go on runs anymore, which is why I stopped).  I'm hoping I'm smart enough to ease back into it so as not to go into cardiac arrest on my first run.

Keep up the fight and can't wait to see the finished knives.

[Chadd S.]

Came back from a trip visiting family in South Dakota with some goodies in tow.

 

I found a couple of old Nicholson files that are still usable (I dont have good files so I take what I can get) and an old hand forged chain I had hoped would be wrought iron, but it appears I've struck out and landed some mild steel instead. I cut off a link, straightend it, cut a notch in it, heated it again, then clamped it in the vise and bent it back and forth till it sheared. It was a clean break, without any of the fibrous grain I was hoping to see, which was disappointing, but I can still use it for something.

Also got an old Nicholson farriers rasp from my great uncle. He's been a rancher/cowboy for almost 40 years and had one he didn't use anymore. Can't wait to make something out of it.

 

Also worked on normalizing the blade I've been monkeying around with since June. I'm still very inexperienced and made the mistake of grinding the bevels before normalizing, whoops.

I think I normalized it correctly, looking for the shadows to swirl across the blade then pulling it out and cooling it to black before repeating at a slightly lower temperature. Got a slight warp in the process  (which is probably one of the reasons you want to do it before you grind the bevels, huh?) but managed to fix it. So much to learn, but I feel like I'm getting better bit by tiny bit.

[Alan Longmire]

Good score on the files!  

 

With the chain, you do the bend test cold, not hot.  It still may not be wrought, but try it again cold, and cut the notch with a hacksaw or cutoff disc.  That works better than a simple chisel or hardy notch.

 

As for normalizing, there's nothing wrong with doing it after you have the bevels ground, it's just easier and more fuel-efficient to do it as the final step of forging.  Well, there's the warping thing, and the risk of decarb, but still, as long as take care you're fine doing it after grinding.  

[Gerhard Gerber]

On 8/8/2020 at 3:23 PM, billyO said:

I hear you, brother.  I've been putting off finding out about the state of my cardio for a couple of years now (been using the fact that my 15 y/o husky can't go on runs anymore, which is why I stopped).  I'm hoping I'm smart enough to ease back into it so as not to go into cardiac arrest on my first run.

Keep up the fight and can't wait to see the finished knives.

Funny you should mention that, we broke my dog yesterday while out hiking 

Did two trails, and my mongrel is 9.5 years old and just as fat as me.  He moved once after we got back, had to bring his food to him.

On a serious note, it's a problem when they get too old to do the things with you they're used to.  To this day I feel guilty about Lady the Labrador that looked after me when I was a baby, and how I treated her when I was a teenager with a BMX irritated by and old dog that still tried to follow me everywhere I go......

Soren is an unwanted dog that's been with me for 6 years, like the colleague who gave him to me said, "he's an arsehole, but he's my arsehole now" 

I'm trying to get in shape and 4-5km hikes don't do it, need 12-15km in the hills to get the pump working, and he can't do that anymore...utterly crap to see the look if you leave them behind....

[billyO]

1 hour ago, Gerhard Gerber said:

utterly crap to see the look if you leave them behind....

I hear you, my brother.  This is why I haven't been running or hiking for three years.  Bear is the one looking at us in my avatar (he's about 6 there).  I've been lucky so that I was able to bring my pups with me to work every day, so other than the few days a year when I go visit my folks, he's been with me all day every day.  

[Daniel W]

On 8/7/2020 at 2:27 PM, Bill Schmalhofer said:

Stopped by the local lumber supply house (a real lumber place - NOT Home Depot) on my way home from work this afternoon and (I feel) scored big.

 

 

Yes, as long as you have a good joiner and thickness planer You can really make out big time. Last week I got my hands on some rough cut maple.  Although cupped pretty bad once through the joiner and planer, I got really good quality lumber for a fraction of the price of a finished board. Something like $1.50 per foot. The guy did not have any hickory but did say he gets it in regularly.

 

Also if you start to look into rough cut, make sure you also have a good hand plane. I found it's the only tool for the job to get a warp or twist out of a board before planing it.

[Brian Dougherty]

On 8/7/2020 at 2:27 PM, Bill Schmalhofer said:

Stopped by the local lumber supply house (a real lumber place - NOT Home Depot) 

Is Northwest Hardwoods still a thing?  You used to be able to buy smaller quantities of just about anything in their retail room.  It's probably been 15 years since I have been there, and I'm not sure I even have the name right.  It was somewhere on the west side north of 70.

[Oberu]

I've been plugging away making another seax.. yeah I've got a the bug.  I've got a kitchen knife I should be working on but I'd have to put all my leather stuff up.  I use my table saw as a leather table when I'm not using it as a saw.  

[Joshua States]

I opened an Etsy store.

JStatesBladesmith

[Troels Saabye]

salvaged 4 square metres of 304 stainless 2 mm thick ^^ now I just need to order that blasted TIG welder xD but got materials now.

[Gerhard Gerber]

Well, not inside my shop, but related......

 

I skinned 7 of 8 Giraffe lower limbs yesterday afternoon before it got dark and the knife dull.

This was a favour for a friend, but I was expecting bones, not the whole bloody lot complete with hooves and skin 

 

Place smelled like a slaughterhouse when I went outside this morning, and I have no cooking clue what to do with the leftovers, but I'll have to make a plan soon, spring is in the air and the days are warm.

Major problem is the friend lives in a coastal town worst hit by covid and under strict lockdown, so no idea how long I'll be stuck with this rotting mess.

 

I have huge respect for the old man, I've never even heard of anybody else that built a blown forge with ribbon burner, a tyre hammer, belt grinder and his own anvil from forklift tines......and then started making knives.

Dare say I wouldn't do this for many other people 

 

 

[Bill Schmalhofer]

On 8/10/2020 at 12:40 PM, Brian Dougherty said:

Is Northwest Hardwoods still a thing?  You used to be able to buy smaller quantities of just about anything in their retail room.  It's probably been 15 years since I have been there, and I'm not sure I even have the name right.  It was somewhere on the west side north of 70.

That's the place. They're "still a thing". Right off of I-65 on Lafayette. They have pretty good prices on domestic, but their prices on exotics are a little high. But you can get some (up to)12/4 exotics there. Can't find that many other places...

 

Yep, you go into the warehouse and pick out what ever you want, as long as you don't make a mess of their stacks. It's all rough cut and they will joint / plane sides for you at $0.50 / finished BF / side.

[Brian Dougherty]

Cool.  I need to make it a point to stop in there the next time I'm over that way.

[Jeremy Blohm]

Weve been really getting into axe throwing so I forged this 3 lb double bit axe for my wife. Im going to grind the top lug off and do a little more forging. 

This little hatchet was my second project for the day. I havent weighed it yet. 

[Conner Michaux]

Oh yeah I like where this is going  

 

Thickest at the break and tapers down to a nice point tip. It looks like a Seax to me, but I don’t know anything about them so I’ll leave that up to the people who know a thing or two about em. 

Edited August 13, 2020 by Conner Michaux

[Jeremy Blohm]

Looks like a seax to me Conner. Well done. 

I forged out another double bit axe drift this morning and now I'm punching an eye in a 1 inch by 2 ½ inch by 4 inch chunk of forklift fork for another double bit. 

[AJ Chalifoux]

Finally got a mosaic bar forged out (well, except the tang). I'll finish cleaning it up tomorrow and checking for cracks & weld flaws, but for now I ground one side and quickly etched a small section to see what I have. Currently 3/4" x 7/16" x 27", but it should be about 36" long when the tang is forged out.

 

Barring any weld flaws, I'll be starting on the edge bars tomorrow or Saturday. The edges will be low-layer random pattern and this bar will be the core.

Edited August 13, 2020 by AJ Chalifoux

[Gary LT]

@AJ Chalifoux, wow that is a pretty pattern. Please post more as you go!

Gary LT

[Conner Michaux]

Quick N dirty etch on this Wrought iron Seax. I’ll attempt to carburize it some time this week, and hopefully not ruin it. 

[Jeremy Blohm]

Is this the wrought iron I sent you Conner?

[Conner Michaux]

7 minutes ago, Jeremy Blohm said:

Is this the wrought iron I sent you Conner?

 

Yes this is from a little piece of that billet