MatthewBerry 67 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 I finally got another blade out the door. This one was a commission for a very patient customer (Thorvaldr). I guess I'd call it a heavily historical fantasy seax. The blade is Aldo's 1084. It's 10" long, flat grind, 1/4" spine. It does taper ever so slightly from the peak of the spine back to the handle, but it's barely noticeable. The blade has younger futhark runes inlaid in nu gold (15% zinc, 80% copper). On the right side they say "Thorvaldr owns me" and on the left "MHB made me". The customer had his previous seax stolen so maybe have his name inlaid in the blade will deter theft / aid recovery. The handle consists of a cast bronze front plate I soldered on, a section of moose antler I carved with a dremel and dyed with potassium permanganate, a bronze spacer, carved cherry with burned edges, another spacer, more moose, and another cast plate. I unfortunately took only a couple WIP pics. These are all the handle components before assembly. The tang is thick all the way back to 1/3 way through the second moose antler section. After that I threaded it for a washer and nut. Everything fit fairly tightly dry, and then I coated everything with a tin layer of acraglass and assembled. You can kinda see it in the pic above, but the assembly is finished by putting the washer and nut on after the end moose antler and tightening them. This hold the whole thing together tightly even without the acraglass. With the acraglass filling in the little spaces and then filling up the space around the nut it should hold together for a long time. The end piece is nailed in place with 4 bronze nails and some acraglass. i drilled the holes exactly the diameter of the nails so they got good friction but didn't risk splitting the antler. The sheath is 8oz cowhide wet-formed to the seax, embossed, and dyed. All the fittings are hand stamped from bronze sheet except for the ring, which I carved and cast. Yeah, it took me a long freakin' time to finish this puppy. There are mistakes I'm not happy with (notice how the plates on the sheath don't line up right?), but overall I'm very pleased with it, and so is the new owner. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Niels Provos 145 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Impressive. The carving on the hilt and the design work on the sheath look very nice. Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Stephens 408 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Wow! Really nice! Link to post Share on other sites
jheinen 41 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Wow. This is exactly the kind of blade I hope to be able to make some day! Beautiful work. -Jeff Link to post Share on other sites
Keith B. 0 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 love the blade, but that handle is blowing me away Link to post Share on other sites
Joshua States 1,537 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 What a beautiful package Matthew. Your carving skills (all mediums) are exemplary. Link to post Share on other sites
James Helm 119 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 That is freaking beautiful! Link to post Share on other sites
Phil Ullrich 22 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Dang! Link to post Share on other sites
John Rosendahl 2 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Beautiful, all of it. Blade like that should have a name, and some means of tracking it if this one also grows feet. Some kind of tech in the handle maybe. Link to post Share on other sites
Wes Detrick 487 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Damn Matthew, that is very impressive! That inlay is super clean Link to post Share on other sites
Kris Lipinski 136 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 WoW! I'm in awe! Beautiful work! Particulary curvings and leatherwork. Respect! Link to post Share on other sites
Brian Dougherty 989 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 The carving, inlay, and leather work blow me away. There is going to be some bad mojo coming for anyone who tries to steel that blade... Link to post Share on other sites
Timothy Artymko 39 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 That is just beautiful! Link to post Share on other sites
Alan Longmire 2,464 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 NICE! Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Lester 253 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 That carving is crazy wild. You did a fantastic job, sir. Doug Link to post Share on other sites
Justin Mercier 64 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Damn Matt, stepping it up a notch! I love those cast hanger rings. Link to post Share on other sites
Andrea Sanson 1 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 Super! Link to post Share on other sites
Emmanuel Griffith 0 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 This. Is. Breathtaking! Link to post Share on other sites
Mark Green 17 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 That is pretty darn AWESOME !!!! Wonderful !!! Thanks for sharing. Mark Link to post Share on other sites
Mark Green 17 Posted March 3, 2016 Share Posted March 3, 2016 That is pretty darn AWESOME !!!! Wonderful !!! Thanks for sharing. Mark Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Hardesty 4 Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 That's freakin cool! Link to post Share on other sites
Tim Tracey 29 Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 This is some inspiring work. I've saved some of the photos posted here as a muse Nicely done. Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Colwell 143 Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 (edited) Matthew, that is quite an achievement. I am always impressed by your carving and adornment work. Inlay, carving, embossing... all the things I don't do well. You are a natural at them. Your early art experiences serve you quite well. great work. I haven't forgotten that you want to see the twisting machine when I use it again, I just don't think I am going to need it for the current short sword I am making (paidao or shield knife, which is like a butterfly sword but longer and pointier). hope the customer is as impressed as I am with it! Edited March 6, 2016 by Kevin (The Professor) Link to post Share on other sites
Stéphane A. 6 Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 I love it !!! Link to post Share on other sites
MatthewBerry 67 Posted March 4, 2016 Author Share Posted March 4, 2016 Thank you guys. When I silence the internal critic that drives me I'm very happy with it/impressed by it. I wouldn't have thought 5 years ago I could have made it, but seeing all the awesome work here is really motivating & educational. My next one should be pattern-welded. I've been drooling over the patterned blades here for years, and now I finally have enough room for a hydraulic press so when the ground firms up later this spring I'm calling Uncle Al! Link to post Share on other sites
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