Alan Longmire Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 Chill, please, gentlemen. It's not worth getting cranky over. You're both invaluable members of the community here, and it hurts me to see annoyance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted January 11, 2022 Author Share Posted January 11, 2022 (edited) A few days of chilling later...... For those of you who were wondering what went wrong with that last one, it was all in the clean up on the lathe. The casting was quite solid and the back turned flat and beautiful. The face also surfaced well, but you will notice that my center hole was slightly off. The outer border isn't uniform around the whole perimeter. It is norrower in some areas than in others. So I cut it up. One of the problems I was fighting with was the crucible was too small for the pour. I wasn't getting enough material to fill the mold. So I broke down and bought some new melting dishes and 10 pounds of Petrobond. It's amazing what a difference the right equipment can make. Crack the flask open and brush After cleaning Now all I have to do is carefully set the center hole this time. Edited January 11, 2022 by Joshua States 3 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted January 24, 2022 Author Share Posted January 24, 2022 Well, that didn't work either. Turns out my details were cut way too shallow, and any sanding wiped them out. So, I decided to skip the frills around the outer rim and cut a new model. I also had some trouble with the gate area collecting boogers, so I made a larger gate. This casting had some issues, but I decided to start cleaning it up and see how it went. A little time with some rotary burrs, a bunch of hand sanding on the granite slab, and some drilling and tapping of threads later....... 3 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pieter-Paul Derks Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 Good stuff, that handle wood looks real nice 1 http://mefecit.nl/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 4, 2022 Author Share Posted July 4, 2022 So it's time to dust this one off and get back to work on it. I spent some time reshaping the handle today. I'll probably curve the top of the haunches next. 3 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 7, 2022 Author Share Posted July 7, 2022 Busy day in the shop today. While a few odd things were in the tempering oven, iworked on the shaping and layout for the carving. First off, I will unashamedly admit that the design is stolen from our resident Dirkmaester, Jake Cleland and I am using his desaign form the Georgian Dirk. Jake's work has been a source of great inspiration (and envy) for me. Anyway, Here is where I made it to today. After rounding the haunches and isolating the main core a bit, I laid out the knotwork. Side view After putting the grace lines in the body area. I kind of messed up with my layout. I used a 4:6 spiral and it doesn't flow correctly. I'm too bushed to lay it our again so it is what it is. “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jake cleland Posted July 7, 2022 Share Posted July 7, 2022 all the diamonds in a vertical line should go in the same direction - if you have an even number of divisions (circumference - vertical doesn't matter, just changes the direction they get woven back in) it should work fine. The loops at the top and bottom take up 2 diamonds (1 & 2/3ds really), not just one. 1 Jake Cleland - Skye Knives www.knifemaker.co.uk "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 8, 2022 Author Share Posted July 8, 2022 I should have checked this BEFORE I started cutting....... “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 11, 2022 Author Share Posted July 11, 2022 Well, Even though this handle will probably not be the finished one, I think I will keep carving it, just for the practice. I started roughing it out the other day and have gotten this far along. I still need to get in there with a needle file and smooth some surfaces. “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jake cleland Posted July 11, 2022 Share Posted July 11, 2022 honestly, it doesn't look like you've gone too deep yet, and that should be fixable. You can narrow the bands slightly so they're longer than they are wide, and carve and scrape the top and bottom loops to erase the cut you don't want... 2 1 Jake Cleland - Skye Knives www.knifemaker.co.uk "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 11, 2022 Author Share Posted July 11, 2022 Thanks jake. A sanding we will go, a sanding we will go! On another note, how common are fulers on these blades? “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jake cleland Posted July 11, 2022 Share Posted July 11, 2022 The earliest blades tended to be plain but fullers started to become more common from about 1700, and by 1800 they were almost ubiquitous. Commonly just a single fuller around 3/16ths wide around 1/8th to 1/4" down from the spine, either full length terminating an inch or so before the tip, or 2/3rds length with or without a false edge. sometimes you have double or even triple fullers, or a pair of narrow scraped grooves framing the main fuller. Later on you start to see wider, shallower fullers, and more complex arrangements. fullers are almost always accompanied by filework or gimping - usually wide, shallow scallops separated by v-notches, 1 1 Jake Cleland - Skye Knives www.knifemaker.co.uk "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerhard Gerber Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 For the longest time I've wanted to carve a weave pattern on micarta, when I get around to it I'll start with Jethro Tull's Nothing Is Easy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 17, 2022 Author Share Posted July 17, 2022 It's difficult to see in the photo, but I think I got the layout right this time 2 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted July 25, 2022 Author Share Posted July 25, 2022 I've been obsessing about this for a week now. It's been something I think about as I'm trying to go to sleep. Finally, the light bulb inside my tiny brain turned on. I marked this with a fine point Sharpie today. “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jake cleland Posted July 25, 2022 Share Posted July 25, 2022 yup, that's the way. Next step is to cut the outline top and bottom with a flat graver, close to vertical and pretty deep, and then cut in at a shallower angle to that line. Then cut in the interstices, again with a flat graver, and chip them out. Then cut the overlaps, again cutting down at close to vertical, and cutting in at a shallow angle. Scrape the cuts clean with the tip of a flat needle file as you go. To round the bands, skive of the corners by push cutting with the grain, and then scrape and file smooth. Sand to 220ish, steel wool, and then lay out the details... 1 Jake Cleland - Skye Knives www.knifemaker.co.uk "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe." Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 1, 2022 Author Share Posted August 1, 2022 (edited) Progress is slow and deliberate....... I think I'm developing a method and maybe even getting the hang of this. Just roughing it in at this point As you can see I started with the big knot around the Haunches Now I'm on to the fiddly-bits. It took a little while to understand how deep these cuts need to go. Edited August 1, 2022 by Joshua States 2 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 3, 2022 Author Share Posted August 3, 2022 Roughing is done. 3 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerhard Gerber Posted August 4, 2022 Share Posted August 4, 2022 Looks like you're nailing it....carry on, maybe you'll inspire me to pull out the finger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 7, 2022 Author Share Posted August 7, 2022 Beveling, sanding, and smoothing is done. Tomorrow I'll add the grace lines. 2 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 8, 2022 Author Share Posted August 8, 2022 I not sure if the carving is done, or I am done with the carving.....either way, here it is folks. 3 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pieter-Paul Derks Posted August 12, 2022 Share Posted August 12, 2022 That looks really good! 1 http://mefecit.nl/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 13, 2022 Author Share Posted August 13, 2022 (edited) On 8/12/2022 at 12:45 AM, Pieter-Paul Derks said: That looks really good! Because I only show you the good parts! Today I indexed the pomell cap to the handle and set blind pins so I could align the design with the blade. I also cast a bronze rod and turned the finial from it. The plan is to set a ruby in the small divot on the finial. This is done for now. I will be doing most of this over agaian as there are too many little things that I don't like and won't let this out of the shop. Besides, I broke the handle and had to glue it back together for these photos........ I took a commission of sorts that is really going to push my limits. It has a due date of late December and will take every bit of time between now and then. Edited August 15, 2022 by Joshua States 2 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Longmire Posted August 14, 2022 Share Posted August 14, 2022 12 hours ago, Joshua States said: Besides, I broke the handle and had to glue it back together for these photos....... Ouch! Well, at least you know how to do it now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted August 15, 2022 Author Share Posted August 15, 2022 12 hours ago, Alan Longmire said: Ouch! Well, at least you know how to do it now. Truth be told: I gave up on using this handle after I finished the haunch knot. I knew back then that this was only the practice run. 1 “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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