First go at a frame handle

[Bjorn Gylfason]

I have found a new challenge for both my non existent photographing skill and my poor phone. Shiny surfaces in layers apparently are too much for both as I just can't capture the transparency and colours of the rams horn to do it any justice.

 

I would like to blame Joshua States for this one as I've been looking st his frame handle thread for a long time and finally just had to try it out

 

The idea was to make a modestly sized bowie with a bit of flair, something that would suit a riverboat poker player of dubious standing 

 

The blade is W2 steel, 17,5cm long, hollow ground with a 6mm thick back rib and the knife has an overall length of 29,5cm

 

Bolster is several pieces of brass, each fitted tightly to the tang and staked in place

 

The grip has a two piece brass frame the got a bit of filework inside and out as the rams horn scales ended up being slightly more translucent than I anticipated.

 

scales are attached with peened brass pins

 

I might need to get someone with better skills to photograph it once I've cleaned it up properly, made a sheath for it and decided wether or not I should bother with bringing out the hamon in the blade 

[Alan Longmire]

The translucency of the horn is seriously cool!  I think you should bring up the hamon a bit as well.  Not full-on flashy, just enough to see.

[Jeroen Zuiderwijk]

That is a lovely piece! I do think horn is a much underused material, and in particular blond colored horn like this.

[Aiden CC]

Amazing work! And ditto to Jeroen’s comment about the horn. 

[Bjorn Gylfason]

Oh I definitely want to experiment more with both horn and multiple layers. The main issue is how difficult it is to find anything other than black water buffalo horn on the market today. The flattened rams horn pieces are quite nice but are a bit limited size wise

[Gary LT]

I like it, yes the blonde horn adds rarity, in a way, real well done. Any problems peening this stuff and causing stress fractures /‘spider web’ fissures? Don’t see any. I really like the brass firework as this different. If there another photo send to show it direct to see how you worked it !!   (we are good at  “borrowing things” here!,!!)

Overall impression is very good, makes a person want to pick up immediately, well done. Bring on the sheath! If I was the gambler on a boat in card  game with big money, and things get rough, I’d like to pull the knife from somewhere at my side under my arm where it had been fully concealed in my vest. Maybe by using a jackass harness.?

Anyway, good work!

Gary LT

Edited March 18 by Gary LT

[Bjorn Gylfason]

9 hours ago, Gary LT said:

I like it, yes the blonde horn adds rarity, in a way, real well done. Any problems peening this stuff and causing stress fractures /‘spider web’ fissures? Don’t see any. I really like the brass firework as this different. If there another photo send to show it direct to see how you worked it !!   (we are good at  “borrowing things” here!,!!)

Overall impression is very good, makes a person want to pick up immediately, well done. Bring on the sheath! If I was the gambler on a boat in card  game with big money, and things get rough, I’d like to pull the knife from somewhere at my side under my arm where it had been fully concealed in my vest. Maybe by using a jackass harness.?

Anyway, good work!

Gary LT

 

One of the many nice thing with horn like this is it doesn't really crack and splinter like bone or wood so apart from taking care not to mar it with the hammer peening it was surprisingly stress free

 

Here's a few more pictures from the sides. I didn't have any brass in 6mm thickness for the frame but did have some 3mm stock which is the the main reason I felt the need to do any kind of filework 

 

It's probably going to be a while until I start on a sheath for it but exactly as you say I too have been thinking about some kind of underarm carry to fit the theme.

 

 

 

 

[Gary LT]

Thank you for the photos Biorn, I really like this file-work and also the treatment at the corners.

I’ve never worked with blonde horn, only black, so it’s good to know I am not to worry about the stress marks at pins as I imagined.

I can opt in to buy some next purchase cycle.

Thanks!

Gary LT
 

[Alan Longmire]

Oh, I've got one with stress marks and a bit of delamination at a pin hole.   The delam was from drilling without proper support and possibly a slightly dull bit running too fast.  When I peened that one it started showing white rings, so I immediately superglued it before continuing to peen.  But that was blonde water buffalo horn.  Rams' horn is much less likely to split or otherwise come apart, it's not nearly as fibrous.  I just don't have any. 

[Pieter-Paul Derks]

This is so cool, I need to get my hands on some horn soon.

I even like the filework, and I'm normally not a fan of that.

[Joshua States]

On 3/17/2023 at 6:00 AM, Bjorn Gylfason said:

I would like to blame Joshua States for this one

Thank you for that most gracious compliment. It really means a lot to me that I have had a positive influence on another maker. 

This came out really well and the filework on the frame is a wonderful addition to this piece. I have played with the split frame a couple of times, and watching this on social media has reignited the urge to do more of it. It's just so difficult to get both sides alligned perfectly, I have always considered it beyond my ability. I guess it's time to practice more. 

I have a couple of questions about that Hamon:

Did you clay the blade before quenching? 

How hot did you quench?

[Bjorn Gylfason]

On 3/27/2023 at 3:32 PM, Joshua States said:

Thank you for that most gracious compliment. It really means a lot to me that I have had a positive influence on another maker. 

This came out really well and the filework on the frame is a wonderful addition to this piece. I have played with the split frame a couple of times, and watching this on social media has reignited the urge to do more of it. It's just so difficult to get both sides alligned perfectly, I have always considered it beyond my ability. I guess it's time to practice more. 

I have a couple of questions about that Hamon:

Did you clay the blade before quenching? 

How hot did you quench?

 

I had the frame parts superglued together while I filed in the starting notches to make things somewhat align but the more I look at pre 20th century works the more I feel like we really shouldn't care so much about perfect alignments and airtight gaps between materials as the right amount of asymmetries and flaws give the object character and reaffirm that it was made by hand. But it like everything else is subjective and a big gray area 

 

For the blade I did a couple of normalizing cycles and quenched at as close to 790° as I could tip down. No clay and wasn't really planning on any hamon but I hollow ground the bevels quite thin while keeping the entire spine at 6mm thick which produced a very noticable hardening line and an oh so subtle recurve 

[Doug Lester]

That's a very nice looking knife and the tang showing through the handle gives a nice effect.  I tried making knife scales from rams horn and all I did is ruin two rams horns.  If I work with it again I'll get the scales already prepared.

 

Doug

[Bjorn Gylfason]

As I was spending the day cleaning up kitchen knives for a small show in the weekend I decided to do some rubbing on the blade and think I'll leave it at this

[Alan Longmire]

Nice.  I like the subtlety. 

[Gary LT]

Damn, I like this knife 

Gary LT

[Brian Dougherty]

Dude! 

I've had my head in the sand for a couple of weeks so I missed this initially, but dude!

[JDWare]

On 3/29/2023 at 6:58 AM, Bjorn Gylfason said:

 

................................ but the more I look at pre 20th century works the more I feel like we really shouldn't care so much about perfect alignments and airtight gaps between materials as the right amount of asymmetries and flaws give the object character and reaffirm that it was made by hand...........................

 

Very much in agreement with this statement.

And beautiful work.

Saludos

J

[Doug Lester]

I read a statement from Tod Cutler that if he made knives and swords to the level of fit and finish found in period pieces he'd not be able to sell them because they'd look too amateurish.

 

As a side, I remember Ed Caffrey posting a picture of a knife that he used translucent buffalo horn scales to show off the damascus pattern in the full tang.

 

Doug

[Bjorn Gylfason]

Finally got around to working a bit on a sheath. Rayskin inlay and first time using some artificial sinew thread which was an absolutely brilliant idea on a black background  the thread is wide and very flat so it's a bit difficult to get it to lay down nice and evenly but oh well, at least the color of it matches the ray and horn.

 

Going with a frog suspension as even though at first I'm just going to make a simple belt looped one it gives me the opportunity at some later date to make a underarm shoulder harness for it 

 

[Bjorn Gylfason]

And the belt frog done.

 

Now to see if I can sell someone the idea of a shoulder harness to go with it 

[Joshua States]

That looks really nice. I have never done a shoulder harness sheath. I have had folks ask for some thing they can wear on the other side for a "cross draw". 

So, I developed a sheath that can be worn on either side