I wasn't sure if this belonged here or in W&C. Feel free to move it if you see fit mods.

I pretty much just feel like whoring out a few pictures of knives that I've made now that I have a digi camera.

From left to right we have: old chainsaw bar, old circular saw blade, old circular saw blade.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/brownbomber/00007-2.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/brownbomber/00008-2.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/brownbomber/00009-2.jpg

The gut-hook is a personal favourite of mine, she's a beautiful skinning knife.

They taught me this shit in prison, ahahahahahaha.

Nice. Is that a hamon showing on the third one?

nice. what did you use for the steel? and did you heat treat it in any way?

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q30/fartx2/SDC10087.jpg
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q30/fartx2/SDC10088.jpg
thats a pic from a while ago, before heat treatment and attatching a handle . i havent taken a pic of the finished product yet.


http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q30/fartx2/SDC10124.jpg
this is a balisong i made a while ago. its not sharpened. its just for flipping and would probably break at the first sign of stress.

From left to right we have: old chainsaw bar, old circular saw blade, old circular saw lade.

That's what I made them out of man, with pieces of walnut for the handles.

As for hardening, the two knives made from circular saw blades received some treatment, whilst the bowie that I made from the chainsaw bar was air-hardened because it contains more than 1% of both chromium and molybdenum, so the hardenability of the steel is so great that a fast quench in oil or water isn't necessary.

The blades that were made from the circular saw blades were oil-quenched in a mixture of 1/3 paraffin, 1/3 cooking grease, 1/3 hydraulic fluid, with just a little pinch of salt-peter to add nitrogen to the blade, to give both hardness and flexibility. It is a solid at room temperature, which means for easy storage and therefore lends itself to reuse again and again, but it does flame up a bit, but shit happens and it is a very good quality quenchant.

After I quenched these bad boys, I set about tempering the blade in order to decompose the Martensite, the structure that determines the hardness of a steel. The way to do this is pretty much to cook the blade. Time and temperature are what decomposes Martensite. The temperature to do this at varies depending on the steel you are using of course, so these numbers will mean little to someone using a different steel, but for my purpose two stints of two hours at 350 degrees Celsius, with a 2 hour break in between, rendered me a nicely treated blade.

Did you make your Balisong handle out of aluminium channel from a window frame? You should invest in some files and the like man, finish your jobs off nice. I'd recommend taking out the bolt and nut you are using and putting in rivets too man, or at least making a rivet out of the bolt (hammering the edges of it over the nut so that it can not be removed).

Nah man. :)

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q30/fartx2/SDC10124.jpg
this is a balisong i made a while ago. its not sharpened. its just for flipping and would probably break at the first sign of stress.


you go UNSW?

mathematics?

you go UNSW?

mathematics?

biomedical engineering. yes i have to do 2 semesters of maths. though i remember that you are considering doing law. sydney uni is a much better uni for that. though the UAI for sydney is about 99.6 and unsw is 99.2. both of which are pretty hardcore

That's what I made them out of man, with pieces of walnut for the handles.

woops forgot about that. :(

Did you make your Balisong handle out of aluminium channel from a window frame? You should invest in some files and the like man, finish your jobs off nice. I'd recommend taking out the bolt and nut you are using and putting in rivets too man, or at least making a rivet out of the bolt (hammering the edges of it over the nut so that it can not be removed).

i dont know what its called but its a 1m aluminium bar with an L shaped cross section. i just grinded down one of the sides and stuck two of them together so it formed a U cross section, which houses the blade. then i put in another strip at the back to hold them together.
the black bit is just aluminium thats been drilled to provide a texture for a grip, painted, then coated in a thin layer of epoxy for that rubberyness. you can sort of see the cross section in the left handle

but really, it was a weekend project because i was bored. though i plan on making a proper one sometime

That's what I made them out of man, with pieces of walnut for the handles.

As for hardening, the two knives made from circular saw blades received some treatment, whilst the bowie that I made from the chainsaw bar was air-hardened because it contains more than 1% of both chromium and molybdenum, so the hardenability of the steel is so great that a fast quench in oil or water isn't necessary.

The blades that were made from the circular saw blades were oil-quenched in a mixture of 1/3 paraffin, 1/3 cooking grease, 1/3 hydraulic fluid, with just a little pinch of salt-peter to add nitrogen to the blade, to give both hardness and flexibility. It is a solid at room temperature, which means for easy storage and therefore lends itself to reuse again and again, but it does flame up a bit, but shit happens and it is a very good quality quenchant.

After I quenched these bad boys, I set about tempering the blade in order to decompose the Martensite, the structure that determines the hardness of a steel. The way to do this is pretty much to cook the blade. Time and temperature are what decomposes Martensite. The temperature to do this at varies depending on the steel you are using of course, so these numbers will mean little to someone using a different steel, but for my purpose two stints of two hours at 350 degrees Celsius, with a 2 hour break in between, rendered me a nicely treated blade.

Did you make your Balisong handle out of aluminium channel from a window frame? You should invest in some files and the like man, finish your jobs off nice. I'd recommend taking out the bolt and nut you are using and putting in rivets too man, or at least making a rivet out of the bolt (hammering the edges of it over the nut so that it can not be removed).


Can you tell me how strong a circ saw blade is? I have never shattered one, occasionally the tip of the teeth with break off it but thats about it. I have run blades through nails, through rough hardwood timber, into concrete and gravel without any issus other then dulling the blade.

Can you tell me how strong a circ saw blade is? I have never shattered one, occasionally the tip of the teeth with break off it but thats about it. I have run blades through nails, through rough hardwood timber, into concrete and gravel without any issus other then dulling the blade.
Different blades made for different applications require different strengths and metal characteristics. The balance between too brittle and too soft etc. There is no real answer to your question, except for pretty fucking strong.

For Christ's sake though, or perhaps your own, don't run a circular saw blade through concrete, they make different blades for doing that. You are just asking for the blade to shatter and hurt you severely.

use an angle grinder with a wheel suitable for concrete

Different blades made for different applications require different strengths and metal characteristics. The balance between too brittle and too soft etc. There is no real answer to your question, except for pretty fucking strong.

For Christ's sake though, or perhaps your own, don't run a circular saw blade through concrete, they make different blades for doing that. You are just asking for the blade to shatter and hurt you severely.

Not intentional. I know the risks involved but in formwork sometimes you dont have a choice. Sheet of form ply and a face shield limits the hazard however.

I wouldn't even use a grinder, I'd rather bust out a concrete saw cause they are pretty badass and do a far better job.

Fuck cutting through concrete in general. I'll stick to metal and wood.

it's an absolute fuck to do. concrete saws are heavy, very noisey, very powerful and very fucking lethal.

so you can make chisels...?

Of course I can. :)

Good plan, I'm down.

For chisels- If you guys are interested in trading them, feel free to get something going in the material bartering thread stickied in DIY. For some reason it has stopped in it's tracks, but I think once it gets going it could really work out nicely.

Intravenuous, maybe you could machine customs chisels for people from blanks and trade them? You seem like quite the project oriented person, although not many people will be able to trade anything related to metal working, as the items are heavy and usually too expensive for people here to have. You're one of the first legit smiths who seems to know what he's talking about. You probably do other projects though, so this could work out.

You don't machine a chisel man. You heat a piece of stock in the forge and draw it out then harden and temper it.

I'm not sure if anyone here would really appreciate the work that goes into something like a chisel, and the value of a smith made chisel that will never break if used correctly, because you can pick them up for like $10 made in China from your local bunnings/walmart/whatever.

http://www.cdblacksmiths.org/tooltips.html

There is a wee pictorial illustration of a little bit of the work in making a cold chisel on that site if anyone is interested. I don't agree with all of his methods, and I do it slightly differently, but yeah, that's the gist of it. I' glad that he mentioned that you need a curved blade though, not a flat one.

We have some picky craftsman here, I wouldn't be surprised if someone really wanted a chisel. Then again I wouldn't be surprised if nobody did. We kind of have a small community.

And sorry, I was thinking about lathe tools- I saw a tutorial recently on how to make them with blanks and a grinding wheel, and they look a lot like chisels so I mixed it up.

Lathe tools like these? They're generally called tip tools btw. :)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/brownbomber/00001-12.jpg

haha i would love to get my hands on a smith made chisel. I use top shelf store bought chisels and they still aren't good enough (around $90 a chisel). I have used chisels made by a blacksmith before and they are amazing to work with. A carpenter is only as good as his tools.

I'll trade you money for a set of proper chisels. lol.

1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 standard sizes.

In Vietnam they used to make balisongs from a metal blade & four GI's toothbrushes.

I looked at the metal strip that comes out of the sole of a shoe & decided that its possible to make a 'prison made' knife outta those items.

JFYI.

Yeh blacksmith made chisels are the best, but their a pain in the ass to make :)

Knives are always good fun to make, but the obvious things stopping me are lack of funds/equipment, lack of material, lack of time....

one day ill get myself a nice little forge and an anvil and get to work :)

Yeh blacksmith made chisels are the best, but their a pain in the ass to make :)

Not really man. If you know what you are doing it's kind of a piece of piss.

Not really man. If you know what you are doing it's kind of a piece of piss.

Start with a old hand file. Forge that bastard!

Theres some flat files that are wider on one side than the other. Not many people use them.
They make great knives, on one I left a little part of the serations from the thin edge & I could use it to saw as well as slice.

I got nothing hard enough to bang it on....not even an old piece of railway track....looking for a small anvil though

....looking for a small anvil though
http://www.beautifuliron.com/gs_anvils.htm
Read that. Links to suppliers are at ze bottom.

And sorry, I was thinking about lathe tools- I saw a tutorial recently on how to make them with blanks and a grinding wheel, and they look a lot like chisels so I mixed it up.

No, I know what you mean, its called a 'Parting off blade'.
Its high speed steel & its tapered from one side to the other.

http://i2.ebayimg.com/02/i/06/92/b2/d3_1_b.JPG

This is the closest pic I could get, wanted the toolholder & the blade & to see how its thinner on one edge.

Start with a old hand file. Forge that bastard!



pun intended (http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/3816)??

Nice, I wish my lathe wasn't such a piece of shit.

eesakiwi- no idea wtf you're talking about.


Once again- Start bartering this shit!

pun intended (http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/3816)??

Yup, it was, thanks
-------------

quote {eesakiwi- no idea wtf you're talking about.}

The lathe tool in the pic is a 'Cutting off tool', it can also be used for cutting a groove in the metal stock for a circlip.

In the pic you can see the high speed steel 'blade'. Its tapered from the full width at the top, to the thinnest width at the bottom.
Theres a clamp on the tool holder so the blade can stick out as much as you want it too.
So its allready shaped like a knife blade & about the right length.

Google 'cutting off blade' for more info.
I couldn't find a good pic & the one I did find was the one I posted.

Or, go to a toolroom/machinist/turning workshop supplyer & ask..

Another thing would be to use a hacksaw blade as a knife stock.
Not one of those flimsy hand hacksaws, but the big hacksaw blade.
Go to a large metal merchants & ask if they have any broken power hacksaw blades, they are about 2 inches high by 2 feet long.
Make great slashers for cutting weeds, small tree branches etc.

Did you just suggest using a power hacksaw blade as a parting-off tool?

No, No, No fa fux sake!

I'm suggesting they all could be a good starting blank for a homemade knife.

The parting off blade will cost money but be good metal & is 1/2way done as its got the basic tapered shape to start with.

The power hacksaw blades good, as its, free!

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/brownbomber/00009-2.jpg

The handle on the mini-bowie looks upside down. Intentional?
Reading through this thread and following a few leads, I think I've got myself a summer holiday hobby for my spare time. That's fucking nice work though.

It's just how the missus wanted it man. I made it for her to carry in her bag. There are too many cocksuckers with no respect trying to take liberties.

Actually, it does make sense if it's going to be used in combat for the handle to be that way around, if you use the 'blade down edge out' method. Slice with the jab, and stab with the return, if you have to.

Bad idea to pack knives, but I can understand there ain't much choice for a girl in some parts.

Guessing you've seen this? (http://www.m4040.com/Survival/10_Cent_Survival_Knife/10_Cent_Survival_Knife.htm)

Intravenous, if you haven't seen this already check it out, this guy seems a lot like you in the methods of home bladesmithing.

Guessing you've seen this? (http://www.m4040.com/Survival/10_Cent_Survival_Knife/10_Cent_Survival_Knife.htm)

Intravenous, if you haven't seen this already check it out, this guy seems a lot like you in the methods of home bladesmithing.
That's a cool link man. I hadn't seen it before. I like trying to make things that look like they could have been bought in a shop though, so a hacksaw blade doesn't really cut it for me, they're too light and flimsy. For the purpose of what that guy wants, a survival knife, they're fine though.

I just realised how you got the gut hook on one of your knives. Fuck me is that novel or what.

I'm not 100% sure what you mean man.

I thought you used one of the pre-existing, pre hardened, and pre treated teeth from the circular saw blade you made the knives from for the gut hook, thereby sidestepping the need to craft one yourself. There's already a factory perfect hook there, all you needed to do was sharpen it.

I did not do that. I used a magical tool known as a file.

I did not do that. I used a magical tool known as a file.

Yeah, for a minute there I confused you with Burt Monroe. Not hard to do.

I like trying to make things that look like they could have been bought in a shop though, so a hacksaw blade doesn't really cut it for me, they're too light and flimsy. For the purpose of what that guy wants, a survival knife, they're fine though.


No no no! Thats a 'hand hacksaw' blade. Not a 'power hacksaw' blade.

A Power Hacksaw blade is three times the Width & three times the Height & twice the length of a normal hand hacksaw blade.

But, yeah, we are getting closer...

No no no! Thats a 'hand hacksaw' blade. Not a 'power hacksaw' blade.

A Power Hacksaw blade is three times the Width & three times the Height & twice the length of a normal hand hacksaw blade.

But, yeah, we are getting closer...
What? No fucking shit you condescending fuck. Where did I fucking say that I thought that was a power hacksaw blade? I know full well what a power hacksaw is, considering I have one in my shed.

Whohoah, chill man!

What? No fucking shit you condescending fuck. Where did I fucking say that I thought that was a power hacksaw blade? I know full well what a power hacksaw is, considering I have one in my shed.

Haha, sorry, I was actually meaning Runaway-staplers post with your quote on it.

Hey great, you know what I mean about the power hacksaw then. I couldn't find a good pic on google for it.

I used to use a big heavy hydrolic one, all hand operated. Sucked as you had to stand beside it so the offcut bit didn't jump up & jam inbetween the blade & something else & break the blade.

Then we got a ErcoMatic one that you could set the length of material to be cut.
Then set how many cuts, & come back a hour later & find a whole bunch of cut metal waiting for you.
You could put in 15 lengths of 100mm x 8mm at a time & each cut gave you 15 bits of metal.

Anyway, hows the knife going?
Interested in doing Damascus steel?