Alaskan knife

[Bowland Blades]

Just looking for feedback and learning how to post pictures , this item is not for sale on this forum and no transaction will be made .
This is a knife I designed about a year ago at most , so far I have make just three each have been different this is tge first with bolster and pommel in brass peenedcon with bronze pins , handle in in natural buffalo with tiny amounts of tge white veining showing . 1095 hc steel which has been brine quenched for a hamon and differential hardening https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/ajvXu8TyrIMx

 

[C_Claycomb]

Hi,
Regarding posting photos, if you do not have paid membership, which allows you to attach files, including images, directly to posts, you need to use an image hosting site. If you can get a URL address for the actual image, one that ends in .jpg or similar image file extension, you can paste in using the "Insert Image - By URL" and the software will add the IMG tags to allow the image to display in the post.
Some file hosting sites allow export of BBCode links, which do the same thing, but contain a link back to the source site, which can suit them better. Flikr does this. General cloud storage can be awkward. I don't know anything about the Samsung cloud. For someone who does not own the photo I cannot see how to get a .JPG link out of it, but then, if you don't own Flikr photos, you cannot get the BBCode link either, so doesn't mean you can't. That said, people have had challenges with Google storage, getting photos to show.

Chris

 

[C_Claycomb]

Okay, so something is possible. I lifted this off your Facebook page. Clicked on an image, right click and pick "Open image in new tab", then copy the address URL from the opened image, past into the forum Insert Image By URL field.

You should be able to edit your opening post and try that and paste the image in.

 

[C_Claycomb]

Feedback?

Its a very nice looking knife. Sheath looks very tidy too. Like the stitching. Hard to tell about some aspects from the photos, perspective can play tricks.

A bang on square side view doesn't tend to look as good for marketing, but does help for understanding the shape.

Tend to think that butt and bolster would look better with a matching shape, either both rounded or both angular. Not sure, but looks like the apex of the bolster is a little low (towards cutting edge side). This could be optical, pins mounted dead centre in handles can look low, lots of people shift them 1mm or so towards the spine to counter that, I might have done the same on the angled front of the bolster.

From the hamon, it looks like the edge at the plunge didn't harden. Was this intentional? I know I have had trouble on some blades with change in section at the ricasso interfering with heating/quenching in that area. I like being able to cut pretty close to the handle, so that wasn't desirable for me.

I think there could be advantages to running the grind off the back of the ricasso, and shortening the ricasso accordingly. This would mean more sharpening life before the blade starts to get a recurve. It could help with hardening, and move the edge closer to the hand, better leverage on hard cuts. If the heel of the blade is then radiused, say 3mm, there isn't much danger of cutting oneself.

I have read that brine is pretty fierce on 1095 and the main reason for using it is to get really wild hamons using clay. Is that where you are headed?

Big brass bolsters look great. A couple of my earliest knives used the front end bolsters. Never did it again because of the weight, which helped neither balance nor chopping in my case. I reckon you could have had a smaller front bolster and it would still look good. Tried a phot-shop with about 1/4" off the bolster, and moving the apex towards the spine. Think the first pin looks less crowded like this too.



Really nice looking knife. Thank you for sharing!!

Chris

 

[plastic-ninja]

Nice-looking knife. Looks really chunky. What does it weigh roughly?

 

[Kav]

Nice knife, but the ALASKAN bit ? I served there and my first thought was 'ULU' or woman's knife, man's knife or even a snow knife.

 

[Robson Valley]

That is one serious camp knife. Do a lot with that. My first thought, too, was that you were making Ulu or Umialik from the Aleut or Inuit peoples' styles. So many rusty saw blades, so little time.

 

[Bowland Blades]

Nice-looking knife. Looks really chunky. What does it weigh roughly?

Dont know to be fair it balances perfect so it actually feels like nothing in the hand at just over 5" blade its not really a big knife
So far I have only done three of these model ( I make hundreds of knives a year but most are for deerstalking) the idea behind this one is a camp knife , you can build fire , shelter with , dress a deer . Prepare food or maybe go head to head with an angry Grizzly lol

 

[Bowland Blades]

Feedback?

Its a very nice looking knife. Sheath looks very tidy too. Like the stitching. Hard to tell about some aspects from the photos, perspective can play tricks.

A bang on square side view doesn't tend to look as good for marketing, but does help for understanding the shape.

Tend to think that butt and bolster would look better with a matching shape, either both rounded or both angular. Not sure, but looks like the apex of the bolster is a little low (towards cutting edge side). This could be optical, pins mounted dead centre in handles can look low, lots of people shift them 1mm or so towards the spine to counter that, I might have done the same on the angled front of the bolster.

From the hamon, it looks like the edge at the plunge didn't harden. Was this intentional? I know I have had trouble on some blades with change in section at the ricasso interfering with heating/quenching in that area. I like being able to cut pretty close to the handle, so that wasn't desirable for me.

I think there could be advantages to running the grind off the back of the ricasso, and shortening the ricasso accordingly. This would mean more sharpening life before the blade starts to get a recurve. It could help with hardening, and move the edge closer to the hand, better leverage on hard cuts. If the heel of the blade is then radiused, say 3mm, there isn't much danger of cutting oneself.

I have read that brine is pretty fierce on 1095 and the main reason for using it is to get really wild hamons using clay. Is that where you are headed?

Big brass bolsters look great. A couple of my earliest knives used the front end bolsters. Never did it again because of the weight, which helped neither balance nor chopping in my case. I reckon you could have had a smaller front bolster and it would still look good. Tried a phot-shop with about 1/4" off the bolster, and moving the apex towards the spine. Think the first pin looks less crowded like this too.

View attachment 65757

Really nice looking knife. Thank you for sharing!!

Chris

Such a lot to say from a photo there . The knife isn't heavy at all those bolsters are pretty thin mainly to protect the buffalo horn but the weight they add counterbalanced the blade perfectly making the whole thing feel real light " fast " if you like in the hand
There's much that doesn't show in a photo like the bronze pins that secure the bolsters and the high shine on the buffalo horn of course
The hamon is matched with a differential hardening , I do not find it desirable to have a lot of full hard near the stess riser of the plunge line hence the etch depth
Water quenching takes experience and courage in equal measure , occasionally it goes wrong of course and its not the little thing you get with fast oil no , its a fairly loud crack like a 22 round unmoderated ! The edge is of course incredibly hard and long lasting and my personal favourite in kitchen knives however I work in a lot of different steels both stainless , high carbon in various forms

 

[C_Claycomb]

Well, four photos
You asked for feedback and I got a little carried away. My bad that I misunderstood. When you said you had designed the knife a year ago and made only three, I thought you meant this was your first knife with 1095 and a hamon.

This is kind of what I meant about extending the grind and rounding the heel.

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Didn't notice the bronze pins till you mentioned them. Very subtle in the photos. Nice touch.

How did you do the differential hardening? Satanite clay and a full quench, or local edge quench only?

 

[Bowland Blades]

Well, four photos
You asked for feedback and I got a little carried away. My bad that I misunderstood. When you said you had designed the knife a year ago and made only three, I thought you meant this was your first knife with 1095 and a hamon.

This is kind of what I meant about extending the grind and rounding the heel.

BladeGallery: Fine handmade custom knives, art knives, swords, daggers

www.bladegallery.com

Didn't notice the bronze pins till you mentioned them. Very subtle in the photos. Nice touch.

How did you do the differential hardening? Satanite clay and a full quench, or local edge quench only?

I use furnace cement and I edge quench though I go through to full subersion slowly away . I see many shallow edge quenches done but the higher hardness levels (which make a knife what it is ) are drawn out by basically over tempering as that heat draws back down . Temper is done only after cooling in air and of course the full submersion through the later stage of tge quench