Here's a "bushete" I made recently (inspired by the work of Tai Goo, of course). I used high carbon bedframe steel. It's 3/32" thick by 1 7/8" wide and 14" long.
Todd
Todd
bushete
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Thanks, John. The handle cord is sealed with shellac and a top coat of pinyon rosin. It has a nice grippy feel (and smells great too).
I sharpened the bushete to a convexed edge that shaved hair and took it out for a field test. I found a mesquite branch that was 2 inches in diameter and went to work on it. The wood is hard and mostly heartwood. After chopping through it four times, the edge still shaved hair. I've never tried this knife design before, but it's quickly becoming a favorite.
And a little visitor who happened by.
And a little visitor who happened by.
Is the visitor a horned toad? (I know it's a lizard but I think that's the common name for them.) And if so, am I right in thinking those are the ones that can squirt blood from their eyes?
Lovely bushete!
Lovely bushete!
There are a couple of ways I make socket handles. This is the forge intensive way. It involves a lot of hammer work, and you start with thicker stock.
One I made from an old file.
Another one from an old file.
The bushete and little one above were made from thin stock, required much less forging, and were fairly quick and easy to make. However, unless you pre-cut the material to a triangle shape, you end up with a socket that is like a tube and not tapered into a flare. This can be ok, but to make it fit the hand better, I wrapped a swell in it with some cotton cord, which I then saturated with shellac. Once that dried I covered it with the final wrap.
This is the socket on the smaller one.
One I made from an old file.
Another one from an old file.
The bushete and little one above were made from thin stock, required much less forging, and were fairly quick and easy to make. However, unless you pre-cut the material to a triangle shape, you end up with a socket that is like a tube and not tapered into a flare. This can be ok, but to make it fit the hand better, I wrapped a swell in it with some cotton cord, which I then saturated with shellac. Once that dried I covered it with the final wrap.
This is the socket on the smaller one.
Sorry, I forgot to add...Earlyturtle, yes, that is a horned lizard, the kind that shoot blood from their eyes. We have caught many of them, but only seen the bloody projectile once. I guess they don't feel too threatened by us.
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