File knife

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DaveBromley

Full Member
May 17, 2010
2,502
0
40
Manchester, England
som more pics for you let me know what you think

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Dave
 

DaveBromley

Full Member
May 17, 2010
2,502
0
40
Manchester, England
Yeah i worked out how far away a peice of wood needed to be to give me the right angle and taped a stick onto the end of my file as a guide. Just wondering what to use for the pins?

I want a silver pin so i'm thinking 6mm aluminium bar from B&Q but not sure if it will be strong enough? the scales should be nice my FIL (father in law) said he could get me a couple of lumps of canadian Maple so toying with that as a scales material but also looking at local wood!! as ive made everything else myself and it aint turned out too bad so far.

Just really worried about HT now as i dont want it to crack and all that hard work go down the drain

Dave
 

ged

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jul 16, 2009
4,976
13
In the woods if possible.
Question: what are the benefits of quenching in oil rather than water???

It's not just benefits. Some alloys are designed to be water-quenched, some would very likely crack if quenched too quickly. It's a big subject, you could read quite a few books about heat-treating steels and still not know enough about it to do any given job. For example try a Wikipedia search:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=quench+oil+water

I think the advice you've had so far is right. You probably can't ever know what the alloy is that you're working with so it might be risky to quench with water even if you're skilled at it, and you don't want to have nothing but a broken blade to show for all your effort. See what happens when you use oil and treat all of this as part of the learning curve.

In days gone by they used to quench swords in the bodies of prisoners. You can get case hardening from elements like nitrogen from the quenching agent that way. Not suggesting that you try it. :)
 

Everything Mac

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Nov 30, 2009
3,112
83
36
Scotland
looks good to me buddy. - only thing I would say - and it is a personal preference is that I personally prefer a bit more of a point on my blades.

but as said it's just a personal preference so if you are happy then its all good.


oil would defo be the best quenchent (?) to use - you could even heat it up a little to ensure no cracking but this might result in an unsuccessful heat treatment.

as I said before - do it in low light so you can see the colours more clearly - doing it in daylight could easily result in you getting it too hot. (Don't as how I know :p)

best of luck mate

Andy
 

Ray Britton

Nomad
Jun 2, 2010
320
0
Bristol
First of all, the knife looks really nice, and must have been a lot of hard work with hand tools! I can't wait to see it with scales on.

Second. I am glad I was not the only one thinking stuff like these other posters:

on the grinder front - no offence intended lads but I think the PC/H+S/ fluffy bunny syndrome has got to some of you. - I was using a grinder when I was about 12.

a little bit of common sense works wonders.

I'd have to agree with you there. I've never been on a course for any shop tool but have made a living at it for enough years. I don't think any amount of training will help in the event of an exploding wheel! It's just a chance you take with such a tool, common sense is all the health and safety required. Just my opinion, but I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking it!

I wonder what folks would make of proper scary tools, if they are worried about grinding wheels lol.............The irony that the advice about getting training to use a grinder while building A LARGE HEAVY AND SHARP KNIFE made it all worth while though :)
 

sasquatch

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2008
2,812
0
47
Northampton
Looking good fella! Nice work there, I'd bet a week's wages it's not the last knife you'll make. You might have to spend a long time on wet stones with that tip but it'll be worth it in the end. Due to the steep drop from the front you really have to turn it at the end of the stroke to take metal off the bevels at the front if that makes sense. But that's ok, just a slightly different technique to sharpening it.

Don't put too much thought into the heat treatment, O1 is fairly forgiving. Just keep a big magnet close when heating and keep checking it. I use an old 12" sub. When it doesn't stick to the magnet give it a bit more heat to be sure and quench in veg oil but don't swish it side to side. Smells like chips and doesn't make a mess or stink like car oil. Then pop it in the oven as Mac said. I personally wouldn't bother with water, veg oil works fine. I could well be wrong but I always thought it was called 'O1' because it's ' Oil quenched'?

QUOTE:
I wonder what folks would make of proper scary tools, if they are worried about grinding wheels lol.............The irony that the advice about getting training to use a grinder while building A LARGE HEAVY AND SHARP KNIFE made it all worth while though

ALWAYS respect dangerous tools, but NEVER fear them!!! As mentioned previously, common sense is all that's needed. You're right, there are far scarier tools out there! :rolleyes:

Thanks for sharing your progress. Looking good!;)
 

DaveBromley

Full Member
May 17, 2010
2,502
0
40
Manchester, England
I'd bet a week's wages it's not the last knife you'll make.

I'm already looking at files on the bay!! I'm going to do one ofr y brother in law and one for my mate both of them are into bushcraft in varying degrees!

I also want to have a go at a solid handle stick tang and a multiple peice stick tang

I have been well and truly bitten by the bug lol

Dave
 

Everything Mac

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Nov 30, 2009
3,112
83
36
Scotland
File steel isn't 01 but W2 or 1095, 01 is called 01 because of it's carbon content! :)

I didn't think it was. - cheers mate.
in fact I have a feeling I knew that deep down some where. - thanks for clearing it up for me.
Dave - try your local boot sales and markets before turning to ebay - you will be amazed at the bargains you can get!
 
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sasquatch

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2008
2,812
0
47
Northampton
is file steel 01? I didn't know that.

Again I could well be wrong but I thought old files were O1? New flat ground O1 from Cromwells is sold as tool steel, and I just figured the decent ones were made from O1 back in the day. I always assumed billhooks, sickles and straight razors and such were O1 as well but I'm sure someone will put me right on this!

QUOTE: I'm already looking at files on the bay!! I'm going to do one ofr y brother in law and one for my mate both of them are into bushcraft in varying degrees!

I also want to have a go at a solid handle stick tang and a multiple peice stick tang

I have been well and truly bitten by the bug lol

Dave

Sounds about right, I only knew because it happened to me too. Main thing is to have fun with it! Not many things compare to giving someone a hand made knife as a gift...
 

sasquatch

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2008
2,812
0
47
Northampton
File steel isn't 01 but W2 or 1095, 01 is called 01 because of it's carbon content! :)

Thanks for clearing that up. I knew it was roughly 1% Carbon content but thought the letter 'O' was for oil quench. I've not even heard of W2 before now, I've got some learning to do!
 

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