Hello from a newbie.

[forginhill]

I was excited to discover your forum recently. I love the concept of bushcrafting. I love the word "bushcrafting." Guess that's the English teacher in me. My interests lie primarily in the areas of primitive archery and bladesmithing. I am currently consumed with making knives, but do it all by hand so it takes a long time for me to make one. I don't want to just make knives that look good. I want to make knives that will be great for bushcrafting. And that's what I like so much about this forum. It's so practical. I look forward to learning from you and continuing my journey toward making the ultimate bush knife. Todd

Here are a couple of my knives.

 

[Ogri the trog]

Welcome aboard Todd,
Fabulous knotwork in your first pic, is it leather?
Really like the forged finish of the steel too.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[leon-b]

welcome to bcuk mate
i love your knives
leon

 

[queeg9000]

Welcome to BCUK Forginhill, thats a cracking pair of knives there, very nice work indeed. How long does it take you to make one by hand?

 

[John Fenna]

Welcome!
Great looking knives!
John

 

[Too Much Kit To Carry]

Welcome Todd,

You have access to a vast wealth of knowledge that is available from the members of this forum - you only have to ask

Enjoy,

Phil.

 

[forginhill]

Thank you guys for the hearty welcome and the complements on my knives. Ogri, the knots are tied with woven cotton cord. It's called a turk's head knot. Steve, it's hard for me to say how long it takes me because of my lifestyle. I am a school teacher and I have a large family so I don't get in much knife making time. I suppose I could make one in two or three days working all day, but right now it takes me a month or two or three or four. I've only made a little under a dozen knives so far. I have much to learn. As you can see I'm from America. I'll be honest, I haven't felt that 90% of American style knives would be suited for the bush. They tend to be large, gaudy, and heavy. Looking around this site and the britishblade site was most inspiring and refreshing. I saw many knives that looked perfectly designed for the serious bushcrafter. I am looking forward to imitating some of those designs. I am half Finn so the Scandis really grab me. I grew up in the Amazon jungle of Brazil. My parents went down there as missionaries to Indian people. I grew up shooting a bow and arrow and wandering around the jungle every day with my Indian friends. We always carried a knife stuck in the back of our shorts. Knives were our most important tool. I guess that's why making them now inspires me so much. Here is another one that I made. It is a larger knife. I learned how to make this style from a smith named Tai Goo. The handle is forged from the same piece of steel as the blade; it is a hollow cone that is then wrapped with cord. It's a neat design, but seems to feel a bit heavy in the hand. The natives in the Philippines make this style of knife and call it a hinalung, so it has a strong bush history. Todd

 

[beowolf762]

Howdy and welcome.

 

[tristan j thomas]

Welcome and a good verioty of knifes and the pictures ar well presented


hope to here more wthregards to your knife craft ect

 

[Longstrider]

Welcome to the forum fella ! I love the design of those last two blades. They look like serious workhorses to me. The handle design is sweet too. Not much chance of snapping one of those off at the ricasso I'll bet!

 

[lightfoot]

Welcome Forginhill. I really like the turk's head knot. Found a website describing how to make it but haven't tried it yet.

http://www.btinternet.com/~kingsmerecrafts/turkshead.html

 

[forginhill]

Thanks! Lightfoot, I really like the turk's head. It's a very tight, strong knot besides being attractive. When you try it, you'll be pleased with how easy it is. Most of the time I follow the knot through two additional times to get a three strand knot. Following it through can be a bit tricky. You can put some glue on the end of the cord to make it stiffer and easier to thread through, or you can use a large hobby needle. I mostly use a needle. There are so many things you can put this knot on--any handles, walking stick, etc. Todd

 

[Ed]

A warm welcome to you.... Glad to see you have got stuck into the forum


Ed

 

[moduser]

Welome aborad Todd.

Nice work too

David

 

[SunDog]

Great pictures and work Todd, looking forward to your input here, enjoy!