My first attempt at regrinding/rehandling

[sploing]

I bought a knife a while ago which was a cheap knock off of the american kabar combat knife from a fishing shop fo £15, it served it's purpose at the time but is a bit impractical for bush craftI was thinking about rehandling it, which given it's design shouldn't be too difficult and also i was going to grind away the serated part of the blade to give an area which is higher than the rest of the blade but has a very fine edge, I was also planning on increasing the blade angle of the rest of the blade and trying to incorporate a convex style edge. this way I would have a sharp tough edge for general cutting and a very sharp but fine area for more delicate work, similar to the blade areas on a parang. does this just sound like a good idea to me? or is there a better way of doing things? any help you can give would be appreciated.

It seems to be made from fairly good quality stainless, 442 if i remember right.

 

[C_Claycomb]

I am not sure that you have that steel grade right If it IS 442 it isn't worth wasting your time on, but I would doubt that anyone would even try to make a cheap blade from such steel.

I wonder if it might be 420? Still not great, but at least it can be hardened.

Personally, I would put my effort into another blade. There are enough fairly economically priced blades around that make great bushcraft knifes. If you want to try it, go ahead, but there is the possibility that you will sink a lot of effort into the knife only to find at the end that it isn't quite as good as you hoped.

Type 442
Has increased chromium to improve scaling resistance. Typical applications include furnace and heater parts.


Ferritic grades have been developed to provide a group of stainless steel to resist corrosion and oxidation, while being highly resistant to stress corrosion cracking. These steels are magnetic but cannot be hardened or strengthened by heat treatment. They can be cold worked and softened by annealing. As a group, they are more corrosive resistant than the martensitic grades, but generally inferior to the austenitic grades. Like martensitic grades, these are straight chromium steels with no nickel. They are used for decorative trim, sinks, and automotive applications, particularly exhaust systems.

 

[sploing]

Maybe I did get the grade wrong, I was beginning to wonder whether a £15 knife would be made from good steel. I think I might just take your advice C_Claycombe and start with a better blade.
Thanks

 

[Shinken]

I have heard this a million times but yes i am going to say it again

Get a mora Clipper

 

[sploing]

I have used one of these knives in the past and I do remember it having a fantastic edge, and being pretty tough too, I might just order a blank blade and handle the thing myself. Another good suggestion.

 

[Nathan Sturgess]

I don't think that you can buy blank clipper blades.

 

[leon-b]

just buy a clipper and take off the handle, there cheap enough
leon

 

[leon-b]

if you do rehandle a clipper i would love to see the end result so post some pictures please
leon

 

[sploing]

I will post some pics as soon as I get around to it. I've decided thats the thing to do now so sod the other idea, would have been pretty difficult anyway. Mora blanks are available from a Canadian company called lee valley tools if anyone else wants to try the same, they will require shipping to the uk but the blanks are all about $10 (canadian) probably about a fiver (English) so it's well worth it.

 

[sploing]

OK, my new wooden handled mora is now underway after a lot of messing about and lots of cuts. It's a bit tougher than I thought as the tang only goes about 1/4 of the way through the handle and has a weird shape but I've got it encased in the wood now and just need to carve the shape of the handle out (with my other new mora, apt eh?) I'm going to stick with a clipper shape handle but made from plank bamboo with a strip of resin hardened pine running through the centre, like a sandiwch. I'll post pics as soon as it's done and as soon as i figure out how.

 

[sploing]

well, it's starting to take shape but I think that's enough knifemaking for today since someone surpirised me whilst I was working and i stabbed myself in the hand. ouch! anyone from the 'a sharp knife is a safe knife' thread want to say anything? mine was very sharp.

 

[dwardo]

Make sure you cover the blade with card and sniper/gaffa tape whilst working on it you nutter !

 

[C_Claycomb]

It might be safer if you were to clamp the knife down and work on the handle with files and abrasive paper, rather than trying to whittle it

Something like this:
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=13390

 

[sploing]

thanks for the advice but i'm finished now. I had to whittle really, there was a lot of material to remove. I'd like to post some pictures if someone wouldn't mind telling me how, please?

 

[weaver]

It is safer to cover the sharp edge with masking tape while you work on the handle.

 

[madrussian]

I've got a question. I bought a knife blank off of ebay and I am working on the scales for it. Do you have to glue the scales on in addition to the rivets or can you just use rivets?

 

[weaver]

A great many knives were made with only rivets.

Epoxy will keep moisture from collecting between the blade and the scales, which could cause rust if the moisture were left in there.

It is a matter of personal preference. I think the glued on handle makes a better knife. That is only my opinion, take it to heart or ignore it completely.

But, I have a couple high carbon steel knives with scales that are screwed on so I can take them off and clean the blade. My favorite camping knife has hollow scales that screw off. Inside I keep spare flint, cotton balls and a fishing kit.

 

[madrussian]

Hollow handles - that is a cool idea. Never would have thought about that. The knife blank that I bought is 440 surgical stainless steel - at least thats what the auction said. There are no markings on it. Rust shouldn't be a problem. Thanks for the help.