[jimmontg]

If you did your grind first and then profiled it wouldn't be even. l tried using a surface grinder at work in 1995 to get the perfect bevel and when l ground the profile it was not even from the curve to the tip which was still thick. l don't know what l was thinking about. l had to finish by hand and it was harder to even it out.

Damon said something I had forgotten, you can grind most of the distal taper and finish by draw filing it as that certainly makes it easier to finish with a real even grind. You start with a mill file (new or very good) and finish with sandpaper wrapped tight around the file. lt is one method to try and l finished my dagger toothpick using sandpaper taped to dymondwood sticks, but that was after HT.

You can stick with your stub tang idea and use the tapped hole process I described before or Damon's small brass screws idea to attach a butt plate on. A through tang isn't necessary for either method and you can do it after you have the handle and guard pinned too. Lots of options.

There, it doesn't need to be difficult, concentrate on getting the blade ground to what you want Hunter and how you're going to make and fit an S guard. When you bend the brass it will tend to curve in the middle and not fit flat against the back of the ricasso, just a heads up if you haven't done one before.

If you haven't done it, you must remember to clamp the center portion of the guard in the vice and then bend the short outside tab with a hammer or whatever you may use, do same for each side. If the flat part stays in the vice it stays flat. lf you attempt to bend the short tabs by pulling the long piece you will probably curve the center of your S.
l was a metal fabricator for decades.