Hey all new here need some advice

[beardedpiper]

Hey guys How's everyone doing today?

I'm new to the knife making world and I see all these videos on folks making knives out of almost anything. So I go hunting downstairs in my basement shop. I found these old hedge trimmers (not sure if that's the right name) I thought "wouldn't these make an interesting knife or knives!!" I just wanted to post up pictures of them for you guys to check out to see if it was worth while. Also how I would start the project..heat treat first? file all the nasty off? I'm real excited to start this project. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks in advance guys for any comments or advice

I plan on making a fixed blade knife. I know there's the bends in the metal, would I have to bend or hammer that back first?

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[Ray Rogers]

It is possible that those would make a decent blade. It is just as likely, maybe even more so, that using them would be a waste of time and money. Why? Because maybe they are high carbon, maybe not. Maybe they will harden enough and maybe they won't. Just the simple fact that you need to ask this question means you are not yet ready to attempt making a knife out of salvaged steel. In other words, you need to learn to make a knife first, then if you want to use salvaged steel you need to learn how to identify and test the steel and then work out a heat treatment for the unknown steel. Try to do all that in one shot as a first project and your chances for success are very low. Worse, you might get frustrated with the entire problem and drop knife making altogether.

It doesn't have to be that difficult and frustrating. Put that steel aside until you are really ready to use it. For now, buy some good blade steel for your first knives. It's cheap. When we know exactly what you have we can give you accurate advise on how to heat treat. We can't magically look at a piece of unknown steel you precisely how to process it. We're happy to help but give us a fighting chance to do it!

Use the Search key at the top of the forum, search old threads for sources for 1080, or 1084 steel if you want to heat treat it yourself. If you would like to send out your first few blades to heat treat look for 440C. And, make your first knives 4" hunters or utility knives and not a 10" survival or fantasy knife of some kind. You'll have enough of a challenge learning what you need to learn on a small blade. You can make several small knives one after the other much faster and easier than one big one. That's the best way to improve your knife making in the shortest time.....

[beardedpiper]

Thanks for the advice Ray. I would still like to use this metal though and my sole intention was to make a small knife and a sheath as well. Money is tight for me at the present time thats why I thought this could do the trick. Would it be possible to turn this into a smaller blade? maybe draw it out on the existing blade then grind out the shape? Thanks again for your advice.

[jcoon8283]

Ray hit the nail on the head on this one. Mystery metal is just not the way to go at this point. The only thing I can equate it to would be someone setting a completely disassembled ferrari in front of you and asking you to assemble a drivable vehicle without any mechanical knowledge or skills. You might get the project accomplished, but it will be a unnecessarily long, hard fought road to travel. But, I still consider myself somewhat of a newbie, even though I have made just over 80 working knives at this point, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. As for the money aspect, most of us make knives on an extremely tight budget, that being said you can get a bar of high carbon steel for well under $20 all over the internet. As an example you can get a bar of 1095 from Jantz that's 1/8x1 1/2x18" for $6.95. Now I wouldn't recommend 1095 for a newbie either, I would start with 1080 if I had to do it all over again. But, do yourself a favor and start with a known steel, make a bunch of blades, and then when you are comfortable with all the processes that go into making a knife, then try the mystery metal, it will be much, much easier to figure out a ht process for the mystery metal at that point.

[Ray Rogers]

I'm not suggesting that you never use that metal, only that you don't try it as a first project. I understand tight money as well as anyone but there comes a point where it can be less expensive to spend a little money on a sure thing. Yes, it is possible for you do all the things you suggested (drawing out, cutting down, etc) but do you know how to do it and do it right at this time? Do you have a good understanding of what will be required to get you into a position to do those things to those shears and how much all that preparation is going to cost in terms of time, money, and supplies? Clearly, the answers to those questions is 'no' so, as money is tight my suggestion would be to save money by going with a sure thing, i.e., buy some blade steel. You could spend time and money re-working those shears into a blade and getting it heat treated only to find out you have something that looks like a knife but won't hold an edge very well. It's also possible that those shears would make a pretty good blade but that you wouldn't be able to find the correct way to heat treat it so even a good piece of steel ends up being a poor knife. The only way for a complete novice to avoid those problems and the subsequent lost expenses is to use a piece of steel we can all be certain will make a good blade.

That's why I suggest putting the shears aside until you know how to deal with mystery metal. Yes, there are plenty of people here that will try to explain some of the possible ways to deal with salvaged steel but that doesn't mean you'll be able to do it successfully. The world's greatest heart surgeon could explain in detail how to do a transplant but that doesn't mean you could just go out and do it successfully the first time.

Education costs money. Use the shears, get an education.....and maybe also a knife. Or, buy a piece of steel and get both ...

[beardedpiper]

Thanks guys for the knowledge and advice. I think I will put the shears aside for now and get some blade steel. Any places you guys use? or recommend? Thanks again guys I greatly appreciate all the kind words.

[Ray Rogers]

Yup, as I said, this has been cussed and discussed many times. Use the Search button and look for Aldo (the New jersey Steel Baron), or Kelly Cupples, if you want 1080 or 1084 (carbon steel, heat treat it yourself) or look at Jantz Supply, Texas Knifemakers, Sheffields or most any other knife supply house for 440C (stainless, send it out for HT very cheap) if you want to have Texas Knifemakers do the HT for about $5. Between Search and Google you shouldn't have any trouble finding contact info for all these and more ...

[Crex]

jcoon, that comparison is a bit extreme.........I've been at this a pretty good while and I still don't believe I could assemble a Ferrai. Mind you, I'd give it a heck of a try if the op presented itself. I have done something akin to that with a dissasembled antique outboard motor (Montgomery Ward) someone gave me once. It still runs quite well.

BP, if you really intend to pursue the art/craft of knifemaking, then the advice above is spot-on. Lot more to it than meets the general eye. If you just want to play at it for grins, go ahead and use the hedge clipper blades. Just read up serious first or you are pretty much WAG'ing the whole effort/time issue. As Ray said, it maybe possible to make a decent knife from them, but just as possible to fail. Lot of work/preperation required to get the material ready before you even "start" making a knife. Pruchasing the known steel barstock will save you a lot of time and possible frustration and is highly recommended.

But....then again......there is adventure in the use of mystery steel.......

Best advice is to find a local maker and learn to swim before you get in the deep water.

[joyee]

Well the discussion of above participants clearly describe that hope it is done and no need to further elaborate it. Anyway It clear me too what the problem was running on my mind...