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The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need.

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  #1  
Old 07-12-2017, 10:59 PM
RolandRanch RolandRanch is offline
 
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Location: Tucson, AZ
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Smile Newbie from Tucson, AZ

Hi, my name is Seth and I'm 17. Currently, I'm mostly a woodworker but hope to learn more of the knife making process. Three of my brothers and I started working with wood a couple years ago to make money for our college education (my oldest brother is heading to college this fall for an engineering degree debt-free!). Since we started, we've made a variety of things starting with wood puzzles and miniature toys to knife scales and high-end pens. So far, we've not tried much with blade making though I've done some metal work with the pens. I'm interested in learning more about the process of making knife blades to see if it is something that I or one of my brothers is interested in doing. Another thing that I like to do to earn money for my college fund is to either find materials (usually wood and burl) in the desert or to find good deals on it and resell it to woodworkers and knife makers. I'll probably be posting a few things in the For Sale forum soon.

I've seen a lot of great work on this site and hope to learn a lot.

You can see some of our work on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/woodnotch/

Seth

Last edited by RolandRanch; 07-13-2017 at 01:55 AM.
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  #2  
Old 07-13-2017, 12:58 AM
jimmontg jimmontg is offline
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Welcome Seth and good for you!

Working has lost some of it's appeal to too many young people. I will tell you that I live near Las Cruces NM and if you can find some nice Desert Ironwood I would like to hear from you as it is a favorite of mine. It is one of the few woods that doesn't need to be stabilized for knife handles. I sometimes go to Waddell, AZ to visit my uncle so swinging by isn't a problem if you can locate some decent Ironwood.

I am pretty good with leather work and know more than a little about making knives. would be more than happy to help you and your brothers in anyway I could.(Just don't ask for money,lol)

Welcome to the Knife Network, in my opinion the best forum for knife makers and enthusiasts.
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  #3  
Old 07-13-2017, 02:18 AM
RolandRanch RolandRanch is offline
 
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Originally Posted by jimmontg View Post
Working has lost some of it's appeal to too many young people. I will tell you that I live near Las Cruces NM and if you can find some nice Desert Ironwood I would like to hear from you as it is a favorite of mine. It is one of the few woods that doesn't need to be stabilized for knife handles. I sometimes go to Waddell, AZ to visit my uncle so swinging by isn't a problem if you can locate some decent Ironwood.

I am pretty good with leather work and know more than a little about making knives. would be more than happy to help you and your brothers in anyway I could.(Just don't ask for money,lol)

Welcome to the Knife Network, in my opinion the best forum for knife makers and enthusiasts.
Thank you very much! My younger brother Nate (15) is really into leather work. He just got a really nice sewing machine a couple months ago and has been making some pretty neat stuff with it.

This link takes you to a picture of a leather journal he made for my birthday last month. All hand tooled and it resembles my own horse! He also has made a few knife sheaths.

You can see some more of our work HERE.

Ironwood is also one of my favorites for pen making. I've got a few good sources down here. I might be able to help you if you can PM me the dimensions and amount you're looking for.
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  #4  
Old 07-13-2017, 02:32 AM
jimmontg jimmontg is offline
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Doggone Seth!

You boys are no slouches, that is a bunch of good work and your brother has his own leather sewing machine?!!? (I don't have one) Yes I will PM you, it's fairly easy to figure the sizes I would need as I make knives and need ironwood for hidden tang knives so nice 1 1/4 x 1 x 6"+ long or just nice pieces as I have a bandsaw, but Ironwood tears the blades up. You wouldn't happen to have some Gila Monster skins would you? LOL


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  #5  
Old 07-13-2017, 06:19 AM
dtec1 dtec1 is offline
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Welcome.....you and your brothers do some seriously good work!!! I think with the skills you already have it wont take long for you to make some really nice work. If you enjoy what you've been doing I think you may get "bitten by the knife making bug"...it can get a lil addictive for some of us.

The best advice I can give you right now is first build a propane forge (not very hard at all) then get your self some carbon steel like 1084 and learn to heat treat. Heat treting will take some trial and error that is the biggest challenge in the beginning but you need it a good heat treat is the heart and soul of a knife without it all you have is a knife shaped object.....if you have questions just ask a lot of great guys on here
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  #6  
Old 07-13-2017, 07:09 AM
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Crex Crex is offline
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Get some good books on making knives and read-up. You guys are obviously very industrious and skilled so research shouldn't be a problem. Wayne Goddard has a couple of very good getting started type publications, one is his "$50 Knifeshop". Also Dr. Jim H. (can't spell his name for the life of me) has a very good one on bladesmithing. There are plenty of others as well.

One thing I might also suggest is to decide up front which direction you want to go - stock removal or forging. Pick a style of knife you want to make and keep it simple but functional to start with. Pursue it until you get real comfortable and good at it, before getting too complex. You will find your "path".

Good luck with your endeavors, keep it enjoyable. (Better enjoy it 'cause you won't get rich making knives!)


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  #7  
Old 07-13-2017, 08:19 AM
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Ray Rogers Ray Rogers is offline
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One thing I'll throw out about knife making is that it can get expensive very quickly. Trying to save for college while starting knife making could be a conflict. The way around that would be to plan on doing most of the work by hand because its the machines we use that run up the cost. People around the world build knives using all kinds of inexpensive belt sanders and other tools but even cheap tools cost something. A couple of good files, some sandpaper, and a lot of elbow grease can get the job done ....


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Old 07-13-2017, 11:08 AM
dtec1 dtec1 is offline
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Ray ya know I don't even think of that over the last ffew years I have spent thousands and thousands on equipment and supplies and I am just starting to see somewhat of a return for that now. No way I have made enough to equall out what I have spent.....Trying to pay for college is a SSERIOUS challenge of its own...you may make some money knife making...but don't expect it to happen right away
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  #9  
Old 07-13-2017, 04:48 PM
RolandRanch RolandRanch is offline
 
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I understand getting into a knife making won't be cheap. Neither was woodworking. That's part of the reason why I'm here - to see what it would take to start making some good knives to sell. Unfortunately, I'm already 17 and will probably be going to college next fall. I don't know how much I can actually do before then. It might be something that I get more into after college. However, it would be nice to start collecting the right tools for my younger siblings that are interested in the craft. One thing I didn't mention is that I have 9 siblings. We all enjoy learning skills and crafts and I know at least one or two is very interested in making knives.

I appreciate the warm welcome and tips I've already gotten.
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  #10  
Old 07-13-2017, 07:34 PM
jimmontg jimmontg is offline
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Looking at the boxes and bowls you boys made, would I be correct in thinking that a bunch of that wood is thuya and Amboyna burl?

Ray?!!? Does Thuya and Amboyna burl need to be stabilized or is it a hardwood? I have never used either and was wondering.

Last edited by jimmontg; 07-13-2017 at 07:36 PM.
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  #11  
Old 07-13-2017, 07:57 PM
RolandRanch RolandRanch is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmontg View Post
Looking at the boxes and bowls you boys made, would I be correct in thinking that a bunch of that wood is thuya and Amboyna burl?

Ray?!!? Does Thuya and Amboyna burl need to be stabilized or is it a hardwood? I have never used either and was wondering.
Correct! It is all made from thuya burl. Actually, we didn't make those ourselves. They came handcrafted from Morroco. I have some thuya burl blocks that I sell as well as Amboyna. I'll post some in the "Items and Bargains" forum soon to see if there is any interest.


Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmontg View Post
You boys are no slouches, that is a bunch of good work and your brother has his own leather sewing machine?!!? (I don't have one) Yes I will PM you, it's fairly easy to figure the sizes I would need as I make knives and need ironwood for hidden tang knives so nice 1 1/4 x 1 x 6"+ long or just nice pieces as I have a bandsaw, but Ironwood tears the blades up. You wouldn't happen to have some Gila Monster skins would you? LOL
Thank you. LOL, Sorry, no Gila Monster. We get lots of rattlesnakes that we skin though. We've gotten 7 around our property in the last week (technically 18 because one snake had 11 snakelings in it).

Last edited by RolandRanch; 07-13-2017 at 08:04 PM.
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  #12  
Old 07-13-2017, 08:32 PM
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Ray Rogers Ray Rogers is offline
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Jim, I think any burl wood should be stabilized no matter what it is when used as a knife handle. I have used both those woods and sent them out for stabilizing, they seemed light weight, I doubt they would be classed as hardwood....


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Old 07-13-2017, 10:58 PM
jimmontg jimmontg is offline
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OK, thank you guys. I wasn't sure. I guess they are like spalted maple, beautiful, but need those polymers/monomers.


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Old 07-14-2017, 05:11 AM
dtec1 dtec1 is offline
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I have some amboyna, it is stabilized never seen or noticed it not anywhere...I got ome stuff at blade show that was really nice I like how it has contrasting colors. On one end its much lighter than the other....haven't had a project that calls for it yet but it is nice stuff
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