One of my minis, etc.

[LLeith]

(I hope the pics show up here! I'm Technically Challenged and I recently switched from PC to Mac...)

This is the third mini I've made in this style. The bevel is a flat grind. (The only two grinds I can do right now with any level of consistency are flat and convex.) I know minis aren't terribly practical, but I LOVE making them. The only part I don't love is how much more quickly the steel gets hot. I don't have much of a thumb print left, lol



1095 high carbon steel. Stock removal and bevel on industrial belt grinder. Heat treated (propane forge, oil quench). Slap tested on anvil. Pattern is an applied patina- the person who taught me this particular method asked me not to share it with anyone, so please don't ask:-)

Handle: Black & White Ebony. Mosaic pins, lots of sanding to bring out the wood grain. I'm always fascinated by how much more the wood 'reveals' of itself as I use increasingly finer grit sand paper.

I am in love with exotic woods and I'll spend hours selecting them. It's not so much that I'm THAT picky, but once I'm surrounded by an exotic wood selection, you might as well come back for me tomorrow. (Both of my grandfathers were carpenters, so I wonder if "wood lust" is in my genes!)

I also carve as a relaxing hobby. I haven't learned to do tangs yet, but I've been carving handles in my spare time. This one is made from tamboti and took me 100 hours to carve and a day and a half to sand. Tamboti is a very hard wood, but looks and smells glorious. When I learn tangs I'll probably also learn how to use a dremel. I also want to make a high carbon steel carving set when I have the skills to do it so I don't have to stop to sharpen the blade so much.





This is the grinder I use. (Picture is from this past winter. The shop was cold!)

[Ray Rogers]

That's pretty cool. Minis may not be very practical but if you make them small enough and detailed enough there is a lot of collector interest in them. Do what you love.

If you can slow that grinder down, maybe add a set of pulleys or a variable speed motor, and use fresh belts you won't heat the steel nearly as much. Of course, a small piece like that will always heat quickly but sharp belts and a slow grinder would help a lot ....

[Doug Lester]

I agree with Ray, there can be a lot of interest in mini's. I was at a show once, as an observer, and things were starting to get a little slow due to the economy but the man with the minis was selling where others were just getting looks.

You might want to include a respirator in your equipment if you are going to be working wood with power tools. Some of the exotics, tamboti included, can be toxic or highly allergenic with some people. Love the carving. BTW, I've seen plenty of slab handles that have been carved.

Doug

[LLeith]

I just went and looked at some pictures of minis people have posted here... holy cannoli!!! Some of them are just simply amazing! It certainly gives me plenty to aspire to.

I enjoy working on knives of all sizes, but the minis give me an extra level of pleasure.

One of my biggest goals is to make it to Blade in Atlanta. My fiance says the work I'll see there will leave me breathless. He said, "Leslie, you just have no idea." I've looked at some pictures from past Blades, and I have to admit most of them caused my heart rate to increase to aerobic levels just from the pictures. Actually, I've had that reaction with many of the pictures I've seen on this forum, too... But to see the knives in person and meet the makers would be phenomenal!

There is so much to learn!!! I sure wish I had gotten started with this when I was younger... I also wish I had a LOT more money!

I've learned to change the belt more frequently since that picture was taken, but I'll check into a slower grinder. I learned the hard way not to wear safety gloves while beveling. I was working on a much larger blade and didn't realize how hot the metal had gotten until the plastic-like liner under the leather melted and welded itself to my thumb. Mega ouch!

Ray, what's your #1 favorite type of knife to make?

[Ray Rogers]

QUOTE: Ray, what's your #1 favorite type of knife to make?


I'm not sure, I'd say it varies with my mood but most often it will be one that I haven't made before like those big fighters I posted last week in another thread. I make a lot of kitchen knives and Loveless style hunters and like them because they're simple (like me). My folders make me the most money but they are HARD to make so mostly they aren't much fun. I guess one kind of knife I like is any knife that I know will be used, I don't like to make really fancy knives that will just sit in a cabinet....

[LLeith]

Doug, I promise you I've learned to wear breathing protection! And that's a good point about the wood dust. Sometimes when I have to cut something really quick on the band saw, I forget to put on a mask. I know someone who had an allergic reaction to Bolivian rosewood so severely that he had to be taken to the hospital ER, and he wasn't even exposed to it all that long.

It never even occurred to me to carve a slab handle! I will absolutely give that a try at the soonest opportunity. I'm very glad you mentioned it:-)

Ray, even though I am beyond impressed with many artistic knives I've seen online, and would love to develop the skills to make one, I agree with you that I like the idea of someone actually using my knife. It was the awesomeness of the chef's knife my fiance gave me, and how very much it improved my fun in the kitchen, that made me want to make knives in the first place. Until then, as dumb as this may sound, to me a knife was a knife was a knife. The 3 people who have my minis now do actually use them. They are not so tiny they they can't be useful. A biker friend picked one up and said, "Ain't that the cutest shank ever!" But, thankfully, the people who have them do not have nefarious purposes in mind!

How can I see your knives? When I click on your name I get a message that says I don't have access.. I've been working my way through the photo gallery, but I must not have gone deep enough to see your knives yet. I'll figure out how to navigate this site eventually..

I've seen some good looking knives on here with simple, clean designs that look like they could cut down a redwood without chipping out. Those knives make me want to reach through the screen, grab them, and see what they can do!

I was at a gun and knife show last fall and there was an awesome bladesmith (I wish I could remember his name..) who had some amazing pieces on display. He wasn't even selling them! He's living the life... retired and going to shows just to display his knives and talk to people about making knives. He kept encouraging me to pick them up and look at them. They were artistically displayed on driftwood and horns, and they looked so ornate that I was afraid to touch them. I finally started picking them up and it was fun to look at them from every angle. Hand-hammered Damascus, gorgeous file work, real silver and gold bolsters and inlays on most of them, and none of them looked the same in any way. I was so impressed! But if I ever owned a knife like that I doubt I'd ever actually use it, and I'd yell at anyone else who tried, lol.

[Ray Rogers]

You can see my knives on my website at http://www.rayrogers.com There's lots of other stuff on there you might find entertaining as well...

[metal99]

Awesome mini man! I might have to try that out sometime. I was just wondering what you meant by the "slap test on the anvil"?

[LLeith]

Thank you, Ray! I will check out your link when I'm done with this post:-) I also appreciate your threads here in the Newbie arena. Lots of good info.

Thank you for the compliment, Metal99. The slap test is basically slapping your heat treated blade good and hard a few times on an anvil to make sure there aren't any hidden flaws. If there are, the blade will break, and then you look at the pieces and say, "Really? After all that work, really?"

If you don't do your own heat treats or you use other types of steel, I don't know what the procedure is. I've only ever used 1095 blanks, and I only know this much because my fiance is a blacksmith. (Can anyone else shed some light on this topic?)

[metal99]

Makes sense. I use 1095 and O1 but I bought those steels without knowing that they weren't newB friendly due to some misleading google searches lol. Not that a newB can't use these steels it's just like starting a new game on hard mode I really like that ebony handle I can't find anything that nice around here.

[Ray Rogers]

If you're using purchased fresh steel there should be no flaws in it for a slap test to reveal. I can see this might be useful if you were making damascus with all those welds but the only way I could see it happening with homogenous steel would be if you were slow getting to the temper with 1095. Being late to temper 1095 can cause cracks to form in the steel while it lays on the table and they may not be visible right away. The slap test might reveal those. This would apply to 1095 particularly but not nearly so much to most any of the other commonly used steels. On the other hand, I can't see that the test would cause any problems either if the blade is good so why not if you want to do it?

On a related note, I have heard of slapping a blade like that but for a different reason. I've heard (never done it) that with long blades like swords that the blade is almost never hammered perfectly straight. Slapping the hot blade on a large anvil if done properly can straighten the blade...

[LLeith]

Metal99: I don't have any clue about other steels. I learned on 1095 because it's what my fiance likes to use, so I haven't used anything else yet. It will be fun someday to check out the differences. One of the reasons I joined this forum is to learn more about these things. I'm taking notes as to what types of steel seasoned makers prefer to use for different kinds of knives and why.

Ray: Your website is totally awesome, and you are one funny guy! I spent an hour there, and I still haven't seen everything. Your shop, as well as your location, is the stuff of dreams. It was fun to see the evolution of your forge, too. (I also love it that you made your wedding rings... I'm looking forward to my own wedding, so I definitely loved the whole wedding album section!) I also enjoyed your pictures of your trip to China, and, no, I don't think a chef in the USA could get away with sharpening his giant cleaver on a street corner, at least not without all foot traffic rapidly detouring to the other side of the street;-)

Your knives are awesome! It's a shame you don't have as much fun with the folders because, "WOW." I can see why they are so popular. I particularly like the The Warlock - Style 24361. The shape of the blade is simply gorgeous, and the ash is stunning. Your Hunters rock, and your Rayzors are wicked cool. I also really dig that radial Damascus pattern- on a Hunter I think? I've never seen that pattern before. You must have a LOT of fun with that press...

I almost shot coffee through my nose at many of your comments, but the one about the "lucky housewife" under the salmon filet knife is especially funny. I also think your custom order 'tactical chef's knife" is a hoot, and a "must have" if the Zombie Apocalypse breaks out around dinner time.

I'm going to post your website link on my facebook if that's okay. I have a lot of friends who would love your humor!

[Doug Lester]

There has been a lot of controversy about 1095. Part of it has to do with not all 1095 being the same. Some has enough manganese in it to quench in oil and some needs water or brine. Water and brine causes more stress during quenching and a higher rate of breakage. Also what is available through some suppliers is not consistent lot to lot and that will cause problems with heat treating. This is one reason that some like to get their 1095 from The New Jersey Steel Baron, run by Aldo Bruno. It was formulated for knife making and will quench in oil.

Then there is the problem with carbides, primarily cementite in this case. That problem has to do with enlargement of carbides during the slow cool down. That can cause problems with grinding and drilling. It will also be more subject to grain growth if one is not careful with austinization temperatures and it requires some soak time at temperature go get the carbon to go into solution in the austinite.

Many people still use 1095. For the above reasons, it's probably not the best for the beginner to cut their teeth on.

Doug

[LLeith]

Doug, our steel comes from Aldo Bruno!