O1 & Orange Osage Drop Point

[squigly1965]

This is a knife I made for myself. Comes in 58-59rc. Meant to tak a picture of the spine to show the distal taper. I've bent this knife to 45+ degrees and it straightened back beautifully. It's been ran out to 1000 grit and left there. Feel I could have done more with the handle shape. But it feels good in the hand. So, not knocking it too much there.

Thanks for looking

Chris

[squigly1965]

just realized those pictures make the knife look bad. it looks much better in person. i'll see if i can get better pix up

[BCROB]

Chris looks good to me , I like the different style , unlike all the norm we see , good job

[Crex]

Wakajack is back!

Squigly, use fresh sharp belts and run slow on the osage (and any other woods), follow by hand sanding in the finer grits. This way you won't get the "burn" spots that blem the natural beauty of the wood.

[WNC Goater]

I like the handle a little more in proportion to the blade size but that is a visual thing and subjective. If it's comfortable to you and you like it, it works! Looks pretty good to me. I like the actual blade profile. I've never used Orange Osage but understand it's very tough wood.

[squigly1965]

The "burn" spot on the handle were actually natural figure. There was a knot there. It's was dark before I ever put a belt to it. I actually bought it because of the figure that was in it. Most orange Osage is straight grain. This piece looked like it was from a branch perhaps. The outside edge had bark on it
The larger darkened area kinda broke when I put a pin through it. I epoxied it in and you can't tell. Since this knife was for me I didn't have issue with doing it that way

Good sound advice though thank you
Chris

[squigly1965]

Here's hopefully better pix

[Crex]

Sorry, first pics made it hard to tell. Yeah, really have to "look" to find osage with much figure. I've still got quite a bit from a tree harvest of several years ago. Had half a p/u truck load of select tight grain, most with some figuring. Only use it on special customs and special request because of this.... (no, not selling any of what I got left).
One of my favorite as-is woods due to it's stability, durability, natural beauty, and....it finishes so nicely when done right.

[squigly1965]

I appreciate any and all tips. even if i've heard them a thousand times. helps me to remember and reinforce what i should know. and you can never know what someone else knows until you tell them what to know. I've been doing this as a hobby almost 10 years but it's been in bursts here and there. i have a pretty good memory but theres always something that leaks out the grey matter or gets put on a shelf way in the back and takes a mistake to jog it. so thank you again and thanks to everyone here on the forum that takes time to answer questions and offer experienced advice. you all have made my journey less cumbersome than it could have been by far.

[jimmontg]

I've never used Osage Orange Chris as I tend to use exotics and desert ironwood. That looks very good and you know I love O1. I really like the outline of the blade. Not quite a drop point and different from a spear point. I do not know what the name is, but I like it. I may steal the design for the Bird & Trout KITH except I'll do a hidden tang using an old Nicholson file. Hope you do not mind. No I will not give you the credit, I said steal not borrow.

[Crex]

SQ - not to worry, when you get to my age AARP will constantly send you notifications that your memory is going. Want to really get "tested"....start teaching little kids how to forge (anything). They can ask you stuff that never crossed your mind, but all good 'cause they will make you a better smith.

Hey Jim, if you check deep enough you will see that with basic knives there are no "new" designs. Being the second oldest tool known to man.....someone has done it before, usually over and over and over. Actually there is a stone blade estimated at 700 - 800 years old in a museum in Bentonville, ARK that has a remarkable resemblance to SQ's above, just with a bone handle. Good working designs are repeated a lot more than bad designs.
It's kind of like that bozo that claimed he had a patent on basic "damascus" steel a few years back. He was claiming something to the affect that everyone was copying his process to weld layers of steel together to make knife blades. Yeah, was a good laugh for all. I'd imagine most all makers here, would not have any problems with "copy" issues. You are surely welcome to reproduce any of my pirated stylings.

[squigly1965]

Originally Posted by jimmontg

I've never used Osage Orange Chris as I tend to use exotics and desert ironwood. That looks very good and you know I love O1. I really like the outline of the blade. Not quite a drop point and different from a spear point. I do not know what the name is, but I like it. I may steal the design for the Bird & Trout KITH except I'll do a hidden tang using an old Nicholson file. Hope you do not mind. No I will not give you the credit, I said steal not borrow.

Oh I don't mind. I'm making one similar as well for the B&T kith. Long handle and much shorter blade. I got the profile and hollow grind done. Roughly at least.

I wasn't sure what to call it it was kind of a toss up between drop point and clip point. Though it didn't really fit either. Maybe I should've called it a stone point 😂

[Ray Rogers]

You knife looks like its patterned after a Sharpfinger except yours is a spear point where the Sharpfinger is more of a trailing point usually ...

[squigly1965]

then perhaps SpearFinger

[jimmontg]

Spearfinger sounds good. I've seen the design before of course it's like the old Shrades, just less of a trailing point which something I like to do as well.