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I'm a lot like you, I can always find those unexpected "character marks" when it's supposed to be a mirror finish. Something that seems to have helped me is to wet-sand the blade. I'm thinking/hoping that the water removes the swarf (I think is the term) so that it can't cause unwanted...

Another possibility... Epoxy needs at least a minimum amount to work well. If a person clamps the scales too tight they can squeeze out too much glue thus starving the joint. What is the handle material? If it's something like dyed bone maybe it is expanding and contracting with moisture or...

I wrap my knives in plastic wrap for the wet-forming portion also. It also protects the handle if it's made of wood. But just in case... I also put a coat of Renaissance wax on the blade and handle.

You did a real nice job. I like the looks of the handle material you made. - Paul Meske

Does Sears sell them? They should replace it if it breaks. - Paul Meske

I agree somewhat with Oliver. There is something that strikes me wrong. Boxy is a term that often describes early attempts at design. The straight spine contributes to that look in your (IMHO) drawing. If you could just bend the handle a little bit to change that straight line to a flowing arc...

Some metals won't shine well (D2 for one). What are you making the bolster from? For minimal tools It would be hard to beat sandpaper up to 2000 grit or higher. Because I had it on hand I've been using metal polish (like for shining the brass on your uniform, not the paint on your car) and it...

Definitely an "Atta boy!"

Absolute Cheapskate Way to Start Making Knives The above website is pretty good.

I get what look like little blisters on the blade from by my charcoal coffee can forge. It was explained to me this way, "your surface blisters are either just overheating the surface, or possibly getting surface infusion of carbon (kind of like case hardening) which lowers the melting...

I feel your pain. I'll bet you got hot rolled, unannealed steel. This happened to me and the 1080 steel I bought. I tried all sorts of things to soften it up. I find that if I put the steel on my glass topped kitchen stove on high for "a while", the steel surface turns very dark (if the slag was...

For me that would be about the third or fourth knife I ground this year using... a bubble jig. Using a bubble jig is not "cheating". YOU are holding the blade, not a jig. YOU apply the blade to the belt not a mechanical arm. The ONLY thing the bubble jig does is tell you if you're holding the...

I'd love to see a picture of your forge. Mine is made from a coffee can.

Could you post pictures of what you've come up with? Without something concrete to work with about all we can give is obvious advice. Don't make it too big, or too small. Make it juuuuuust right.

Since you asked about hardening 1080/84 steel in a different thread I'm going to assume that you will be doing this yourself. I use a homemade charcoal fired "forge" made from a large coffee can. A downside to using charcoal is that I often end up with what look like little blisters on the...

Pedro G I agree that the science behind metallurgy is very confusing and it is easy to find contradictions. Fortunately you've picked the best beginner, home heat treatment steel there is. For 1080/84 steel a magnet will tell you when you're at the right temperature. When the magnet not longer...

I have a suspicion that using a brine quench may have played a role in it also. I know that many sites recommend using a brine quench with 1095. Though it doesn't say so, it's my understanding that the brine quench is for LARGE industrial applications, not something the size of a knife. I don't...

You "fixed" it, but don't you care about why it cracked in the first place? I'm thinking that the crack goes farther than what you can see with the naked eye and the blade stands a good chance of breaking at some point in the future, especially if it is used real hard like chopping on wood or...

I've been using copper tubing normally used to run a water line to a refrigerator. It has a 1/4" OD. I've never used anything else so I can't compare.

Occasionally I will have a plan that includes handle material but normally I make the blade and after heat treatment figure out what I will use for handle material, either full or hidden tang.