Please walk me through my first knife!

I'd take this puppy to a full height grind and get the edge down in the .010 to .015 thickness as well as getting the plunge lines even on both sides before heat treat. This short, thick blade is not likely to warp
John, while the spine of the knife may not warp from heat treat. On carbon steel with an edge that thin it might come out looking like a Pringle potatoe chip. It looks really cool but is next to impossible to fix.
 
Ah, good point. I've been lucky thus far, but I also normalize before I do my final heat and quench. But I acknowledge that the risk is definitely there. I suppose a pringle blade could be a really good cheese scraper, no?
 
"Obviously lack of experience is the problem but I think need to make a good bevel jig. I used a crappy jig I made and clamped with a vice grip."

I do not want to rain on the parade. But, a jig, no matter how good/bad may not be the answer to good crisp bevel lines.

To be honest, the pictures show a fairly decent first attempt. It is not perfect. I still think it is a pretty good start.

Does the bevel come close to matching on each side? The plunge line looks fairly even in the picture.

If so, heat treat and work the bevel once the blade is hardened. You may have better luck getting a crisper bevel line because you cannot take as much material off at a time. Nothing beats hand finishing for a crisper bevel line. In short, you are getting there.

Seriously. Keep going, it is looking good for your first attempt.

DeMo
 
@John IT hasn't been heat treated and I only have a 1x30 belt grinder. That's one reason why I started with a neck knife.
I know for sure I won't be able to do it without a jig. I think I have enough meat to try again. I'm not giving up. I'll make a knife if it kills me. Pun intended. Thanks all for following the thread and advice. I may not always comment on everything I read but I'm taking it all in and appreciate it.
 
you don't need to get crazy with it, just grind the hump at the top of the bevel. Then blend it in. It may be easier to use a file to draw file your bevels to the finished dimensions.


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