About a year into making knives, so about 6 years ago, I was in the stage where I was scrounging around for "free" "knife" steel. One of the things I found was a tooth off of an old drag harrow from my great grandfather's farm. Thinking it was cool to have steel that worked the ground on my family farm, I took it and added it to my pile. I didn't have but a pile of bricks and charcoal, nor a suitable anvil, so it sat on my bench. Fast forward to last November... I had finally built a forge, finally got an anvil, so I forged a blade from the harrow tooth. I have forged maybe 15 knives at this point, tops. I heat treated it and got it to 58 RC. It's finish ground and ready for polishing, sort of a long hunter/small fighter shape. Here's my dilemma. I can make a good knife out of this blade. It's hard enough, ground well, will finish nicely, etc. On the other hand, it's a drag harrow tooth, not 1084, 1095, etc. I'm having a heck of a time deciding what to do for the handle. Part of me thinks I ought to just put a single guard and handle on it and keep it simple, a $275 or so knife. The other part of me wants to do an oval guard, fluted spacers, stag, and a fileworked butt cap, somewhere around a $500-600 knife in terms of parts and labor. I'm having a hard time convincing myself to go large, because of the provenance of the steel. What are your thoughts? Any suggestions?
I also forged a blade in the same session out of a piece of 1958 Ford truck leaf spring, just a simple drop point hunter. I went simple on that one, just a guard and a couple of spacers and a wood handle.
I also forged a blade in the same session out of a piece of 1958 Ford truck leaf spring, just a simple drop point hunter. I went simple on that one, just a guard and a couple of spacers and a wood handle.