A few of my projects

Kevin Zito

Kevin Zito

KNIFE MAKER
Please note that I suck terribly bad lol. This is my second month in knife making,and I've found a true love. This is the best hobby ever!!! Let me know what you think.
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my advice? there will be plenty of time to swing for the fences. (soldering guards). Right now, focus on mastering the basics.

You are off to a great start. From what I see, your immediate goals should be to perfect your bevel grinds and to keep developing your eye toward proportions. Believe it or not, one of the hardest things to do is to get handle shapes and sizes right. The handle, not the blade, generally determines the flow of your lines.

For example, in your pic above. The spine looks great. Where you need some work is the bottom. It appears like you aren't sure where the blade should begin. The reason for that is because the handle isn't defined at the choil / ricasso area. Once you sort that out, defining the heel of the blade will be easy peezy.

Form follows function. Is your hand likely to slip forward onto the blade? Maybe a deeper area to butt your fingers up against is in order. Yes, you could add a guard but that's a whole 'nother skill set. I'd keep that idea in the back of your mind while you figure out how to integrate a guard-like shape into your blade.


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John Wilson said:
my advice? there will be plenty of time to swing for the fences. (soldering guards). Right now, focus on mastering the basics.

You are off to a great start. From what I see, your immediate goals should be to perfect your bevel grinds and to keep developing your eye toward proportions. Believe it or not, one of the hardest things to do is to get handle shapes and sizes right. The handle, not the blade, generally determines the flow of your lines.

For example, in your pic above. The spine looks great. Where you need some work is the bottom. It appears like you aren't sure where the blade should begin. The reason for that is because the handle isn't defined at the choil / ricasso area. Once you sort that out, defining the heel of the blade will be easy peezy.

Form follows function. Is your hand likely to slip forward onto the blade? Maybe a deeper area to butt your fingers up against is in order. Yes, you could add a guard but that's a whole 'nother skill set. I'd keep that idea in the back of your mind while you figure out how to integrate a guard-like shape into your blade.


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Click to expand...

Wow!!! This is what I need! Thanks so much for the information and advice. The guard would be very hard to do anyway bec I already hardened the steel (D2) and drilling through it is all but impossible (lol I know bec I tried). I'm definitely fighting the ricasso area, but my darn belt sander vibrates and jumps around VERY BAD. I guess that's what you get for $64 at Harbor Freight haha. I will follow your guidance for sure.

One question: Do you think I have enough tang for a decent looking handle, or should I just put this in the graveyard with all my other failures??? The yard man is gonna hate me when he hits a hardened D2 Drop Point hunter with his mower. I'm really just hoping that the kids don't find the katana that I threw the other day... lol just kidding.


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John Wilson said:
my advice? there will be plenty of time to swing for the fences. (soldering guards). Right now, focus on mastering the basics.

You are off to a great start. From what I see, your immediate goals should be to perfect your bevel grinds and to keep developing your eye toward proportions. Believe it or not, one of the hardest things to do is to get handle shapes and sizes right. The handle, not the blade, generally determines the flow of your lines.

For example, in your pic above. The spine looks great. Where you need some work is the bottom. It appears like you aren't sure where the blade should begin. The reason for that is because the handle isn't defined at the choil / ricasso area. Once you sort that out, defining the heel of the blade will be easy peezy.

Form follows function. Is your hand likely to slip forward onto the blade? Maybe a deeper area to butt your fingers up against is in order. Yes, you could add a guard but that's a whole 'nother skill set. I'd keep that idea in the back of your mind while you figure out how to integrate a guard-like shape into your blade.


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Click to expand...
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Ok so this is ugly, but I think I understand why? Number one, the pins look completely silly. Should be centered to say the least. Now I have a question. When you say lines, do you mean that the actual linear parts of the blade, handle, etc "need" to coordinate or jive in some way? For example, on the next project would it be a good idea to make sure that the black spacer between the pins is parallel to the plunge line? Or maybe I should pay more attention to the angle formed by the "pin line" and the line at the top of the hollow grind? Any help is greatly appreciated .


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Kwzito,
I hope you don't mind I tweaked your design a little but here is what I would have liked to see out of that knife(this is just my opinion and trying o help so please don't take it the wrong way). the ricasso area being the biggest change and like you already said pins are a bit off but you know that already.
I was having trouble with the making the curve do what I wanted to on the cut out for the index finger but you get the idea.
Justin
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Justin Presson said:
Kwzito,
I hope you don't mind I tweaked your design a little but here is what I would have liked to see out of that knife(this is just my opinion and trying o help so please don't take it the wrong way). the ricasso area being the biggest change and like you already said pins are a bit off but you know that already.
I was having trouble with the making the curve do what I wanted to on the cut out for the index finger but you get the idea.
Justin
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Click to expand...

Whoa that looks wayyy better! I don't mind advice, criticism, insults lol. I just want to get better. As I say I'm only a couple months in but I have a strong feeling that I'll be doing this for a long time. I want you guys to be honest with me so that I can improve!! Great looking design. Thanks again for the advice.


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Kwzito said:
One question: Do you think I have enough tang for a decent looking handle, or should I just put this in the graveyard with all my other failures??? The yard man is gonna hate me when he hits a hardened D2 Drop Point hunter with his mower. I'm really just hoping that the kids don't find the katana that I threw the other day... lol just kidding.


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Click to expand...


It looks like you have plenty of tang. Keep in mind there are a million ways to skin a cat. Your handle scales don't have to be just two slabs of flat wood pinned to the blade. You can put some extra geometry into your handle to accomplish a secure grip.

One of the biggest drawbacks to a grinder like yours is the lack of a small radius wheel to make finger choils, etc. You're left with big, sweeping curves like you have already discovered. So, in your design phase you need to think about how best to use what you have. Also, don't think that everything you do needs to come off the grinder. Master bladesmiths made works of art using basic hand tools and so can you. Yes, make no mistake- it adds a ton of time and work to the project. This is exactly why a real knife grinder is worth its weight in gold. It's not some nice-to-have extravagance, it is a basic requirement if you want to achieve any sort of efficiency in knifemaking.
 
John is right. I have small wheels and still use hand files all the time a half round file works great in those areas.

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John Wilson said:
It looks like you have plenty of tang. Keep in mind there are a million ways to skin a cat. Your handle scales don't have to be just two slabs of flat wood pinned to the blade. You can put some extra geometry into your handle to accomplish a secure grip.

One of the biggest drawbacks to a grinder like yours is the lack of a small radius wheel to make finger choils, etc. You're left with big, sweeping curves like you have already discovered. So, in your design phase you need to think about how best to use what you have. Also, don't think that everything you do needs to come off the grinder. Master bladesmiths made works of art using basic hand tools and so can you. Yes, make no mistake- it adds a ton of time and work to the project. This is exactly why a real knife grinder is worth its weight in gold. It's not some nice-to-have extravagance, it is a basic requirement if you want to achieve any sort of efficiency in knifemaking.
Click to expand...

Funny thing... last night I was working on the blade and I decided to break out my files, and wow... It made a huge difference in the look of the blade. I can control it so much better.... no comparison. So I'm definitely gonna try on the handle as well.


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Files are so underrated, aren't they? I would suggest that you use your grinder to hog off 95% of the steel for your bevels and then finish by draw filing and hand sanding. Many top quality knives have been made that way. Grinders aren't magical, they just speed up the process. But you will always have more control with files. I think everyone should use files in the beginning because it gives you a very good understanding of what is happening in the grinding process.
 
Your off to a good start and are seeing the small oops or newbie booboos.
Here is a oh shoot moment I had. I drilled holes to allow epoxy to flow through the tang to both scales as a bright idea and accidentally drilled a pin hole in the scale.
Live and learn. Save the oops blades for learning from or modify the design and use as a shop knife or give to a responsable cousin or nephew/niece for their first knife. We all know kids will lose or ruin their first knife. Lol
A free and easy way to design a knife is to use a piece of cardboard as a pattern then use a wooden slat or a chunk off a pallet and then cut it and grind it like you would your steel and it will give you a physical idea of how it will look and feel.

When making your blades a simple rule is a min of .25 inches of steel below your index finger to keep from accidentally getting cut while using the knife.
If you have a dremel or a drill press you can create the smaller radius the hf sander is missing.
Keep at it and learn and move forward.
Btw hardened D2 is a serious pain to drill with out a carbide tipped bit and lots of patience and oil.
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