Couple of slip joint WIP

Sean Cochran said:
Ill tell you Dave, since I started them I had a customer order a skinner for his son and it is the first time making a knife felt like work. I really wanted to be working on a slippie. Maybe its just me. I guess it may be because I have liked folders since I was young.

Sean
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Ryan I've been thinking about this a lot. This is something that causes me all sorts of trouble - people ask me to build knives for them, which is a real treat! I'm blessed with the confidence of my customers. But the thing is the orders are always for something I've done before, so they're more like work than the thrill of doing something new. I keep saying I'm never going to take orders and just make what I want to make, but as soon as someone asks me to do something I'm so happy that I can't say no. Then I procrastinate and don't get stuff done on time. That's not okay, and I really struggle with trying to keep up to date. I swear, I'm going to do some of the orders before I spend all my time on my slippie project. Somehow. Somehow I'm going to get them done... But cripes, all I can think about is this! Being a knifemaker is not just making knives, it's doing right by one's customers too. I'm not as good with that as I should be. I'm working on it though.

That being said, I've read through this post this morning to make sure I get all the stuff I need. Quite a list! :) You had mentioned that there's a jig for fitting the stops. Can some of you guys show me an example sometime? Don't stop what you're doing to find it, just in the back of your mind next time any of you see one remember me. :D I'm curious where all the specialty tools slippie makers use are found. Anyone have some places I could go look? Like I said, I'm a tool junkie from the word Go.

Okay, thanks! Have a great day gents.
 
Dave
I have a Dr appt so I am leaving work early.
If all goes well I will get in the shop this afternoon, if I do I will get you a pic of the jig and get your blade and spring out to ya.


Sean
 
Dave here is one I made to help set up the tang in the open, closed and half stop position.

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Craig
 
Ryan
It just occurred to me that your thread has been somewhat hijacked, sorry.:eek:

Dave,
Your package will go out today, though I didnt have time to cut everything out I just scratched the profile out on the steel (which is ATS34). When you start working on it leave everything just a little big and take the last down to size slowly, I do the last few thousandths by hand especially on the tang and end of the spring. If you need any help feel free to ask someone who is better at this than me.:eek:;)

Sean

edit: I have some pics of my grinding jig I will post later on.
 
Ryan, I think we all have some what of a different way to make these things. That doesn’t make any one way right or wrong. I feel it’s the end result that counts most. These WIP builds get people to think about how to use what is available to them to make knife. I too apologize for helping hijack your thread.

Craig
 
Craig said:
Ryan, I think we all have some what of a different way to make these things. That doesnâEUR?t make any one way right or wrong. I feel itâEUR?s the end result that counts most. These WIP builds get people to think about how to use what is available to them to make knife. I too apologize for helping hijack your ad.

Craig
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Trust me no reason to apologize. I appreciate ya'lls input. Speaking of different ways I will be posting pictures of my method of relieving liners this weekend. I've posted it on other forums and actually have a few other makers doing it. Thanks again for any help and commentary.
 
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I guess it could be said we'd hijacked Ryan's thread but it feels more to me like we're all hanging around his shop shooting the breeze, watching Ryan work. :D

Sean, I'm totally psyched! 2thumbs I can't thank you enough.

Craig, does the plunger on your jig touch the spring? It's hard for me to tell since I don't really know what I'm looking at. You're all getting the idea by now I'm reasonably dense and take a lot of 'splainin'. :eek: But I think I can set that up.

I look forward to and think about and reread this thread pretty much all day. Well, can't read it at work because of the nanny bot (knives are weapons!), but having read through it in the morning I can just replay it in my head all day.

That's how I think up all my dumb questions. :D And Craig's right - I do sit around thinking how I can do some of this stuff with the tools I have.
 
ddavelarsen said:
I guess it could be said we'd hijacked Ryan's thread but it feels more to me like we're all hanging around his shop shooting the breeze, watching Ryan work. :D
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I hadn't looked at it that way, you are right.cool 1

ddavelarsen said:
Sean, I'm totally psyched! 2thumbs I can't thank you enough
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No problem. I have been helped by many a good knife maker, both here locally and online, Im just paying it forward.

BTW
I put a surprise in the package. It is a piece of Koa that I just got stabalized. It doesnt have a lot of figure but it is a pretty good looking piece of wood.
I tried a new guy, Woodlab. I havent worked with any of it yet so if you decide to use it let me know what you think. I also have some of Mark's (Burlsource) to try. It is really nice looking stuff and I look forward to using it.

Now here is my non hijack part of the post:cool:
Ryan waiting on pics of a test fit.;)
There now it is not a total hijack.

Sean
 
I almost forgot, here are some pics of the jig I use to grind the blade.
 

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Sean Cochran said:
Ryan waiting on pics of a test fit.;)
There now it is not a total hijack.

Sean
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:D I marked the other scale for cutting, but gonna be gone from the shop a couple of days. I'll have my phone to check all the things ya'll say behind my back though:D

I'm going to have both rough cut and very rough fit then spot weld the bolsters on. THis way there is no other movement to throw me off while final fitting the pearl.
This weekend the plan is
1. get other scale rough cut
2. very rough fit both scales.
3. spot weld bolsters
4. use my etcher to etch .005" relief in the liners (looks really good, not crappy like it sounds) I did this because I don't have a mill, did some experimenting and have done it on 2 knives.
 
There's just too much stuff for me to be quoting here, not even awake enough to type right yet. :rolleyes: But wow, am I ever a happy camper! Ryan, you may have mentioned something I don't know how I'm going to do. I do have a mill, but I totally suck using it. I guess I'm going to have to see how much you relieve the liners and then try to figure that one out. Yikes!

Sean, I'm really looking forward to your care package! I love koa, one of my favorite things. I have a piece of Mark's test wood to use too, just haven't made anything for a while. Now there's a good guy, but I'm trying not to get too far off track. ;) I know what you mean about other makers helping - I'm sure getting the goodness of that today. When I started making (that was a long time ago) I was just kind of going by hearsay from a few books and magazine articles. When the internet forums came along my work shot up. If it weren't for people like you guys helping me figure stuff out, I'd be an even worse hack than I am. Taking on a project like this would be nearly impossible without a place like this to work it through. I wouldn't even try it. But look at me now! I'm getting ready to do something really cool and it's only because of Ryan's thread and all the fantastic support I'm getting from everyone. Thanks Sean, that's great. By the way, your jig is pretty much what I'd have tried to make if I was working in the dark like I normally do. I'm going to take your idea and run with it. I know Ryan said he grinds the blade in its handle but I'm really not comfortable with that - you haven't seen me grinding! I'd twitch and take off half one of the bolsters, then spend the rest of the day trying to make them match. :D

Speaking of handles though, I used some celluloid I bought a while back for one of the manicure knives from last weekend. It's really nice looking stuff, and smells great when you work it. I've really been thinking about looking around to see what's available there too. I hadn't thought about wood but now you've got me sidetracked again... I think Ryan's pearl is going to be totally sweet, but wood or plastic sounds like the thing for my first run at it. We'll see what happens - that's a LONG way off. :D

Okay thanks guys, time to see what other email stacked up overnight. Then back here to reread it before I go to work. See you around.
 
Well guys made it in from my bow hunt this morning at 3 am. Shot a Texas Doll ram with my bow, as well as a wild boar. Got a few hours of sleep and woke up way to early. Worked on the slip joint for 45 minutes, now I'm laid up with the fever and flu. NOT THE WAY I WANTED TO END MY HUNT! Hope yall had a great weekend.
 
Oh man, I hope you feel better soon. We had a sick granddaughter this weekend and I really went out of my way to avoid getting any of her sneezes on me. :D Let's hope that worked. I feel okay so far. This is our busy time of year at work; until about Thanksgiving it's going to be longer than normal days and some weekends. I can't afford to get sick right now! Plus I'm the biggest wuss in town when I don't feel good.

Just take good care of yourself Ryan and with any luck you'll be back to your normal self in a couple of days. I really feel for you. I'm glad you had such a good hunt to think back on! :D Any pics? Where'd you go?
 
Ryan take care of yourself and make sure Colton doesn't get it . That stuff is BAD. Rick got it and then a week after he thought he was over it had pneumonia.
 
Yeah I've been staying in one room. I tested positive for the swine flu this morning. It stinks not getting to hold my little boy, but I dang sure don't want him to get it. I got chest xrays for pneumonia, he didn't see any. But he said as bad as m lungs sounds I need to be carefull. Crazy how fast this stuff hit me, within a few hours. Yall stay healthy!
 
Just thinking about you Ryan, and sending major "Get Well" vibes. (Ancient Hippy Idiom) Hang in there and take good care of yourself. The upside of this (leave it to me to find the silver lining even if it's dirt) is that you won't be subject to this flu again. The pause has given me time to absorb more of the forgoing, too. This is great stuff.
 
Dave, I encouraged Ryan to do something like this and many have benefited from his WIP. Ryan is mostly self taught as I understand -- learned thru his mistakes ---- which is a great person to learn from. We are all sorry about his illness but, as you said, you now have time to better absorb the wisdom he has shared. My question to you is, are you going to start on a WIP on your folder ?2thumbs
 
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