Deer Knife (pic heavy)

**your_comforting_company** · 01-19-2010, 11:04 PM

This is a project I've been workin on since you guys saw the first bone fishhooks I posted. It was the leftover half of the bone.

This primitive set is 100% deer and 100% natural. The only thing I purchased was the needle for sewing. The front leg-bone is the handle and blade, some buckskin scraps from my shirt I made last year for the handle wrapping, and some of the bark tan deerskin I did this year. I shared some with Crash earlier who wrapped it around a really slick knife. Mine is not waterproofed and is finished with deer tallow.
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the extra flap material is used to secure the knife in the sheath when active.
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you can see that the blade angle is a little wide, but if you put too narrow an angle on bone, it will chip easily... better to stay above 25 degrees IMO closer to 30.
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hopefully you can tell that only about 4 inches of the blade is sharp, from the point back toward the handle. nearer the handle is dull, where your fingers might slip.
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I got a new toy today and went a little picture crazy... sorry if it's overkill

**rebel** · 01-19-2010, 11:09 PM

Nice pics and knife! Thanks for sharing.

**klkak** · 01-19-2010, 11:12 PM

Looks like it would be dandy for poking holes in some................thing.

**your_comforting_company** · 01-19-2010, 11:16 PM

Oh it'll carve through chicken like butter. it's not shaving sharp but it's got a good edge

**crashdive123** · 01-19-2010, 11:20 PM

Nice work. Thanks for the pics.

**klkak** · 01-19-2010, 11:25 PM

It looks like it but it's also really pointy.

**Ted** · 01-19-2010, 11:25 PM

Way cool! Don't think ya got carried away with pics all. Good job!

**Rick** · 01-20-2010, 07:50 AM

The pictures are very good. Not overkill at all. Great job on the knife, too. I know next to nothing about animal bone. How would you compare the knife to something like obsidian? Would it take long to flint a knife than make a bone knife? Would the bone knife have less utility than obsidian? I'm asking because I haven't seen that many bone knives made by early man. Perhaps they rotted for all I know. Just curious.

Thanks for the pics!

**your_comforting_company** · 01-20-2010, 08:01 AM

I would speculate that most if not all bone artifacts would be rotted away unless buried with the dead.

comparing to obsidian... well, obsidian flakes really well. for an "art" knife, obsidian is going to be the prettiest. Obsidian will be MUCH sharper. for an expert knapper, obsidian would likely be much quicker to knap into a functional blade.
There is no obsidian around here so I was looking for a more consistent material than the poor local chert. Bone will not hold an edge for long, but it only takes a few minutes to resharpen. it is much less utilitarian than stone of any type, because it is soft. I'd guess that altogether I had about 6 hours of grinding and sharpening for a functional knife. this isn't something you can chop wood with, but it will cut meat really well (at least it does rock-fried chicken

hope I answered your questions well enough.

**Rick** · 01-20-2010, 08:26 AM

You did very well. Thank you. I thought the bone knife might be a little quicker than that to make. You do some very nice work.

**your_comforting_company** · 01-20-2010, 08:35 AM

It probably was... I work it a little, then will do something else a while, then come back to it. 6 hours it probably a little excessive for time, but thats a good roundabout for going from just a bone, to a working tool... and I did it with rocks, except for the first hooks I made from the knuckle were cut off with a sawzall blade.

**Themeek** · 01-20-2010, 11:33 AM

Nice knife, another project that I would like to try myself someday, now all I need is knowledge... and skill/talent(in bulk).
If you ever get it in your head to make another I would love to know more about the "hows", maybe with some pics while in progress??

**ClayPick** · 01-20-2010, 12:35 PM

Nice job! That knife would function well above the tree line.

**gryffynklm** · 01-20-2010, 12:41 PM

Nice knife. Did you do any preparation to the bone before you shaped it? Was it dried or fresh.

Heat smoke tempering?????

I don't know if it is possible I have never worked with bone. Here is the reason I ask.

I know that walking wheels (large 4" diameter spinning wheels) will sometimes use smoked bone as a bushing. There is some discoloration on the shaped bushing definitely caused by fire or smoke. The only thing I'm not sure about is the reason for heating it. If it was a fresh bone, the heating of the bone may have been to dry and cure it. If the bone was dried when it was smoked it could have been to harden it. I came across a reference to heating the ends of a deer leg bone to make it brittle so you could break easier. Makes me wonder if there was a way to apply careful heat to harden a bone blade.

Just thinking out loud.

**trax** · 01-20-2010, 02:08 PM

I'm really impressed ycc, seriously. Here's something I've got to say about this project specifically, but all you other knife makers can take to heart too: better than I would have done.

Those who might be of a more critical frame of mind, may want to consider that...

**pocomoonskyeyes** · 01-20-2010, 09:33 PM

YCC you are a very talented man. Did you get a new camera?

**panch0** · 01-20-2010, 09:58 PM

That is very cool! Thanks for sharing.

**Rick** · 01-20-2010, 10:16 PM

Oh, Poco. How can I resist? No, he didn't get a new camera. Those are all hand drawn.

(I know, I know. And you're right).

**Boker** · 01-20-2010, 11:13 PM

YCC: Just so you know, if the world goes bad, after I take care of everyone on my 'list' (Yes, I keep a list). I plan to kidnap you, lock you in the basement with my ugly sister and making you crank out knifes. I'm letting you know a head of time, just so there is not hard feelings later.

Very nice!