First Knife:

[JPGreco]

This is what I have so far:
It's 1080 steel, flat grinds, in a tanto style (probably a mistake to start with something so difficult cause of its straight lines). Some of the lines are still a bit squirrely and I need to clean it up some, especially back by the where the handle will be. The spine is so low because I was considering shaping the top of the knife as well for a back edge.
The handle will most likely be made of oak since I have scrap around, just not up to that part yet.

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[crashdive123]

Keep up the good work.

[Rick]

Hey, you only have to please yourself. Looks fine to me.

[canid]

just don't go around calling that multiple chisel grind blade style a tanto. the style is kind of similar to a kiriha zukuri geometry with a very exagerated yokote, but this has never been common for japanese tanto as far as i know. 'american tanto' is a little better.

you look like you're off to a good start. depending on the tools you have on hand, you've actually picked what should be the easiest blade form to make.

[Camp10]

We got another one!!! You just wait and see what this one little knife is going to cost you over the next few years! LOL!

[JPGreco]

Well, thats what it was called on the site I looked at, so very well, I will now call it an angular chisel profile... lol

The tools I have make holding a straight line difficult (a belt sander in a vice, and free handing with grinder... lol) so I have nothing to hold the steel against to keep a consistent line, which you can't see in the pics, but they are a bit crooked in some spots and the grind isn't consistent either. However, nothing I can't fix since that was the first grind. The next step is taking it to the belt sander for extended time to try to smooth everything out.

Thanks for the compliments. Now to just figure out what I want to do with the handle and clean it up.

[JPGreco]

We got another one!!! You just wait and see what this one little knife is going to cost you over the next few years! LOL!

If I can cover the majority of the costs by selling a couple of finished knives, then I'll be happy.

[crashdive123]

Every grind I do is free handed. I don't use any jigs at all. It just takes practice and patience.

[canid]

after you do the bulk of grinding, you can relatively easily even out the lines by draw-filing with a mill file. even if you don't have one atm they can be had for under $10.

that's the way i do it, and then follow that out with progressively finer paper on a sanding block. of course each progressive step does 1/10th the work in twice the time.

[JPGreco]

Yeah, I knew I would have to get to hand sanding eventually. Luckily I have plenty of sitting on my arse time that I can hand sand it.... hence the need for a hobby... lol

Crash, I can be OCD sometimes, so I might HAVE to make a jig for the final filing to keep a really good line. I know I saw a pic of one on here that someone had made and its an excellent concept.

[rebel]

Nice. I've always liked the style of these knives.

[canid]

i've made a few, and as much the the conventional wisdom is that they are not very usefull, i must insist that one area they excel is in slashing. while the practical value of a good slashing knife is debatable, it could be called for, and at the end of the day, a sharp knife is a sharp knife.

[JPGreco]

I've got 5 more feet of bar stock to play with, this is just the first blade. I won't be repeating any style through the first batch. This will be the only one in this style for now.

I'm just not sure what I want to do with the spine. I originally planned on grinding it as well so the back side was also sharp, but holding it, I'm not sure I want to. I think I'll finish up the first two grinds, with a clean line, and then take a look and see.

As stated, this might be the start of an engulfing hobby. The only limitation being how big of a piece of metal can I afford... lol

I want to make a tomahawk eventually with a "full tang" (the entire thing is made of one piece of steel). Then apply a handle material in the same fashion as a knife, just more of it, and with more grip. I just don't have the cash on hand for that large of a piece of good steel.

[canid]

yeah; sadly good steel is extremely cheap when buying large amounts of it and a bit inflated when buying small amounts. you could easily spend the same amount on enough flatstock for 5-10 blades as for 20-40. of course bar stock goes up substantially as the width increases.

i'm sure the bug will take; it nearly always does. eventually you'll be as much a slave to it as the rest of us

[JPGreco]

well thats the pain of it, for a tomahawk, the stock would need to be on the thick side, I already priced it and its a good chunk of money.

I will say, there is a definite satisfaction watching the sparks fly from the grinder.

[canid]

on the bright side, your steel options for a hawk are far wider than those for a knife. there's probably a fair range of readily available plate that would be suitable.

[JPGreco]

Yeah, I haven't researched it a lot yet so I'm not sure what I would want to use, but it will be an interesting project. Gotta get through the knives first.

If I can, some of my handles are going to have stone inlays. I have chunks of marble from the counter and tile subcontractors. More stuff to play with and to drive myself nuts with.

[Camp10]

well thats the pain of it, for a tomahawk, the stock would need to be on the thick side, I already priced it and its a good chunk of money.

I will say, there is a definite satisfaction watching the sparks fly from the grinder.

There are all kinds of creative ways to get steel large enough for a hawk. Being a utility worker, I have lots of dealings with DOT and road crews all over the area. I am working on getting my hands on some old cutting edges from plow blades. They are 5-6" x roughly 3/8" and 8-12 feet long.

[JPGreco]

Stupid question time... lol

How do I use a mill file? I've seen conflicting info on only going one direction and being able to go back and forth with it.
Holding the file perpendiular to the blade, do I work it from tip to ricasso or do I work the file perpendicular to the blade the way its held (if that makes sense)?