My new hobby. First result

[nnickusa]

Hi guys.

Some had expressed an interest in seeing what I was going to do now that I've given up guitars due to allergic responses.

That, being knife making. As a chef, it fits. There are some ideas I have of knnoves that would be of use to me that I can't really find in the market.

These are my first two.

This one is a little veggie knife I made and is my first forged knife. Made out of a steel round bar I had left from building my drum sander.

This one is my second and is a Japanese style sashimi knife, but a bit bigger than the one I've been using for the past couple years.

Keep up the good work, boys.

[GregL]

Hi Nick,

The knives look good! What wood did you use for the handles?

Thanks,
GregL.

[Kamusur]

Looking good Nick.

Steve

[Mark McLean]

Hi Nick.
I am a keen cook and a few years ago I picked up two great Japanese knives from Aritsugu when I was visiting Kyoto. Those knives were a real relevation to me, compared to the average ones from a department store that we are all used to. It is exactly like the first experience of playing a great handmade guitar when you have only experienced factory made ones before.

So, I think it is very cool that you are taking on the making of that sort of beautiful tool. I can imaging it is a very logical extension of the motivation that you had for guitar making. Keep sharing the results with us!

cheers

Mark

[nnickusa]

Thanks guys.

Greg, the handle on the little one is leopardwood that I bought as knife scales intending to turn them into Uke bridges, and the sashimi knife is EIR/Aluminium/Blackwood/Aluminium/EIR.

The rosewood is leftover from fretboards, the blackwood is from that block I showed you, and the al spacers are from some angle stock i had laying around and leftover from my building days.

I still have some nice bits nd bobs left, and it seems that I can work these small bits, using a fan blowing the dust away and a respirator, and survive. I only do 10-15 minute sessions, and clean up very carefully, so no ill effects. When I ge it sorted, I'll have a crack at my last guitar. Keeps staring at me and making me guilty.....

Mark, the big difference in the tye of knife is the steel. Most Euro knives are stainless, and the Cr molecule is MUCH bigger than steel, so it doesn't get as sharp. You also need to take good care of a real steel knife, but it's worth it. Of course, the design also makes a big difference. In Japanese, the term for chef is "Man of the knife."



Thanks again guys. I'll keep you all posted....

[charangohabsburg]

That's really cool stuff Nick!
I would use that veggie knife for splitting bracewood though...

[nnickusa]

Thanks, Markus.

I'm not sure the bracewood would survive!

Been trying a bit of forge welding for pattern welded steel knives today.......WOW! Looks a LOT crazier in pix....

[68matts]

How did you go with it Nick? I tried some 20 or so years ago and it was a bit harder than it seems. Getting the temperature just right and consistent through the piece was tricky.

[nnickusa]

yeah, wasn't a total win, but 80% got done, and I think the rest can be brought into line. Tricky stuff. Not made easier by the idea that every video of the process is shot in semi-dark sheds, garages etc, but I'm working outdoors in bright daylight. I'll bet there is a big difference, and I assume a big learning curve as well....I'm used to that, what with the guitar-building stuff....

[charangohabsburg]

I'm not sure the bracewood would survive!

That would be good as it should split, not survive!

Cool, errr... hot little forge you have there!

[DarwinStrings]

Nice hobby for a southern winter, not the sort of thing I could see as fun up here.

Jim

[Dennis Leahy]

Those knives look nice, Nick!

I'm not geared-up for any metalworking such as forging or cutting blanks out, so I just bought a bunch of "knives without handles" (semi-finished blanks), to try my hand at (what really amounts to) knife handle-making, and knife polishing. Kinda wimpy in comparison to what you are doing. I think the Japanese phrase for this is "pretend knife-maker without balls."

Dennis

If I had the tools to make a knife shape, I'd make a santoku with a comfy handle, like this shape:

[nnickusa]

It's actually not all that hot Jim. I just stick the steel in and wander off. I want to build a coal-fired forge next and that will be pretty well self-contained, and won't actually radiate as much heat as the gas one. I'm also hoping it'll be cheaper. Gas tanks go about two days......gonna get a 45 kg one in next.....

Dennis, a santoku is a good knife shape. I use a 6 1/2 inch Nakiri and a 10 inch Chef's knife most. I like the long blade on the chef's. French shape, rather than German, makes it easier to rock the blade.

Here's a bit of "Arty" stuff I did today. I intended to work on a knife, but got sidetracked after seeing a video on YouTube of a guy making a leaf.....here's mine

Started out as a 4" long piece of 20mm round steel rod....

[Nick]

It's actually not all that hot Jim. I just stick the steel in and wander off. I want to build a coal-fired forge next and that will be pretty well self-contained, and won't actually radiate as much heat as the gas one.

I'm not up on the blacksmithing skills required for Damascus steel but after witnessing it many moons ago when I was having some bits made for a black powder weapon for me, I was told that in order to get the right heat required to weld the dis-similar metals (plus coal burnt adding impurities into the steel that you don't want) that you need to use Coke so if you can source some it might be worth experimenting with
Nice work so far, by the way

[nnickusa]

Hah, I, to, seem to not be up on the proper techniques for making damascus, Nick. I'm going to cut open my first try and have a look inside somtime soon, as I think it didn't turn out too well.

It is only a first try, and I think it didn't get hot enough to start with. Even if only half of it actually welded, I can still make one knife from that much.

Too bloody hot today to do any cooking, but Imight lay out a new knife to grind. Maybe a Nakiri, with a matching handle......

[simso]

Some had expressed an interest in seeing what I was going to do now that I've given up guitars due to allergic responses.
That, being knife making. As a chef, it fits.

Nick, you have me on the edge of my seat, please tell me lots....

When I started my working career I was a butcher, so I learnt and got my ticket in an abbatoirs in Macksville NSW.

My daughter is in her second year apprenticeship of being a ""Chef"", I have endless amounts of tools and would dearly love to make her a knife for a christmas present, can you help me with links, info etc


Steve

[nnickusa]

Hey Steve. Sorry, didn't see this post before. Good to see you found the blade forum. But, I find trolling YouTube to be more helpful.

One idea you might pursue for steel is to pick up a Damascus blank off eBay. I got one for $50 or so, delivered. Looks the goods.

Will look for the seller. Just depends what kind of knife you want, if you can work the sizes. I would definitely go stock removal, if you have a way to grind. I used my handheld belt sander first, but found it hard to do a good job, so bought a Ryobi belt/disk combo for a couple hundred, and it works much better for me.

Sorry for the late reply. Pm me any questions. I'll answer as best I can. Kitchen knives seems to be the wilderness area over there.

Cheers,
Nick

[simso]

So just a thankyou nick, for an inspirational post,

Because of this post I went and made a chefs knife for the daughter (apprentice chef) and am super pleased with myself,

If not for your post, I would not have done it, or even given it a thought

Steve

[nnickusa]

My pleasure, Steve. I have watched your project on. The knife forum, and it looks a winner. As the boys over there said, you can sort out the minor imperfections later, but you'll not likely need to, as it looks fine. Remember, it is a working tool, and will dull and scratch in its own time as well.

Like a guitar, you will see any minor flaws more than any other. I bet your daughter will love it. Merry Christmas.

[needsmorecowbel]

Interesting thread on that knife forum Steve! Well documented!

Stu

[simso]

Thanks,

I did not post here because this is nicks thread, and I dont want to monopolise his topic, as it was his topic that inspired me and hopefully may inspire some others as well

Steve

[needsmorecowbel]

Totally understand, I only commented as I find the whole smithing process very interesting. Cool work guys!

Stu