Thread: chanisaw bar razor

You got me there Mick, I'm perfectionist to some degree, but as I approach to the end of my work I become more and more impatient, hence the scratches on the blade and faults like the gap on the handle.
There are few scratches on the razors too although they don't show on photos.
I sanded them by hand, also tried some improvised tools, it all could be better I know.
But again, I'm still learning metalworking, don't know much about, and most of all like using stuff that I made myself.

I glued wood and aluminum on the tang with liquid steel glue.
Should be much better than the epoxy resin, pretty serious stuff, and again I had some in the garage.

well thats amazing could you would you mind if i pm you more about that i have a few chainsaws sittign around and maby this spring ill take one of the burt bars from one and try to make a knife or razor i have an angle grinder, die cutters bench grinders and files glore id love it if we could talk more about how these are made

Originally Posted by Deerhunter1995

well thats amazing could you would you mind if i pm you more about that i have a few chainsaws sittign around and maby this spring ill take one of the burt bars from one and try to make a knife or razor i have an angle grinder, die cutters bench grinders and files glore id love it if we could talk more about how these are made

Sure thing, just ask. Although the only real advice I could give you is that with bench grinder you MUST USE BLADE GUIDE to get your movements minimized. Forget about free-handling the blade on the grinder, you won’t get much of the result. I improvised mine, nothing fancy but serves the purpose and takes few minutes to align. I’ll post some pictures if you like when I get chance.

Originally Posted by birdman74

You got me there Mick, I'm perfectionist to some degree, but as I approach to the end of my work I become more and more impatient, hence the scratches on the blade and faults like the gap on the handle.
There are few scratches on the razors too although they don't show on photos.
I sanded them by hand, also tried some improvised tools, it all could be better I know.
But again, I'm still learning metalworking, don't know much about, and most of all like using stuff that I made myself.

I glued wood and aluminum on the tang with liquid steel glue.
Should be much better than the epoxy resin, pretty serious stuff, and again I had some in the garage.

Well, I know exactly where you are coming from, I am the same as you, a perfectionist with little patience, but I force myself to be patient or to stop working on the knife when I start to rush it. That's when mistakes happen. Try to do something similar. When I first started out making knives (or getting more serious about it really) I started seeking out knife-makers from the Guild of Knife-makers who would take the time out to give me advice and criticism. One bloke gave me some great advice and demonstration on what works and what doesn't. I was able to improve on my knives from his advice.
I travelled to an event about 1000 miles away on a family holiday and managed to arrange to see another guildsman (higher up in the chain) with another knife I had made. He was impressed with my work, but pointed out that anyone who wants to make knives and thinks they might sell one or two needs to be the own Quality Control. If you aren't happy with it, then neither will the customer be happy.

No matter how good a glue is, at some point it will let you down. With that style of grip, you could use the hidden pin method which is exactly the same as dowelling timber together using some short bits of timber or metal rod and glue. It would maintain the solid look of the timber that way. The bolsters and handles should be both glued and pinned for maximum strength. And there are many methods to do this. Having said all this, Well done, on what I gather, is your first knife. And a bigger well done on your razors. I've never attempted anything like that myself. Not brave enough to .

The pictures below are of a homemade knife that I sanded entirely by hand, the finish could have been better still though. (made the whole thing entirely by hand. Files and sandpaper.) This is my main camping knife. I use it as my axe, peg driver, stake sharpener and all other jobs that a big blade is good for.




Mick

That is some heavy duty bowie you got there Mick, and all done strictly by hand… looks awesome.
Thanks for the advice, I know what you’re saying, it really is the best thing to do when you become inpatient to stop working on the blade.
But again, sometimes you just can’t help yourself
Actually I do this strictly for a hobby, wouldn’t sell any of my blades. Had some offers for the razors that were pretty decent, but just couldn’t broke apart from them.

When you put the time and effort into making something like a razor or a knife, the feeling you have when you sell the first time is almost like you are hocking off one of your own children. It is a hard thing to do, but you do get used to it. My own knife making is on hold these days, until my children get a little older and smarter. And it was only ever a hobby for me too, but I still sold some to make it pay it's own way.
I also taught a mate of mine the basics and gave pointers to him along his way. He has now far excelled my own humble skills, and produces some beautiful knives. I only have one of his that he gifted me, made 'specially for me. It is a beast. Heare are a couple of photo's to put it in perspective. They aren't the best photo's but enough to give you an idea.
You'll also notice my mirror finished blade is not so shiney now. I ended up taking it back to a semi-satin finish when I decided it had to make itself useful. It was originally a seller, but the bloke couldn't pay in the end so I kept it for myself.




Mick

Wow, man, do you have talent my friend! Really talented! And to think I was impressed with my own handiwork...which is limited to replacing scales.

If I recall, knife-makers in the early days, used to use 'spring' steel from cars to make their knives. I believe, because it was already hardened. Have any of you gentlemen ever heard of anybody using spring steel as a blank to make a razor?

I used a large leaf spring to make a broad sword and also did the same in more years with a large knife. The sword turned out just fine, but the knife kept trying to take the shape of the leaf spring again during heat treatment, and as such didn't work too well at all. I think if you choose to use it, you take your chances. More often than not it will be fine, but every so often your efforts will amount to nought but experience.


Mick

Actually, "spring" steel is great for many projects. but you have to completely normalize it first! they become "work hardened" by the constant movement they undergo while bouncing along the road. I have seen them become brittle enough that they crack in half.