I have been learning to forge knives from a man who has become more of a friend than a mentor over the past couple of years. Although, due to work and school I have not been able to get out to see him and make anything in quite a while, but I plan on making more knives very soon and hopefully selling a few. I enjoy the process almost as much as I do the final project.
Together we spent quite a bit of time learning how to get a nice "S" curve in the nickle-silver guard, that went nicely with the overall curvature of the blade... adding nicely to it's aesthetics. The Black-Palm wood that I chose to make the handle was almost as hard as the steel and was quite difficult to drill properly to fit the 3/4 tang into just right. We ended up filling the gaps in with epoxy, which only added to the strength of the handle. It has a great balance that fits perfectly right behind the guard on the handle and we finished the handle with a curvature that meets the guard perfectly. The brass pin in the handle is more for show than it is to secure the handle as the handle is bonded to the steel with epoxy.
Now I just need someone to teach me how to make proper leather sheaths.
Together we spent quite a bit of time learning how to get a nice "S" curve in the nickle-silver guard, that went nicely with the overall curvature of the blade... adding nicely to it's aesthetics. The Black-Palm wood that I chose to make the handle was almost as hard as the steel and was quite difficult to drill properly to fit the 3/4 tang into just right. We ended up filling the gaps in with epoxy, which only added to the strength of the handle. It has a great balance that fits perfectly right behind the guard on the handle and we finished the handle with a curvature that meets the guard perfectly. The brass pin in the handle is more for show than it is to secure the handle as the handle is bonded to the steel with epoxy.
Now I just need someone to teach me how to make proper leather sheaths.
Cowboy-style Bowie knife
Overall length 14 inches.
Blade length 8 inches (edge 7 inches)
Full flat grind with curved edge.
3/4 tang.
Full flat grind with curved edge.
3/4 tang.
1080 high carbon steel, polished blade.
Nickle Silver hand-curved guard
Handle made of Black Palm wood.
Below are some picture I took during the forging process of making this knife.
Home made Forge.
Heating the blade to about 1400 degrees Fahrenheit to forge on the Anvil.
Getting closer.
Almost finished with the blade shape. Unfortunately, I didn't take further pictures during the process of completing the blade, creating and attaching the guard and handle. Next time I will document everything.
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