Home Forums Gear Knives and Blades making my own knife

i have always wanted to make my own knife with a block of wood or with a deer horn, elk horn or what ever for gifts for friends and family can any one tell me how i could get started with a book that i can read,DVD, and tools i need to get or tricks that you may know thank you can any one please help

Here I go again, plugin' the Mora knives...

I would start with making a handle. You can get a couple Frost Mora knives for pretty cheap (but have good quality swedish steel), and brake the handle off and make your own handles out of wood or antler. If you mess up, your not out much money.

Then I would suggest moving onto a kit knife from a knife maker (jantz supply, etc) where the blade is already made/sharp, etc.

I am at the "kit" stage, and will hopefully be able to grind/forge my own knife this next summer.

joe

were do you get the best starter kit from were you her the best bang for your buck

Jantz is a reputable supply house. So is Texas Knifemaker Supply.

The best words of advice I can give you is try and find a local knifemaker that will teach you some tricks of the trade. I've got an electrician that works for me that does the whole blacksmithing thing, as well as stock removal on a grinder. He showed me more in one afternoon than I would have picked up on my own in a year.

Then read a ton on bladeforums.com and knifemakers.com They've both got subforums for 'newbies'.

Google "The Jonesy Tutorial", the guys on the knife forums will point it out to you to start.

There is also a book, The $50 Knife Shop, or similar title, that they will all put you on as well.

Good luck, its addicting. Then you'll be like me wishing you'd bought a 2"x72" grinder right from the beginning because your 1"x42" just isn't getting it done.

thank you so much any more tips will help do you know if they make a dvd on knife making

There are a bunch on youtube.com for free that will give you a general idea.

joe

Bell, if your ever in the Denver area on a Saturday let me know, expect to do some hammering, your welcome to join in.

The second and third blade from the left are on there way to Tim (michiganroadkill) to express his magic on.



We do a lot of forging, and I bet we can set you up with some OCCS steel (Old Chevy Coil Spring) or some John Deere rock-shaft steel to get you started.

Google 'Knife Maker Suppliers.'

These companies have numerous books on the whys and hows of knifemaking.

Possibly the very best is one written by Bob Loveless and someone else.

You can learn more from most of these books than any of us could tell you in a year, although, if you know an experienced knifemaker, he can teach you a lot in a short amount of time.

Depending on how serious you are in getting into knifemaking, you can spend a lot to a lot more on tools.

salonek man that looks like some real fun and if a ever am in the area i will take you up on that i would love to learn how to make a knife from scratch

I took a knifemaking class when I was in gunsmithing school more than 35 yrs. ago, it was taught by professional knifemaker Jim Sasser. We learned to make our blades by the stock removal method, the method we used was a file. It was a long slow, tedious process. I used white paper Micarta for the handle of that first knife, bought a bag of leather scraps and made a pouch type sheath. Since that time I have used blades purchased from the knfiemaker supply catalogs, I change the shape to suit my taste. The only bad thing about using purchased blades is that the majority are 440C stainless steel, not the best steel for holding an edge. As for handle material, I use nicely figured walnut or jigged cow bone. I have made several knives for myself, the rest I have given to friends and occassionally have sold a few. Most have been sold for just the cost of the materials, the labor being a labor of love. I had a custom leatherworker who made really nice sheaths at a reasonable cost, however he retired a few years back. The sheaths available from the knifemaker supply catalogs can be made to look nice with a little finishing work. Sheaths for my own knives are usually hand made.

Northcoast knives has some great tutorials. I've been making them for a couple of years or should I say customizing them since I don't make the blades. It is an addiction. LOL!

K
Looking forward to working up those high performance 52100 blades.
Good work with the kids there. Hopefully I will come across some materials to donate again.
I may have to come out for a personal tutorial and give up the stock removal method.
Tim

K Salonek

"The second and third blade from the left are on there way to Tim (michiganroadkill) to express his magic on. "

Kevin--- see my pm to you reference to the "lost"blades.

Tim