Well being home and not working I decided to knock out a new knife the other day for someone. I didnt have a camera other than my cell phone so the pics arent that great but once it arives maybe the recipient will post some better pics of it. Its made from (IIRC) L7 steel from an industrial bandsaw blade from the saw mill and has spacers/liners that I cut out of the side of a plastic 12V battery box and scales made from cow horn. Now to see if I can get the pics to post.
The blade is 1/16" thick 6" long and about 2 1/2" deep with an OAL of 10 1/2" and the handle is about 3/8" thick. The pics dont show it real well but the black liners show up and contrast nicely against the horn and it has brass pins. The first pic up top is the material it came from, the second is the horn the scales came from. The horn is from some kind of cow from south Africa that has huge horns, this one was about 3' long and about 10" across at the large end. The third pic is where after I cur the pieces of horn for the scales I had to boil them to make them pliable then clamp them between the slabs of wood so they would dry flat to be useable. The fourth pic is the blade blank after I got it shaped and drilled for the plates. The first one on the bottom isnt a very good pic but its the finished knife and the other one is the back of the handle.
Very Very Cool ! I like it ! I bet it's an excellent slicer! Good use of materials as well.... how long did you have to boil the horn to get it pliable enough to press... Looks like it came out terrific!
Thanks. I boiled it for about 45 min then clamped it and let it dry over night then just used contact cement and the pins to attach it to the tang and clapmed that for several hours to be sure it stayed flat.
I am the recipient of this knife. It's razor sharp and the scales are very nicely done. Because of the band-saw steel, I mentioned to mm that it would make a very good filet knife with the right profile. Very flexible. I haven't used it yet for anything other than shaving hair off my wrist yet. When I do, I'll let you know how it goes.
Awesome work, MM. I donated a couple of blades (circular) a few years back for the same purpose. I received several wood carving knives, but didn't get to see the process or even pics. Love that horn ! MELBO, PICS please ! annie