Starting a new knife

[RGK]

Shifting arrow. I use mesh reinforces cutoff wheels in a Dremmel tool. I go through a lot of them to.

jindydiver The knife is pretty flexible. It is M42  Triple tempered Cobalt steel with a hardness of Rockwell C-69. This material is used to cut hardened heat treated steels and stainless. It's made of Carbon, Tungsten, Molybdenum, Vanadium, Chromium and Cobalt.
I am not a metallurgist. I may have been sold a bill of good but it sure is hard stuff. The sparks are white as snow.

[jindydiver]

Thanks

High Speed Steel makes a great blade. I have used bandsaw blades and power hacksaw blades for knives and they work a treat. I have never seen it work at 69C though, so I suppose I have seen something new  

[RGK]

Still too cold and snowy to take the long bow out so I will make another knife. This one will be a small skinner. I used another Chicago Cutlery factory second blank and will reshape it into the skinner.



I cut it out with a Dremmel tool and then ground, tapered and polished the blade.





The blade is 4 inches long and so is the handle. I like knives that are about as long as my index finger so they are easy to handle and I can get a good feel while working with it.



I want to use an exotic wood for the handle. Time to go shopping.

[Shakes.602]

I am In  AWE  of The Talents there are on this  Fine Web Family  we have going on!!
  Awsome Knives, and a Good  "How-To"  on the Sheaths too!! This One Will Be Archive Material!!        
      Good Job on  ALL  the Knives!!
 I have said it Before, and will say it again:
           ONLY ON TRADGANG!!  

[ber643]

Great stuff here - knew it was gonna be a winner and turned out to be a winner with some winning mates (sheath too).

[ringo64]

what do you use to polish your blades?  i make some blades from old files and such but have a hard time finishing the blades.

[RGK]

A 6 inch bench grinder with a cloth polishing wheel and rouge. Before that, I use a couple grade of emery.

[RGK]

I got a piece of Ipe ( ip-pay) wood for the handle of the skinner. This is some awesome wood. It is a Brazilian hardwood that is very dense. Pine has a specific gravity of .3 and a weight per cubic foot of 38. Walnut's S.G. is .48 and weight of 44 Lbs per cubic foot. Hickory is .8 S.G. and weighs 50 Lbs per cubic foot. Specific gravity is based on a constant. That being water. Water has a specific gravity of 1 so the above listed woods float on water. Ipe has a S.G. of 1.08 (it sinks) and a weight of 70 Lbs per cubic foot. It also has a class "A" fire rating ( it won't burn ) so it is more like concrete than wood. Carbide tools are recommended. LOL. This wood is neither rare or expensive since it is being used for decks and docks because it outlasts green treated lumber. It has a reddish brown look with shades of green tint to it. The sawdust however is a yellow/green?????? This is going to be a neat handle. Another interesting thing about this wood is that it requires no finish because it is so hard. I will still use tung oil to bring out the grain and to give it some sheen. The Number 1 reason I want to use it is becuse I got some for free and I am cheap. LOL

For the record. The hardest/heaviest wood in the world is South African ironwood. Found in the West Indies, it has a specific gravity of 1.49 and weighs up to 93 pounds per foot.

This concludes today's class on fun wood facts.



yellow sawdust.

[RGK]

I got the handle on the skinner tonight. The Ipe is nice to work with.



It sands nicely to.



It is a very nice looking grain. I will use it again.

[elk ninja]

Dang RGK, I am really liking all of these knives a lot, thanks for the build along!  I am working up a couple similar knives and I like the ipe and birch a lot, gonna have to try that next batch!
Semper Fi,
Mike

[RGK]

Ipe has become my new favorite wood.

[DarkeGreen]

cool stuff, I'm ready for the next one.