The UK's Finest Independent Forum for Shooters and Gun Owners. Est 2010.

http://www.bushwear.co.uk/
Look at this site. Sale on. Knife kit £30 for a starter kit. Can't really go wrong for a first effort. Gain experience and then go for a better blade next time.

Vagabond.

Arghh, just looked but cannot see a link to the knife kit and a search fails as well, do you have a direct link please?

Found it! :goodjob:

If you do decide to go down the file route then i strongly suggest that you do anneal the file before working on it. Otherwise you are likely to create fast fracture points as you work it - especially if using a grinder.

If you're careful, you can anneal using a blowtorch - one of the 'turbo' plumbers type or a couple of regular types. Just get it up to temp and then plunge into sand. Leave it there to cool. This type will do : http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p71066

Work on the file and then normalise the metal using the same torches before hardening and tempering. Use an oil rather than water and as mentioned earlier, the final stage can be done in the wife's oven, provided you wrap the knife in tinfoil.

The saw blade is so much easier though. I may still have an old blade lying around the dept. I'll have a look on Monday.

I have exactly the same torch with both MAP and Propane bottles so annealing is not a problem, if you do have an old piece of blade lying around I would be interested.

meles meles wrote:I make knives, sometimes even going so far as to smelt my own ore, make an iron bloom, alloy it to make steel, then turn the steel into a blade. It can become a hobby on a par with shooting for gadgets, fastidiousness, expense and time taken up if you let it.

Hi mate, hoping you can help me out

Im Currently having a custom knife made and the maker has put forward the completion date twice, once for waiting on someone to heat treat the blade (fair enough) but the second time (currently) is because the heat treating has left alot of slag on the blade to the point where it isnt practical to grind it off but instead get it sand blasted (which i think may compromise the HT)

The steel used for the blade is (as he says is CPM154 steel hardened to 59 RHC, not sure how he can give a RC with a non completed blade) is this normal or am i been fobbed off

I know abit about steel and HT/Annealing but not enough to comment on what im been told

Thanks in advance

Sub-Moa

The hardness of 59 RC will be a predicted hardness. A good heat treating company will be able to deliver a blade to within two Rockwell points of their specification, many of them to within one point. Sand blasting shouldn't cause any loss of hardness and may even improve the quality of the blade in some respects. If they blast with the correct media they can leave a compressive microstress in the blade surface which will enhance toughness and reduce the likelihood of corrosion.

It's not uncommon for a custom blade to take a little longer to make than planned, a really good maker will prefer to take more time rather than produce a blade that isn't quite as good as it could be. If they are willing to put their name on the blade, they want it to be worthy of it. You could always check over at British Blades what kind of reputation the maker has. If he's well thought of there you shouldn't have any need to worry.

Dangermouse wrote:We have "customers" who can make "blades" from toothbrushes - or most nearly anything else you care to leave in their cell - but that does not help you much,

DM

Perhaps you could run courses for the law abiding amonsgt us.

Anyone know where I can get a paper blade sharpening wheel from in the Uk?

ta

Nick