© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.
This weekend I only could work for about 4 hours on this project, but I have finally managed to finish one blade.
I am not happy with it. Like, at all. I could have done a better job, and I have done a better job in the past. I just could not get into the thing at all. I kept making mistakes, and whilst to make a mistake on belt grinder takes a split of a second, correcting it can take hours. After 400 grit I went to hand-sanding. It is more strain on the fingers than the belt grinder, but a lot less space for a mess-up. And therefore I was, paradoxically, suddenly a lot faster. I might switch to hand sanding on the other blade sooner.
After 1000 grit I went for buffing wheels. Buffing a blade like this is not optimal and if I did not mess up the grind on belt grinder so often as I did, I would not go for it and I would polish it up to 7000 grit sandpaper. However buffing has one advantage, besides being fast – it hides and smoothens slight imperfections on the bevels by ever so slightly rounding up the ridges. Which is also the reason why I normally would not go for buffing for a blade like this.
This is the blade that goes to the customer. Next weekend I will hopefully finish the second one and then I can start on the accessories.
But after I am done with currently started projects, I will definitively make a batch of these. It is a complicated shape, and thus an excellent exercise.
That’s a great picture Charly. The blade looks good to me, although I appreciate that you will be seeing flaws that I do not, we always see the flaws in our own work.
That knife is gorgeous.
But that was not my image of Charly.
It is now.
That’s pretty! We all see the mistakes we know are there, others don’t.
Buffing is so terrifying I usually go from 3000 grit to steel wool and then metal polish. I have had blades embed themselves point first in cinderblock after the buffer grabs them. Paradoxically, that happens and I’m happy because it didn’t take my finger with it.
Can you use a sanding block? It’s possible to make an ergonomic handle and use spray-glue to layer paper on, so you don’t have to tear your fingers up.
Shurap has a reciprocating sanding device that is pretty unique in knife-making. It moves the blade back and forth quite quickly, and he wraps sandpaper around a block and just holds it where he wants the sanding to happen. On the other hand, watching a sharp blade go back and forth like that too much resembles a turkey slicer for my taste.
Shiny!
It is a gorgeous blade.
I think it’s beautiful. I full-sized the photo to look at it and the shape is gorgeous. I’m sure your eye is drawn to what you feel is imperfect, but I don’t think anyone else will find fault. I’m sorry it was such a bitch to finish,