One really great thing about knife-making is that it seldom turns into an F-35 program. On the other hand, if it did, I’d be important, rich, set for life. It’s amusing to me to ponder the cost-scale and effort-scale between ancient weapons and modern, and that a dagger is still a better weapon in many ways.
“Oroshigane” is the Japanese word for “shop metal” – steel that is home-brewed from whatever the smith decides is interesting.
Where we left things, my blade was clayed up and standing in the corner drying.
This is what it looks like when you are correcting the back of the blade.
Nobody got hurt and nothing was permanently damaged. Other than that, the day did not go particularly well. [Read more…]
I stuck a GoPro on the end of the die of a Coal Iron forging press.
Today was all set-up for the big day: quenching. In order to minimize blade bends or change of a stress-riser triggering a crack, the solution is typically Japanese; you simply remove as much asymmetry as you can because that’s what causes the bends.
Finally, I am back on more solid ground; we have switched to grinders and rasps for shaping the blade preparing for the quench.
I don’t feel that my hammer control is very good, but once the shape of the blade gets refined, good control is more and more important.
I did not take many pictures today. Mostly because the object of my photos would be an object of frustration.