Homemade Tools

[JDM]

I've seen a lot of posts of really excellent looking tools made by people who have nice tools to make tools. Great stuff. Amazing in some cases. I'm fairly tool-poor. Making stuff is a lot harder, and often downright frustrating, when you don't have the right things to do the job.

Below is a rawhide maul I made several months ago. It works very well. Total weight ended up about 25.5 ounces, IIRC. If anyone is interested, I posted the details of how I did it somewhere here before.

Now I'm working on making my first knife ever -- a round knife for cutting leather. It is patterned after the modified round knives shown at leatherwranglers.com. I cut the pattern from an old 7 1/4" circular saw blade using cut-off wheels in a dremel. That was real trial of patience. The old saw blade seems to be good high carbon steel judging from the sparks it threw. This is interesting: http://en.wikipedia....i/Spark_testing

i also hardened and then tempered a small test piece to make sure I could deal with the steel I was using.

I don't know how many hours I have into this knife so far. Many. Got it cut out, altered the shape some to suit me, hand filed the blade bevels, etc.

Hardening was a real pain. I really need to make a small oven. First, I tried a 500K BTU weed burner with the knife tied to a piece of rebar in open air. With that, I could get parts of the blade non-magnetic, but couldn't get the whole thing hot enough. Switched over to a little hibachi grill loaded with lump charcoal and blown with a hair dryer. First time quenching, the blade warped. I heated and pounded back to shape. Reheated hice and not, and quenched again. Warped again. After several more iterations of that process, I finally got it hard with relatively minimal warpage, though still slightly bent. I tempered at 400 in the kitchen oven for an hour or so. The picture attached is after removing from the oven. The steel is springy, yet still hard. I think the heat treatment was about right.

I'm not sure what to use for a handle. I drilled the holes to accept the brass rod included with my Spyderco sharpening set.

Edited January 11, 2012 by JDM

[Andrew Chee]

I've seen a lot of posts of really excellent looking tools made by people who have nice tools to make tools. Great stuff. Amazing in some cases. I'm fairly tool-poor. Making stuff is a lot harder, and often downright frustrating, when you don't have the right things to do the job.

Below is a rawhide maul I made several months ago. It works very well. Total weight ended up about 25.5 ounces, IIRC. If anyone is interested, I posted the details of how I did it somewhere here before.

Now I'm working on making my first knife ever -- a round knife for cutting leather. It is patterned after the modified round knives shown at leatherwranglers.com. I cut the pattern from an old 7 1/4" circular saw blade using cut-off wheels in a dremel. That was real trial of patience. The old saw blade seems to be good high carbon steel judging from the sparks it threw. This is interesting: http://en.wikipedia....i/Spark_testing

i also hardened and then tempered a small test piece to make sure I could deal with the steel I was using.

I don't know how many hours I have into this knife so far. Many. Got it cut out, altered the shape some to suit me, hand filed the blade bevels, etc.

Hardening was a real pain. I really need to make a small oven. First, I tried a 500K BTU weed burner with the knife tied to a piece of rebar in open air. With that, I could get parts of the blade non-magnetic, but couldn't get the whole thing hot enough. Switched over to a little hibachi grill loaded with lump charcoal and blown with a hair dryer. First time quenching, the blade warped. I heated and pounded back to shape. Reheated hice and not, and quenched again. Warped again. After several more iterations of that process, I finally got it hard with relatively minimal warpage, though still slightly bent. I tempered at 400 in the kitchen oven for an hour or so. The picture attached is after removing from the oven. The steel is springy, yet still hard. I think the heat treatment was about right.

I'm not sure what to use for a handle. I drilled the holes to accept the brass rod included with my Spyderco sharpening set.

Considering the limited tools you have, that's really nice work on the knife. The shape is really clean.

Andrew

[JDM]

Thanks. I like the overall design, particularly the ability to do pull cuts with that rear portion of the blade.

[BWL]

JDM

I really like the design of your knife:You_Rock_Emoticon: Would you consider sharing the pattern?

[TwinOaks]

Barbed, you can see the real deal at Leatherwranglers.com.

JDM, You did a good job with the tools you have, and I hate to rain on the parade, but here's some things you might want to know about:

Circular saw blades are often made with L6 steel. L6 is not a BAD metal to work with but it is somewhat limited for knives. I've noticed that it tends to rust quite easily. Also, circle saw blades may be too thick to effectively cut leather the way you want. I just checked my head knife and while the tang of the blade is pretty close to 1.5mm (or really dang close to 1/16th") it has a distal taper to ~.5mm, (or 3/128ths....a hair thicker than 1/64th") at the edge before the final blade bevel. To get your blade thinned down enough to sharpen....or to sharpen to the proper angle....it would've been better to do your grinding/sanding while the blade was annealed. If you need to do it now that your hardened blade, keep in mind that you'll need to keep it below critical temperature. Use hand tools, or if you use a power sander, keep bare fingers on the back of the blade to monitor the temp. If it's too hot to touch, it needs to be cooled before further work.

I do this when I make stamps from bolts, and just keep a glass jar of cold water handy for dunking.

[BWL]

Twin Oaks

Thanks for the web address. Thats a fine knife but........................ are they worth the money?

[TwinOaks]

If you have a need for all the features of the knife, but don't have the metallurgical knowledge or skill to make one, then yes, they're worth that price....unless you can find it cheaper. Keep in mind that Paul Z has spent some serious time and money not only on the physical shape, but also on what's IN the blade. You can check out his site for all the comments on the SK's blade. I believe his intent was to create a round knife that is the next generation in both geometry and cutting ability...and he's done a dang fine job of it.

If by chance, you have access to the various alloys needed to make high carbon stainless steel, and the tools to forge (or press), taper, grind, and heat treat the blade (SS needs molten salt vats in a pretty specific temp range which is very dependent on the particular alloy), and the skill to do that type work....then it may be more economical for you to pound one out one afternoon.

There is really only one reason why I don't have an SK-3 swivel knife yet. I like the design, I like that Paul has experimented to find the best alloy, and I like the construction methods....but I can't justify the price to myself until I reach the limits of carving ability with my old swivel knife. As soon as I get to that point, I'll get one. Same thing applies here: I have an A.Stohlman brand head knife and it cuts everything I put in front of it. If I didn't have that head knife, or if I needed it to do something it can't, I might could justify purchasing one of the new ones

Now, my personal opinion on the matter is that if you like the design, and all the features this knife design incorporates over 'standard' head/round knives.....then give the guy some credit and buy one of his knives instead of asking for the pattern. Round knives aren't new, and the original designer(s) have long since lost any patentable claims...but this one is pretty new and does have some specific design elements. I'm not sure if Paul has patented it, but it'd be worth investigating before blatantly copying.

[labrat7357]

I've seen a lot of posts of really excellent looking tools made by people who have nice tools to make tools. Great stuff. Amazing in some cases. I'm fairly tool-poor. Making stuff is a lot harder, and often downright frustrating, when you don't have the right things to do the job.

Below is a rawhide maul I made several months ago. It works very well. Total weight ended up about 25.5 ounces, IIRC. If anyone is interested, I posted the details of how I did it somewhere here before.

Now I'm working on making my first knife ever -- a round knife for cutting leather. It is patterned after the modified round knives shown at leatherwranglers.com. I cut the pattern from an old 7 1/4" circular saw blade using cut-off wheels in a dremel. That was real trial of patience. The old saw blade seems to be good high carbon steel judging from the sparks it threw. This is interesting: http://en.wikipedia....i/Spark_testing

i also hardened and then tempered a small test piece to make sure I could deal with the steel I was using.

I don't know how many hours I have into this knife so far. Many. Got it cut out, altered the shape some to suit me, hand filed the blade bevels, etc.

Hardening was a real pain. I really need to make a small oven. First, I tried a 500K BTU weed burner with the knife tied to a piece of rebar in open air. With that, I could get parts of the blade non-magnetic, but couldn't get the whole thing hot enough. Switched over to a little hibachi grill loaded with lump charcoal and blown with a hair dryer. First time quenching, the blade warped. I heated and pounded back to shape. Reheated hice and not, and quenched again. Warped again. After several more iterations of that process, I finally got it hard with relatively minimal warpage, though still slightly bent. I tempered at 400 in the kitchen oven for an hour or so. The picture attached is after removing from the oven. The steel is springy, yet still hard. I think the heat treatment was about right.

I'm not sure what to use for a handle. I drilled the holes to accept the brass rod included with my Spyderco sharpening set.

Hi, The comments by Twin Oaks are valid about the specialised nature of haderning and tempering steel. I have made a number of knives for leather work and my initial attempts failed when the blades developed cracks during the quench.. I spoke to a specialist metal processor who reccomended the steel from old one and two man cross cuts saws as they are very nearly early equivilents of 01 Tool steel and can be hardened and tempered using the same simple process. I made the knives and cutters but had him hardeen and temper them. They work well.

I do not agree with his statement about copying the design.. Patenting an Idea or registering a design is intended to provide protection of the interlectual property from exploitation from commercial rivals and companies. No where in the world is an individual prevented from making an item (an exact copy) for his personal use. If he were to start making and selling that item, that is a different story.

I've made some knives,edge tools a couple of strap cutters and awls for my self so that they fit my hand better and there is also the satisfaction of having made it your self. One of the strap cutters was modelled on the Joseph Dixon design and one was a simple cutter I designed and if any one wants to go the trouble of making that one, go for it. Infact if you did want to make one I still have some of the makings that are already milled drilled and tapped and just need finishing . You pay the post and I will send you one.

As for your handle you live in Arizona and you have Arizona desert iron wood which is one of the most beautiful and toughest woods anywhere.

Regards

Jeff

[JDM]

I just checked my head knife and while the tang of the blade is pretty close to 1.5mm (or really dang close to 1/16th") it has a distal taper to ~.5mm, (or 3/128ths....a hair thicker than 1/64th") at the edge before the final blade bevel. To get your blade thinned down enough to sharpen....or to sharpen to the proper angle....it would've been better to do your grinding/sanding while the blade was annealed. If you need to do it now that your hardened blade, keep in mind that you'll need to keep it below critical temperature. Use hand tools, or if you use a power sander, keep bare fingers on the back of the blade to monitor the temp. If it's too hot to touch, it needs to be cooled before further work.

I do this when I make stamps from bolts, and just keep a glass jar of cold water handy for dunking.

Good point about the blade thickness. The tang thickness on mine is about 1.25mm. It tapers down considerably before the edge. The picture doesn't show very well, but I formed the main bevel before heat treating, though I left the very edge a bit thick (too narrow is supposed to cause issues with overheating burning out carbon or something like that). After hardening I finished it up with a hand file, then used various grits of sandpaper on a mousepad to create a convex edge. Finished on a strop with rouge.

Apart from one portion of the radius that needs some more work (where the blade warped slightly) the knife is sharp and cuts well. The pull cut portion is great. I have a good size pile of scraps and shavings built up from testing while sharpening, and the big bald spot on my left arm is just now starting to fill back in. The knife actually seems to hold an edge fairly well. I can cut leather a lot better/cleaner/easier with it than the only other thing I have to compare it with: a utility knife. I have no idea how it compares to any other head knives.

Next time I make something like this, I'll try to use some known steel. I've been busy with other things and still haven't put on a handle.

I initially made a cardboard pattern with the basic lines, but redid it several times and then later ground away more metal and reshaped. I could trace the end result, but if you make one you'll probably want yours a little different. So, go with whatever you like. As I may have mentioned before, I think I could shrink the round portion for my needs. Reducing the large, flat blade area may help prevent warpage issues when quenching. To me, the pull cut part of the blade is the most useful.

labrat7357, I've also read about old saws being pretty good for such things. Not only crosscut saws, but even the bigger blades from sawmills. And, of course, older smaller circular saw blades. I've read to avoid newer blades, particularly those with carbide tips, as the blades are likely unsuitable steel.

What steel and quench medium were you trying when you had problems with cracking? Sounds like maybe you quenched an oil hardening steel in water. That can crack it. I've been told to test unknown steels by first quenching in oil. Check hardness with a file. If hard, oil works. If not, try quenching in water. If hard after that, it is water hardening. If still not hard, you're out of luck, though for certain parts you could case harden the surface. I doubt that would work very well for something like a knife.

Edit to add that I forgot to mention I quenched this knife blade in used cooking oil contained in a small coffee can. More oil and/or better technique on the first quenching try may have helped the warping issue.

Edited February 27, 2012 by JDM

[Andrew Chee]

Can you post a picture of your finished knife? I'd be interested in seeing it.

Andrew

[Toolingaround]

I really like your maul!!!

I struggle making and and altering stamps and making simple tools out of screw drivers and nails. I use a junior hacksaw, files and sandpaper. If I had the money for good tools to make tools well would just buy the good leather tools from the pros to start with LOL

Nice work,

Cheers, Toolingaround

[JDM]

I finally put a handle on this knife. I have some aged apple and pecan chunks to use for barbecuing. Found a chunk of apple that was about right, so I used it. I cut the slabs down to rough thickness using a hand held bow saw, then flattened on a sander.

I used JB Weld to glue on the scales, and the brass pins are from the "safety" rods in a Spyderco sharpening set. So, I managed to make this knife using only things I had on hand.

I don't have any other round knives to compare this with. It cuts leather a lot nicer than a utility knife.