swivel knife made on mini lathe

[mmason]

HI,

I made a swivel knife on a mini lathe I bought a long time ago. It need a better finish  but  I am happy with how it turned out and works. I have some aluminum lying around I want to try this on, any suggestions?

-Matt

 

Edited April 29, 2020 by mmason

[chuck123wapati]

14 minutes ago, mmason said:

HI,

I made a swivel knife on a mini lathe I bought a long time ago. It need a better finish  but  I am happy with how it turned out and works. I have some aluminum lying around I want to try this on, any suggestions?

-Matt

IMG_2687.HEIC

IMG_2685.HEIC

IMG_2686.HEIC

Would love to see it but the format isn't a familiar one do you have pics in .jpg

[mmason]

15 minutes ago, chuck123wapati said:

Would love to see it but the format isn't a familiar one do you have pics in .jpg

fixed it.

[chuck123wapati]

9 minutes ago, mmason said:

fixed it.

That is a nice job is it adjustable in length? I like the full ring seems it would provide better control.

[mmason]

8 minutes ago, chuck123wapati said:

That is a nice job is it adjustable in length? I like the full ring seems it would provide better control.

its adjustable there is a set screw on the other side of the knife.

[Scoutmom103]

Looks good.  

 

[Tugadude]

I'm constantly impressed by the various talents here on the forum.  Very nice job on that!  Is the one pictured made from steel?

[mmason]

13 minutes ago, Tugadude said:

I'm constantly impressed by the various talents here on the forum.  Very nice job on that!  Is the one pictured made from steel?

 yeah its steel, its pretty heavy which pushed me to try aluminum, Also the aluminum will cut a lot smoother.

[Frodo]

i want one.   Will you make me one?  

 

steel or aluminum. makes no difference to me.  i will sand that dude till it is smooth as the action on my 1911

Edited April 29, 2020 by Frodo

[blue62]

Not a bad looking knife, the ring works well for people with hand issues, don't have to worry as much about dropping it,

what did you use for a bearing under the saddle?

What kind of blade is in it?

[mmason]

27 minutes ago, blue62 said:

Not a bad looking knife, the ring works well for people with hand issues, don't have to worry as much about dropping it,

what did you use for a bearing under the saddle?

What kind of blade is in it?

some mini metric sized bearing from amazon i think it was around 2.5-4mm.

the blade is one I borrowed off another knife to see if it the saddle spins smooth when carving.

Edited April 29, 2020 by mmason

[LumpenDoodle2]

I think it looks fine, but IMHO aluminium is nice and light in the hand.  

I also have a mini lathe, but have not made a complete knife myself yet.   Having small hands, and the start of arthritis in a couple of fingers, I experimented with turning a wider barrel, then refitting the finger crescent bit.

Mine is made of aluminium, and I think the knurling came out not too bad for an amateur.     How did you put together the swivel part, I’ve not quite worked out the design for my next complete knife.

Excuse my tappy hammer.

[Rhale]

I have a couple leather wrangler which are aluminum, they are very light weight and take some getting use to but I think alum. Would work fine.  Yours looks great, are you going to make and sell any?  If so I would be interested! Thanks Rodney 

[mmason]

1 hour ago, LumpenDoodle2 said:

I think it looks fine, but IMHO aluminium is nice and light in the hand.  

I also have a mini lathe, but have not made a complete knife myself yet.   Having small hands, and the start of arthritis in a couple of fingers, I experimented with turning a wider barrel, then refitting the finger crescent bit.

Mine is made of aluminium, and I think the knurling came out not too bad for an amateur.     How did you put together the swivel part, I’ve not quite worked out the design for my next complete knife.

Excuse my tappy hammer.

 

for  the swivel I press fitted a bearing into that tube then welded the tube to the saddle( inside the loop is where I welded it, I drilled hole all the way through) then turned the inside till it was flush.

[LumpenDoodle2]

51 minutes ago, mmason said:

for  the swivel I press fitted a bearing into that tube then welded the tube to the saddle( inside the loop is where I welded it, I drilled hole all the way through) then turned the inside till it was flush.

Many thanks, I shall give that a go.

[Tugadude]

3 hours ago, LumpenDoodle2 said:

I think it looks fine, but IMHO aluminium is nice and light in the hand.  

I also have a mini lathe, but have not made a complete knife myself yet.   Having small hands, and the start of arthritis in a couple of fingers, I experimented with turning a wider barrel, then refitting the finger crescent bit.

Mine is made of aluminium, and I think the knurling came out not too bad for an amateur.     How did you put together the swivel part, I’ve not quite worked out the design for my next complete knife.

Excuse my tappy hammer.

That is some work to be proud of right there.

[LumpenDoodle2]

6 minutes ago, Tugadude said:

That is some work to be proud of right there.

Thank you, but I hide my mistakes well.     

I’m planning a bit experimenting with the shape of the body, and maybe turn a few brass ones.  

Aluminium is easy to turn and get a good finish on a mini lathe, compared  to working with steel, now that takes a bit more work, and can be a pain to get to look good.

[dikman]

Very nice, both of you! Those mini lathes are very handy for doing small work. Brass will be heavier but is nice to turn and looks very nice when polished.

[nrk]

On 4/29/2020 at 9:11 PM, mmason said:

HI,

I made a swivel knife on a mini lathe I bought a long time ago. It need a better finish  but  I am happy with how it turned out and works. I have some aluminum lying around I want to try this on, any suggestions?

-Matt

 

looks nice. but need several test runs by different people

personally, don't think aluminium  will be enough - this tool especially need to have body and weight