| Project by JDBlades | posted 107 days ago | 401 views | 2 times favorited | 8 comments |  |
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A good friend from college commissioned this knife after seeing a number of other knives I had made for friends. He selected the blade, and picked a really beautiful piece of quilted maple for the handle. Since he’s an avid hiker and outdoorsman, I also suggested adding a fire steel to the package so that he could build a fire anywhere, a thought that probably isn’t very comforting to his roommates. I used a scrap piece of the maple for the fire steel handle, and after a ton of sanding, finished the handles with a blend of mineral spirits and spar urethane. After some buffing and oiling, the knife was ready to go.
I used leather for the sheath, but was concerned that the loop for the fire steel might end up being too loose or too tight to be convenient, so I used a piece of Kydex (thermoplastic) and attached it to a leather tab on the sheath with Chicago screws so that it can be removed if necessary.
Comments, questions, suggestions, good jokes and all other manner of verbiage welcome.
-- I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it - Thomas Jefferson
8 comments so far
Mike
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268 posts in 517 days
posted 107 days ago
Like the blade and the fire steel great combo.
Now….where’s mine?? :0)
-- Measure once cut twice....oh wait....ooops.
Kevin
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25 posts in 231 days
posted 107 days ago
Your friend has good taste in picking out wood. Very nice :)
huff
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1630 posts in 185 days
posted 107 days ago
Great looking knife and fire steel. Nice job on both.
-- John @ Myrtle Beach
Kerux
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513 posts in 784 days
posted 107 days ago
Those look great! I’ve got a couple of knife blades waiting for handles. and I’m not sure of the process. Any hints or how to’s?
-- http://inhisgrip1.blogspot.com/
a1Jim
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17211 posts in 477 days
posted 99 days ago
Purdy knife
-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop, custom furniture ,maker, woodworking school, heirloomwoodshop.com
JDBlades
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30 posts in 170 days
posted 99 days ago
Thanks for the comments guys. Kerux, sorry for the late reply, but I just got back to town. Not sure if your knives are full or hidden tang, but here’s one tutorial for each – enjoy, and let me know if you have questions. I’ll do my best to answer them.
http://www.knivesby.com/handles.html
http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5634
-- I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it - Thomas Jefferson
Demowen
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113 posts in 297 days
posted 30 days ago
I do indeed have a few questions. I love that you included the fire steel. Where did you get such a thing? I have made a few sheaths before but have not had much luck with getting the leather to hold the form quite like what yours are doing here. Do you heat the leather in water to shape it or do you have another method?
What do you use to create the hole at the top of the handle?
Great knifes!
-- Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us; establish the work of our hands- establish the work of our hands! Psalm 90:17
JDBlades
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30 posts in 170 days
posted 29 days ago
Nickel/silver or brass thong tubing (just hollow metal rods) for the hole at the top of the knife. Check out firesteel.com for fire steels in various sizes. For shaping, I dunk the leather in warm water for maybe 30 seconds, and then wrap it around the knife and leave it to dry overnight. Works pretty well. Thanks for the feedback!
-- I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it - Thomas Jefferson