My first finished forged fknife

[Jason_01]

Third blade Ive forged, probably my poorest attempt yet but for the fact that this one made it to the end in one piece! Its a bit of a dog, I think the picture is quite flattering, it looks worse in real life, taken just as I finished with a camera that doesnt do flash very well ;)

Yew from the Welsh marches, copper pins, silver steel blade from 1/2" stock, some hammer detail left in.

I was dubious about the durability of yew, being less tough than my usual woods of choice, cocobolo, african blackwood etc. Its certainly a lot softer and I suspect it will not be all that tough partic unstabilised, also a crack has appeared by the ferrule, the ferrule was tight, a little too tight, the aforementioned woods wouldnt of cracked tho I think :(

http://www.jasonbhall.freeserve.co.uk/knackered.jpg

If nothing else Ive learnt new respect for the many guys on here that make beautiful blades!

Jason

[PUMA]

Don't sell yourself short :biggthump Every one made is a lesson for the next. I have only watched so far :o Am hoping soon to try my own though,lucky for me, know someone with forge and willing to help :D Keep at it ,from here it looks OK! :biggthump

[Trond]

Looks good to me Jason :)
That grind aint easy to do, you just need practice and it will be perfect.
Well done

[ZDP-189]

Looks good to me too!

I wouldn't know exactly what I thought of it unless I had held it in my hands, but from the looks of it, I'd be happy to carry it in an outdoors/ bushcraft envoronment.

[Wrangler]

Come on Jason,

you`re joking! ;)
That`s not your first knife you forged or finished!!
It`s looking great to me. :biggthump
I`ve seen knives of so called knifemakers that are looking very very poor beside yours!
Well done!
Greets,
Wolfgang :biggthump

[hootchi]

It looks very good. I like the handle. does the blade look bigger, or is it the camera?

[dtalbot]

Looks good to me,
Assuming it takes and holds a sharp edge I'd be happy to have it beside me in the wilderness.
David

[Tacol]

Good job Jason !
I agree with Trond, you did well that difficult kinf of grind.

Yew is quite hard to work with. Beautiful polish finish when worked gently with the files and sand paper. but cracks very easely when forced or cut in opposite fiber direction.
I also started to make my first knives handles with this material because it grows easely in my region.
You avoid many beginners mistakes once you have found the way to work with yew (I think)

keep forging :D that way

Stéphane

[Kevin]

Jason.

I like it and you have done well.
It has a very nice shape....Was the stock flat or round that you forged it from?

Handle looks very good and well constructed....

You mention a 'ferrule'......but I cant see one :confused:

[Jason_01]

The angle of the photo makes the blade look bigger than it is, it also makes the edge grind look flat to me but its actually convex (at the moment anyway), I think the handle is too thick but I can work on adjusting the profile, didnt want to loose the white sapwood tho.

I forged the blade from round stock and the ferrule is just visible at the end of the handle though its difficult to see its a ferrule. There are two copper pins and a brass ferrule.

It takes a good edge but the convex grind on anything but a very thin blade seems to make carving more difficult than a flat grind so I may have to sort that, any opinions on convex for carving? Damn, rubbing is slow work after heat treat!

I still say its a flattering photo ;) but Im pleased to know that I made it from scratch, Ive fitted handles to bought blades before and its not quite the same.

Thanks for the comments guys, I'll take some more pics when I've fettled the handle a bit.

Jason

[Jason_01]

You can see the ferrule in this pic Coutel, its only 1/4"

http://www.jasonbhall.freeserve.co.uk/Knife2.jpg

Jason

[stonehard]

nice knife. I think what is confusing everyone is that the ferrule is the landyard tube. we tend to think that a ferrule is a tube fitted to the end of handle to support the blade or strengthen the handle like on chisels. you might find that if the yew is still a little green it will shrink thus cracking more this you can slow down by oiling or if the wood is dry then soak it in a solution of waterproof pva wood glue and water then let it dry out then seal it with wax. not the best way to stablise wood but it will make it denser than it is.

[Jason_01]

Ahhh, ferrules and lanyard tubes my bad terminology!

I think the Yew is fairly well seasoned though not sure exactly how much, must ask next time, I bought it as a wax sealed "partly seasoned" small log 6 months ago or so and it has already had an oiling, so maybe too late for PVA.

[Colin KC]

Nicely done Jason, yes the handle will prolly crack & shrink a little (possibly a LOT:yikes: ) but you live & learn, ask me how I know:rolleyes:;)


Keep it up my friend:D

[Kevin]

..

It takes a good edge but the convex grind on anything but a very thin blade seems to make carving more difficult than a flat grind so I may have to sort that, any opinions on convex for carving?



Jason


How a convex will cut or slice will also depend on the rest of the blade geometry.

I almost always 'flat' grind to about a coins thickness on the edge (a thin coin!)...THEN (after heat treatment) finish with a convex that starts almost at the spine, then taken so it meets at a zero edge.....the convex is hardly noticable on small/medium size knives (unless its a big camp knife).
A distal taper on the spine will also help with cutting (where the spine is thickest at the hilt, and has a slow gentle taper all the way to the point).

Most of the geometry and taper can be forged in.

You have done well to forge that out of round stock..my hat off to you :)

[ZDP-189]

Sounds great Kev

[familne]

That yew handle looks gorgeous!

[narsil]

Looks pretty good to me.

[Jason_01]

Thanks for the tips Kev, my grinding definately needs some work, I think I need to invest in a grinder, just dont have the patience or time to persevere with hand grinding, and Im getting through a silly number of belts on my little belt sander! I also find it easier to get a really keen edge with a flat grind on a water stone, my method with wet and dry on a mouse mat for a convex edge seemsa bit more hit and miss sometimes I get shaving sharp often I dont!

Whats the best way to treat Yew Colin? I love the look of Yew but it clearly isnt very stable, does it need to be epoxy stabilised?

How about a list of woods that are stable without special treatments? I would think Cocobolo, African Blackwood, Lignum Vitae, boxwood....?

Ive tweaked the handle a bit and now its soaking in a bottle of linseed oil, here it is with a spoon and spreader

http://www.jasonbhall.freeserve.co.uk/yew4.jpg

Jason

[Kevin]

I like the set...spoon and spreader. :)

Before I invested in a belt grinder, I used a hand held 4 1/2 inch wheel Makita grinder. Its suprising what can be done with a hand grinder....can even cut the plunge lines. Grind just off the finished shape, then (drag) file and gritpaper for the finla fiish..... a convex shape across the width is not too difficult to do this way.

Woods that dont need stabilizing?......another good one is Para Kingwood...a nice purple colour and buffs well.

[The General]

I think that is an excellent bit of work myself for your third attempt!

I am dreading seeing how my first hand forged blade comes out after Trond does his best with a grinder to make it look something like a knife! Good luck Trond! :biggthump

[stonehard]

Hi Jason nice work in the wooden spoon etc. but I think I should tell you that unless you really want to kill your mother-in-law you might think twice about using them for eating. Yew is one of the most poisonous plants you can find. Taxus Baccata or Yew has the distinction of being deadly to man and animals though the little red berries are eaten by birds not the seed just the arils. sad really coz it would look nice as a set of salad servers.
taxus baccata

Taxine \Tax"ine\, n. [L. taxus a yew.] (Chem.) A poisonous alkaloid of bitter taste extracted from the leaves and seeds of the European yew (Taxus baccata). Called also taxia.

[Kevin]

.... Yew is one of the most poisonous plants you can find.... .


:yikes: ...Good call. :biggthump

[Keith Montgomery]

Personally, I think the knife looks great. The yew gives it a distinctive look.

[Jason_01]

God luck with that blade Wayne!

Kevin, I have a little Makita 41/2" angle grinder, useful tool, I think you did really well to make blades with it though!

Thanks for pointing out the poionous nature of Yew Stonehard, actually its toxicity and its mystic history add to its attraction for me, together with the fact it has an amazing character I think its a little bit magic! But youre right the spoon & spreader wont be used for food, they are just made for my amusement, though I do wonder whether using a Yew spoon would really be a health hazard.

Its quite fun to tell people that the wooden spoon is actually poisonous and made from a type of wood shrouded in legend!

Jason

[stonehard]

"I do wonder whether using a Yew spoon would really be a health hazard."

I guess the easy option is to suck it and see. lol

[Jason_01]

Stone

I think I mustve eaten a spoons worth of Yew dust while I was making them and I'm oql;kl> o :yikes: :aargh4:

I dont dispute its poisonous nature tho, and all the usual precautions should be taken whenever its used :nono: blah ;)

[Jason_01]

Some of the earliest surviving examples of wooden tools in the UK were made from Yew, heres an interesting site with some history of the tree

http://www.yewgrove.demon.co.uk/yew.htm

which ironically mentions Yew being used to make amongst other things "spoons" :)

And more recently sceintists are looking into using certain compounds from the Yew to treat cancer.

Jason

[Tacol]

I knew about the toxicity of the seeds but not the wood itself.
Hummm I did never take any precautions with that wood. I'm not dead but I will avoid sniffing too much dust until now ...

Good to know Thanks Stonehard

[stonehard]

There is no doubt that yew has its uses in medicine, poisons often are used but in controled quantities. The site you sent me is very interesting however reading it might help also. ie this quote "It should be noted though, that even the dust produced from sanding yew wood is poisonous, and great care should be taken where you work and how you work". it could be that you are a superhuman and not effected by Yew or all that dust you ate is slowly killing you. are you feeling a little queezy, sweaty, dry in the mouth, then I suggest copiouse ammounts of Bank's bitter to wash it out the system. ya drinkies

[Jason_01]

The site you sent me is very interesting however reading it might help also. ie this quote "[I]

Ha ha ;) Perhaps you should re-read my posts and remind me where I disputed that Yew is poisonous. Its true I did wonder out loud whether its possible to ingest enough of the toxins from the use of a spoon to be harmful, do you know the answer to this question? I suspect not. For safety's sake I have clearly stated that the wood is poisonous and all due precautions should be taken. Actually its toxicity and the myths and legends surrounding it add to my fascination with this material.

Or you could check my post on Bushcraft UK where I also stated that these implements are not for food use due to the toxicity of the wood:-

http://www.bushcraftuk.co.uk/community/viewtopic.php?t=685&start=20

It seems I asumed too readily that the toxicity of Yew is widely known, well let me just state for the record "most parts of the yew tree are highly poisonous" ok?

Mind that Banks' doesn't lead to a slow and painful death by alcohol poisoning, it already seems to be affecting your spelling :p

We are all dying slowly arent we!

Jason

[Tacol]

:yuck:

I'm sure I had enough liquid medecine :beerchug: since last I worked with that poison :D
Don't worry for me.
I always wear a mask when dust is going to becomes too thick in the air. i don't like it but my lungs are happy...

[stonehard]

Mind that Banks' doesn't lead to a slow and painful death by alcohol poisoning, it already seems to be affecting your spelling


Meeeeeeeeeoooooowwwwww