My first folding knife.

Greetings,

I'm finally back in my shop after several months of non-stop business travel. Feels good to get out and actually make something other than hot air for a change.

I've got several projects I'm excited about finishing over the next 6-8 weeks, not the least of which are
the swords I'm building with Petr Florianek, a very cool bladesmith/craftsman from across The Pond.

Below are photos of my first folding knife. It's a slipjoint built out of scrap damascus.

I really didn't know how to build a folding knife, so I ordered a kit from Texas Knife Supply, and used it as a template. I've attached some photos of the build too.

Comments/critiques/advice always welcome.

--Dave

From Folder

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From Folder

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Some WIP shots:
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The kit parts and the end-cut of damascus I forged into the blade. I made the entire knife out of end-cut scraps from other projects.

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The end-cut forged into a small bar.

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The end-cut polished and etched just to see what the pattern was (I actually didn't know, since it came out of the scrap bin).

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Using the kit blade as a template.

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The blade profiled.

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Refining the blade using the bench top grinder.

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Checking the thickness of the kit blade with the micrometer.

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I spent a lot of time using a tile of marble with sandpaper glued to it getting the parts the correct thickness. Damn I need a surface grinder.

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The profiled blade with the edge center scribed.

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The chunks of damascus I welded together to make the scales.

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The chunks ready to forge weld together. Waste not . . .

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A blurry shot of the chunks welded together and drawn out into the bar that became the scales.