Photo report on how I made a knife with my own hands from a car spring. It was a long time ago, I only just dug up these photos. At that moment I was working as an electrician in a hospital, and I had a lot of free time. So I spent it on making various items. More precisely, I learned this, since I am not a professional at all, but only an amateur. I love knives very much and have always wanted to make a knife for myself. I think many of you share my thoughts that, whatever your knife is, the main thing is that you made it yourself, with your own hands!
In appearance, my knife made from a spring from a truck turned out to not be very suitable for various templates and criteria, but it has a very original shape. I think many of you have thought about how to make a knife with your own hands. So, perhaps this report will be useful for you, and if not useful, then, in any case, it will be interesting!
I stupidly found the material for the blade on the street. This is a car spring, presumably from a KamAZ truck, which apparently flew off on a bump. I took it and dragged it to my work. I took a grinder and sawed it into 3 parts. The spring has a rounded shape and unequal thickness. So I chose a suitable piece and sawed it off. The result was two equal blanks for my two future blades.
Blank for one of the blades. Steel 65g.
After working with the grinder comes the tedious and very painstaking work with sandpaper. It is necessary to deduce the shape of the blade, remove what is unnecessary. But there was quite a lot of unnecessary stuff. The spring thickness was about 8 mm. Well, where have you seen a knife with such a thickness in the spine? So I removed about 2-3 mm, then spat - and decided to leave it at that thickness. Let my knife be a little thick.
Then came the work with small bars. Since I did not have the opportunity to put other bars on the sandpaper (there simply weren’t any), I had to work by hand and scrape the blade with a stone. The photo shows the difference after working with a coarse-grained bar and a smaller one.
Then I removed a little excess from the shank.
This is the shape we got. Moreover, I did not polish the entire blade and left marks from a large block on the slopes. It would be possible with an electric sandpaper, but with your hands it is very dreary. Anyone who has ever done this will understand! You say, why didn’t you just buy a fine-grained stone and put it on sandpaper? Somehow I just never got around to it. I sat at work and leisurely scraped it with a block. Others play cards, and I sit and play! Who cares what)) Dimensions: blade length without shank 13.5 cm, width 3.5 cm, thickness at the butt 6 mm.
Then I took a piece of felt and GOI paste and began polishing the blade until it was approximately mirror-like. The photo shows the blade before GOI treatment.
Then, on one of my trips, I prepared birch bark for the handle. But, truth be told, I went a little wild and prepared a little more than was required.
Kind people fitted me with their scraps of leather 3 mm thick. The leather went on the hilt and sheath. I cut out these squares from leather and made holes for the shank. The skin is thick - it is very difficult to cut. I only used an awl and a knife.
Today, even with such a large assortment of different knives of excellent quality from well-known manufacturers, knives hand forged are still very popular. This is not surprising, since such knives have a special energy and attractiveness. And if the blade itself is made of alloy steel and with skill, then such a knife is priceless. From in various ways When making a knife with your own hands, the most labor-intensive is forging a knife with your own hands. It should be noted that forging a knife allows you to create the most durable and high-quality blade that will last for decades and at the same time retain its qualities. Forging a knife with your own hands is a task that requires a master high level tool skills, knowledge of metals and their properties. For those who have decided to forge a knife for the first time, the recommendations described below will help you make your first blade.
How to choose knife steel
Qualitative homemade knife distinguishes correct selection steel for it, the cutting and strength characteristics of the knife itself will depend on this. To choose the right steel, you need to know and understand what properties the steel itself has. To forge a knife with your own hands, you need to focus on the five main properties of steel - wear resistance, hardness, strength, toughness, and red-hardness.
Hardness- this is a property of steel indicating its ability to resist the penetration of another harder material into it. Simply put, hard steel resists deformation better. The hardness index itself is measured on the Rockwell scale and ranges from 20 to 67 HRC.
Wear resistance- resistance of the material to wear during operation. This property directly depends on the hardness of the steel itself.
Strength indicates the ability to maintain integrity under the influence of various external forces. You can check the strength by bending or with a strong impact.
Plastic- the ability of steel to absorb and dissipate kinetic energy during impact and deformation.
Red fastness- this is an indicator responsible for the resistance of steel to temperatures and the preservation of its original qualities when heated. The minimum temperature at which it can be forged depends on how resistant the steel is to heat treatment. The most red-resistant steels are hard grades, working temperature forgings for which more than 900 °C. It should be noted that the melting point of steel is 1450 - 1520 °C.
All these properties are interconnected and the predominance of one of them leads to the deterioration of the other. Moreover, this or that property of steel depends on the content of various alloying elements and additives in it, such as silicon, carbon, chromium, vanadium, tungsten, cobalt, nickel, molybdenum.
The presence of certain alloying elements and their proportional use in the manufacture of steel, knowledge of the properties that alloying elements and additives impart, made it possible to create steel for specific purposes and needs. These steels each have their own markings. At the same time, domestic and foreign steel grades are designated differently. For convenience, the steel grade indicates the main composition of one or more alloying elements. For example, steel grade U9 indicates its carbon content in tenths of a percent. An analogue of steel grade “U” is steel 10xx, where “xx” is the carbon content. And what less value, the less its content. Or steel such as X12MF indicates a high content of chromium and molybdenum, which indicates the stainless and high-strength properties of the steel.
Domestic brands, which are often used when forging knives at home, include all steels marked from U7 before U16, ШХ15, 65G, R6M5, X12MF. Among foreign analogues, steel can be distinguished O-1, 1095 , 52100 ,M-2, A-2, 440C, AUS, ATS-34, D-2. Each of the above brands is used in the manufacture of knives, various tools and spare parts. For example, steel grades R6M5, U7-U13, 65G are used for the production of drills, drills, cables, springs, bearings, and files. Therefore, it is from these items that folk craftsmen make hand-forged knives.
Of course, you can find other products made from one or another steel. To do this, it will be enough to read the full description of the steel grade and its use in the Steel and Alloys Brand, and then use a product made from it to forge a knife.
To forge a knife you will need a certain blacksmith's tool, which can be purchased at the store. But you can also use a non-professional tool:
- a hammer of 3 - 4 kg and a hammer of smaller weight up to 1 kg;
- blacksmith's tongs or ordinary pliers, but without insulation on the handles, as well as an adjustable wrench;
- vice;
- an anvil or its homemade analogue from an I-beam;
- grinder and welding machine;
- grinder;
- bake.
If everything is more or less clear with a conventional tool, then some explanations need to be made regarding the furnace. The thing is that in an ordinary fireplace it is difficult to obtain a temperature of more than 900 °C. And the workpiece will take forever to warm up there. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the hearth a little. If you have not previously at least hardened metal, you will have to make a small furnace from scratch from thick-walled metal. Then attach a pipe to it, through which air will flow using a fan or an old vacuum cleaner. In this simple way, you can get a fairly reliable crucible for bringing workpieces to a temperature of 900 - 1200 ° C. Regular fuel is used as fuel. charcoal, preferably one that gives as much heat as possible and burns longer.
Before starting the work itself, you need to do sketch the knife itself.
In fact, a knife is a fairly simple object, consisting of a blade and a handle. But each of these elements has a whole set of components. In the photo demonstrating the design of the knife, you can see all the elements of the knife and what they are called.
You also need to know about some basic blade profiles in order to make the most suitable sketch. The photo below shows the profiles of the knives.
Having chosen the most suitable profile for you, you can safely begin creating a sketch. Of course, experienced craftsmen do without sketching, but for a beginner it is still important to make a sketch and keep it before your eyes during the forging process.
Forging a knife from a drill
Drills have become very popular when forging knives due to the alloy steel R6M5 used in them, which is durable, easy to sharpen and wear-resistant.
When choosing a drill for forging, one thing to note is important point. Large drills consist of a working spiral part made of P6M5 and a shank made of ordinary steel. Small drills are usually made entirely of P6M5. When forging a knife from a large drill, you must immediately determine which steel is which and where the boundary between them is. This can be done quite simply, just by sharpening the drill a little along the entire length. Where there is ordinary steel, the sheaf of sparks will be large and yellow-orange in color. But where there is alloy steel, the sheaf will be sparse and closer to a reddish tint. The procedure described above is necessary in order to determine where the blade of the knife will begin and where the shank will begin. Having finished with this, we move on to the forging itself.
At the beginning light a fire in the stove, turn on the blower and wait until the coals get hot enough, after which place the drill in the crucible. But we do this with the help of pliers and in such a way that the shank remains mostly out of the fire.
Important! When forging a knife for the first time, you may not immediately determine when the metal has heated to the required temperature. As a result, more than one drill can be damaged. Therefore, before you start forging a drill, you can practice a little with heating and forging metal on ordinary fittings. In this case, it is necessary to remember what color the metal was and when it was forged most softly. It is also worth remembering that the sunlight even metal heated to 1100 °C will look dark.
As soon as the drill will heat up to the required temperature, which is more than 1000 °C, it is immediately necessary remove from the crucible, and clamp the bottom of the shank in a vice. Then take an adjustable wrench, hold the top of the drill with it and make a circular motion, straightening the spiral. Everything must be done quickly so that the metal does not have time to cool, otherwise you risk breaking the drill. If you couldn't do it in one go, that's okay. Just reheat the drill and repeat the procedure. The result should be a relatively smooth strip of metal.
The next step would be forging drill And rolling metal to an acceptable thickness. Everything is quite simple here. Having heated the metal to the required temperature, we take a heavy hammer and begin to level the metal with strong but uniform blows and give it an even shape. The result should be a strip of metal about 4 - 5 mm thick.
Important! When forging metal, you must constantly monitor the color of the workpiece. As soon as it begins to fade, acquiring a cherry color, we immediately return it to the forge. It is better to heat the metal one more time than to break it under a hammer blow.
Further the edge of a knife is forged. Everything is a little more complicated here. The fact is that it is necessary to give a rounded shape and at the same time maintain the required thickness of the blade. All the work is practically jewelry and will require a certain dexterity. Forging is performed in such a way that gradually rounding the tip, the blade is gradually drawn out in length. The blows must be strong, but careful. A beginner may not succeed the first time, but a little practice will improve everything.
The next step would be forging the cutting edge of a knife. This is a rather important and difficult stage. This will require a lighter hammer and preferably one with a rounded head. Starting from the middle of the blade, we gradually move the metal down to the cutting edge. We try to make the cutting edge as thin as possible. At the same time, we make sure that the blade itself remains straight and even. We apply the blows very carefully and try to apply only as much effort as is required to slightly deform the hot metal. We remember the color of the workpiece and, if necessary, send it back to the crucible.
After we managed to forge the blade and point, move on to forging the shank. The work itself will be much simpler than when forging a blade. First, we heat the round shank of the drill and then roll it out with strong hammer blows. Depending on the sketch, the shank can be either narrow or wide. Here, who already likes to make the handle of a knife. Some people make simple overlays, while others make a stacked handle.
Upon completion of forging, let the metal cool gradually and then let's move on to polishing. Using a grinding machine, we remove excess layers of metal and unevenness, making the knife perfectly smooth and shiny. When sanding, up to 2 mm of thickness can be removed, and the knife will become much lighter and thinner. You can also sharpen the knife at this stage. Finally, we harden the knife. How this is done will be written below.
Forging a knife from a drill video review:
Another popular material for forging knives is the bearing, namely its inner or outer rim. Moreover, the internal one is even preferable. All work on forging a knife from a bearing is almost identical to forging from a drill. With some exceptions.
First, we cut out the blank from the bearing rim using a grinder. We try to take the length with a reserve, so that there is enough for the knife and another 1 - 2 cm left. Secondly, at the initial stage of forging, the cut blank should be welded to the reinforcement bar. And in this form, heat and forge. Thirdly, if in the case of a drill the workpiece was rolled out from round to flat, then for the bearing race it simply needs to be aligned. And the further steps for forging the blade itself and the shank are completely similar. The only thing worth noting is that it is still more convenient to make a knife with applied handles from the bearing.
Forging a knife from a bearing video review:
Looking for the right steel for quality knife many use springs. The metal of this car part is highly elastic and durable, which makes it an excellent example for hand-forged knives. In fairness, it should be noted that a knife from a spring can be made by simply cutting out the profile of the knife with further sharpening and hardening. But still, for the knife to be truly reliable, it is better to forge it, especially since the thickness of the spring is quite large, and for good knife it should be reduced.
We begin forging a knife from a spring by cleaning off rust with a grinder and marking the plate. Only a small part of the spring will be needed, so mark it and cut it off using a grinder. Next, we weld the workpiece to the reinforcement and heat it up. Then we gradually forge it, bringing it to required thickness. We forge the tip and cutting edge; how to do this is described above using the example of forging a knife from a drill. Having achieved the desired result, we leave the knife to cool gradually and then grind and sharpen it.
Forging a knife from a spring video review:
Forging a knife from a file
Wear-resistant and durable steel can be found in a variety of locksmith's tool and the file is a prime example of this. Making knives from a file is quite a popular activity. Moreover, the blades are extremely durable with an excellent cutting edge. But forging a knife from a file has its own characteristics.
First of all, you will need to clean the file from nicks and possible rust. This can be done using a grinder. Next, if necessary, cut the workpiece from the file to the required length. Then we weld it to a piece of reinforcement and put it in the furnace. Having heated the workpiece to the required temperature, we begin to roll the workpiece to the thickness we need. Then we make the point and cutting edge. It is best to make the shank of a knife from a file under an overhead handle.
Forging a knife from a file video review:
Forging a knife from a rope
Making a knife from steel cable is quite rare. Since, unlike all the workpieces described above, the cable consists of scattered wire fibers, and it is quite difficult to forge them. In addition, cable steel does not have such high performance, like the steel of a drill or file. Most cable knives are forged because of their unusual pattern on the wedge, vaguely reminiscent of Damascus steel. In order to make such a knife, you need to put in a little more effort than when forging from a regular steel bar.
Forging a knife from a cable begins like regular forging. There are just a few little secrets. Firstly, this concerns the shank. Many craftsmen make a knife shank from a cable in the form of a finished handle. It looks very unusual and beautiful. And here there are two approaches to making a handle. Take a thick cable and then weld its end, making it a monolithic piece. Or make a handle in the shape of a loop, and forge a blade from the ends. Secondly, forging a cable is a difficult task due to the scattered wires that make up the cable. To make a knife, you will need to weld them together. But this is a whole art and you shouldn’t expect that you will get a knife out of a cable the first time. Welding can be done in two ways. The first is to electric weld along the large grooves. The second is to perform forge welding. The second option is more complicated and at the same time preferable.
So, having chosen the method of creating the handle, we proceed to forging the knife. To do this, heat the cable until it turns bright red. Then we take it out and sprinkle it with borax. Then we send it back to the crucible. This is a simple way to prepare for forge welding. is a salt of tetraboric acid and is used by craftsmen for welding individual layers of steel. Essentially, it is a flux that facilitates the melting process and protects the molten metal from oxygen and eliminates metal oxides. Borax can be found in the public domain without any problems.
After the cable has been treated with borax on all sides and it has heated up from 900 to 1200°C or more, we remove it from the furnace and begin to forge it. We strike with a heavy hammer, but at the same time we try to keep the cable fibers together. The difficulty of forging a cable lies precisely in this. But with practice you can achieve acceptable results. In the end, the cable can be heated and forged as many times as desired. But at the same time, every time you heat it in the forge, sprinkle the cable with borax. The result is a monolithic piece of steel consisting of many layers, almost like Damascus steel. After which all that remains is to forge the blade of the required shape. Videos demonstrating the forging of knives have repeatedly shown exactly how to roll out a blade and create a cutting edge and point.
Blade hardening and tempering
As noted earlier, hardening a knife is one of the most important stages of its manufacture. After all, the performance characteristics of the knife depend on how correctly it was performed. The hardening process itself is performed after the knife has cooled and been ground on a sharpening machine.
Begins by heating it from light red to orange color. After which the knife is lowered into water or oil. In this case, 2 - 3 tablespoons of table salt per 1 liter are added to the water, and the water temperature should be 18 - 25 ° C, the oil 25 - 30 ° C. Hardening is carried out quite quickly and for everything to go well after hardening, the blade must be released. The steel hardening itself occurs in the temperature range from 750 to 550 °C. The moment of hardening can even be felt when the steel begins to “tremble and groan” in the liquid. As soon as the process ends, the blade must be removed and allowed to cool naturally.
Blade release performed after hardening. The process itself involves weakening internal tension steel, which makes it more flexible and resistant to various types of loads. Before tempering, the blade should be cleaned of possible scale and then heated again. But the temperature during vacation is much lower. The knife itself must be held over the flame and observed. As soon as the entire surface is covered with a yellow-orange film, remove the knife from the heat and let it cool naturally.
Sometimes quenching and tempering are done with oil or water, and sometimes through oil into water. This type of hardening is done very quickly. First, the blade is lowered into oil for 2 - 3 seconds, and then into water. With this approach, the risk of doing the hardening incorrectly is minimal.
Forging a knife with your own hands seems like a simple task. In addition to the fact that you will have to swing the forging hammer quite a lot, even without experience in the matter of forging metal, you may not be able to forge a knife the first time. Therefore, you first need to get good at it and practice a little, and then start forging a knife.
Those who can get their hands on old car springs are in good luck - they were made using high-carbon steel, which is suitable for making excellent knives. After you harden such a knife, its cutting edge will be highly resistant; such a blade will allow you to cut fairly hard objects.
How to make a knife from a spring
To make a knife from a spring at home, Let's prepare a list of such materials and tools:car spring;
a piece of wood for finishing the handle;
epoxy adhesive;
Bulgarian;
drill or drilling machine;
sandpaper with different grain sizes;
metal hardening furnace, oil;
jigsaw or other tools for cutting wood;
clamps.
Forging a knife from a spring takes place in several stages
Stage 1.First of all, you need to collect all the materials for work so that they are ready. The author's source material was a spring leaf from an old car.
Since the spring is made in a curved shape, it must be bent. This is done like this: the metal is heated, after which it gradually cools. A burner is suitable for heating, or you can simply place a leaf of spring in a well-lit fire.
After the workpiece has cooled, you need to take a hammer and an anvil and process the spring so that it becomes a straight plate. After tempering, the metal has become softer, it will be easy to cut, drill, etc.
Stage 2.
First you need to make a knife template. The author used a ready-made template from the Internet. If there is a desire, it can be improved. After printing the template, you need to glue the paper onto the cardboard and cut out the template with scissors. Holding it in our hands, we can imagine what a knife made from a spring will look like.
After this, you need to attach the template to the metal and circle it with a marker.
Stage 3.
Now we are starting the most difficult stage of the work - we need to cut out the profile of the knife. This is done using a grinder - when using this tool, it is not recommended to overheat the metal. If the steel begins to change color at the cutting site, this means that it is overheating. In this case, the metal must be poured with water. In those places where it is impossible to cut, the metal can be drilled in a row of holes and then this part can be broken off.
Stage 4.
This The final stage forming the main profile of the blade. For such work, a tape is very convenient and simple. grinding machine. Craftsmen with extensive experience can use an angle grinder. The outer plane of the knife should be sanded so that it shines. The author used a block to press the workpiece against the sanding belt. Here you also need to make sure that the metal does not overheat.
Another important aspect of grinding is making bevels on the knife.
Stage 5.
To securely secure the lining to the handle, this knife uses 4 pins. You need to drill holes for them. To select the diameter, we focus on the existing pins, which are traditionally used as brass rods. For this case, regular steel nails are also suitable.
Stage 6.
After hardening, the blade becomes hard and does not dull for a long time. To harden the blade, you need to take oil - motor or vegetable oil, a stove or a good fire will do. The metal must be heated to such a state that it will not be attracted to it. permanent magnet. As the author notes, when heated, the metal has a dull red color. After this, you need to lower the workpiece into the oil. Be careful as the oil often ignites with smoke and spray flying in all directions. The container for hardening must be made of metal.
It happens that during hardening the metal begins to deform. This situation can be corrected. To solve the problem, you need to heat the workpiece, level it, and then try to harden it again.
After hardening, you should definitely temper the metal, otherwise you will get a very fragile knife. For this operation, we take a household oven, place the workpiece in it and heat the steel at a temperature of 200°C for an hour. After this, you need to let the workpiece cool gradually, but you do not need to open the oven, the steel should cool closed inside.
Stage 7.
To make handle linings, we take two boards of small thickness. We cut them to the required size and drill holes in them for the pins.
Now we glue the blanks together using epoxy glue, applying a good layer to both pads. Then you need to insert the pins and clamp the handle well with a clamp. Leave it like this for 24 hours so that the glue is completely dry. Immediately take a rag or toilet paper to remove any remaining glue.
After the glue has dried, you need to take out the knife and finally shape the shape of the handle. For these works we use a belt sanding machine.
Visual video:
Very strong and reliable knives are made from car springs- any blacksmith will confirm this to you. The main thing is to properly process this high-quality steel material. It was not by chance that spring was chosen as a material for the knife, because... :
1) its pieces can be easily found
2) it is much easier to process than a “quick cut” strip
3) the cost of the knife is relatively low
And so, let's start with the fact that car suspension can be spring or spring. We will be interested in the spring one.
Fortunately, Russia has two problems: fools and roads. As a result of the combination of the first and second, we have many pieces of spring suitable (for making a knife) right on the dog. Free and out of line.
More detailed information about making homemade knives with clear photos see the direct links on the right >>>>>>>>
The spring is made from hot-rolled steel, for which there is a GOST. And now a few words about the beauty itself: Spring is an elastic element in the suspension of cars, trolleybuses, and buses. They connect the body with bridges. They absorb traction and braking forces when driving.
The spring is much older than the car. For example, Gogol’s characters who discussed “will the wheel get there…” were most likely looking at the spring stroller. Naturally, the runaway crews also inherited it. IN different time it was very widely, sometimes almost completely used in car suspensions. And today on old technology you can find many simply stunning designs. But we will not analyze them here, since practical value This information is small, and a decent review would require much more space than is available in the entire magazine.
Therefore, let’s talk about what has crystallized in the process of development to date.
Design:
Springs can be multi-leaf, few-leaf or single-leaf. Until recently, multi-leaf springs were, and still are, the most common in our country today. Since the graph of the change in the bending moment of the spring has the shape of a triangle with the vertex at the loading point (bridge), this triangle is “filled with sheets” in order to obtain more uniform stresses in each of them. As a result, it is possible to kill not one, not two, but a whole herd of hares.
Manufacturing:
For the production of sheets, hot-rolled strip of carbon spring steel is usually used. The required bend is given by straightening, and in the factory - in stamps. After this, heat treatment is done. Often the surface is hardened by shot blasting.
Types of spring sections:
Until some time, the cross-section of the sheet was rectangular with rounded edges. But since fatigue failure of sheets almost always starts at the top, the bottom surface was reduced with bevels or notches. As a result, the cross-section of the leaves of most modern springs is either trapezoidal or a kind of “T” with a very thick leg.
Which spring to take:
Many knife makers agree that it is better to take a spring made in the deep Soviet times. Because 65G steel there was much better than it is now.
The quality of the metal itself depends not only on the ratio of additives, but also on heat treatment technology. Perhaps in Soviet times, termites were more qualified. It is persistently inculcated that many “secrets of steel” were lost in distant, distant times. And that modern knives are not knives at all... I think steel, it remains the same. It’s just that when you work with a piece of “Soviet spring”, you create a knife with “history”.
Do not forget that many qualities of a knife made of any metal are determined by the technology of its production. For example, you can overheat the “quick cutter” blade when working on sandpaper and then tell everyone how fragile knives are from R6M5.
For the first knife, any piece will do. The first feature for you then will be the question of spring straightening. To do this you will need to master:
2. and Straightening itself - anvil + hammer
Annealing:
Build a fire, heat the spring until “red” and cool it very slowly. You can leave it directly in the coals.
After annealing, a yellow, brown or blue “patina” may appear on the spring, which can be easily removed with sandpaper.
Straightening:
This is a simple matter. You need an anvil (you can use a piece of rail) and a hammer, which is heavier.
The best option is to strike while the iron is hot.
You can do it “cold”, but there is a high chance of splitting.
Materials:
Units of measurement in the text: 1 inch - 2.54 cm; 1 foot - 30.5 cm; 1 lb - 0.454 kg. (Note: for your convenience, I have recalculated the imported values into the usual ones)
If you are eager to make a knife with your own hands, and you do not have expensive equipment, then here is a small list of materials that may come in handy. I understand that these are not the most best materials, but it works, although it may make you smile.
A piece of 5160 spring steel from the store, about 800 grams in weight or so. Measure 18-20 cm in length from the piece, or whatever you decide, and take a new plate, not an old car spring.
Now go to the woodworking store and buy:
for 4 dollars an oak block measuring 3.5 x 5 x 7.5 cm (Note: actually, this will be the handle)
Buy 3mm thick copper rod from the welding department for $1.50
2 3mm drills for $2 and another 6mm drill
2 files, one flat and one half round - $7.50
2 pieces of 120 grit waterproof sandpaper for $1.00
2 pieces of 240 grit waterproof sandpaper for $1.00
cheap chisel
a fairly large clamp with which you will press the knife to a table or bench (but you can do without it)
When you shop for strip steel, see if you can buy the thinnest strip they have. My store has material 0.5 cm thick and 4 cm wide. It's quite thick for a small blade, but still serviceable. (Note: in our case, you will have to tinker with the file - the thickness of the resor will be greater. But, after labor lessons in distant childhood, this is not a problem)
You will also need a hand-held electric drill. Borrow it from someone, because... nothing will happen to it - you just drill a few holes. Next, I will use pictures to explain my actions.
For your first knife, choose a simpler design. 7.5 - 9 cm will be a good length for the blade because you will have to use files when finishing the blade. A straight blade without any frills is easier to process, and it’s easier to work with a file on a straight plane.
Also choose a simple handle for the knife, without large quantity fancy indentations for the fingers, and without a guard. The silhouette of the knife was drawn with a marker, then I drilled a bunch of holes around the drawing with a 6 mm drill. You'll have to do a lot of hacksaw work around it all.
Screw the knife to a bench, stump, or what have you, and use a hacksaw to remove some of the metal around the handle. Do this in such a way that you can then use a file to give the handle the desired shape. This must be done first, because if you remove the metal around the blade, you will not be able to attach it to the bench. The handle is processed first! Once it takes shape, remove waste material, attach the knife through the holes in the handle, and take up the blade.
So, I drilled the entire silhouette of the knife - this will greatly facilitate the work of the hacksaw blade when filing it. I then unscrewed the piece from the bench and reattached it to remove any excess metal from the handle. A 3 mm drill was used to make holes in the handle for copper rods, and a 6 mm drill was used so that it could be attached to the bench when some part of the blade was being processed.
Then I filed down the handle and added a couple of indentations for the fingers so that it would hold more firmly in the hand. After this I filed the rest of the silhouette and sawed off the bevel - be patient as... Working with a file takes time. Okay, now I have a knife blank, sawed with a hacksaw and processed with a file. It's starting to take shape.
I marked the cutting edge using my 6mm drill bit. I blackened the blade with a marker, and then began to move the end of the drill along the cutting edge until a thin line appeared. Flip the knife over and repeat on the other side, creating two lines approximately 0.6mm - 0.8mm apart. If these two lines are too close to each other, then mark again Right place marker, take the drill and move it up or down, respectively, repeating everything again. The lines will be approximately 1/2 the thickness of a penny apart.
Then, using suitable wood screws, screw the knife to the top of the bench. Start processing the blade plane with a file. The goal is to connect the scratched lines and the top of the knife's cutting edge at the same time. This will require a lot of hard work and patience.
And maybe a few breaks along the way. To help me with the flatness, I used a marker and filed very slowly while trying to keep the file flat. The marker will show you any rough spots that need to be sanded down.
Try securing a strip of sandpaper to an inexpensive base such as a paint spatula. First, I sanded the area we called the recess using a flat piece of wood and 120-gauge paper. Then I sanded the flat sidewise toward the end of the blade until all the rough file scratches were gone. This also levels the plane.
Use a little soap and water to keep the sandpaper from getting dirty, and when you're done, make sure to wipe the knife dry, otherwise it will rust before tomorrow. Start sanding the surface of the blade and the handle. Don't remove all the blemishes, just the excess, until you get some bare metal - this "severity" will add character to the finished knife.
OK, the fire is lit. I did this in the backyard, in a specially fenced area. The fire is burning behind the fence, and a gentle breeze is blowing, which helps our work. You will need a few more things to work with the knife further. I took the magnet out of my boys' toy box, and after struggling with the problem reliably/cheaply I came to the next one.
Taking two pieces of 12mm square pipe 90cm long, I inserted the ends of the handles of old pliers into them and flattened the metal around the edge to secure the connection. And one more important, extremely secret thing that I will hint to you: old oil filters remaining after changing the oil in cars.
Place the blade into the hot coals. The knife should remain there for about 10 - 15 minutes, depending on how hot the coals are. This is your first time, so take the knife out of the fire for a couple of seconds every 2 - 3 minutes, look at its color, and check the cutting edge with a magnet.
If the steel is attracted, then the knife is not ready yet, put it back into the fire and heat until cherry red. Try not to overheat the knife any longer than necessary, so check the blade every minute or two when you decide it's close to being ready.
It's time to dip the knife into the secret oil. The magnet is not attracted, the color of the steel is good, and I am drooling with anticipation. I hardened the steel by dipping only 2/3 of the knife into oil. I kept 2/3 of the blade on the cutting edge side in the oil until the flame went out - about a minute - and then slowly immersed the rest of the knife until it was completely immersed and there was no more smoke. When we pull out the knife, it looks black and nasty. I put it in a bowl of water until it was cool enough to handle. Now you ask - is this knife really hard? Well, let's check it out. Take a file and run it along the blade, applying it at a 30-degree angle and pressing gently, not hard. The file will slide along the cutting edge, trying to catch on it. If the blade is too slippery, wipe it with a rag to remove any oil. To better clean the metal, you can also use soap and water.
If the file clings to the knife, then the hardening was unsuccessful, return to the fire and repeat it all over again. Let's assume that the blade has been tested with a file and has been properly hardened. Now we need to let it go, because we don't want the blade or its tip to crumble. The files are very fragile, and our knife is now also very hard and brittle. Preheat kitchen oven to 375 - 400 degrees. “Bake” the knife in the oven for 45 minutes, let it cool until room temperature, and put it back in the oven for 45 minutes at the same temperature. By the way, don’t forget to wash off all the oil from the knife first if you don’t want to smoke the whole house. After tempering the steel, you can clean the blade. Grab some sandpaper again and get ready to put some wood handles on this baby.
I placed the knife in a vice and cut two pieces for the lining for the future handle. Place the knife closer to the top edge of the block, then it will be easier to “stick” to at least one edge. I have some copper rods and am ready to take the next step. Drill holes for them in the handle.
I inserted all three rods, and traced the outline of the knife onto the oak block, deciding where the "face" of the block would be when I epoxyed and brassed the wood to the steel. This photo isn't very good, but I think you can get the look you want with the black stripe on the knife. I marked the beginning and end of this line on the wood, and then connected them with an arc.
The left cheek of the handle will be processed and attached when we cannot disturb the shape after the wood is glued to the knife. Now you need to use a pencil to form the left part of the handle, mainly the front.
Check whether the overlay is well prepared, how it adheres to the metal, and if necessary, smooth it with sandpaper so that the plane is perfect. Connect both pieces with copper rods, file them and sand them until the overlays become mirror-like. Once again I remind you of the cutting edge! Then test them on the knife.
Now, if both trims are good enough and there is no void between them and the knife, you can trim off the excess length of the rods so that they are flush with the wood. Clean the knife thoroughly - where the wood will rest. Soap, hot water and an old toothbrush, then rinse it thoroughly and wipe dry. If you want it completely dry, use a hair dryer.
I cut the rods and sanded the edges so that the chips would not break off later. After epoxy resin lubricated the internal parts wooden overlays, knife handle and rods, and connected everything together.
Wrapping it all in four thick rubber strips (thick to prevent them from sticking), I left the knife to dry, and then removed the excess resin, and got a finished knife.
A knife is a great thing that can be useful not only as an excellent tool, but also as a wonderful souvenir. Every boy will be happy with such a gift. If a knife is made by hand, then it immediately becomes a unique value in the eyes of the owner.
Adults also do not always use knives exclusively for household purposes - many people collect them. Everyone’s selection criteria are different, but everyone knows that high-quality steel is a prerequisite for a good knife. But a beautifully crafted handle can make no less an impression than a durable blade that can hold an edge for a long time.
What is special about a knife made from a spring?
The reason for the popularity of such a product as a spring knife lies in the properties of the metal. High wear resistance and strength combined with high ductility have allowed many generations of craftsmen to use springs as the main source of raw materials.
The springs are made from spring steel 65G, but other grades can be used: 50HGSA, 50HGA, 50HFA. These are also spring steels - it is possible to determine which of them was taken as the material for the blade only through chemical analysis. Or according to the nuances of the behavior of the metal during processing, but only experienced craftsmen can handle this. For a novice manufacturer, the difference between the listed materials will be almost invisible.
Application of spring steel
65G is considered one of the cheapest spring steels. At the same time, it has a number of unique properties that make it indispensable for creating springs. Spring steel for a knife contains chromium, nickel, manganese, and silicon. These elements provide the properties for which manufacturers choose this particular material:
- good flexibility;
- high impact strength;
- hardness;
- wear resistance;
Heat treatment plays a big role in improving the qualities of the material. The steel becomes stronger and its hardness increases. Unfortunately, it is not resistant to corrosion and tends to rust. But the advantages outweigh the disadvantages and it is often used as a material for a blade.
Such knives are used in the most different areas. First of all, as kitchen equipment - strong, durable, durable - what else is needed for daily work in the kitchen and, for example, for cutting meat? The same considerations forced hunters, fishermen and tourists to try to get this high-quality “homemade product” into their arsenal. Therefore, many craftsmen made tourist and hunting knives for sale.
Thanks to good characteristics steel, these knives were popular among the military. Conscripts who had access to tools for metalworking made army knives in makeshift conditions. Over time, manufacturers began to aim at more serious products: axes, swords, machetes, katanas. Due to their good toughness, spring steels are excellent for forging. Forging can be used to make a blade of any shape, even the most bizarre.
How to make a knife from a spring
Making a knife from a spring can take a lot of time and effort, especially if a person is doing it for the first time. But spring steel lends itself well to processing and will “tolerate” the mistakes of a beginner, so it is best to create your first knife from it.
Typically, the material is found outdoors: on the street, in car depots, next to garages, in car dumps and other similar places. Therefore, the spring may be covered with dirt and rust and must be thoroughly cleaned before work. If it is necessary to straighten a bent spring, then it is heated until red-hot, and then allowed to cool under normal conditions - at room temperature.
How to make a knife from a spring using forging
All spring steels, including 65G, have one quality in common: they are perfectly forgable. Knives made of spring steel, made by forging, will be more reliable and durable, because during the processing process the metal is strengthened due to plastic deformation and changes in the macrostructure.
Before forging the spring, it is necessary to cut out the profile of the future blade from it. Then the workpiece is securely fastened and heated until red hot. Forging creates a point and blade. This method makes it easy to give the blade the required shape, as well as set its width. Spring forging is good for making axes and various exotic things, such as a machete or sword.
The blade is allowed to cool to temperature environment after the work is finished.
How to sharpen a knife from a spring with your own hands
It is necessary, first of all, to decide on the appearance of the future product. The shape depends on the purpose of the knife: kitchen, hunting, souvenir or some other. As a result, the blade can be anything - this is influenced only by the imagination and capabilities of the manufacturer. If the choice is made, then you need to take a ready-made template or make it yourself from cardboard or thick paper.
Next, to make a knife from a spring with your own hands, you need to be ready to start working with metal. First, the template must be attached to a metal workpiece and traced with a marker, pencil, scriber (GOST 24473-80) or other marking tool. According to the contour obtained using the template, it is necessary to cut out the profile of the product. The following tools are suitable:
- band-saw;
- an angle grinder, also known as a grinder - it is important not to overheat the workpiece when cutting;
- drilling machine or drill - in this case, holes are drilled along the contour, then the partitions between them are broken or cut out;
- you can use hand tools;
The processing process itself is quite simple, although it requires a certain concentration to cut the workpiece in accordance with the markings. When the processing is successfully completed and the workpiece begins to correspond to the template, you can begin to form the blade. The main task is to make bevels. The blade is again marked, determining the size of the bevels. During further processing, you should strictly adhere to the markings.
For work, it is best to use an electric sharpener. A belt sander and an angle grinder are also suitable, but in the case of the latter, good command of the tool is required. You can sharpen the bevels by hand - with a file. At this point, the metal work should be completed, because then the blade will undergo heat treatment, after which it will be very difficult to do anything else with the workpiece.
Blade hardening
Main view heat treatment- this is hardening. It is needed so that the blade is durable and can remain sharp for a long time after sharpening. Exist different techniques:
— hardening, with heating only the cutting edge;
— hardening of the cutting edge by heating the entire product;
— hardening and tempering;
— full hardening;
In the first case, only the outermost part of the blade is heated to a non-magnetic state, after which it is placed in oil and kept until the oil stops bubbling. The second method is more complicated: the entire knife is heated, but it only needs to be immersed in oil by a third - so that the cutting edge is covered with liquid.
Quenching and tempering is a method in which the workpiece is cooled in two stages: first, at elevated temperature, but below the quenching temperature, then at room temperature.
The simplest method of hardening is to completely harden the blade, but with this method there is a possibility that the blade will lead. Then it is necessary to straighten the damaged workpiece. This can be done either by preheating the blade or in a cold state.
Making the handle
A handle can be made from almost any raw material, but wood, plastic, leather, and bone are especially popular. Inlaid handles with alternating layers of, for example, leather and birch bark look beautiful.
Bone is traditional material, for making a variety of trinkets and household items. Having the skill of bone carving, you can make a unique, beautiful handle. But the easiest way is to take two wooden or plastic pads, place them on both sides of the shank and secure them together with rivets, and for greater strength, also with epoxy glue. Sometimes screws and nuts are used for fastening, but if it is important appearance, then it is better not to use them.
The handle should be comfortable, so great attention must be paid to its processing. To do this, use files first and then sandpaper. If the overlays are wooden, then they must be impregnated with oil to ensure the durability of the wood. Impregnation emphasizes the structure of the wood and gives the product an attractive appearance. After fixing the handle, its final grinding is carried out.
The work on the spring knife is almost complete, all that remains is to sharpen it. For this use:
- bars;
- musats;
- grinding machines;
- mechanical sharpeners;
- electric sharpeners;
Really good results are obtained using a whetstone or an electric sharpener. It will take a lot of time to sharpen a knife well using a whetstone or whetstone. If on normal kitchen knife It is enough to spend about half an hour, but leveling and sharpening a long forged knife can take several days.
For better control of the sharpening process, the sharpening stone is placed on a stable horizontal surface. Its optimal size is approximately one and a half times longer than the blade. You need to start sharpening with a coarse sharpening stone with a large grain. You must continue until a hangnail appears. After this, a fine-grained stone is taken, and then the process continues with its help. In order for a homemade knife made from a spring to become sharp and keep sharpening for a long time, you must follow the following rules:
- movement is carried out by translational movements of the knife along the block - with the cutting part forward;
- The end of the block and the end of the blade should “meet”. It is necessary to synchronize the displacement of the knife across the block (from the handle to the blade) and the movement of the knife along the block;
- the plane of the blade and the surface of the block should form an angle of 20 to 25 degrees - this is the universal sharpening angle. Depending on the purpose of the knife, the angle may change, but it is important that it is kept constant the entire time the knife is sharpened;
At the end, it is necessary to grind the blade to keep the knife sharp for a long time. To do this, take a sharpening stone with the finest grain. Then, carefully, so as not to spoil what has already been done, the burr is removed.
Sharpening is a process that requires patience and care. Skill comes only with experience, so anyone who doesn’t want to wait can use an electric sharpener. This will save time and also keep your knives in excellent condition.
Making a knife is a complex process that requires attention, concentration, thoroughness, and skills in working with metal. But the work will not be in vain, because the end result will be a beautiful product created with your own hands. The more love and diligence the master approaches the work, the better the product will be. Even a beginner, if he is patient and persistent, will be able to master the skills and also become proud of the results of his work.