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I've only made a few knives, so I have no room to talk, and don't do this as a job. They say though if you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life. I genuinely hope that both John and Ed fall into this category. The moment something becomes a chore, it's time to re-evaluate. I'm...

Before I joined knifedogs, I had already made a few knives out of random scrap yard steel, primarily sawblades. The ones from that turned out pretty well, but my very first one was from rolled flat stock, unknown metal. This was my first knife, a camp knife with 10" blade and a 1/4" spine, used...

I guess you're right. It wasn't minimalist per say, but it was fun as heck. My buddy is a certified survival instructor, and we all went out together and learned wild edibles, fish traps (and ate well for breakfast!) etc. was a riot!

I've not been asked this yet, however almost all of my friends are big time knife enthusiasts. We've talked this talk before, and a few of them run custom knives. My simple response was "Do you want the same knife as 100,000 other people, or do you want a knife that no one else on the planet...

Does Garr tool sell to the public? If so, they'd likely have what you need.

I know how you feel about finishing. I'm working on one right now and have spent more time on the handle than the actual knife. High gloss CA/super glue finish on burned tung oil stained Osage Orange partially mortised tang. It looks marvelous. It'll be done probably Monday (I only do this for a...

I'm going minimalist camping this weekend. Tarp, sleeping bag, bed mat, paracord, and whatever I can fit in my assault pack. Bushcraft and survival training all weekend... Got about another 8 guys going with me. 80% chance of rain; and bringing 2 of my knives with me to run hard and field test...

I think it looks great. I think I liked it more without the secondary added color, but it looks good regardless. Jimping isn't for everyone, that's for sure, but when using gloves especially, I find a jimped handle is significantly easier to hold onto. It's all in what you prefer I suppose. I...

Didn't know that.. thanks for the heads up.

Very cool. That's what I was curious about. How do you attach your file to the rod? My first knife I free handed wifh a file, but a jig would probably have made it much quicker.

One of my buddies who made knives from files often times said that with tempering, he heated it in his oven and watched until the steel took on a golden straw color. Once it hit that, he pulled it out and it was done. I've never heard this before, so I have no idea where he got that idea from...

Maybe others can chime in here better than I, but I'd probably use steel for the pins as opposed to anything else. I can't even begin to count how many machete handles I've broken by swinging them too hard. Wood, plastic, doesn't matter. I've never had a micarta handle, and these are just store...

Forgive my extreme ignorance here, as I'm not particularly electrically savvy (or knife making savvy for that matter, ha) but I do have about 15lbs of broken carbide just laying around. I was discussing this with a friend and saw Ken's post about just needing a DC power source from 15-20v. I...

You sir, have given me some hope! Fred Rowe also helped me with some pointers on my harbor freight grinder. As you know, the main issue with the grinder is that the belt lays flat on the table, and it needs to be lifted. I used a piece of polished aluminum to achieve that. I also made a more...

I checked over my files. I've got a handful of Nicholson (not sure if black diamond or not), some that appear to say Neilson? (Maybe it's Nicholson too, hard to tell) an Atkins Silver Steel, a ton of Lenox (all junk from what I understand), a Simonds, Heller, and something that starts with Cas...

I've had a 36" buzz saw blade I was going to make knives from. Now I've got a 36" buzz saw blade I'm going to make knives and a hatchet from. Hah. Awesome design man. Good question there. With a chopper of that magnitude, I'm thinking almost any wood will break given the full tang...

Once the plunge lines are cut, do you do the rest with a file? Trying to picture this in my head how I could make this myself and use files to actually do the rough edge also at the same degree. I'm a new knife maker, and bevels are tough as heck for me. Just found out, all the files I've been...

What are your thoughts on building one? I know it won't have the bells and whistles, but to start? I'm a homesteader, and VERY rarely buy ANYTHING, but am king of recycling. To top it off, my dad is a machinist, so he can turn wheels and such for me on a lathe. I've seen plans for no weld...

I just discussed this with my dad (he's a machinist on the verge of retirement) and told him about the pediment I was in, and how I can't guarantee the type of steel, and that something is O1, L6, etc." His response was "O1? I've got tons of that at the shop. Let me see what I can get you." He...

I'm learning that. I'm also learning that coarse grit sandpaper isn't either. LOL When I first decided I wanted to try my hand at knife making, my initial thought was that I wanted to do EVERYTHING hand worked. Zero sanders, grinders, etc. Hacksaw, files, sandpaper, just to say I can do it. I...