A. Cole Photo Gallery

[Alden Cole]

I like looking through some of the other guys photo albums, seeing the progression and getting ideas. Figured I should start a gallery of my own knives. This was one of my earlier knives. These next ones aren't even the very first ones, I won't make you put your eyes through that. Just know that my first knives were probably a lot worse than you could imagine and I've got a long ways to go still. Hope you enjoy the pics, comments and critique on recent knives welcome.

 

[Alden Cole]

I was really proud of this one and the one above when I finished them.

 

[Alden Cole]

This was the first knife I made with dovetailed bolsters.

 

[Alden Cole]

This was the another of those knives when I thought, "I'm finally there, I made a knife!"

 

[Alden Cole]

First Tanto and one of the first custom orders. Then a little bullnose skinner and edc.

 

[Alden Cole]

Not sure whether thumbnail or full image is better.... Here is another little palm skinner and a later version of the same style.

 

[Alden Cole]

The one and only Ducky knife pattern! Patent pending . And I now realize that these haven't quite been in order. Oh well. The kitchen knife was for my Mom, the Olive wood came from a trip to Italy. Apart from the tanto and nicer palm skinner all of the knives up to this point were made with the 1x30. When I got the 2x72 and heat treat oven it upped my game a lot. The Palm Skinner was the first knife of 2020 on here.

 

[Dennis Morland]

Nice progression. Go with the full size pictures.

 

[Alden Cole]

A paring knife for my Grandma first time that my Mustard patina actually turned out nice. And a fancy picture of a bunch of knives. I was doing a survey of the favorite knife out of the group that I could choose to do a production run with. #2 won with #4 pulling second place. That bowie was the first knife I'd pulled off to some degree a hamon. The hunter in brass and Nat. Micarta was the first knife that I did a tapered tang and dovetailed bolsters. About here I've started using D2 Tool steel. I've found that it is a lot harder to grind than regular carbon steels and am thinking of not using it quite as much as I have been, (even though it is a really good steel). So far these have all been 1080, 1075, and D2.

 

[Alden Cole]

The first of that production run. D2 and a wood a friend gave me. I would guess it is some sort of Brazilian Rosewood.

 

[Alden Cole]

A Palo Alto in Mustard Patina'd 1080 and koa.

 

[Alden Cole]

Another in D2 and Natural Micarta. I had a lot of fun doing this production run, it made things a lot more efficient. I made a total of seven in the batch.

 

[Alden Cole]

D2 and Koa.

 

[Alden Cole]

1080 and Maple.

 

[Alden Cole]

This was a fun one to make. A really solid knife, even if the gap under the bolster still bugs me, every time I see it!

 

[Alden Cole]

This was a custom order from a good friend of mine. It will be put on auction for a local Christian school. The handle is made of caribou with peened pins. The blade is of 1075.

 

[Alden Cole]

A custom order for kitchen work. I now realize that the finger stop would interfere with board work, and I'll have to choose a different design for future use. The handle was made from the customers previous house. And I think that's it for the night, I'll probably post more pictures tomorrow.

 

[opaul]

Thank you. It’s always interesting and a pleasure to view developing skill and style!

 

[Alden Cole]

Back at it again! This wood was some of the prettiest I've ever used. It was some burl that came from a trip to Italy. We were staying at this guy's house and he picked out a couple pieces of Olive scraps off of his firewood pile. As much as has been shut down for 2020, I've had a ton of shop time. I've made 50 out of 78 total knives this year.

 

[Alden Cole]

This was a blank a friend gave me that he made, and then I put on the handle, (with some handle material he gave me) . A little paring knife of 440c and dymondwood.