I finished this bowie nearly two weeks ago, but wasn't satisfied with it. There were some fit issues that showed up after glue-up that weren't there on the final dry fits. Also there were some guard issues I wanted to fix, so I busted it up. Took it back apart and re-shaped the guard and re-fit the handle scales. This of course required re-polishing and re-bluing the guard, plus another cleanup and polish cycle for the blade. Also shortened the ricasso by 1/8". So after two and a half days' work to rebuild, here's the final product.
This knife is forged from Don Hanson's 2" round W2 stock, clay quenched with a hamon. The guard and tapered frame are blued mild steel, and the handle is quilted poplar. Overall length is a hair past 15 inches. This one will be at Blade Show table 7Q, and is likely to be part of my JS presentation set.
This knife is forged from Don Hanson's 2" round W2 stock, clay quenched with a hamon. The guard and tapered frame are blued mild steel, and the handle is quilted poplar. Overall length is a hair past 15 inches. This one will be at Blade Show table 7Q, and is likely to be part of my JS presentation set.