Does anyone have any info on the black smithing and edge weapon? I have a cnc plasma table and I want to make a few blades for myself and others if interested, seen video of a guy using old sawmill blades and I have a few in my barn but I don't want to jack them up, any info would be helpful....
Knife Making
- Thread starter C Taylor
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Roninsensei
If it’s sharp, I’m your guy....
I've made quite a few in my time. How can I help?
Arcticdude
Top Poster
I have a Bowie style knife made from a hoof rasp. I use it mostly on the trap line for chopping and hacking. I've known people who made knives from leaf springs too. The steel you use will depend on the intended use of the knife. Most of my skinning knifes are made with 420HC stainless steel hardened to 58HRC. They hold an edge well without being too brittle. Like most everything else, everyone will have their own preferences for their steel recipe.
Silent Earth
A True Doomsday Prepper
I have seen truly superb blades made from old Moly Chrome wrenches, Truck leaf springs, Old circular saw blades, bits of boiler steel etc. Carbon steel leaf springs appear to be popular in both Africa and South America
Kenprep1979
Active Member
those old sawmill blades you have would be great for knives ! most of them are good tool steel. if you dont want to use those get some 1095 flat stock minimum 1/8th in. thick.
Roninsensei
If it’s sharp, I’m your guy....
The problem with using a plasma cutter is that all the hardened slag after cutting is damn near impossible to remove. The plasma just heats the metal too much. Laser and water are the best ways to go. You can use any high carbon steel but, the work to shape and clean after is, in most pros opinion, not worth it.
I hear leaf springs make good knives, but I've never used them. The best two materials I have used were industrial hacksaw blades and O1 Tool Steel. The hacksaw blades are a B*TCH to work, but take a really good edge, and are fairly corrosion resistant (not corrosion proof by any stretch). O1 tool steel is a lot easier to work since it hasn't been hardened yet. Then you have to find a place to heat treat the blade - best to do it in batches. Knives made from O1 take a very keen edge and are very tough. The only drawback I see is that they will easily rust, and if you leave something like blood on them for even a short while will pit. Treating them with something like Froglube is a must.
The saw blades are probably L6 tool steel. Leaf springs chrome vanadium. Both are great but dont quench the springs in water, it will crack them. They need to be oil quenched.
Kevin L
A True Doomsday Prepper
In this discussion, is there any room for talk about prison-style shanks?
I was a paramedic for many years, and the local prison gave us quite a bit of business and job security.
A shank actually seems to have a few advantages over other types of knives.
They can be fabricated from almost anything, are cheap enough to be disposable, can be quite deadly, and are easy to hide in plain sight.
In the time it takes to make a "fancy" blade, I could probaby turn out twenty shanks...and conceal them in multiple places for retrieval later if my captors relax.
If I was taken prisoner (by either criminals or legal authority), I would be happy that I know how to make a shank.
I was a paramedic for many years, and the local prison gave us quite a bit of business and job security.
A shank actually seems to have a few advantages over other types of knives.
They can be fabricated from almost anything, are cheap enough to be disposable, can be quite deadly, and are easy to hide in plain sight.
In the time it takes to make a "fancy" blade, I could probaby turn out twenty shanks...and conceal them in multiple places for retrieval later if my captors relax.
If I was taken prisoner (by either criminals or legal authority), I would be happy that I know how to make a shank.
High carbon spring steel from old US vehicles make the best blades if forged properly. Check your local junkyard and get a blades mithril to forge you one if you don't know how. Better yet forge several and sell the others to pay for the smith and the springs.
Leaf springs make great blades, but I would not say "the best" blades. The best blades I've had were of O1 and DMO5 tool steel. They do require specialized heat treating however.
O1 is used to make dies for stamping out steel parts, and is extremely tough, even at Rockwell 63, which is what I have my blades hardened to. DMO5 is used to make industrial hacksaw blades, and will take a Rockwell 64-65 hardness without becoming brittle. It is more difficult to work than O1 and more difficult to sharpen, but is less prone to corrosive pitting and can take an exceedingly sharp edge. I use DMO5 for smaller blades for precision work.
O1 seems to have the right combination of wearability, toughness and machinability (holds an extremely keen edge without dulling, is extremely tough, yet is not difficult to sharpen) The combination of machinability and wearability seems to be a paradox...you would think that something that holds a keen edge a long time should be hard to sharpen...and that generally holds holds true, but not for properly heat treated O1.
For comparison, leaf springs can be hardened to 60 Rockwell without being brittle, Tungsten carbide is Rockwell 68-71, but is always brittle and a bear to machine or sharpen.
O1 is used to make dies for stamping out steel parts, and is extremely tough, even at Rockwell 63, which is what I have my blades hardened to. DMO5 is used to make industrial hacksaw blades, and will take a Rockwell 64-65 hardness without becoming brittle. It is more difficult to work than O1 and more difficult to sharpen, but is less prone to corrosive pitting and can take an exceedingly sharp edge. I use DMO5 for smaller blades for precision work.
O1 seems to have the right combination of wearability, toughness and machinability (holds an extremely keen edge without dulling, is extremely tough, yet is not difficult to sharpen) The combination of machinability and wearability seems to be a paradox...you would think that something that holds a keen edge a long time should be hard to sharpen...and that generally holds holds true, but not for properly heat treated O1.
For comparison, leaf springs can be hardened to 60 Rockwell without being brittle, Tungsten carbide is Rockwell 68-71, but is always brittle and a bear to machine or sharpen.
