Hunting knives and related projects

[sneaky one]

cool. We can see that your wife loves you. Mine would not be sleeping with me in your idea of a trailer, mate. Cost lowering is fine, just stay at a cheapo motel. ?

Keep up your quality workmanship . Awesome.

[Von Gruff]

Lynes 2 brothers and sister all have mobile homes so while this is a bit basic it is still abe to supply the needs we have for a couple of weeks on the road and it lets us be independent of others. No fixed itinery so we have no need to keep to a schedule of booked accomadation.

[Von Gruff]

I have nearly got all my sample knivs ready to take away on our road trip with just 4 left to do now but this is how they stand at the moment except this pic includes Joes new JT Ranger and a jarrah and rimu hunter skinner that I will make sheaths for next week and get packed up and sent away. I emailed the editer of the NZ Guns and Hunting magazine as I have sent numerous articles for pubication over the years and am sending him the hunter skinner for field evaluation over the next few weeks as he has a west coast roar hunt booked. I will call in and see him on the road trip and we will discuss an editorial artical and advertising for 12 months in the magazine. Anyway this is the knives ready at present.

[Von Gruff]

This is a few of the individual knives. A Wapiti hunter with walnut, a general purpose with buffalo horn and walnut and safari hunter with brass and zebrawood.



Two skinners with my new one with buffalo horn and swamp kauri and a standard blackwood one at the bottom.



A blackwood JT Ranger, a blackwood lion knife, and a jarrah pig sticker.

[Von Gruff]

The top one is a hunter butcher with buffalo horn and blackwood and under it is the AH big game hunter again with buffalo horn and blackwood which is standard for these two knives.



At top is a fiddleback mapel hunter skinner and under it is the jarrah and rimu hunter skinner that is going to the NZ G&H mag for review, with a hickory general hunter at the bottom.



This one is a horse shoe rasp bowie because some time back it was sugested that I make one. It has brass and bluegum on a 7 inch blade.

[Von Gruff]

This was a proof of concept trial of two knives of a 4 knife kitchen set with jarrah and blackwood. I am starting to like the jarrah bolsters almost more than the buffalo horn - maybe!!. I have some 12C27 stainless coming and will make these plus the large slicer and a cleaver to round out the set. I like the angled bolsters so will do that again but may make them a little longer on the larger knives so they retain the same length to depth ratio as the little paring knife.

[sneaky one]

Awsome . Actually --- zen like! I noticed that no rasp file knives like mine were included... Too much work ? Your knives are the epitomy of beauty.

My wife is eying the previous post--# 606 for a new kitchen set .... Maybe in all SS steel.? I hope I din't help ruin your retirement... I almost feel guity, like when I pushed for more from AA for items to be made - Faster. Bill a refrained from contacting me - to shut the F up as a promoter! Hey, I am a helper on the forum to promote. Then Bill retired... From AA.

[Von Gruff]

Dan, those were a pair of test pieces in 15n20 to see if the pattern worked and as it has I have some 12C27 stainless coming so will see if I can get a set done before I head off on the road.
I have no problem with promotions and in fact apreciate the impetus your early comments have meant to my retirement hobby.

I have only made a few knives from the horseshoe rasps as the older ones are not that easy to come by now. There is one farrier friend who works over an area that radiates from here for 200 miles in all directions. The new rasps are often only surface hardened and not from as good a steel as the old ones so I prefer to use the known quality steel that I buy in. I did do this bowie from one of the ast two I have just to have a go at a more traditional style.

[Von Gruff]

Got this lot finished and sharpened this morning so that willl be about it till I get the kitchen set done.
From left to right is a skinner with kwila over jarrah, boner with rimu over jarrah, safari knife with rimu over brass, general hunter with myrtle, general hunter with maple over jarrah, safari knife with jarrah over zebrawood and a pig sticker with bluegum.

[Von Gruff]

The 12C27 stainless arrived this morning so I cut out the kitchen set and with the tag end of a piece of 1095 I cut out what will be a stick tang Sgian Dhu which will be another first for that design.

[Von Gruff]

Have got the sleeping pod all sorted now. A couple of coats of new paint to tidy it over so today I thought to get the roof sorted.

I layed soft felt packing blankets (the trucking companies use them to protect goods in transit) and then stretched the tarpaulin over that. Had to do a couple of folds on the front corner to get round the curve but heavy grade foundation tape will keep it all in the desired position. Will run a 1 1/2 x 5/16 batton olong the side to ensure the bottom edge is held down firmly. I used all that I had on hand so will get another couple of lengths next time in the city.. At the moment it is just held with staples. Ran a light batton over the rear and at the front to give the tarp a full perimeter hold down.


Back to the knives tomorrow as I have a JT Ranger and a Sgian Dubh to finish after heat treating today.

[Von Gruff]

Got these two finished up. Another JT Ranger with 5 1/2 inch x .156 1095 with Jarrah handle and a little knife that is sort of in the style of a Sgian Dubh with jarrah over a copper bolster on a stick tang 4 1/4 in x .125 1095 blade.

[Von Gruff]

So alll ready to go on the 12C27 stainless steel kitchen blades now as the foil turned up this morning. I will not be able to get to it till next week as there is a hunt organised among a few other obligations that will come first..

This is the set up I have in place now. I got a piece of 4x2 box and modified it by having it cut down to 3 3/4 in height to fit the forge opening, then welded a couple of supports to hold the probe toward the top of the box and clear of touching either the foil wrapped blade or the box itself.

The angle iron is a heat blocker, unbreakable and just as effective as a fire brick.



You can see the probe supports inside the muffer. The flange to the side and underneath makes sure there is no flame line towards my hands when putting a blade in or out of the muffler and also protects the rest of the probe covering past the insulators.



The angle iron also has a probe usability if I need to controll the heat when not using the muffler or without the probe in place it is a good heat blocker

[Doon]

Very cool, will be dropping in next time I pass through Lawrence.
Will order a knife also.
Keep up the good work!

[Von Gruff]

Very cool, will be dropping in next time I pass through Lawrence.
Will order a knife also.
Keep up the good work!

Cheers Doon. I always enjoy visits from those of a like mind.