Beginner Knife Making: How to make your first knife

[@pepejuan2924]

I’m living in the Philippines and the blacksmith here uses a burning barrel filled 3/4 the up with dirt as a forge , the forced air is achieved by use a leaf blower motor connected to a pipe, they burn charcoal,notches are cut out of the barrel front and back, his anvil is a piece of railroad rail and they do really good work 👍😁💪🏻🇺🇸

[@svravenflintlock7526]

The last 2 knives I built were heat treated on my charcoal grill and used my wife's blow dryer to really get it hot...checked with a magnet when they got cherry red.

[@jodydille8612]

I used a shop vacuum on blow rather than suck...the volume of air blowing totally melted my blade, I was burning coal not charcoal.

[@6Sally5]

I have watched dozens of beginner how-to knifemaking videos and yours…hands down…is the best one I’ve seen. Subscribed and saved this for future reference. Thank you!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@RG1788.1]

I wanted to say thank you for making this video. Making my first knife this week using it and excited to see how it goes! This is the best video for true beginners out there!!!

[@johnbennett7244]

One of the better knife making videos that I have seen.

[@phila1714]

Thanks for the vid I just ordered a 1x30 and gonna start having fun with it! Never made a knife but I can't wait to try it out!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thank you for watching! I greatly appreciate it. Knife making is an awesome craft to get into.

[@HARMARSCH2]

Excellent information for anyone wanting to start making knives. This knife turned out great nice job. Thank you.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@hamstrings99]

Great video, thank you for sharing your skills.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thank you for watching, I appreciate it.

[@michaelpaul721]

Great video. Well done.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@frankwolf9187]

Great video. Thank you. Some very helpful hints here.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@Anderson-HandForged]

great video i picked quite a few pointers from it one of the best knife making videos here on YT thanks very much

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thank you, I appreciate you watching!

[@arthbeano]

Very informational video thx a lot I am just getting into knife making and I’m looking for something to keep me busy on those boring days

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Awesome! I appreciate you watching, and best of luck on your future builds!

[@Fred-og3ld]

That is great job on the knife man love the masking tape trick on the handles damn good idea.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@mark109s]

I think you made this video just for me! Lol. I don’t have all the tools to do knife making, but I do want to make some, and this video sure helped me out. Thanks.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I am happy it helped! Once you get going it's easy to get hooked! I appreciate you watching.

[@gregorygolden1296]

Great video. I make knives about the same way. But I learned a couple things from you that will sure help me. I enjoy making them. I'm in my mid 60's and find great enjoyment making them....I give them away to friends. Thanks Brother.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

That is awesome! I am glad it helped out. I greatly appreciate you watching!

[@daveoseas]

Many useful tips. For skinning and gutting i like a drop point. Subscribed. Love the simplicity of handle. Learned that from a butchers knife and experience. I'd like a bolster to protect hand.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@paulmullins102]

excellant work my friend

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@SchysCraftCo.]

Nice job looks good

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@widhinugroho9141]

@@Mysticmountainforge nice guide sir

[@Mysticmountainforge]

@@widhinugroho9141 thank you, I appreciate you watching!

[@alexanderstoner4306]

That is beautiful work & play. That is a sweet baby and you explained everything so articulately. Keep it going! I want to see a Tanto next

[@jerichojoe307]

If you're going to go with a hardware store file make sure it is a quality one as a lot of vey mass-produced ones nowadays are made of cheap steel that has simply been case-hardened. Thrift store, flea market, or yard sale is the best way to go to make sure you're getting an older file that is made from solid carbon steel unless you get a high-end file from the hardware store that you can be sure is not just case-hardened

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Right on! I wish I would have mentioned that when I made the video but it completely slipped my mind at the time. Ebay is also a great place to find new old stock files that are high quality. I appreciate you watching!

[@lluwd]

I share that opinion. I have customers who ask for a knife to be made out a rasp or file and they want to bring me one of their own, I tell them it must be a Nicholson or a Diamond otherwise, I wont mess with it. even though I anneal them and re heat treat, the steel quality is lacking in most files and rasps or they are only case hardened with a mild steel core. Those are about the only 2 brands I have had good luck with. even brand new ones are almost always case hardened, better to find the old ones. if you know of another decent brand, let me know

[@eabnamoliben1598]

​@@lluwd can't you just harden those cheap files?

[@johnrhodes3350]

​@@eabnamoliben1598case hardening, means that extra carbon has been added to the surface layers only from a low carbon mild steel blank. So that when you grind on your bevels, that hard surface is removed leaving just a soft low carbon mild steel core, that can not be heat treated sufficiently. In African countries like Tanzania, they import loads of our scrap mild steel and case hardening it themselves. This involves packing a mixture of powdered charcoal and bone around the piece and sealing it in a metal coffin and baking it at a high temperature for 4 hours or more. Then quenching and tempering in the usual way. They find it worthwhile, where 'needs must' and is the 'mother of invention' In a more modern industrial process, case-hardening is done by heat soaking in a rich atmosphere of a mixture of gases. Old files are 'Through Hardened' meaning the full thickness has a higher carbon content from the beginning. Most people have heard of Chromium, Nickel, Molybdenum, Vanadium etc. added as alloying metals in various ratios. They can amongst other things improve.. corrosion resistance, tensile strength, impact strength at low temperatures, hardness, toughness, even create extra wear resistance through work-hardening. But the most powerful by weight, the cheapest and often overlooked alloying element is, Carbon. Hopefully I don't sound like I'm preaching ... Just feeling tired and not very well.

[@JohnDoe-ls2ww]

The Horrible Freight 1x30 with 5” disc is a pretty great entry level belt sander. Been using the heck out of mine.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

That's the truth, I used the grizzly version of the exact same grinder for a lot of knives. Even with two 2x72 grinders in the shop I plan on getting another 1x30 to keep on hand, I recently saw where grizzly is now offering a 1x42 set up like a 2x72. I appreciate you watching.

[@adrianlouviere7650]

Thanks for the fine demo and information.

[@jimkeegan7773]

Thoroughly enjoyed this. Thanks for all the advice!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Glad it was helpful! I appreciate you watching!

[@jayandtay1179]

U allways have good vids and do great stuff. I look forward to trying a file blade. I know ill be hooked

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thank you! Best of luck and I appreciate you watching!

[@gregpassmore7716]

Great knife, I really enjoy it, I got some pallets. I may try to make some scales out ofbit.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

That should work well, I have done it with oak pallet boards before, it turned out really nice. Thanks for watching, I greatly appreciate it!

[@HighRoad317]

Excellent content, appreciate the time!!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching.

[@meandmyRC99]

Great job!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks, I appreciate you watching.

[@lindboknifeandtool]

I haven’t heard of funny river before. I was born in wasilla and lived in anchorage for a few years until I moved to Colorado. I have family in anchorage and seward. I’ll probably end up living in Alaska at some point in my life. You really have a knack for making knives.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Funny River is about 15 miles out of Soldotna, You turn left by spenards building supply right across from K beach road and drive to the end of the road. I almost moved to Wasilla instead of the Peninsula, the place we were looking at sold right before we could get it. I love knife making and sharing it with anyone I can. Going on Forged In Fire was one of the most awesome experiances it has allowed me to do. I appreciate you watching!

[@Clayton-Green]

@@Mysticmountainforge what episode were you on?

[@martinwright2254]

This is awesome. Very well done.... I've been interested in blade making for years.... I'm only now starting to get ready to start. . . Building my homemade forge.... I've got some tools... but can see I need a couple specific ones to get..... but I'm not far off. Cant wait.

[@mariolopez-ri8wd]

Beautiful video I just bought a WEN 1x30 and i will start making my own knife ..I would like if you would do a video on what grits on the belt to make a knife from the beginning to the end ..I would like that very much .I just Subbed to your channel thanks

[@RRINTHESHOP]

Really nice job. The knife came out great.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@blazer2554]

Hi, do you perhaps have a pdf template of the blade. Very very nice.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I believe I got this template from dcknives.blogspot.com/p/knife-profiles.html?m=1 I appreciate you watching.

[@marcobosch5263]

👍🏻i gonna try this,and watch your channel😉 thanks for the idea.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thank you for watching, I appreciate it!

[@elpapirrin1090]

Great video, thanks alot!

[@gurvinderkau1e5w18]

Knife look beautiful . 👍👍🔥🔥

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@MrFishProd]

Thank you for this video (and thanks to all your helpful commenters). I think I want to make a pair of matching knives together with my papa.

[@bomaite1]

Glue one of the scales on the handle with 5-min epoxy. When set, drill through the holes of your knife blank making the holes for your scale. Glue the other scale on, and drill back through the first scale creating perfect pin holes you can't screw up.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

That's one way to do it, but that doesn't allow working on the front ends of the handle scales, and shaping them after they are glued up can be difficult. Not a bad idea though.

[@tiagobrasil5910]

Belo projeto, faca muito linda e muito funcional também. Perfeita para EDC . Obrigado por compartilhar suas habilidades. DEUS te abençoe sempre.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@ourlifeinwyoming4654]

I think I can do this! Thanks!

[@billtalkington664]

Awesome

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@powerhandforces]

Amazing Job! Thank you for sharing.👍

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@kanyotamas]

For a beginner much easier to make a knife out of springsteel. It's easy to obtain and much easier to work with it.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

To each their own.

[@hallur7523]

Thx alot … very informative

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Glad it was helpful! I appreciate you watching!

[@TheSmokingCheddar]

this is extremely helpful. I was looking at getting a belt grinder and wondering if it would be enough. I need to replace my kitchen knives for cooking and I am just sick of the manufactured stuff and want to just make something for myself. I already have an angle grinder, a drill and an oven, so I am pretty much set. I am sure i can dig up some old metal files somewhere. if not, i work next to a hardware store in my local town. I have one question though, why not tap the metal and thread a small bolt? is it preference or is there a reason? (instead of using a nail) I only ask, because i have a few knocking around.

[@bjrndue1878]

Could you cut the file with the hacksaw? Or is it too hard?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

With it just being tempered back, it would be really hard on a hacksaw, an angle grinder with a cutoff wheel would be a better approach for the bulk of removal. I appreciate you watching.

[@bjrndue1878]

@@Mysticmountainforge thanks 😊 I live in an apartment so power tools isn't a good idea. Trying to get into knife making, but it is hard living in an apartment 😂

[@jakobwheelhand9907]

Very nice!! Subscribed

[@adambroda8240]

hi why did you temper after cutting the shape and not before? wouldn't it be easier to cut the shape after you temper it first?

[@Channelslayer33]

What kind of machine did you use to cut out the wooden handles ?

[@bitsurfer0101]

You don't need to get it red hot to anneal it?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Not really just to soften it up enough to drill, chasing that blue line down the tang will soften it enough to drill. You can see a great example of this in ABS Mastersmith J. Neilsons tips and tricks dvd. If you don't want to to do it that way or don't have access to a torch, you can drill it with a carbide masonry bit, just go slow, apply even consistent pressure and oil.

[@christopheranthony1200]

Is there any way I could get the exact same template that you used?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Here is the website I used to find the template used in this video, I appreciate you watching! dcknives.blogspot.com/p/knife-profiles.html

[@Chiefs1582]

As a machinist the destruction of a Nicholson file hurts my heart but you made a knife so that's rad

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I don't like using them for knives either because they are so useful in the shop, all of the ones used here on the channel were for custom orders. People seem to like files, rasps, and rr spikes alot. I appreciate you watching.

[@Danielson1818]

I'm actually about to use a 'Mill Bastard' file to make my first homemade knife. I'd never do that if it was still functional, but this thing is old and dull.

[@rustybumperclassics6342]

So cool

[@knry9125]

love it!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@anadventure6693]

Just watched and subscribed. How did you control the angle of the blade on the belt sander? Ive watched other videos using a hand filing jig and sharpie so you know you are going straight, did you just eyeball?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate your support! I do freehand my knives but I have also been doing this for several years so holding it at a certain angle has kind of become second nature. When I first started out I did use grinding jigs like this this one originblademaker.com/product/knife-making-belt-grinder-angle-grind-guide-regular-large-tool-rest/, you can also make your own fairly easy like the one in this video, I used one like it as well with fantastic results. kzbin.info/www/bejne/oonXipmYhbmHmZI. I also draw lines with a sharpie or with layout fluid to grind up too, they just don't always show up very well in the videos. Thanks again for watching, I greatly appreciate it!

[@DanteAlexander-q5e]

Thank you

[@PatrickBeriault]

How much to ppl sell those file knives for?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I normally sell file knives like this one for $80 with a simple kydex sheath, but I am also in a very low income area so if you are in an area where people get paid more you could easily go $125 or more with a leather sheath. I appreciate you watching.

[@stonebridge157]

This is probably a stupid Q, but is there sandpaper for metal and wood or do you use the same on both? I got a Ryobi RBDS4601G That I wonder if I can use? I dont got a lot of fancy tools but I really want to try this. Is there any handfiles you recommend?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I don't think it's a stupid question at all, and I am more than happy to help. From what I understand ceramic belts and sandpaper work well with wood or steel, aluminum dioxide belts/sandpaper work best with wood only as steel will dull them extremely quickly. The sander you have will work great until you can upgrade, I have a friend who makes and sells knives that uses the same grinder, I believe that red label abrasives makes belts that will fit it in ceramic. We all start somewhere, my first grinder was a cheap grizzly 1x30, the bigger and better tools will come in the future but the foundation/skills you build with basic tools will be priceless down the road. As for files I usually just use Nicholson files from my local hardware store. I hope this helps and wish you the best on your knife making journey. I appreciate your support and appreciate you watching.

[@stonebridge157]

@@Mysticmountainforge hey man, thanks for the quick reply 👍🏼 Very much good information here and I really do appreciate that. Thats awesome man. Only "problem" I have with that sander is that I can only get 1 type of belt for it here in Norway. I did buy some regular hand files today so I think I'm just gonna start and see how it goes. Thanks again for the info, very helpful 👍🏼

[@LandonJohnson-lc2cj]

Love that bowie knife! Looks like a bowie used in the civil war!

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! Thats the look that I was going for when I made it. I appreciate you watching!

[@patrickpenney9776]

This is a great video and I'm going to use it to do my first knife ever with my son. One small thing though - advertisements for tools kept popping up over top of the subtitles in the bottom left corner and I'm deaf so I kinda need those. No beef with adding adverts to keep the content free, just maybe let YT know about the placement.

[@Sweetsteel1988]

I use a 4x36 belt grinder and it works good

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I have a friend that uses one for his knife making, they do work really well, I have been thinking of getting one and making it Into a surface grinder. Thank you for watching, I appreciate it!

[@Sweetsteel1988]

@@Mysticmountainforge I do believe however the motor is wearing down cause it is old and I don’t think it’s rpm are as high as it once was

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I see, I remember seeing a KZbin video awhile back where someone upgraded theirs to a larger motor, it might have been outdoors55 channel, it would be one of his older videos.

[@chriskincaid6035]

Thank You ...

[@chrisyancy5351]

do you have a printable version of the knife template you used?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Sorry I don't but if you type free printable knife templates into the Google search bar it will pull up a lot including the one I used. Thanks for watching I appreciate it!

[@lukecope4212]

Some constructive criticism here, when you torched the tang in the vise, you said you were annealing it. The correct term for what you did was just tempering it waaayy back to be softer. Annealing would be getting it to critical and then controlling the cool down rate to be over a very long period of time. And normalizing is heating to critical and then just letting cool in air.

[@hidenseekprospecting4784]

I have to say ,that is one very impressive looking file knife. I'm big in to bushcraft and that looks like a beautiful blade to carry. I'd love to own one of your EDC. Very nice work bubba.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you supporting the channel!

[@jasonscott5225]

Cabinet shops throw away lots of different hardwood scraps. A 12 pack of the be rage of their choice will get you enough wood to make handles for years.

[@andreasporch788]

Very nice

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching!

[@sknwlkrvw]

24:22 😅

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Gotta love random background noises. I appreciate you watching.

[@nate2838]

Quick not about drilling, make sure you are using something other than just your hand to keep the bit from catching and spinning the knife. Also, that could be why he did this step when he did, If it was already sharp it would be incredibly dangerous, and risk damaging the blade you just made. It looks to me like the "blade" is being stopped by the blocks on the press table.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

You are 100% right, when drilling handle pin holes there should always be some sort of stop to catch the knife in case it spins, I have been lucky in my knife making career to not have this happen and I should have made it a point in this video to discuss the need for a stop to prevent possible injuries. I appreciate you posting this for others to see and I appreciate you watching!

[@Charles_Robert.9]

Does it stay sharp for a long time or does it dull quickly?

[@Mysticmountainforge]

This one had excellent edge retention, a hunter purchased it from me and uses it to skin deer. It is always good practice on files though to make sure to use a good name brand they tend to work better. Some cheaper files are only hardened on the surface. I appreciate you watching!

[@Charles_Robert.9]

Thanks you so much. I live in Turkey. So good name brand files are 850 currency units in here. I prefer to make knife rather than buy because this is cheaper way. But even "cheap" is not cheap in this country :D So I have to work on any brand file 🤷🏻

[@jerrybigrig]

😎👍😎

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Thanks! I appreciate you watching.

[@garyh9216]

Hey brother I found this video to be very helpful. You did a great job of explaining a lot of the small things. I haven't made any great knives yet but like with anything in life you must practice if you want to prefect any craft. I'd say the funnest and easiest thing I've made this far are a few ninja stars out of used circular saw blades. But anyhow, thanks for the great video. technical and a great job of making sure the audience knew what tools to use and where to get them.

[@Mysticmountainforge]

That's awesome, I have always wanted to make some ninja stars or even a batarang using some old saw blades but just haven't had a chance to. I am glad the video helped you in your journey. I appreciate you watching!

[@fkrestoration]

My first video in my life making handmade knife 🗡️🔪

[@Mysticmountainforge]

I will have to go check that out, thank you for watching, I greatly appreciate it!

[@bennyhill3642]

1st Thing is to remind you if you haven't allready? Thank your wife for moving things o like a vice so we can see what your doing ROFL Great VIDEO and Thank you for your time!! GOD Bless😇

[@ogleg179]

Mucho desperdicio de material y habla menos y trabaja mas

[@Mysticmountainforge]

Oh well, it is what it is. I got one group complaining about too much talking and one group asking for more talking, I just can't win sometimes, maybe it's time to stop doing youtube.