Forging A Knife From Guitar Strings!

Air guitar is exhausting. Nickel wound guitar strings are welded with 1095 powdered steel to make a pair of blades. And maybe I get all juiced and melt faces with some shredded riffs. Maybe.
Rhythm Guitar: Steve
Bass Guitar: Steve Clone 1
Lead Guitar: This one is Steve, rhythm guitar is actually Steve Clone 2. No, wait, bass is Steve Clone 2 and rhythm is Clone 1? Oh no, am I a clone or am I Steve? Who am I? What am I? What have I done! OH, LORD, NOOOOOOoooooo!!
Special thanks to Jonathan Estep & Holden Murphey
Support this Channel! / greenbeetle
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Keep It Real by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (creativecommon...)
Artist: audionautix.com/
This videos content is copyrighted and may not be reused, published or distributed without my express, written permission.

[@GreenBeetle]

The press is new. I hope to spare my joints a bit and do more damascus in the future! Thanks for watching. If anyone wants to join my air band just leave your qualifications in the comment section.

[@MrBodoFraggins]

What kind of press is it?

[@lucasgumbiner8673]

Coal ironworks 16 ton

[@GreenBeetle]

@@MrBodoFraggins 16 ton press made by people at the top of that google search.

[@adamrice384]

I kept wondering if you were ever going to talk about it in the video lol

[@GreenBeetle]

@Benjamin Sundberg how dare you, sir. they can read, you know...

[@MegaHellstrike]

Remember to tune the knife if it doesn't sound sharp anymore.

[@miseryisbeauty]

MegaHellstrike 🤣🤣🤣

[@dejavu666wampas9]

Well played, sir

[@cameronwebster6866]

Tune to C sharp for “cnife”

[@davidwilson6577]

But you wouldn't want it to be tuned sha... Oh.

[@carsonmiller2865]

Ohh that was slick

[@SharpWorks]

These knives really struck a chord with me. They totally shred!

[@GreenBeetle]

Sharp Works BOOM 🤘

[@DaleDix]

You should be strung up for that bad joke.

[@SharpWorks]

Ahhhhhhh!

[@michaelrobertson8795]

Yo quit picking on each other

[@EvergreenAcupuncture]

Was that chord sharp?

[@MakeNCreate]

The title of this video made me happy beyond belief. You are a madman!

[@GreenBeetle]

Wait til the end

[@Scorcher19]

Same

[@TheeJMC]

The use of a saw to rattle the powder down, is genius!!!

[@jaydavis0927]

Ya that's what you do

[@markboyle1843]

Auto matic hammer on a budget

[@johnjacobs8568]

Yep good idea. Blunt rod in a hammer drill is good too!

[@yanivproselkov4555]

#2 is just gorgeous man, and imagine explaining it to someone! cool af

[@ChristCenteredIronworks]

That's a whole lot of music that no one will ever hear now.....LOL good to see you post and great job

[@GreenBeetle]

Love the new thumbs on your channel (and the content, of course)

[@ChristCenteredIronworks]

@@GreenBeetle I'm glad you have enjoyed the content on the channel! Wish you all the best brother catch you on the next one :-)

[@kevinkorthuis6365]

Could have bought bass strings, they are all wound = no waste :D

[@ThatBassistK]

@The King, or $60+ for mine 😢.

[@ThatBassistK]

@The King, I'm just a brand whore; I love my D'Addarios and my La Bellas but at least they're not Tomastiks.

[@cptbootleg]

Don't use Elixirs for this project. They're coated strings and they'll probably be poisonous when they burn off. But they sound AMAZEBALLS

[@TheEpicLinkFreeman]

bass strings are generally a lot longer a much larger diameter, while having 4 usable strings instead of 3. for 3x the price, you get much more than 3x the usable material.

[@carlholm7867]

I bought a set of rotosounds... ONCE.

[@jmarq2283]

Glad you are still making videos! I really enjoy watching you. Your bag of knives has inspired me greatly to up my level of craftsmanship. Nice press btw!

[@NWRefund]

Thank you for always showing struggles along with your successes. It's far more educational than they would be without them.

[@BarbershopCustoms]

I love this one. As a guitarist and knifemaker I string along with the idea!

[@jdmec81]

Hell of a project, and determination! Love the look of knife 1.

[@tyttuut]

If you're gonna do more stuff like this, ask your subscribers to send in old strings. I might even have a few.

[@endlesswaters196]

As a fellow guitarist I have plenty of incomplete sets of elixer mostly missing the 1st string. All this tuberware and no lids lol

[@tv82832]

Jesse Higgins - i dunno, elixer strings have a coating and when they burn it maybe poisonous. Or it will melt very badly.

[@cosmicraysshotsintothelight]

He should clamp them all together full length and then add powder as you twist them together like making a cable. Hammer that twisted pile up. All this reminds me of those Chinese noodle makers. Hey... Piano wire!

[@dovahkiinsadventures7632]

Another place for strings is any guitar shop. Ask them to keep the old strings when they resting someone's guitar.

[@longlivegarybusey6409]

Late to the party but wouldn't using peoples old nasty strings caked in skin flakes and finger grease make for a not so great material to use?

[@msblades5382]

Never had any doubts. Great video as always and the pattern of both pieces are great. As a guitar lover and knife maker the end deserves to be played over and over and over and over and over and over........................ Martin

[@TheKajunkat]

And now ladies and gentlemen, introducing the cutting edge, axe pounding, bar splitting, face melting, heavy metal band of all time, THE GREEN BEETLES!

[@mikegarmer7499]

Been on a binge of your videos and have to say this is one of my favorite knives!

[@seansullivan6398]

"This is gonna be weird, a little crazy, not sure if it's gonna work" - makes a disgustingly beautiful knife Knife #2 needs a handle!

[@nortagnan2135]

Best knife maker on KZbin. Shows the full process, things going wrong, explain why they go wrong, what the idea is to resolve it - and then whether that worked or not. Watching the videos is like going on an actual knife making journey , that's why you're the best. Would like to see a bit more of the whole process though, specifically putting the handle on - great work though keep it up!

[@Remulos1]

Are you a father? That was the most Dad outro I've ever seen and I loved it.

[@shookings]

You are literally the ONLY person I've seen use a shaker tool when making canister Damascus, which is something that I've been SCREAMING at other videos. Thank you so much for being smart.

[@lennethwemyss3713]

This is hardcore pr0n for a guitar and knives lover

[@mattdickson2]

Lenneth Wemyss RIGHT?!

[@lennethwemyss3713]

@@mattdickson2 dang right. Sometimes I wish I could afford to get one of those fine bladeworks, sometimes I dream I could just get even the scraps from his works, hang them like chiming bells, and fall asleep in a lullaby echoing with the millions of hammer strikes from all his past works

[@lennethwemyss3713]

@Matthew M I see what you mean here, it's just that I am rasp-a-farian, and as such I bevelieve that everyone should do and seek whatever they enjoy as long as nobody gets hurt, as well as helping everybody in staying sharp and cool. We can be ruff sometimes, almost gritty, but our foolery help everyone having a good laugh and bind togheter. As for spoons and forks, they aren't all gloom and crazy, don't make a bundle of everybody of its kind, or the victorynox will belong to the usual stereotypes. (Meh I know my English is lame, English not am I!)

[@Imwright720]

I can’t even image what you would have to charge to make it worth making. I salute you my friend for the amazing work you put out. I swear I can feel the heat coming through the screen.

[@MicroWazzle]

Here's a tip when using liquid vapor, you have to let it dry before adding the contents or else you won't get a good separation from the canister and may even end up with voids in the Damascus.

[@cameronwebster6866]

william milam liquid vapour, that’s an oxymoron if I ever saw one.

[@stin-dog172]

dude pure class work, I love to see the whole journey including the mistake adjustments and re-calibration.

[@FamilyJules7X]

This was awesome! Really enjoyed watching you work on this.

[@gorisenke]

That second blade was amazing. The first one was beautiful in q direct sense and the second had the flare to get it there, with the dark spots being uneven and patchy in the body while maintaining the dark edge. I dig it.

[@keenaheaton8853]

That is incredible and creative! I'd give this an A-minor

[@GreenBeetle]

so good

[@williamj.barnhartjr.3108]

You are one hell of a knife maker, you've made some of the nicest I've ever seen

[@torkelvlstadhognestad6253]

Yaaay Finally another video from my favorite youtuber

[@HellJester07]

Beautiful work! Looks like it was a fairly tedious process but I'm glad you pulled it off to show us these knives.

[@baddogforge5181]

The unhandled knife is just a sexy beast,I'd been rolling this one around for quite some time,now I know it can be done

[@GreenBeetle]

Give it a go! I made it look hard, heheheh.

[@baddogforge5181]

@@GreenBeetle I think I'm gonna

[@MtbClint]

Love your videos! So refreshing to see a blacksmith using background knowledge. I always enjoy your videos, especially during the workweek I'm not able to forge. Keep up the good work!

[@manickn6819]

Damn that looks expensive with all those strings.

[@williamspetter2823]

It is lol they're at least 10 bucks a set and he had to have at LEAST 10 15 sets so yeah that's an expensive blade

[@samboyd2999]

Most of the time they are closer to about 4-6 bucks for a set of basic ernie ball strings depending on where you go. Not too bad unless you buy upmarket premium strings.

[@manickn6819]

@@samboyd2999 that about what I remembered when converted for my region. Not much metal in them though so it still adds up. Cool idea though.

[@williamspetter2823]

@@samboyd2999 my local guitar store must be ripping me off that makes me mad lol im paying 8 something a set for Ernie ball power slinkys 😦

[@Npc2thousand]

William Getzstoned whut for ernies?? Shouldnt be paying more than 6$ after tax. At least where i am

[@creedakanugget4018]

Awesome you got your press, I look forward to seeing what you make in the future

[@vanhende]

you have been missed

[@mavos1211]

Great knives as usual! The ending really made me laugh, I could just picture your wife walking in half way through making the air guitar shot and you trying to explain what you was doing. 😂

[@GreenBeetle]

HAAAHAHA!

[@1pdigit]

HOLD UP, STOP, STOP, STOP, you got a new press AND a new mini lathe?! (yeah, as a matter of fact I did see it!) I have to assume we are going to get a lot more videos now that you're divorced. XO And if you could use my musical awesomeness, I play a mean air triangle.

[@GreenBeetle]

1pdigit YOU’RE IN.

[@1pdigit]

@@GreenBeetle :) All kidding aside, I watch a lot of lathe vids, I don't know if you feel like it fits into your "YT thing" or whatever but I'm sure a lot of people would watch. If you haven't all ready, you should check out YT'er: This Old Tony He's got lots of good info and a great sense of humor,... just like you

[@shawnadams1965]

I love the workmanship you put into this project!

[@AoiFukuyama]

Did you know you can buy custom sets of guitar strings and only buy nickel wound strings? There are a bunch of retailers that may have been able to save you a lot of waste and maybe a bit of $$ too depending on how you sourced your strings.

[@linus0189]

Congrats on the new press, looking forward to watching more of you making them beautiful knives in the future.

[@Prairie_Barbarian]

Knife 2 has better tone in a blind test

[@GreenBeetle]

So good

[@torkelvlstadhognestad6253]

naah mate I think the first knife has the best tone :)

[@williamspetter2823]

That's because of the tonewood in the handle obviously 😂

[@mattdickson2]

as a guitarist and an aspiring blacksmith these knives just speak to me on a damn near spiritual level. They both look excellent quality wise as well as having amazing patterns!

[@DrSlay1313]

You should try bass strings. The whole set are round wounds and you'll need less of them.

[@mooseknuckle8334]

Great video fella. Thanks for the time you put into it. The Green Beetle logo covering the UPC code was a nice touch lol.

[@corygoff9996]

You know you can buy boxes of individual stings, right? Could have just bought a 30 count box of 46s

[@wadewilson5296]

Nothing more satisfying than watching that perfect fit of the end cap in the canister

[@Ilsabug1]

Bass strings are all wound. Just a psa. They are 3 times as much mind you

[@ricbachman1727]

Or you could get a 5 pound roll of low e's.

[@andrewnelson4496]

You never cease to amaze me with your creativity and ceaseless pursuit of the next incredible project! Wow!

[@josephrector8735]

For a second there I thought your nail was painted then I noticed its a bandaid

[@GreenBeetle]

it's from my lightsaber bandaid box, the force will be with you, always.

[@ig495]

jajaja yo tambien.

[@andrewneilson227]

The salesman at Guitar Center sees you coming: “the crazy knife guy is back!”

[@farisbrown301]

But what about guitar strings from knives? It's the logical next step.

[@davidpfeiffer7053]

Yes! That would fit right into one of my dreams, which is to build an electric guitar that has no guitar parts. I mean none. Using any pre-made or factory wires or string would be cheating.

[@dannydadog1987]

Use natural fibres, how do you think they used to make "older/est" string instruments? Ligaments!

[@davidpfeiffer7053]

​@@dannydadog1987 ..Gonna borrow some of caveoldlady's redrock pretty-wire and tie some caveman magic stuck-rocks on my real good gitter stick with it. Told caveoldlady what gonna do cuzza what skymen did to her, and she tied somma her secret critter-gut and knife-rock string-wires up and down gitter stick for protect me, she real respectful to gitter stick, heh heh. Then gonna go out of cave when skymen come out their cave and throw their fire sticks down makin boomers like they did at caveoldlady when she out finding some magic stuck-rocks for me. She say they tryin to steal her pretty-wire and my stuck-rocks! Well I gonna yell and stomp and roar hey you no good buncha grass-eatin sky woosies throw some fire-stick at me! Gonna swing gitter stick at em and they gonna run back in skycaves and hide, you betcha! Heh heh heh. My gitter stick scare em good! All cavemans knows it way bad, best gitter stick ever! Look at caveoldlady. Still got some teeth under both lips! Chew up my critter meat for me real good! Yeah! Gotter with it, only one tap on head, she fall down and I drag home. Other cavemans, they gotta hit em hard two, three times and sometimes they still don't gitter! Heh heh. Hey, here's some boomers...gitter stick, lets make some NOISE! Hey you skypunks! Aaaaarrrg! Aaaaarrrr.....[ZZZZAAAAAAAPP!].....rrraaaAAAAAA!A!A!A!ararr r ararr r eeeeooooeeeeo...aaeeooeeaaeeoeo aaeeooeeoeoe aaaahhhh........ ...This story recited from Ancestor Memory by David, a.k.a. the ConnMan.

[@Ironraven001]

Super cool! Man your grinds are next to perfect and free hand. Beautiful work man super glad to see a new post!

[@LILMADERR23]

Hell fvckin yyeeaaa 👌🏻🤙🏻 20:20

[@JackyMalul]

I loved the trick when you place the tip of the knife inside the canister to protect it from burning….nice job

[@alecmcjarison999]

You should use a stainless steel canister? Big dog forge does and it works quite well

[@GreenBeetle]

A great idea. I have some stainless square tubing but it's over 1/8" thick and I freak out it's going to stick and i'll be grinding for an hour heheheh. I 'll get some thinner stuff and give it a whirl. thanks!

[@baddogforge5181]

Line ur canister with a shop towel not only does it make a good barrier but it will consume ne oxygen that may have gotten in the can good job and 🔨 on

[@waafist]

Great video, my favorite parts were your chalk drawing explanations, they were helpful in your explanations for a guy like me that's used to crayons, and I laughed when you said "well that didn't work at all"! I also like the 3 split screens in your time lapse. Looks like you have a lot of interesting videos. You also have a new subscriber.

[@crazycoyote1738]

That’s what we call stubborn dedication!! Well done bro!!

[@n00baTr00pa]

The way you ended up forging the second knife was how I thought you should have done it from the start. While the pattern isn't perfect, with the blemishes on the bevel, the general look is actually pretty damn good. Nice knife man!

[@TheDeankelly]

The pattern on the second blade is beautiful. Nice work Pal. 👍

[@fokkerdude]

I think these are two of my favourite knives that you've produced. The shape is really good.

[@ludleththelost6824]

It's really impressive how far you've come. Both the blades and the video look great.

[@markquinn7593]

Really nice work thanks

[@lnlnd]

A press! Congratulations! New stuff is always exciting! Keep rocking!

[@Idrisjj]

Very interesting, I watched with bated breath. I'm so glad it worked out in the end. GOOD JOB!

[@checkyoself9]

The thumbnail in my Suggested Videos said that the length of this was 21:12. I thought you had done that on purpose. Re-purposing guitar strings + Rush reference = instaclick. *22 minutes later* Glad I watched! Fascinating work from an obviously talented craftsman.

[@GreenBeetle]

that would have been brilliant!

[@redmegalord]

This was the first time I saw your face, what a perfect reveal and props on the beautiful knives my man #2 really blew me away. It's been cool to watch your channel grow and watch you get better, keep it up! Also if your interested in trying something new I drew up some plans for a knife when I was on deployment, if I can find the drawing I'll pass it along to you!

[@SakeofScienceChrisKammel]

Absolutely fantastic video Green Beetle. Love that new press.

[@ncsaddlehunter77]

Great job on the forging and making the video as usual. Congrats on the press. Awesome blades.

[@tinkeringaround6241]

Awesome video . Beautiful knives . Waiting patiently on the forged in fire Green Beatle edition. Keep up the great work you do !

[@OldHickoryForge]

You got a press! Nice man!

[@blaze00366]

Been a TIG welder for over 20 years certified 6-g and Ive been getting bored of it but now seeing this gives me ideas like silicone bronze and steel or stainless steel because you can weld steel with silicone bronze welding wire

[@tylergordon1763]

When your forge welding a delicate piece like that it helps to go a couple rounds with light hammer blows. By doing this you essentially spot weld a few areas together so that when you go into the full on welding heat the piece wont move around as much. They use this technique when making traditional samuri swords since they are using such loosely pack and "slippery" materials. Hope this helps, I absolutely love your videos.

[@GreenBeetle]

ty

[@MountainFisher]

Dude, I'm a hobbyist knifemaker since 1992. If you want some 1080 tubes take a bed frame angle, cut to length and weld the angles together to form a square tube. Weld will probably will crack and have to be welded twice because bed frames are 1075 to 1085 steel, you can make a knife just from the bed frame.

[@thomasloanwolf]

WOW!!!! both r unbelievable but love the second one. i really wish i could own that one. great job!!!!!!

[@edgarderschmied4497]

That is really cool!! And I am really happy that you got a press!

[@leviwaite1136]

Man i love your vids man, i am so excited when they come out. Really inspiring!

[@giboranak]

That's just SO METAL!!! Rock on! I love the end bit! You're Hawkesome! Stay Hawkesome.

[@SillyMoustache]

Wow! Shold have contacted a guitarist like me - I have boxes of old strings piling up in my workshop, many of which are steel and nickel wound. Also phos bronze over steel - to make the handles!

[@500yardsplus]

I’m so glad you “PRESSED” on to make such a beautiful knife.

[@GreenBeetle]

GET IN MY AIR BAND.

[@anthonykent7983]

Really enjoyed the video as always! Knives looks great! In tune too! Rock on bro. Thanks bro Anthony Kent

[@torporvasflam8670]

I wonder if a local music/guitar store would have trash strings to give you from repairs and restringing they've done.

[@erikcourtney1834]

Wow those look amazing. Your a riot. Videos are awesome and I look forward to everyone of them

[@baileylang1293]

Absolutely love your stuff! Keep up the amazing work man! However I must say I prefer when you narrate the entire video. Its always very educational for me

[@B_Uttered_Sausage]

Beautiful pattern amazing handle on the first knife too

[@Mertle_The_Turtle_5165]

Great music video at the end there! Loved it!

[@jeffleffingwell8583]

amazing I have never watched all before I collect knives or did, I play at the guitar so I watched this its great what a talent great craft

[@ANTThePANT79]

WOW!!! Those are just beautiful man!!! I LOVE watching your vids...

[@jaredallen1149]

The free concert at the end was AWESOME!!!

[@michaelrobertson8795]

Man he really "hammered on" it

[@393strokedcoupe]

Hahahaa, that outro. Lol! Beautiful blades.

[@calebmcintosh01]

Nerd. You are my hero!!! You rock! Nice guitar knife!!!! Keep up the great great work.

[@carveroutdoors]

I like your voice and when you explain things, but having the initial 5 minutes of silence was nice too. Keep up the great work sir!

[@rogermarshall8991]

Very unique & a beautiful outcome. I've got some Burrell very close to that I want to try aswell With the handle.. Great knife build.

[@uncleouch9795]

I finally got to see this one. Very Nice! I like that little "Thumper" gadget you used to settle the powdered steel. First time I have seen one of those. I'm used to the old ultrasonic vibration pad. I learned casting from my Uncle my Aunts Husband, he made gold and semi precious crowns and dentures, etc. We had the vibrating pads to free the air bubbles from the Gypsum casts.

[@GreenBeetle]

Right on

[@cesarherrlein]

JAJAJAJAJA GENIO! excelente tu trabajo, excelentes tus videos, y el final.... una obra de arte! jajaja saludos desde Argentina!

[@dadratsforge]

Clever, clever boy. Terrific session and a brilliant end to the video. I wonder how many people go away whining about the contents but never saw the superb closer. It's official, you are a nutter of the highest order!😉👍😁👏👏👏

[@GreenBeetle]

;)

[@giithemetalhead]

I actually made my very first damascus canister out of 1095 and guitar/bass strings too, so this was cool to see someone else's process

[@nastyrecon1019]

Glad to see you got a press brother. I'm sure that is helping out a lot. Also as a side note, your welding has improved dramatically. I hope to one day to open my knife shop....before I die.

[@Mucidamascusblades]

No way! It was 13 years ago when I said "I have this bucket of used strings, I want to make damascus out of it!" And as for my idea of a bariton electric guitar (yes, I am a luthier also), everybody laughed at me. Thank you for proving everybody (else) wrong! Oh, now the bariton electric guitar is being produced also, btw...

[@putridabomination]

Absolute madlad! Great knife