Knife making: making a kitchen knife from a farriers rasp

[@darmaggi]

I've watched too many knife forging videos where the smith will say next to nothing in terms of description, or more importantly the why of their specific processes, and I really appreciated your inclusion of so much information regarding details of your process and the why behind your choices.

[@inside91]

Awesome! Watching videos like these make me question my choices in life ;)

[@randallsummers6551]

I like the looks of this one. I'll try to do something like this when we get started. Keep hammering John!!

[@RVsbladesnthangs]

Beautiful knife, I never would have guessed the water quinch... I have a bunch of rasps that are just begging to become knives.

[@streetjackal4411]

Great work! Solid vid and exceptional knife.

[@Leviathanshadex]

This is fantastic work from a very knowledgeable guy! Keep up the great work, I'll check out your Etsy shop

[@jacobpahl972]

Thank you that drives me nuts too getting a dull knifes

[@bruceprosser8332]

Great advice on the pre build heat treat test. Thank you!

[@JustinTopp]

Stunning. I’ve seem much shitter blades sell for 800 and I’m sure you know who I’m talking about. Also I have dull knives especially when your paying a lot for a top quality hand made custom knife

[@in_our_60s]

Great Knife , wonderful end result !!

[@benfox9382]

that's a masterpiece! fantastic work.

[@afreidson]

Great job, beautiful outcome

[@williamchase5698]

thanks for a great video and sharing your knowledge

[@mattbelota1]

Awesome knife! Also noticed how compacted you belt grinder is, might have to design mine like that

[@stevengrimes4473]

Sweet! Loving the channel, keep up the great work!

[@zoriast]

Thank you sir. I like your work and your video.

[@knifemakingproduction9747]

a lot of work turn out pretty well great job! ;)

[@danddwelding5148]

Sweet blade. Like your belt sander. Any plans for making one similar? Thanks. Great video.

[@NeilGraham.I.M.F]

Im not 1 of those! Love it, great handle profile

[@TelosDextroza]

Nice and thanks for sharing your knowledge, i was hoping to see a little grind on the handle section cause that metal on that area was too bulky resulting on a non wanted aesthetic when added the wood.

[@philochristos]

I make my knives sharp enough to cut the fabric of space and time. That way when I ship them, they'll arrive faster. Sometimes they arrive even before I ship them. That's how sharp my knives are.

[@benfox9382]

mine just arrived thanks (I ordered it in July 2022)

[@philochristos]

@@benfox9382 I hope you like it! And good luck with the lottery.

[@caseyanderson9169]

Blacksmiths never make mistakes. Just shorter knives

[@therealamerican99.76]

@Casey Anderson. True I’ve done that twice already!

[@manzurulhasan1700]

Excellent work. Thank you

[@TheMongo1357]

Awesome job there Sir! What are you using for the etching acid?

[@whitebeard420]

That is a real beauty! I actually just got some files and normalized one of them. Today I shaped the pointy end but the material is still being extremely hard to remove. Like I used a torch to heat it up to dull red and let it set and cool off, so are they just always hard to grind? Or did I not get it hot enough or what? I put it in my oven when I stopped for the day on 550ish for like 3hrs, and it is a beautiful wheat color now. Hopfully that draws it back even more, but I am super excited to see this one finished! I wanted to do a hamon line aswell and I glad to see that it will come out looking this killer..... hopfully lol. Well maby not as good as yours but I hope it will be functional at the least. Have you ever used pallet wood for handle scales? Cause I got a pallet to use for handles, I havent seen it done anywhere though.

[@UmarRosyad]

Amazing work, man I have a question.. What's your seuggestion of blade thicness from that material?

[@danamorse9942]

I only have a benchtop 1" belt sander; do you have a recommendation for who makes good belts?

[@DrengrMike]

Norton

[@magwamagwa45110]

great video, how much would a knife like that cost?

[@RehmanAli-hj1bw]

sir I Wana one of this because I am a butcher so did you guide me wich kind of file I can buy 3x12 inches please reply

[@gregsmith3289]

Nice. Great job.

[@kromdajfaj8945]

Good job, crazy 😍

[@paulhuston9991]

I learned to sharpen razor blades because of knife makers "safety reasons." I make money now sharpening anything by hand that can be done. Circular saw blades, scissors, 2 man saws, drill bits, what ever... learned I could make cash sharpening while over sees, never spent a dime of combat pay. I always cover my edges for transport. For the safety of the edge and my client. Also was asked by my lawyer to include a warning lable for the clients to display, they know it's sharp and i always send a personal letter with my work jic, but who knows who will touch their kitchen knife block. Hate seeing a dull tool out of the box, makes me sick. Seeing guys drop 300$ on a knife they intended on trusting their life to and it can't cut butter. Thank you for not being "that guy"

[@Jason-iw9mr]

Good job!

[@مخمومالقلب-س2ش]

How can we buy from your knifes.

[@daveg8700]

What type of drill bits do you use to drill through the knife handle? I have had issues not being able to drill through unhardened knives (forged from leaf springs) and just end up hot punching instead since I haven’t had any luck with the drill press.

[@sumgai7]

Cobalt bits are the ultimate for very hard steel - BUT WITH CAVEATS; you have to know what you're doing, a bit. I've used them to go through even hardened 80CrV2 and 52100 (don't ask me why....ok, because a few times I forgot to drill the holes for the pins, I'm human, sue me...) You NEED to know the right drilling speed, and to go slowly, and definitely to use a good cutting/tapping oil (preferably a very modern one; I like Re-Li-On) - and realize that cobalt bits are BRITTLE. And - again - both rotational speed, and feed-speed (i.e. the pressure you use, how "fast" you push on the quill, pushing the drill bit down) are important. That said, with a cobalt bit, preferably a "stubby" one, you can cut through even a hardened piece of knife steel quite easily.

[@daveg8700]

@@sumgai7 thank you, that is very helpful to know. I’ll have to get myself some of this Re-Li- On oil and see how it works out.

[@sumgai7]

@@daveg8700 Oh, wow - didn't think anyone would notice a 7-month-old (ahem) thread, so so glad you DID see this, and that it was helpful! Honestly, that Re-Li-On is bloody *magickal* stuff, for any kind of tapping. I was introduced to it by an old-school machinist guy who owns a husband-wife supply shop in Silicon Valley, who taught me a little bit about tapping threads. Starting with: don't save money on cheap taps; he sold me a pricey Swiss tap but - I was tapping a block of stainless for a benchtop biofuel reactor (another story) and had broken off an Erwin (from Big Orange Box Store) in it -- he said "don't tell me you were doing that "twist it a turn, then back it off a quarter-turn to clear the chips?" - I said "of course!". He looked at the Erwin, shook his head, pulled out the Swiss tap ($18 or so), put it in his BRIDGEPORT MILL (!), put my part in the vise, squirted some Re-Li-On on one of the other holes, flipped on the mill at speed, and sunk the tap into the hole using the QUILL, like it was cheese. (Note: I don't recommend that - I still don't understand how he did it without stripping it, although he did run it all the way down through the piece and out the bottom - it was a through-hole! - but wise are the wizards....) ANYhow. I do still back off a bit to clear chips, but I learned that saving money on taps (or drill bits) does NOT save money; a GOOD drill bit or tap -- generally European, American, or Japanese (probably others, I'm sorry for what I've left out of high quality from other countries) -- is simply in a different CATEGORY vs. a big-box one (and a whole category MORE above a cheapo no-name Chinese import). And the right fluid is totally key. As far as drilling goes - DEFINITELY Google a bit for drilling with cobalt bits. Ironically, if you go too slowly (not the spindle speed - rotational - but the rate you push the bit into the work - feed speed) you risk work-hardening the steel and/or dulling the bit's cutting edge (web) -- you actually need the bit to "bite" into the steel and take the cut -- but also not TOO fast -- it's a little Goldilocks, just-right, and takes a little feel, which you'll get, especially by how the chips are coming off (very "satisfying" when you get it right. :-)). And you also do need the right spindle speed - just googling cobalt drill bits hardened steel etc. will get you there. Again, cobalt bits are QUITE brittle and prone to shattering (hard and tough are generally sort of opposites); keep that in mind -- and so the shorter, stubby bits are best imho. Good luck!

[@daveg8700]

@@sumgai7 thanks for all that info. I’ll have to keep that in mind about the tapping, I know I have broken a tap off before into a piece of steel…. And unfortunately there isn’t much you can do at that point except start all over again lol

[@sumgai7]

@@daveg8700 99.99% true - the exception being - and this is in the ... basically same as in the _"yeah-and-if-I-had-a-yacht, I'd..."_ file: if you have access to an EDM machine, you could EDM the broken tap chunk out. Now: question here is relative value: is the part something you can make another one of without incurring _massive_ cost, time-delay, and/or inconvenience? Here, a decision flowchart naturally pops into all our heads: If so, get going on making that part over again. If not: go find a company that has an EDM machine and have them burn out the tap, and hand over a Bunch of Money (and DON'T f*** up this time!)

[@jason561120]

Love the wood, you mentioned cost, could you give me idea on how much just the handle material runs?

[@OldHickoryForge]

jason fountain that particular small piece I got on sale from my local hardwood supplier for about 30 dollars. Snakewood usually runs several hundred dollars a pound.

[@astrazenica7783]

So tempering with a torch, do you need a nice number of cycles? Like sometimes ppl allow to cool a couple times in-between oven tempering

[@OldHickoryForge]

I’ve never found a need for it no. Using the torch puts more heat into the blade faster than using an over so the same result can be accomplished with practice. However. Large blades that will see a lot of heavy use can sometimes benefit from 2 temper cycles. Like large camp knives made of 5160 or alike.

[@whitebeard420]

Alright I got another question, you didnt show any curing step for the cement? Do you just apply it and put it into a forge or what? I'm looking up different refractory cements and some cure without heat and some require heat, but they all seem to require curing. So I'm just wondering what steps did you take? Cause I want to do those steps, it talks about it off gassing the steam inside and causing issues when used as intended. It seems like that wouldn't matter though when it's just on metal and not actually being an integral part of a fireplace or repair of some sort. I dont know, I dont want the stuff to like start melting and running off the knife into the forge. It dosent seem like that would happen, but I dont know. Thanks for any help, i wish i could add pics to show you this sweet knife I'm about to have! I made a rasp knife with a 12" blade on it! Now all that's left is quenching it and finishing it, but I'm stalled on this cement issue. I have the patience to wait a few days, so hopfully you see this before i just do the ol winging it.

[@OldHickoryForge]

I use satanite refractory mortar. I've had problems with it falling off plenty of times. Even after being baked in the oven to dry it out. I normally just put it on wet. Pass each side of the blade in front of the forge a few times to bake it on and just be sure to be very careful moving the blade around in the forge.

[@belgacem77]

great work

[@OldHickoryForge]

Help support the channel www.patreon.com/user?u=16387344

[@samsomeone7333]

can you tell me how you tested it to see what it wanted to harden in please I'm new to bladesmithing

[@OldHickoryForge]

sam someone heat it to non magnetic and dunk it in whatever quenching medium you want to use and see if it hardens. Start with oil. If it doesn’t harden try warming up the oil. If it still doesn’t harden go to water.

[@Lifeafterlosspodcast]

How do I buy a knife like this from you

[@davesizemore21]

What grit belt do you use for sharpening before going to the leather strop?

[@OldHickoryForge]

Dave Sizemore a worn out 800 grit belt does well

[@danielfoley9140]

What did you put on the knife before the quench? And what acid did you soak the blade in? Thanks in advance 👍

[@OldHickoryForge]

Daniel Foley satanite refractory mortar was used to create the Hamon and the etching was done in ferric chloride

[@joel1990sb]

Is it necessary to heat treat a rasp??

[@LowerMichigan248]

Good video but I have a question. When you throw it in the forge, how long are you leaving it in for and to what temperature approximately? Are you just letting it air cool after that?

[@OldHickoryForge]

Steve Siegfried just brought it up to red and let it air cool.

[@jmart78041]

This may be a dumb question,l but without that food safe finish would that knife not be able to be used in the kitchen? I'm really interested in doing this, and picking up knife making and I like watching videos like these, it motivates me to want to try it. Keep'em coming.

[@OldHickoryForge]

jmart78041 that’s what the butcher block oil is. Needs to be re applied with use but even without it as long as a carbon steel knife isn’t horribly rusted it’s perfectly safe to use

[@stephanschroeder4361]

What’s your food safe finish

[@alx38130]

I see many people, you including, doing the latest sharpening step ( with the sharpening rock) by pulling towards you the way you did, but i've been told the other way (blade first, pushing from you) was better to keep the blade's shape intact. Is there any thruth to that ?

[@OldHickoryForge]

Knox sharping on a stone can be done either way. All that matters is that the knife is going edge first across the surface. Stropping on leather is done by pulling the edge backwards over the leather. The opposite way of sharpening

[@jerrieyum]

Beautiful

[@nietztsuki]

Beautiful knife! Did you do anything to stabilize that snake wood? Forrest

[@OldHickoryForge]

nietztsuki no need to. Snakewood is naturally very tough and oily so it’s rot resistant.

[@jamesball7322]

I like it

[@leeneedham8037]

What was the food safe spray ? thank you.. good video stunning knife

[@OldHickoryForge]

Lee Needham butcher block treatment oil. It’s basically a mix of beeswax and mineral oil. They got it at Lowe’s

[@leeneedham8037]

Old Hickory Forge thank you

[@genefoster9770]

beautiful thanks for the video

[@bagusdakar]

what is the width of the blade ?

[@rickhall5399]

I for one sharpen all knives that I make also the acid affects the non-hardened steel more than the hardened

[@pranabkumarmandal8757]

where is available ?

[@Traderjoe]

Very nice! Approx how much do you sell knives like this for?

[@OldHickoryForge]

traderjoes this particular one went for 200

[@kylehanley3555]

@@OldHickoryForge you don't sell direct do you? PayPal or other? Money order?? I like your stuff alot! I like the rugged and yet clean and professional look you give your work. Im at [e-mail]. thanks

[@OldHickoryForge]

Kyle Hanley facebook.com/oldhickoryforge/ shoot me a message on the Facebook page. I do direct sales through PayPal usually

[@outdoorperson6411]

Where do you get snake wood at

[@trevorsmith6139]

www.bellforestproducts.com/snakewood/wood-blanks/ I have used this company several times, great customer service and great products

[@prophet760]

How much ?

[@domdude5000]

How thick was the knife at the spine?

[@OldHickoryForge]

Dom Banks about 3/16

[@domdude5000]

Old Hickory Forge Thanks man! I've really been struggling with my last couple of knives, but this video has been really helpful!

[@OldHickoryForge]

Dom Banks happy to help

[@ukonrautaironworks2541]

Use a drill press vice or at least clamps for safety. . . . .

[@UmarRosyad]

Ukon Rauta Ironworks He said "I'm not one onf those guy"

[@colinjohnson8880]

What type of acid is that

[@OldHickoryForge]

colin johnson ferric chloride

[@thefamily_ak1863]

normilize then clay ?

[@OldHickoryForge]

aaron joseph yes.

[@OldHickoryForge]

Did I forget to say that? I might have haha

[@thefamily_ak1863]

thank you sir

[@OldHickoryForge]

aaron joseph no problem!

[@tapankumarsahoo22]

Plz send me one piece of this , sir

[@rileybridgeman1064]

3:18 the amount of bend that drill bit showed made me cringe

[@DrengrMike]

The only reason it didn't break was it was afraid to piss John off and get the 🔨.