So, remember. I’m on a learning streak. I found I did a little more grinding free hand on this knife, so practice is sure helping. Here is a piece of 1080.
First I marked out the knife I wanted. As I said earlier, I’m still working on a somewhat easy design.I cut the piece to length. I used my bandsaw, but a hacksaw or cutoff wheel in a grinder will do fine.Now I cut the profile on the cutting edge only. You’ll see why shortly.Next, I hit the edge cut on the grinder to get it consistent. Next time I’ll clean this up better. It makes sharpening easier later on.Then I coated the edge with layout blueUsing the marking gauge I marked the center line. I discovered the lines should have been closer together. From now on I’ll shoot for a single line dead center.And into the jig. Leaving the back flat gives me a solid reference for the jig. Not an absolute requirement, but I think it helps.I grind one side at a time, up close to the line, but leaving a little bit in the center. You don’t want sharp yet. Then I laid out the backside profile again. I laid out the holes I wanted. I want them centered and evenly spacedI use a center punch so I drill doesn’t wonderAnd since I’m here, I’ll add my touch markThen, using a bit I recently sharpened, I’ll drill the holesA few added holes to lighten the knife, help the epoxy grab, and even the balance.Off to the grinder. You’ll want to flatten. I’ve found holding the knife flat on the grinder works best. Working side to side is difficult to get flat.And a magnet makes a great handleReady for heat treatThen temper.A little hand work and clean up after the tempering. Then off to adding the handle.
The Leuku Knife, also known as a Sami knife (Sami: stuorraniibi = “big knife”, Finnish: lapinleuku or leuku), is a large knife traditionally used by the Sami people. I decided to try some Laurel Mountain Barrel Brown & Degreaser to brown the blade. This is how it came out!
Leuku knife … In keeping with the History quest, According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_knife the Leuku also known as a Sami knife (Sami: stuorraniibi = “big knife”, Finnish: lapinleuku or leuku), is […]
Horace Kephart (1862-1931) is a familiar name to bushcrafters along with George Washington Sears (See Knife 59) and was one of the leading outdoor writers of his time. Kephart designed the knife. This is how he described it in the first edition of Camping and Woodcraft: “This knife weighs only 4 ounces. It was made by a country blacksmith, and is one of the homeliest things I ever saw; but it has outlived in my affections the score of other knives that I have use”.
This Brut de Forge Bowie was forged from a similar tine as Knife – 42 Hunter Forged from an Implement Tine. To the right it is being normalized. Notice the groove (or fuller) in the tang. I cut that with the belt grinder. It serves a couple of purposes. It lightens the knife. It makes less surface area of the tang that must be flattened and gives the epoxy some space.
