July's primary project(mildly graphic photos)

[Horsewright]

Looks really nice Chris! Good save on the guard.

 

[Salolan]

Thanks Dave! Anthony, think the lighter color brown on the outside is just sun bleaching. Everything on the interior save a few veins are coal black. The grey in the photo is just the 50 grit marks from shaping. The black starts coming out pretty quick with sanding by even about 200 grit I'd say. I stopped short from where a lot of guys go being as I only went to 1000.

Here are some better photos of the knife...

...and current progress on the sheath.

Thanks for looking
Chris

 

[vilePossum]

reeeeeally nice! thanks for sharing.

 

[kaizo]

Can't wait to see the finished sheath!

 

[Horsewright]

Thats one of the fun things of working with buff horn. You never know whats in there. That birch bark really does look similar to stacked leather. Thats cool.

 

[Salolan]

Couple more progress picks...

and here I still need to burnish the edges and such but you can see what it looks like. I don't think it is my best work but it is what it is.

Paul, you were right. It was extremely difficult finding pattern in the boot top to work and what I did find to half way fit didn't have much pattern to it at all. It was however what the gent wanted and I now have my first inlay under my belt.

Chris

 

[sheathmaker]

Chris, it came out pretty good considering what you had to work with and what was desired. The boot pattern is balanced nicely within the window. I'm still glad it was you and not me!

Paul

 

[vilePossum]

looks really nice. did you skive down the inlay or the frame or both? ah, never mind, just saw the underlying piece in your previous post. i like the way your retention strap works, that part is always giving me trouble.

 

[Eric@DLT]

I think the knife turned out great and you did a nice job trying to incorporate the boot into the sheath. The overall size looks great as a hunting knife. What steel type did you use?

 

[Salolan]

Thanks Eric, the blade steel is AEB-L. Heat treated by Peter's to 61.

Chris

 

[vilePossum]

nice, so far i only have one knife in aeb-l but i really like it. takes a very keen edge and so far holds it rather well during edc tasks... next up might be a2 for some more serious work

 

[Salolan]

Here are a couple better pictures...

Thank you all for following along and rooting me on!
Chris

 

[vilePossum]

that looks really great. like how the handle turned out.

 

[Horsewright]

Good jobe. You brought off that sheath inlay well. I really like the contrast of the handle materials.

 

[Salolan]

I borrowed this knife back, so I could use it on my table as a display piece at a show this weekend. When I picked it up I was able to spend an hour visiting with Mark about his hunt. Not sure of all the technical details on how it came about, but he ended up part of a 3 man group harvesting water buffalo and wild cattle to feed crocodiles at a large croc farm. He said in the 10 day hunt they harvested 25 bull buffalo and about 8 brahma bulls. He took 2 knives but this knife did every bit of his share of the cutting. He said the blade was a bit too small for processing buffalo(the hides are about 1.5" thick across the shoulders) but being as whitetail will be its normal chore, he was quite pleased with it. It had some scratches from the sharpening steel, but a minute with a scotchbrite belt cleaned that right up, looking nearly as good as new.

Dave, you'll really like this. While flipping through the pictures, this one stood out to me the most.

He said there were 3 and 4' burls everywhere, he just took the picture of this one because it was well over 6' across! He also informed me the primary fuel for the campfire was ironwood. You fellas down under are holding out on us. Send us some of that!

Chris

 

[Horsewright]

Good job Chris looks like the knife worked great! Cool pics. Do like the burl shot!! Unfortunatly a different ironwood. Ours is just from the border area of CA, AZ and parts of TX and Mexico. Lots of different ironwoods. My dad brought home some carved items from India and some from the Phillipeans during WW2. Both carved from ironwood, both completely different woods and both woods completely different than our Desert Ironwood. Once read a definition that any wood that would sink in water is ironwood. That complicates things cause cocobolo will sink and its a rosewood. Quien sabe?

 

[Salolan]

I figured as much about it not being Desert Ironwood. I'd still like a truckload or 3 of that burl though, no matter the species!

Chris

 

[Horsewright]

No doubt. Ther are companies that specialize in Aussie burls. Been on their website afoore, can't remember who though.