Matthew Gregory
Chief Executive in charge of Entertainment
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2005
- Messages
- 6,006
This is my second collaboration with Sam
Mecha
of Mad Science Forge, and I think this one came together really well.
Sam forged a profile out of his famous TiNb Titanium alloy for me (I'll let him chime in here to explain the material, if he so chooses), and I tried to work within the already super-clean profile to the best of my ability.
Once I had it rough ground to my liking, I shipped it back to him for his proprietary heat treatment. Here's what it looked like before HT:
Sam turned it around really quickly, and made sure to include his touchmark:
Love that mark.
After I had it finish ground, Sam remarked that I hadn't ground into his maker's mark. Apparently this is a big deal for him - sort of a signature. This was a bit of a problem for me, as my grinds were precisely where I felt they needed to be, but I conceded a bit and pushed the plunge back until it scrubbed the edge of his mark. I'm still not sure that he's happy with this, but that's as much compromise as I'm capable of.
From there, it was just a matter of focusing on balance. I chose to skeletonize the handle to reduce unnecessary mass. Normally, I'd taper the tang, but I was concerned about the flexibility that this material displays as it thins, and I also loved the shape as it was. Once it was skeletonized, I bolstered it a bit with a lightweight material to add bulk and shape, and covered the entire handle in carbon fiber cloth. To add a touch of class and drama to it, I added a sweet pair of sterling silver 'ryu' or dragon menuki:
Held in place with carbon fiber tsukaito:
....and the final result, a la @SharpByCoop :
Specs for the package:
8” blade of Sam’s Beta-TiNb Titanium
.225” thick
5-1/2” long handle in carbon fiber tsukaito over hand-laid carbon fiber
10-1/4 ounces, with point of balance at the index finger (immediately behind turk's head knot)
Matched saya with carbon fiber
Total package weighs in at 14-3/8 ounces.
Had a blast doing this - it's a unique material, and VERY different from what I'm used to working with. Hope you like it!
Mecha
of Mad Science Forge, and I think this one came together really well.Sam forged a profile out of his famous TiNb Titanium alloy for me (I'll let him chime in here to explain the material, if he so chooses), and I tried to work within the already super-clean profile to the best of my ability.
Once I had it rough ground to my liking, I shipped it back to him for his proprietary heat treatment. Here's what it looked like before HT:
Sam turned it around really quickly, and made sure to include his touchmark:
Love that mark.
After I had it finish ground, Sam remarked that I hadn't ground into his maker's mark. Apparently this is a big deal for him - sort of a signature. This was a bit of a problem for me, as my grinds were precisely where I felt they needed to be, but I conceded a bit and pushed the plunge back until it scrubbed the edge of his mark. I'm still not sure that he's happy with this, but that's as much compromise as I'm capable of.
From there, it was just a matter of focusing on balance. I chose to skeletonize the handle to reduce unnecessary mass. Normally, I'd taper the tang, but I was concerned about the flexibility that this material displays as it thins, and I also loved the shape as it was. Once it was skeletonized, I bolstered it a bit with a lightweight material to add bulk and shape, and covered the entire handle in carbon fiber cloth. To add a touch of class and drama to it, I added a sweet pair of sterling silver 'ryu' or dragon menuki:
Held in place with carbon fiber tsukaito:
....and the final result, a la @SharpByCoop :
Specs for the package:
8” blade of Sam’s Beta-TiNb Titanium
.225” thick
5-1/2” long handle in carbon fiber tsukaito over hand-laid carbon fiber
10-1/4 ounces, with point of balance at the index finger (immediately behind turk's head knot)
Matched saya with carbon fiber
Total package weighs in at 14-3/8 ounces.
Had a blast doing this - it's a unique material, and VERY different from what I'm used to working with. Hope you like it!
