Sax newbie questions

N

Notung

Joined
Aug 15, 2015
Messages
3
Hi all,

I'm a newbie just looking to get started. I've been doing a bit of reading and would like to make a Viking style sax with a leather sheath. I seem to have some of the tools I need for basic stock removal (vise, bandsaw, basic wheel grinder, hacksaw). I don't really know much about the bevel found on a sax, however, as most pictures I've seen don't tend to show that.

Another idea I had was to start with a pre-made blade from Texas knife supply. The "soligen classic Bowie" appears to be very roughly the right shape as far as I can see from the picture.

I would appreciate any tips or advice y'all can provide!
 
"Viking style sax with a leather sheath" was really rough on Viking women. Nordic women today thank Odin that latex was invented....Oh, that is an "a" jn the word sax...my bad :)

I would pick a smaller project to learn on. There are just too many variables and things to learn on a larger project. Best start is reading all the stickys....and filling out your profile.

In answer to your question:

The bevel is a basic full flat grind. Sax are very simple blades. Size ranges from a medium size knife to a small sword. If you want a realistically authentic blade, make it as simple and plain as possible. An 8-12" blade is about right.

I usually try to dissuade new makers from making a "bar of steel" shaped first knife. A sax is the one example. Get an 18" bar of 1/8"X1.5" 1084 and cut the end off at an angle going back about 3-4" on the spine. leave the spine and edge straight and cut in the bevels. The tang can be a simple hidden tang or a rather plain full tang. Simple handle scales or block is all you want. A plain and ark wood like walnut is a good choice.
 
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Stacy, I assume you know this. But the broken back seax design you're describing can be as small as 2-3 inches, a max blade of around 12 inches sounds about right.

They are utilitarian knives. Think of them as your only knife. You want one that will fit all your needs. Whether those needs are peeling and chopping vegetables, whittling wood, gutting fish, skinning deer, making kindling, or disemboweling Sven.
 
Thank you, Stacy! I guess now I just need to do a bit more reading and find somewhere that has 1084 in stock. In case I don't find any 1084 is there something similar I can try? Seems most places in the supplier list linked in the newbie sticky either don't have the 1084 at all or if they do it's currently out of stock.
 
Aldo will have something - 1070, 1080, 1084, 5160, O-1, A-2, 52100, 1095...all will work.
 
Stacy, I assume you know this. But the broken back seax design you're describing can be as small as 2-3 inches, a max blade of around 12 inches sounds about right.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't say a max blade length of 12 inches, the second one from the top in the photo has a blade of 30 inches...
seaxes10.jpg

This might be a good time to point out that the broken back seax was only rarely seen in viking lands, and was a distinctly Saxon style.... A true viking 'sax' would either be a single-edged sword, or a puukko.

All of the originals have flat ground or slightly convex blades, there may be an exception but I've yet to find it. Blades tended to be quite thick. No ricasso, choil, or false edge. I would highly suggest looking at and basing the design on originals, not reproductions, as most reproductions look more like ugly bowies while the original blades have a brutal style and grace all their own.
planche2.jpg
 
There is always the viking long knife, or war knife... these are fairly rare, but undeniably Scandinavian.
GHEzell-Vapenknivoriginal1.jpg

A viking 'puukko'...
3d4f20130c30ea5d.jpg
 


The war knife/puuko was the pattern I was originally looking at. The knife above (made by "Audhumbla") is partly what inspired me to get started.
 
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The long knives, I don't know as much about them as I'd like to know... they are narrow and thick in the blades, in fact they remind me a little of some bayonets. Flat ground, no ricasso, choil, or false edge, blade around 14 inches long, give or take. Sometimes the point is in the center-line of the blade like the one in the photo, but it is more common for the back/spine of the blade to be mostly straight.

The smaller knives are very similar to the modern puukko, but are usually flat ground or slightly convex (I know of at least one that has a modern scandi grind), fairly thick... a huge number of these have been found in Gotland, and a google search for 'Gotland knife' brings up hundreds of photos of originals and pretty good reproductions. In my experience, the sheaths take longer to make than the knife...:)
 
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