Stream of Consciousness Thread

Lorien

Lorien

Nose to the Grindstone
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Dec 5, 2005
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once I get my bench clear, I'm going to make a smatchet and a spec competition chopper.

there is now a fan heater hanging from my ceiling and I'm getting the shop cozy for probably a cold and eventful winter ahead.

I ordered some tarps today, and I'm a little disturbed by how excited I am about it.
 
of all the mushrooms I've tried, (not that many really) my favourite so far is pine mushrooms. The one thing I hate the most about them is the amazing odour they have- kinda like cinnamon hearts- but how otherwise stealthy they are. I get to places where I can smell them and no matter how hard I look I just can't track them down.😭
 
with knife making, it really seems to me like the process is everything. I learned how to do it via a couple of decent books on the subject, by observing others do it and by absorbing some knowledge through the knives I've collected over the years.

I never had anyone show me how to do it, or work with someone else in their shop. The result is that my work is mine alone- but as with any creative process and outcome, my results are due significantly to the work of others, therefore I stand on the shoulders of others- and that's important to me because I don't want my stuff to look like someone else made it.

it's always an honour to hear that what I've made reminds someone of the work of some other great, well established maker. I don't seek to ever copy anyone's work, but my designs are definitely influenced by others, and that's something that I think is pretty universal and why we can take such a simple and ages old tool and continuously innovate it.
 
my Moeller Viper throwing knives have been serving me well for a great many years, but lately have gotten so blunt they won't stick anymore.
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10 minutes at the grinder;
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got a message today from one the guys who rides motorbikes out at a provincial rec site dedicated mainly to motorsports, just up the coast from where I'm at. Looks like they're having a tough time rounding up volunteers to take care of the place, and he was wondering if I'd be willing to get back in the trail building game. I kind of gave that up, (professionally- I still do it on my own time) due to a tweaked shoulder and other body damage from years of that work, but I do love it. While I also enjoy working away at knives and leather in my tiny shop, my shop is...tiny. I like being out in that big world, and if someone is willing to pay me to be there then how can I say no? Huge bonus- our kid says they want to join me! Fingers crossed that something happens with this.

working out in the forest has been an essential component to my knife making and designing. While I don't make a large quantity of knives, the ones I do make end up either getting a thorough beat down, or benefit, design-wise, from the experience of having knives to beat on. Currently, I'm designing a knife which is a sequel to one I designed years ago. I just ordered the steel for it, and if all goes to plan I'll have it ready for action if/when this trail job starts. About 18" overall of CPM3V, in .189" stock- it'sa gonna be awesome!

supporting a family with knife and sheath making and designing alone is a real challenge, so getting another side hustle would be great. I've spent a fair amount of time out at that rec site, doing 'unsanctioned' work, so I'm stoked about the thought of being paid to be there doing legit work!

here's a pic I took years ago at that place;
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and a pic of my good friend, Lars, shredding some of our unsanctioned work there, (rest in power my man)
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Hell yeah, brother, get back to moving some dirt around. If I wasn’t on the complete other side of the continent I would drag a machine out there and give you a hand myself. I look forward to seeing what you carve out on the hillside.

Looking forward to that knife too, I think I know what it will become and you know I am gonna have six of them. Tell you what, I call dibs on one of your protos now! Seriously!
 
Grenock said:
Hell yeah, brother, get back to moving some dirt around. If I wasn’t on the complete other side of the continent I would drag a machine out there and give you a hand myself. I look forward to seeing what you carve out on the hillside.

Looking forward to that knife too, I think I know what it will become and you know I am gonna have six of them. Tell you what, I call dibs on one of your protos now! Seriously!
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I've actually been keeping busy almost every day out there in the woods. Things have been a little fucky around here for the past year or so, and we're all coming out of it now and trail therapy has been necessary. Maybe I'll put some photos up one of these days. Strictly hand tools up in here!

Just about every knife I make these days is a prototype! But I know what you mean, and I'll keep that in mind.👍
 
Grenock said:
Mako approved, I like it, looks like it’s always been there. Great job getting the sound out of it too.
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having been in the trail game for as long as I have, I can't help but frame everything in life within what I know about trail building, or mountain biking too. With trails, it's always the work that you don't notice when you're using the trail that's the most important. I appreciate all the berms, jumps, stunts that are sprinkled onto the trail- but the foundation of the trail is what makes the embellishments possible. All the carefully placed rock, prepared mineral soil, drainage systems, pruning and replanting- you never see that stuff when you're using the trail, and it should be taken for granted. A well built trail isn't really a feature, it's an experience. When you build, you are diving deep into the human psyche- choosing your choices based upon a foreseen experience by who knows who. I think of designing knives in exactly the same way- all the stuff that really counts should be nearly invisible, and geared toward the experiential. Embellishment is awesome when it's done well, but I am not great at it, which kind of gives me the space to focus on the things that I prioritize. Using a knife is an experience, and that's a good thing or we wouldn't even be talking about them. Just using whatever is around that can cut a thing. What Bladeforums?:eek:

yoko said:
I've been slacking friend beautiful work and great music on this sub!
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I am so glad to have you here, man! You make great posts and are obviously an awesome kind of person. Glad you're down with sounds, and hope you feel cool posting some sweet tunes because I'd love it if you did :)
 
so I'm working on these four little knives, and three of them are sharp and pretty much ready to go or ready to go.
The fourth has been kind of eluding me, it has a tapered full tang and I just could not wrap my head around the way I could get pins through nice and straight. And this handle has a lot of pins.

I shelved that little knife til I got some leatherwork out of the way, and the other 3 knives done. Yesterday I pulled it, and a few more, out of their drawers and started trying to get my brain to switch gears to get these knives going. It happened faster than I thought, and I think that has to do with my shop being cold as hell.

Whatever the case, a solution for how to drill my holes just popped into my mind and it was so simple that I slapped myself in the forehead. It was too cold to feel it, so I slapped myself in the forehead until I was unconscious, and probably after that as well.

When I came to, I went to it at the drill press on these beautiful wooden handle scales with wild abandon, reduced some pin stock to perfectly fit the holes and voila! I think I figured it out.

Literally months of thinking on it, watching youtube and researching...and then it just happened. I love that.

A lot of the stuff I observed included math, and math just isn't something I'm particularly fond of using in the shop. I reserve that part of my brain for taxes and stuff like that. When I'm in the shop, I rely on a different part of my brain to keep everything aligned and symmetrical. It's kinda mathy a bit, but mostly something else. Not sure what, exactly. But whatever it is, I'm thankful in this case that it worked!
 
I am sure anything that comes out of your shop will be awesome, but I admit to loving tapered tangs. To change the weight, balance, and aesthetics correctly it can’t be done on a whim, but I love the sleekness and lines. It is kind of funny that it took you some time to figure how best to approach the drilling- a lesser perfectionist would have just ‘settled’ for ‘almost perfect’. Looking forward to seeing photos when you are done.
 
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