Now the other cut is made. The aluminum plates do 2 things...they pull the heat out of the steel and cool the steel quickly (very important) and they keep everything nice and flat (no warpage). I then drilled out a hole for the pivot pin that will go thru the blade. The excess glue that seeped thru the holes in the liners is cleaned up and the holes for the rest of the pins are drilled thru the handle scales. 20 bids. Douk-Douk Traditional Slip Joint Folding Pocket Knife – Amazon / Blade HQ When thinking about inexpensive carbon steel folders from France the obvious example is the iconic Opinel . Here I've taken 2 pieces of the stainless sheet that I just cut and clamped them together. I've gotten it on a little too thick, but wanted to make sure the lines would show up in the photos. To that end, the liner on top of the photo has an additional hole drilled...I'll use this hole to place the mosaic pin later. We will never spam you, and you can unsubscribe at any time. This will do. I put the knife together using this pin material and cut the pins off just a little longer than the knife is thick. AL WARREN CUSTOM KNIVES offers a variety of quality, custom handmade hunting knives & pocket knives for sale. I use the new mill for this procedure...another of the reasons for the mill purchase. Stuff is tough as nails. I'm planning to use 3/32" pins, so I drill pilot holes with a slightly undersized bit and then ream the holes to 3/32" with a straight reamer. "The strong double-bladed pocket knife is the best model I have yet found, and, in connection with the sheath knife, is all sufficient for camp use." Here's the sheet I have, but it is too thick at 3/8". I think I'm gonna like this punch thing...quick and easy with no mess. Now for the maker's mark. It should be noted that each type of steel used in knife making may have it's own heat treatment "recipe". ... “The internal spring takes up more room and thereby creates issues with designing a knife for it.” Conversely, it challenges makers to devise new designs, which is always good for the knife industry. I start by laying the handle scale on the liner and marking where the pivot hole will be. I've removed the blade and pivoted the rear of the spring slightly up. I also took some time and made adjustments to the blade tang so that the spring is at the same height in both open and closed position...the rise and fall indicator has been very useful. Here it is with a 600 grit satin finish...so far so good. Alright, here's the result of all that peening. At the times of my life when my job required heavy duty knife use I usually resorted to an Schrade LB7 (similar to a Buck 110) for my forth blade. I took the knife to the grinder and did some shaping and polishing. Here's the blade rotated to the closed position...about right before heat treating. Modern knife locks can take a pounding before they break. I stacked the liners together using the temperary pins and drilled both at the same time to ensure they match. In the past, I've been etching my mark into the blade using an electric etcher and stencil. There are a lot of little details in the way all the pieces of the design fit and flow together, and it’s one of the more comfortable knives to have in my pocket, in spite of its size. $27.49. I think I try that first. Japanese kitchen knives seem mysterious and exotic to many people. Paperback. Improved nail nicks is one of the main reasons I decided to purchase a milling machine. I grind most of my blades after heat treatment, so I've got to keep the blade cool or I risk ruining the temper. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. $59.95 (You save $42.96 ) … I'm gonna use some 410 stainless sheet that is 0.040" thick to make these. Here's the sheet marked up and ready to cut. Field and tactical, skinners, utility, and more - includes hidden and full-tang designs. The knife is going to be what is called a shadow pattern knife. I got really tired of having to drag that thing out, etch a blade, and then clean the etcher back up again after each use. Since the knife laws vary across the world, it was essential to also make a non-locking slip joint model to allow users in for example the UK to also carry this great design whilst staying within the law. The holes were then slightly chamfered to remove burrs. OK, so the new mill and horizontal grinder are set up and ready to go...time to get busy making some new slipjoint folders. I have a rotary vise installed on the mill table and have offset the cutter from the center. I've pulled the temperary pins and disassembled the knife so I can adjust the stiffness of the spring, but I think I'll relieve the liners first while I've got the knife apart. You don't have to be a precision machinist to make one, but you do have to take care to be accurate. I use a piece of tape to help me keep the grinds lined up on both sides of the blade. This operation is done so that the tang of the blade blade does not get scratched up when you open and close the knife. The drill bit is slightly bigger than my blade is thick. To dress up the inside of the liners, I decided to jewel them. The spring will flex in this thinner section and that will lighten the tension. Looks good. I don't like wimpy springs. Creating a folding knife adds a level of complexity and precision to knife making, and our course makes this achievable by anyone. Many slip joints come with a sub 3" blade, but this one at just shy of 3.5" is perfect for me. Then the required holes are drilled out on the drill press. Condition: New. $16.99. A slipjoint knife is one of the most ubiquitous types of pocketknives.A slipjoint knife consists of a handle with one or more folding blades. These holes were then slightly countersunk on the inside surface so I can peen the pins in to make a tight fit. The blade and spring flats are cleaned up  using the sandpaper on the glass trick. I use a piece of cratex in the drill press. I oiled the area where the blade and spring make contact. I place a temporary pin thru the pivot hole in the liner and apply glue to the liner surface. Only 6 left in stock - order soon. VINTAGE CASE XX USA 62134 "CANOE" FOLDING 2 BLADE JIGGED HANDLE KNIFE 1965-69. First step is to decide on a pattern and then pick a suitable steel to use for the blade and backspring. I still have to put in the decorative mosaic pin and peen the handle scales pins. I never imagined when I got "involved" with slip joints that I'd ever spend so much money on one knife. The choil is the notch that will separate the cutting edge of the blade from the tang. This should put enough tension on the spring...it may put too much tension on it, but I can adjust for too much, too little and I'll have to cut new liners and start this process over. I'll have to file that away. The hole in the spring is used as a guide and both liners are drilled thru. So rather than getting into all of that, I will use an old knife that I’ve taken apart as a pattern for the project. Written by Mastersmith Steve Culver, this handy book covers all of the design elements crucial to designing the joint mechanism of a slip-joint folder. Now to put it together for the last time. The blade is placed on the stacked liners with a pin thru the pivot hole and the spring is clamped on. The corners are nice and sharp. Boker Plus 01BO069 Slack Slip Joint Folder. Bladesmiths are particularly reliant on the generosity of other makers when they are first starting out. Usually, the blade must be short. Notice that I've thinned out an area just ahead of the hole on the right. This reduces the amount of scale that is built up and simplifies cleanup afterward. Well, the photo turned out blurry, but you can at least see that there is a mosaic pin placed in this side of the knife. Free knife design template of Japanese kitchen knives, western chef knives, and outdoor utility knives. Now I'll pull the pins out and deburr the liners and spring (back to the sandpaper on the glass) then reassemble to test the spring. A few more things to do before the parts are ready to be heat treated. I've got about 1/16" of offset. I use the little piece of titanium as a backer for the sandpaper. It's not perfect, but I think it is a definite improvement over the ones I made before getting the milling machine and horizontal grinder. Zero Tolerance 0230 Jens Anso Design Manual Opening Slip Joint Folding Knife. I did this using a forstner bit just like the pivot washers were done. Since most of my knives are pretty small, I prefer to grind after heat treating because I don't have to worry about the blade warping during the process. I cut most of the waste away using my bandsaw, then took it down to the scribe line on the mill. In an earlier version of this post, a Quiet Carry but I believe its been discontinued. I'm actually doing a small batch of knives at once to try to gain a little efficiency, so here I've scratched the number 1 on both the blade and spring so I can match them back up after heat treating. A slip joint forces you to really think about what you are trying to accomplish. Makin progress! The spring is also sitting flush with the liners in both open and closed position now. I'm not going to move the blade out of this position until I have ground off the excess material that was left on the top of the backspring. With that said, here we go... First step is to decide on a pattern and then pick a suitable steel to use for the blade and backspring. The parts are sealed in the pouch to keep oxygen away from the blade while it is in the oven. I've just taken the pouches out of the kiln and placed them between aluminum plates to cool. These are the smaller holes at the midline of the liners. All Rights Reserved. I also decided that I'd like to dress up one side of the knife by putting in a mosaic pin in the area where a shield would normally be. I did some trials using a dressed stone, but the nicks I cut this way had washed out corners, so I'm gonna give this a try. While I'm thinking about it, I'm gonna mark the edge of the blade in preparation for grinding in the bevels. I just need some pieces big enough roughed out on the bandsaw. Here's a little better shot of the mosaic pin. Here's a view of the open profile...time to grind the blade. I couldn't get it to show up in a picture, so you'll have to take my word for it  :-). It's got a slip joint mechanism and a small lanyard that lets the knife slip in and out of the pocket easily. I was thinking a precision ground O1 stell blade and spring, brass liners and … I cut a piece big enough to cover the liners and split it using my wood cutting bandsaw. They are then taken out to cool and the process is repeated for another 2 hours. The jig is called a rise and fall indicator and was originally thunk up by Bill Ruple if I'm not mistaken. My kiln is programmable which makes this easy. Here's what the parts look like after being tempered. I have a piece of precision ground D2 tool steel that is 0.095" thick...perfect. Here's what it looks like now. Folding knives have been around since at least the year 600 BCE. This will be my reference line. It'll take the hair off your knuckles if you forget to put on your gloves before reaching in...or so I've heard. This item: Slip-joint Folder Designing and Building by Steve Culver Paperback $19.99 Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. I'm using a dovetail cutter for the first time, so wish me luck. I can always take off more, but putting more on is more trouble :-).