A couple of pieces I've made during the pandemic

[My_Teenage_Self]

have you done some mockups on the spring for the folder? I assume you're going for a slip joint rather than locker?

I do wonder if that one would be happier with a bit of a ricasso. What's the plan for the cylinder then?

 

[KermitGKona88]

Will make a better life for it...

https://www.addictiongroup.org/drugs/psychedelics/dissociatives/whippits/

 

[Iwasgoodonce]

have you done some mockups on the spring for the folder? I assume you're going for a slip joint rather than locker?

I do wonder if that one would be happier with a bit of a ricasso. What's the plan for the cylinder then?

No lock on this one. I want it to be UK legal. I have had a go at making a huge tanto style folder with a spring lock. It all got a bit out of hand and was so heavy it could have been considered an offensive weapon without the blade even fitted! Shame because the blade lines came out so well. I’ll take a photo if I can find it.
The gas cylinder will be cut to size and then the ends will be squared off using a jig I made. A slot will be cut lengthways. Exactly like an Opinel bit without the locking ring. Just about as simple as a folder can get. Saying that, I did make a simple little Viking style knife, that was pretty simple too.

 

[Iwasgoodonce]

Will make a better life for it...

https://www.addictiongroup.org/drugs/psychedelics/dissociatives/whippits/

Doesn‘t sound like a great hobby does it? Using these is easy as the wife finds plenty whilst litter collecting. Thinking about it, I could do a cycling version using old tyre inflators.

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

A little project finished; The wife wanted a throwing axe for her birthday (yes... really)...

 

[KermitGKona88]

A little project finished; The wife wanted a throwing axe for her birthday (yes... really)...

View attachment 695064View attachment 695065

Dude... Kevlar is your friend, just be careful where and when you turn your back on her...

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Dude... Kevlar is your friend, just be careful where and when you turn your back on her...

You should see her with a gun - no joke, she has little experience and is deadly accurate!

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Last friday, along with finishing the Axe, I made fresh tooling for canisters - the 3mm angle iron had deformed from my previous efforts, so I've stepped up to 6mm stainless with more reinforcing. Stainless is much harder than mild when hot, so these should hopefully last a lot longer...

2 hours to play. Lit the forge at 16.00, shut the door at 18.00.

I had a canister prepped, but have stepped it up to 40mm box with a thicker wall (2.5mm), as the last thin canister (30mm box with 1.5mm wall) collapsed too easily. 300 grams of 52100 6mm steel bearings, and more 1095 powder.



this shows how much it needs to be compressed, that's 40mm x 2.5mm box section;



Also made a start on a longer project. it will involve 60 of these craft blades; Amazon Link and 60 layers of 0.7mm spring steel.

I was cutting, cleaning and welding all of these whilst the canister was having a 30 min 'soak' at 1000+ degrees. This is what the starting 36 layers looks like (should have been 40, but I 'mislaid' 4...). the stainless cladding literally fell off as I was cutting

(and for Iwasgoodonce, no borax at all. Everything was cleaned, stacked, welded, and then sprayed with WD40. The first weld went well, so I didn't need any borax).



So, 2 hours from a cold forge to that^^^^^.

 

[Iwasgoodonce]

Mad that something as everyday (especially to retro bikers) as WD40 prevents metals from oxidising at north of 870 degrees!!

Life is cool or hot.

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Remember this?



After a bit of a clean up, it looks like this (it's fully welded, no delaminations, I just haven't ground the sides fully flush)



18 craft blades and 18 layers of 0.7mm 1095 steel.

I only did that many layers to ensure the craft blades would weld properly. As it was successful, I prepped and welded the other 80 layers...



1095 on the left, craft blades on the right;



More of the same;




Forged down to 30mm (the other billet came out at 14mm, so they have the same level of compression;


Both ready to stack and weld again;


There's a lot of steel there, I'll lose a lot of it to grinding, cleaning & forge scale (the grey stuff). The more heats you do the more you lose.

Total Layers 36 & 84 = 120
Total weight 700g
Total time so far 4.5 hours.