The 4th step is to transfer the pattern shape to the steel stock. In this case the stock is oversize, which just mean it’s slightly larger (wider and thicker) than the finished dimension of the blade I want.
A Quick Note About Steel: Most steel suppliers sale bar stock in a couple ways, oversize and precision grades. Precision grade, sometimes called precision ground, is a bit more expensive from most suppliers and it does eliminate having to remove a dark coating and surface blemishes left over from the production process. I prefer to use oversized stock because I normally use a metal scribe to mark up layout and the dark coat actually is good for that in the beginning. For this build I’m using Sharpies so you guys can see it easier. Plus, I like to have the few thousandths of extra material on oversized stock to work with.
Ok, back to the build. You’ll notice over the next few steps after this that lines for edge and detail grinds are drawn on the stock as well. The way I do this is to punch a series of small holes in the pattern at key points and then transfer those to the steel. Then I can just connect the dots. Now it’s time for the first bravery test!
Step 4
The fifth step is to begin to rough shape a profile of the blade from the bar stock. I do this with a combination of cutting and grinding wheels on right angle grinders. But you can also use things like the air grinder pictured below with the grinders and disc I used on this one. A bench grinder or even one of the 4 x 36 belt/disc sanders are good alternatives for profiling too. They provide good control if you aren’t comfortable with free hand grinding. What ever you use…BE CAREFUL!
Profiling Tools
Safety Note: Do not use wheels that are rated for cutting to do grinding. They’re intended to be used edge first. They are not intended to take side loads and they will explode. As a matter of fact…the thin ones I use for cutting may explode even if you use them the way they are intended. So always use the guard and wear safety glasses. Also ALWAYS have the work piece securely clamped into a vise in a comfortable position when doing any free hand grinding or cutting. If the work can move or vibrate, kickback becomes a real possibility.
I use a little 1/6” cutting wheel on a 5” angle grinder to cut the straight lines along the tang on this one. Then I just grind up to close to the profile lines with a 1/4" grinding wheel on the rest of the profile. That’s the close to finished profile laying on my ASO (anvil shaped object as smiths call cheap anvils). The reason I don’t cut or grind right up to the finished layout lines on this step is because the heat of grinding will hide or burn off the lines. So in this step I just get it roughed out and then cleaned up a little so I can reinstate the layout marks.
Step 5
The next step is to reinstate the layout marks so I can grind the profile to a finished state. Using centerlines on the blank and pattern to index the pattern, I redraw all the layout marks. Notice that I always reinstate the lines for grinding the bevel and the other details like the false double edge and anvil. I’ve found that it helps keep me from loosing site of what the finished blade is supposed to be. You’ll also notice the places I didn’t get very close to finished dimensions. Some are because the line had disappeared, like at the edge going up to the tip and in the case of the tang, so I could leave room for a detail I don’t put on the patterns. But I’ll explain more about that in the next steps.
Step 6
Step seven is to grind the blade down to it’s finished profile. You can see in the pic that I still haven’t tackled the place where the tang meets the blade, Some people call this area the rassico, but the tang isn’t what we need to be concerned about right now. The important part is to get the blade to a finished profile. The next step is to start edge bevel and detail grinding. Once the detail grinding starts, the profile is pretty much set. So be sure the blade profile is what you want before you move on from the next step.
Step 7
Ok, Easy part over. Step 8 till completion coming in a few days. It's about to get really fun!
JD,
