Thread: diy blade?

i was thinking about attempting to make my own blade but can't get anything anywhere on how to (what materials to use, heat treat temps, etc). does anyone know where to find any information about it. how to's and such. anything would help.

thanks

Try the Workshop forum and the Forge sub forum. I have to say that if you don't have any idea about the basics that you are being a bit ambitious. Reading about something and actually doing it correctly are worlds apart. Ya might want to take baby steps in your journey to making a complete straight razor. Then again, I don't know what your background is. Your OP is giving me the impression it is not working with steel though.

Good luck!

If you go to the forum index and the Workshop and Forge forums I expect there is quite a bit of material in there. I know Mike Ratliff posted a thread on one he has been working on recently. A lot of the pros post in there as well.

yea i guess i am being abitious. i work with metal all the time making brackets and stuff for motorcycles, but as far as making something with the metal to use as a tool itself, im as newbish as they come. i really don't have any idea where a good place to start would be.

I'm going to move this to the Forge forum, where it may get more attention... I think doing plenty of reading there will be very useful as well.

There are quite a few skills envolved. I'm totally wet behind the ears, but lurk here a lot. There are some real pros that hang out here and drop in from time to time. Personally I shaped a razor (I think this would be a starting point for most) & sent it out for heat treat and now have it ready for scales & then honing. The steal used was 1095. You can see the blade (it pretty much looks like that now) on the thread : Scott's making a razor. I'll post some updates when I get to make it back out to the shop. Read & read, you will learn who the pro's are. I want to start another one real bad, but have to take this one to the end...so patience is something you will need as well. I can't tell you how dang proud of that razor I am and don't even know if it will shave at all...but then again I do. I followed the pro's recomendations & a pro heat treated it. The dummy is the one that is proud of a chunk of steel that needs scales and honed (I know I can do that at least!).

Take a piece of steel 1/4" thick x1" wide and 7" long
use 1084,1095 or O1 steel
anneal the steel
draw a patten of the razor on the steel
drill the pivot pin hole in the tang
cut/grind/ sand away anything that does not resemble a razor
taper the tang & polish
hollow grind the blade till the edge is 1/16 - 1/8 thick
polish the spine
normalize,heat treat & temper the razor
finish grinding/sanding/polishing the blade
make the scales & attach
hone the razor
Thats it!

Originally Posted by randydance062449

Take a piece of steel 1/4" thick x1" wide and 7" long
use 1084,1095 or O1 steel
anneal the steel
draw a patten of the razor on the steel
drill the pivot pin hole in the tang
cut/grind/ sand away anything that does not resemble a razor
taper the tang & polish
hollow grind the blade till the edge is 1/16 - 1/8 thick
polish the spine
normalize,heat treat & temper the razor
finish grinding/sanding/polishing the blade
make the scales & attach
hone the razor
Thats it!

You make it sound so easy Randy!

Originally Posted by randydance062449

cut/grind/ sand away anything that does not resemble a razor

This is my all-time favorite knife/razor-making saying. A close second is: "Knifemakers don't make mistakes--they make smaller knives."

I think Randy just about captured it here, except maybe for the cussing if you drop a 1650-degree blade, point first, onto concrete while normalizing. That's one way to make an 8/8 into a 6/8.

Josh