Thread: Ask Me About Knives

Yeah, I've used them before. One of my friends who is in the army has one and has taught me some basic things with the balisong. I'm usually pretty careful around those things.

Thanks for the info, MoS!

My knife has a locking liner. You're right about the hand size...my hands are annoyingly small. A non-locking swiss army knife would probably be a better fit for me.

Knifes can also get your walrus cut off did you know that?

Just thought I'd post and raise this topic up a bit.



Any more questions floating around out there?

What is the highest velocity that you could propel a knife into a man's chest?

About 35 mph (15.7 m/s), though I myself haven't really gotten into knife throwing as of yet.

How do you sharped a knife with everyday materials? Not using an angle grinder or knife sharpening doodad I mean.

Originally Posted by goldney

How do you sharped a knife with everyday materials? Not using an angle grinder or knife sharpening doodad I mean.

Sorry for the delay in responding. It is actually possible to hone, or even sharpen, a knife with a surprising array of objects. My favorites are the bottom of a ceramic mug and the top of a rolled-down car window, but pretty much anything that is harder than steel, with a fine yet abrasive grain, will work. Read through this first, to get an idea of the basics: Sharpening FAQ by Joe Talmadge.

Now, say you want to use a ceramic coffee mug. All you have to do is flip it over, rest it top down on a solid, flat, level surface, and rest the edge on the rim around the bottom, just as you would upon a whetstone. Just use one side of the rim. I like to combine rotating the mug with the usual drawing stroke of the blade, while maintaining the correct angle. I mostly use this for touch-up work, when my knife is still reasonably sharp, but will not shave arm hair anymore. It is of course possible to sharpen a knife completely this way; however it will take much longer than with a whetstone. Same with a car window. Just roll the window down most of the way, rest the blade's edge at the appropriate angle on the top edge of the glass, and continue as with a stone.

I sometimes like to finish by stropping the blade on cardboard, like that in the back of a small notebook. Just follow the same techniques in the above FAQ for stropping, minus any compound. You can substitute many things for leather or cardboard, even your pants leg or the palm of your hand, if you have large hands. Be careful to always strop pulling the blade back, away from the edge, though, especially if you're using something easily cut. You'll know it's sharp enough if it will easily shave arm hair. I usually sharpen until the blade will catch on my thumbnail if rested on it with only the weight of the blade itself, then hone on a mug or the like until it shaves arm hair pretty easily, and then strop it on whatever I have handy until it shaves effortlessly.

Also, never use an angle grinder to sharpen a knife. It will not only take off way too much steel, but it will overheat the blade and ruin the heat treat.

I need a machete, any suggestions?

What'll you be doing with it? Light vegetation clearing, or chopping down small trees? If light vegetation, I'd recommend a Tramontina or Martindale, maybe a Latin style. If heavier work, go for an Ontario Knife & Tool 12" or 18". The one with the molded D-shaped handle. Then you can cut off the finger guard, as it's pretty pointless, and do a little sanding on the handle, then some file work on the blade, and you'll have yourself a damn good tool.

Depending on what you will be using it for, I can post a link on re-working the Ontario machetes, if I can find it. I know it's around here somewhere... Anyway, you'll want to convex the edge on it, which is pretty easy. A couple hours' work, and you get a hell of a good bushwhacker for it. Let me know.

It will mostly be used for hacking of limbs clearing trails. So stuff like small branches, mostly off overgrown conifers. Thanks for the help so far.

In that case I'd definitely go for the Ontario 18". Ontario machete at Knifecenter.

It's a good quality, affordable, good cutting machete. You will want to do a bit of customization, such as removing the finger guard, but that's easily done with a hacksaw. Then you'll want to raise and convex the edge bevel, but an hour or two with a good, preferably double-cut, file will be well worth the difference it will make in cutting ability. I can't seem to find the thread I'm thinking of on Knifeforums, but if I do I'll let you know. Otherwise, just let me know when you get it and I'll let you know what to do to the blade and how.

Thanks! I'll be sure to let you know if I get it (it's sort of one of those things I have to get to...).

Hey, MoS

I'm planning on buying some knives. They're nothing fancy, but due to a TV-viewing habit of mine, I want them. Anyway, they look nice and pointy, but I don't know how sharp they're going to be. If I want to sharpen them myself (which I really don't have the first clue about), what would be the best way to do that?

http://www.trueswords.com/dark-warri...ai-p-2927.html

EDIT: And how much do you know about knife throwing?

Hey Amé, sorry I took so long to reply. Normally I'd discourage buying such novelty items as those, but they appear to be decent quality and have gotten good reviews on that site, so go for it.

For a throwing knife, you really don't want the whole blade to be fully sharp, just the first 1"-2" from the tip. With just that sharpened, they'll still stick well, but you'll be less likely to cut yourself while throwing the knife. If you want to sharpen them yourself, and do a good job, you'll need a whetstone, which I'm assuming you don't have. Just go to any hardware store and ask for a 6"-8" whetstone. They should have several, you can probably get by just fine with their cheapest one. Expect to pay $15 or less.

Once you get the stone, just refer to the page I linked to in my response to goldney, above. It should tell you all you need on the subject of sharpening, but if you have any more questions, just ask. The best way to learn to sharpen a knife is by practice, really.

As for throwing knives, I really only know the very basics of the act, mostly due to a great article in an old Mother Earth News magazine. But here are a few helpful links: Knife Throwing Info, Throwzini, and the Wikipedia page on knife throwing, which in turn has a few good links. Sorry I can't be of more help there.

Howdy.

I finally got the pictures scanned and on the board of those knives.

what do you think?

If i were wanting to stab a phat person would i need a long knife or a short pimpin' knife?

What's the biggest knife you can make?

Originally Posted by CymekSniper

What's the biggest knife you can make?

I don't know, but this one is the largest:

In my book, that's a multi tool, not a knife.

Swiss Army Knife...

Bump.
What would recommend for a balisong trainer? I was using a bear and son, but it's a bit heavy.

gonna sound odd, but...how durable is a knife made of obsidian? Assume a five-inch blade.

Originally Posted by Mario92

gonna sound odd, but...how durable is a knife made of obsidian? Assume a five-inch blade.

I'm going to say it wouldn't be that strong, I'm pretty sure it's around a 5 on Moh's scale. Better off with quartz or sapphire(I've seen a sapphire knife before, sexy.)