"Display Knives"

[Cold Steel Cult]

Do you think a display knife/sword would be acceptable to be made of mild steel? As they say, old habits die hard, and I have been getting a few requests for "wall-hanger" swords. I know full well that mild steel cannot be tempered, wont hold an edge, scratches easily, etc etc etc, but you can still whip up one hell of a mirror finish on one! If it was made perfectly clear to the buyer that it was for DISPLAY ONLY and NOT FOR CUTTING, would that be a sufficient caveat for using mild steel as a blade material. I just love using mild steel for knives as i have done so for the last four years! It helps me with my grinding technique and it looks pretty if you do it up right. Some of you are full-time makers so I make a wild guess you would know a heck of a lot more than I do about these things!

lol sorry for the rambling post!

- Jon

[AwP]

I don't see why not, as long as it's clear that it's just decoration and not functional. I'd worry slightly though that maybe 10 years down the road you might be a well known professional, and your buddy sells the sword he might not pass on the wallhanger bit, and that could hurt your reputation. Maybe you could include a hanging plaque to hang it from that looks nice and fits with the sword, that way it's likely to go with the sword as value added and also you can put something on the back along with a note that it's not functional and for display purposes only.

[TxCop312]

Just a thought here. I'm not an expert(by any stretch), but could you mark the blade "For Display Only", with small letters near the hilt?

[hammerdownnow]

I don't think it is that much harder to do things right. I have a real problem with "Knife shaped objects".

[chrisinbeav]

Originally Posted by hammerdownnow

I don't think it is that much harder to do things right. I have a real problem with "Knife shaped objects".

I would have to agree... What sense does it make to make a blade that is non-functionable? It's obvious that there are some knives or swords that will never be used. Either the materials they are made out of are so expensive or the owner finds it to be so beautiful that it will never be used. However, even those still have the ability to be used if necessary. After all, it's a knife, it's supposed to be sharp. If you want to give them something that isn't sharp, and non-functioning, give them a lead bowling ball...

Chris Nilluka

[Nooksak]

heres my thought for what its worth..if you were giving this away or selling at a cheaper price id say sure, but if you plan on charging a full price then perhaps you should give him the "full" sword? Just a thought,


nook

[Jason Cutter]

Heres two opposing views I'm partial to.

Point #1 - I firstly think that a knife should cut well and the choice of steel used is crucial in what we do as knifemakers - we make knives.

Point #2 - BUT, soft materials like mild steel will ALSO CUT, at least for a little while. I've made quite a few giveaway leter openers forged from mild steel round bar. They do that limited job quite well.

I'm not one to criticise what one chooses to make / sell. There are many accomplished makers out there who fulfill their personal and financial needs with things that aren't quite the mainstream of knifemaking eg.- (hunting, field, high-performance knives. etc). There's an enormous market for fantasy knives, replicas, etc. and yes, wallhangers.

another 2 cents. Jason.

[Kermit]

I have to agree that a blade in any form should be functional before pretty, however the movies and theatre industry will always have need of well crafted display models.Or maybe im going off on a tangent here :confused:

[hammerdownnow]

Useless as teats on a boar hog.

[DC KNIVES]

I am with the "make it funtional " crowd.I know it seems odd but I have built several wall-hanger types with display cases and they ended up being used and heavily used.You never know and sour customers make for bad news.Dave

[Omega]

i know i have a few swords that i wouldnt trust in a fight with feather, BUT i knew that when i bought them, at the time i didnt have the money to buy anything real. if the person buying them knows they are non-functional and doesnt have the money to buy the real thing then all your doing (in my opinion) is opening up your customer base to new people. make sure it looks nice and is put together well (i have one that the handle wrapping fell off and if you wave the sword the blade wobbles) and let the customer know what he/she is buying and your ok. and if they want the real thing then make the real thing. each (functional and non-functional) have their place AND price (read: dont charge the same for a "toy" as for a functional blade)


bill

[T.M.Sanders]

This thread cuts close to a question that I've been struggling with. A freind of mine who is a student of the martial arts, and studies at a local studio, has put into my head the idea of making steel practice knives for the higher ranked students (definition to be determind by instructors). I have some scrape mild steel that I was thinking ablut useing. I'm not certain what it is, I do know that it is hardenable, though not a blade quality material.

My question is: if I make these knives what do I sell them for, and if I do make them to sell at a fraction of the cost of my O-1 blades is it worth the effort. There is little to difference in the production cost between the two except the price of the stell, both being equally labor intensive. On the other hand it could make me some money while giveing me extra pracice and hopefully getting me noticed by some future clients.

If anyone has thoughts on this twist of the "non-functional" blade I'd appreciate seeing them.