Your 1st knife

[Eli Jensen]

Still have mine. Used it yesterday to split some small diameter yew logs/staves. Thing fell apart! Well, the wood part of the handle is still solid! But the brass bolsters came off, even though they were pinned and peened. Lol. Now it has a masking tape handle . . . .

[metal99]

I've got mine sitting on my shelf with all of my favorite little trinkets. I told my son he could have it when he is old enough. He seemed pretty excited about that!

Why's everyone ashamed to show their work? Nobody is expecting a masterpiece for the first knife, heck even the first 5-10 knives shouldn't be expected to be great.

Lets see them! What's it going to hurt?

Here's mine,

[racjarrett88]

We should have an ugliest knife contest

[Bowman]

Mine is in my sock drawer. It's ok but I need to sharpen it much better.

[WynnKnives]

Originally Posted by Ray Rogers

Well, that's true - I did carve a few out of old Christmas trees when I was a kid. Funny thing, they were very sticky knives as I recall but not in the way cutlery usually is expected to be. :-D

Maybe I will dig out a few of those first knives and put them up here. Check back tomorrow. Warning! Don't try to drink milk and look at the pictures at the same time....

I see a "my first knife" picture thread emerging... I would participate, but I wouldn't like it.

[Ray Rogers]

OK, as promised I went out to the shop and dug up some of my first knives. As always, and with only a little effort, I have been able to turn a mole hill into a mountain. For your entertainment, may I present some of my First Knives :

http://www.rayrogers.com/firstknives.htm

[NorCal Nate]

My first one was made from a pry bar from harbor freight. Took along time to get the word "china" out of the steel. I gave it to my brother. I learned a lot from that first one like not to quench in a plastic coke bottle. -Nate

[piggy]

Ray you have great story telling abilities.

Thanks for sharing that detailed account of your early knife making.

Thanks to everyone else too, keep em coming!

[GHEzell]

Oddly, my first knife turned out really good, but my next 6 or 7 sucked.... I got lucky with the first one I think. I gave it to my mentor, he liked the design and made a few of them... I wonder if he still has it, I would like to have a picture of it.

[metal99]

That was a nice read Ray, thanks for taking the time to share it!

[Jim T]

I have my first knife hidden at the very bottom of one of my dresser drawers. I take it out fairly regularly to see how far I've come in the whole knife making adventure. Call it a guilty pleasure.

Making that first knife was kind of like losing your virginity. It was a mind-blowing eye opener, I had a great time, bragged about it, and very quickly realized how much I had to learn to become halfway profficient.

Does that sound too crude???

Jim T

[Ray Rogers]

No, sounds accurate. The two subjects share many similarities. The wisest of us wear protective gear when performing these tasks, both are hot and sweaty jobs, and both create a profound sense of satisfaction when done correctly. But, in the end, knife making usually results in fewer disastrous side effects ....

[WynnKnives]

I'm going to third all the above... unless you involve a buffing wheel... then knife making may be more dangerous

[WynnKnives]

Well here she is, all terms like "blade geometry", and "heat treat" don't even apply here. Also I can't even say it's mystery steel, because I know what it is- absolutely worthless steel for a knife (I think that's an actual name brand).

First knife.jpg

[racjarrett88]

never mind about the ugliest knife contest, you win

Austin