About to make my first "lefty"... any tips? - The Knife Network Forums : Knife Making Discussions

Kevin Wilkins · #1 12-05-2002, 05:25 AM

I have an order for my first "Lefty" folder... so far I've laid out the blade for grinding and managed to countersink the screwwhole for the thumbstud on the correct side of the blade ;-)... any other major pitfalls I should know about? I realize I need to be carfeul to grind the angle on the blade for the liner lockup correctly too...

Here's the design drawing of the knife. It will have red G-10 grips and a CPM 420V blade... spacer will be aus Titanium.

whv · #2 12-05-2002, 04:20 PM

Quote:

I realize I need to be carfeul to grind the angle on the blade for the liner lockup correctly too...

and don't forget to reverse the liners

L6steel · #3 12-05-2002, 11:51 PM

When I started making lefty folders I found it a great help to use a sharpee and put a mark on the edge of the blade showing the angle and direction I needed to grind the lock up spot. It's a good little reminder.

SharpByCoop · #4 12-06-2002, 10:09 AM

I haven't a clue how to answer your questions. But I think your design and the program that geneated it is superb!

Could you share what program it is, and how much time you needed to spend on it untill you got to this level? (Anything past a degree in engineering might be just a bit too much for me, he he he!

)

Coop

Kevin Wilkins · #5 12-07-2002, 08:40 AM

Hey thanks for the tips, I have the blade about finished...

Coop: the design is done in Adobe Illustrator 10 on the Mac. The programm is also available for PC. Actually it's an illustration program but for 2D simulation it works well. You can figure out where the stop pin needs to be etc. Saves a lot of wasted time and material.

I've been working with Illustrator for many years but it's not too difficult to learn. I think compared to something like AutoCAD its pretty easy. Of course with Illustrator you dont have near the possibilities for later CNC applications you have with AutoCAD...

tom mayo · #6 12-09-2002, 11:18 PM

Hold a regular one up to the mirror and go from there!!!

One thing I ALWAYS FORGET............the southpaws like to have the logo on the opposite side that you normally put it on, its easy to do it as normal and have the guy complain when he gets it!!

Had more than one come back for Logo removal and redo!!

I write LH with a permanet black marker all over the handles AND the blade or I end up forgetting and doing something right handed!

Kevin Wilkins · #7 12-10-2002, 12:34 AM

Thanks Tom! That Logo thing is one I would have forgotten and I'm sending blades out for heat treat end of the week. I use a hammer stamp for the logos now so removing one is, ah, a drag... ;-) and marking the grips is also a good one I hadnt thought of.

It's minus 15 C here this morning so I hope you enjoy that warm ol' sun coming up over the pacific... ;-)

best regards!

tom mayo · #8 12-10-2002, 11:12 PM

It got down to about 65 last nite, my wife got a blanket out of the closet!!!!

But we dont get to go skiing!!!

Kevin Wilkins · #9 12-11-2002, 02:23 AM

Hey Tom, 65 degrees! Better get out of those shorts and into some long pants! ;-) I'm gonna have to get up into the storage closet and try and find the liner for my tanker jumpsuit. Those suckers are really warm. We also have Christmas markets here where they sell "Glowing Wine" which is hot red wine spiked with spices and fruitjuices. It's a good way to get that needed xtra vitimin C for winter ;-) And as for skiing, well I got on a pair of skis once, next thing I new I was flat on my back with all the wind knocked out of me. I knew it was time to leave those skis to folks who grew with that stuff and head for the Glowing Wine...

Knife content: my new metal lathe should come today or tommorrow!

tom mayo · #10 12-14-2002, 02:58 PM

what are you getting? I have been thinking about getting rid of my very old south bend and getting a new one, but cant decide which one.

Kevin Wilkins · #11 12-15-2002, 04:38 AM

Hi Tom, I sent you a pdf with the lathe I'm waiting on. If anyone else wants to see the file, it can be downloaded under:
www.wilkins-knives.com/lathe.pdf

Basically all the smaller machines you buy nowdays come more or less from asia. (OK there are bound to be exceptions!!!!) The more I checked on stuff that was "Made in Germany" the more it seems that means "painted in Germany" or "checked over in Germany" or if you're lucky "finished up in Germany" I dont have anything against asian made goods! I only have something against crap, whereever its made... on the other hand I dont have an unlimited amount of money to spend either, so I wanted to get the most for the best price. The machine I ordered is from Quantum and is suitable for model making and other smaller tasks. It has a very high accuracy and should do everything I need it to do for a long time. I still have my east German workhorse that takes 380v in the workshop too. That lathe will still be turning when I've long stopped rotating ;-) but it is a production machine and is harder to use when making folder parts one at a time.

I admit that I do enjoy using fine machines where every detail is taken care of better than these inexpensive ones... for exampe my main drillpress cost $1000 and is a joy to use... the small east German one I have would cost that new too.

And once I get really rich making knives, I'll buy super expensive cool machines and robots to operate them... and just walk into the workshop and scream at the robots to get busy and stop drinking coffee... and I'll have a Lear Jet to fly me to the Blade Show... sure I will... ;-)

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