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The Outpost This forum is dedicated to all who share a love for, and a desire to make good knives, and have fun doing it. We represent a diverse group of smiths and knifemakers who bring numerous methods to their craft.

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  #1  
Old 05-26-2012, 02:56 AM
jph jph is offline
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Hide the wemmen and likker, I be back witha sword that took me 25 years to finish

Ok all you left hand threaded square nuts..Be aware I BE BACK... Tai I got ya covered there good buddy...

Anyways..

As some of you know I was very close friends with the late Mr Robert Engnath of "House of Muzzleloading and later Blades-N-Stuff.....as close if not closer than brothers. He and I back in the day were working on ways to produce "finish it yourself" sword blades with a real hamon for his "finish it up yourself" business.....We must of destroyed two tons of steel and hundreds of blades figuring this out..but we FINALLY did. Bob went on to become one of the most sought after "japanese blade" makers in the world during his life...

Well while we were mucking about with this I forged this blade out of 1076, in the shinogi-zukuri shape, and I not knowing better at the time forged in a bit of sori prior to heat treating.. Well Bob and I were trying a new quenchant mixture, (a mix of lye, salt and dish soap..) It worked great but it put even more sori in the blade...almost 1 5/8" of an inch..(This mix worked so well that Bob used it from that day on...and well..anyone who knew Bob knows how well his blades turned out...I just wish I had one that was "all his"...sigh...)

Anyway I finished this one up using wet/dry paper and put it into shira siya where it stayed from that day on.. OK I do admit I was mostly burned out from doing all the Japanese stuff so I didn't really think about going all the way with this sword, I did however take it with me to the various shows that the Engnaths and I were doing so Bob could take orders for similiar sword blades... This is where it gets "interesting"

Bob and I were at the Pasadena Knife show a ways back...and I do mean a ways......our tables were next to each other as we usually were (this allowed us to not only keep an eye on each other's stuff but it afforded us all sorts of liberties with "the straights" than we use to have so MUCH fun with..

Ok....so...I had this blade with me opn display in the siya..nothing much to look ate from thye outside other than a "Bizen style curve" on the beast... when this geeky/freaky looking fellow comes by my table and without warning suddenly grabs and pulls out the sword... Ok I am a grown adult and now I am trying to get this guy calmed down and Bob (bless his heart) is rapidly coming to my aid, when the fellow says "Don't worry I am a trained Ninja" (what ever that means I do not know...and neither did Bob BUT we were about to find out..) and then proceeds to raise the sword up, over and down his back from his right shoulder..

He shouldn't of done that. All that sori in this blade means the point isn't "where it should be" (after all EVERYONE knows that Ninja swords were dead on straight...right???) and about 3" or so of the kissaki burried itself neatly in the idiot's right butt cheek.. Now things get worse (for him.. a whole lot funnier for us "sword folks".....) So, instead of thinking and reassessing his situation and pulling the sword straight up and out, this "trained Ninja" idiot simply pulled down on the tsuka and opened up his behind like a canoe. Well..needless to say a copious amount of blood followed with a rather cowardly scream of pain... I did get the sword back after that "mistake" and he was off to the ER via ambulance..never to be seen again.

I spent the rest of that afternoon cleaning the Ninja-numbskull's blood off the blade. Of course what transpired spread like wildfire throughout the show..with more than ample help of Bob and his lovely wife Stevie. Several other makers dropped by with suggestions as to what I should "name" this sword...

Well, right after that happened I just put it away and more or less forgot about it...and when Bob passed away so suddenly..it just didn't see the light of day for a good long while. I was heartbroken at his passing as he was very much "family" and I couldn't bring myself to do anything with it until now.

Seeing that this was the last blade we made together as a team..I figured I should mount it up and finish it as a cover sword for book IV, which I did.

So here it is..the infamous sword named "Arse Biter"...

I hope the photos come through OK..

JPH
Attached Images
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File Type: jpg ABT3.jpg (45.2 KB, 73 views)
File Type: jpg ABT4.jpg (44.9 KB, 93 views)
File Type: jpg ABT5.jpg (43.9 KB, 89 views)
File Type: jpg ABT7.jpg (40.5 KB, 87 views)


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  #2  
Old 05-27-2012, 12:38 AM
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Woodchuck Forge Woodchuck Forge is offline
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Jim, Welcome back. I remember that story, read it in Bob's catalog but not with your embellishments. It is great to see the infamous butt sticker/Arse Biter.

It was a great loss to the knife community when Bob passed. Then a few years later one of his students and good friend of mine passed suddenly also Scott Taylor. It can all end much sooner than any of us would expect. Both have left a great legacy. Still love to go to Bobs old site, and thumb through his catalog.


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Old 05-27-2012, 09:17 AM
Tai Google Tai Google is offline
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Wow! Great looking sword Jim. Great story too...


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Old 05-29-2012, 01:48 PM
jph jph is offline
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THank you both for the return welcome...

Yeah,,when Bob Engnath passed it hit me and my family very hard...I just couldnt do any more shows after that. Just not the same and now that his wife Stevie passed three months back..that was the double whammy as far as I go...

I doubt if I will ever do anoher custom knife show again...Besides why sit behind a table when I can fill orders and stock up my depleted (all my stock is in CA right now) web site and that keeps me very busy...

I will be poking my hideous head and Hairy Hine'y in here every now and thennn..

JPH


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Last edited by jph; 05-29-2012 at 11:10 PM.
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Old 05-29-2012, 10:50 PM
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First, glad to see you back on here! And posting pictures!!!

I'd also heard the basic story, but never in the bloody detail like this. A CLASSIC!

Bob Engnath's web material is still on the internet and is still a terrific resource - like a bit of his spirit is still with us.


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Old 05-31-2012, 03:43 PM
jph jph is offline
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Hello:

Yeah that "Ninja" was something to see and ya know it had to really hurt..there was blood everywhere..oh well..hopefully he learned something from that. I know I did...I quit sharpening the swords. While most folks know how to handle a sharp knife..when they are not use to handling a 3 foot razor blade sad things can happen. Even then, sometimes even the best of us run afoul of the Fates and have something unfortunate occur...

JPH


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