An 1860's era pocket knife I made

[Nathan Dodds]

When you say "It's a bit rough" you are being extremely humble. That knife looks better that any knife you can get from alot of sutlers. Outstanding work.
Where in Arkansas are you?

The northern part, in Stone County. Between Moutain View and Marshall.



EDIT:Why did this post appear at the top of the page when it's my latest post? Something's messed up...

[Nathan Dodds]

An 1860's era pocket knife I made

I thought some people here might enjoy seeing a Civil War pocket knife I recently finished making, so I'm posting some photos here. It's a bit rough, but I learned a lot in the process of making it.
Enjoy!

[tenfed1861]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Shoot,if you have one for sell I'll buy it from ya.That is nice.

[MickCole]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Nice work, Nathan!
Mick Cole
37th VA Co E

[Secesh]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Beautiful!!! A very nice piece to be proud of!

[tinman1863]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Did you make your knife from scratch or did you alter an existing knife? I think it would be interesting to see how you did it.

Kristoffer Tinney

[jdanner723]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

This is really nice. Thinking of making some money on the side? ;)

[J.H.Berger]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Yes comrade you ought to consider selling those. What material have you used? Where did you get the blades and parts from or have you made them yourself?

[mboyce]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

When you say "It's a bit rough" you are being extremely humble. That knife looks better that any knife you can get from alot of sutlers. Outstanding work.
Where in Arkansas are you?

[55th VVI]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

If you make them they will come. If you go into business, put me down for one. That is a nice looking knife.

[-Jesse-]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

That is a great looking knife! Im with everyone else,consider selling?:)

[Nathan Dodds]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

As far as making them for sale I'm not sure yet. There are two factors: how much time it takes for me to make them and what people are willing to pay. I am considering making a test batch of about ten knives-- but I have lots more research to do before I can start (they will be based on a different knife then the one shown on this thread).

Now, there were some questions about the construction of the knife and the materials. Everything was made from absolute scratch. Steel bar stock, sheet brass, German silver wire (for the pins) and the Coco bolo wood for the handles. I used a grinder and file to form metal parts and a plane and wood rasp for the wood handles (finishing with sandpaper). Everything is held together with German silver pins except the blade. It has a steel pin going through it. If you want a more detailed explanation, I'll really just have to have a step by step photo shoot!

[garyjd]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Nathan, Very nice. I like it. ~Gary

[J.H.Berger]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Did you temper the blade?

[Nathan Dodds]

Re: An 1860's era pocket knife I made

Did you temper the blade?

No, I made the mistake of using D-2 and I'm not familiar with it, so I sent it of to a place called Texas Knifemakers for tempering. I have since learned that other steels would be more like the steel used during the Civil War era. Probably nothing you could tell by looking at it, nonetheless, next time I'm going to use a different steel.