Here's a couple I finished recently. They both are from the same reclaimed saw steel. I contacted the company who manufactured it and, after some long holds on the phone, they were able to tell me what steel the blade was made from. It sure paid off to figure out what I was actually working with.
Neither blade is finished particularly well by some standards, but I like the "working man's patina" and sanding marks. (Or would that be "lazy man's patina?")
The large one has flamed maple and rosewood scales with peened copper tube and homemade mosaic pins. The smaller one has horn scales. Both are lightly etched in vinegar.
The larger one is a gift for a kid at the school I teach who was born without his right hand. Yet, he's really into industrial technology and my outdoor club. I even taught him to shoot a traditional bow, which he does quite well. He wanted to learn how to use a plasma cutter in shop class, so I gave him some steel and a pattern and he cut out some blanks for me. I told him I would either pay him or make him a knife. Stupid question to ask an 18 year-old kid! So, after a phone call home and a permission slip, he's grinnin' ear to ear. (His last name just happens to be "Steele.") Thanks for looking.
