Osage Folding Knife

4 comments to Osage Folding Knife

• adam

  2008/09/11 at 10:31 am

  Hey that’s cool! Looks like the wooden handle would be very comfy in your hand. Did you fab up the blade/folding mechanism yourself?

  (PS: REALLY REALLY liked the saw you posted earlier this week, that handle looked perfect)

• BobStrawn

  2008/09/11 at 11:15 am

  Thanks, Adam!

  I robbed the blade from a mass produced knife. One screw holds the blade in place. There is a Teflon washer to provide gentle resistance under tension. The second screw limits the movement of the blade, so it holds in place when open. I am working on a design that will lock, this one holds in place with tension.

  Really simple project as was the saw. Basically a slit and two screws for both projects.

  Bob

• John

  2008/09/19 at 8:27 pm

  Hey Bob,

  The knife is great! I ran the blade over a sheet of xerox paper and was amazed at how a few passes with only a little pressure made a difference with the blade. I kinda like to feel a little bit of “scrape” along the whole blade and from both sides of it (as opposed to a subtly “rounded” feel) and the paper sharpening achieved that. Ever considered making a multi-blade pocket knife?

  By the way, what sort of finish did you use on the handle?

  John

• BobStrawn

  2008/09/19 at 9:10 pm

  I am overjoyed that someone is going to enjoy this knife, John!

  The finish is one of the fine secrets of wooden pen makers. Super Glue or CA.

  I take a paper napkin and put some Safflower oil on it that I have already tested as a drying oil. Then I put a few drops of CA on the oiled napkin and rub it into the wood. I actually used two oiled napkins, one to hold it with while I worked, so I would not ruin the finish. Then I roughed up the area where I wanted the anchor, and I used a super fine, archival ink pen to draw the anchor.

  I wanted a touch rougher surface than CA normally gives. I contemplated using fine sawdust, but that can make it cloudy. That would be a crime with such glowing wood grains.

  To get the slightly rough surface while keeping the finish glowing and transparent, I used the method that all first time painters use to get such a surface. I put on too much on the first coat. And then put another coat on too soon. It worked perfectly.

  Paper stropping is one of the great secrets to touching up a knife. Sounds to me like you have it much sharper than when I handed it to you!

  I am tempted to make a few more knives, they are a lot of fun.
  Bob