I finally got time to work on knives again and finished some of the second overabladeance blades and two of the first one.
First a set made from an apple branch fork. I have left some of the woodborer’s lacework visible, most of which was just below the bark. Deeper holes and cracks were filled with brown-dyed epoxy.
The stand and the handles are made from one piece of wood and the grain on the handles is a continuation (plus-minus a few mm) of the grain in the bloc. I added some solder weight to the bottom of the bloc so it is heavier and more stable because I did not want o disturb the shape by adding legs. I aimed for a more flowing and organic look and two straight metal legs would distract from that. I also have tacked on a few anti-friction pads.
It was not easy to make the slits for the blades so they are a bit rough around the edges but that is OK and in line with the design. When I was deciding how to close the back of the slits, the nearly invisible seamless gluing of flat boards that I do for straight bloc designs was not an option so instead of trying to hide it, I opted for a bold contrast. I glued in a black-locust strip and I have left enough space for a dark-brown epoxy strip around the edges too.
The bigger knife has some chatoyancy in the handle, something that I did not expect. But I did not make the wood too shiny – I only sealed it with one epoxy dip and I did not seal it for a second time like I do for shinier surfaces – I have just buffed and waxed the set. Thus all the wood has a somewhat satin look to it and the handles are nicely grippy.
The bigger blade has a minor etching defect near the handle that I thought would be hidden under the scale but It is not, unfortunately, because I made a slight mistake in the glue-up. Also, the blade is slightly thicker and heavier than is typical for this type of my knives, it has a somewhat “choppy” feel to it. All in all, it is a mixed bag as usual, I am not proud of the work I did, but I do not hate it either.
Sometime during this week, the set will be available in the shoppe. There also are slightly more pictures on Instagram.
Jazzlet says
Oh I love that block, beautiful work.
Don’t forget that when most people look at your knives and blocks they do not see what didn’t go as planned, they just see the functionality along with the beauty. I do understad both that you cn’t unsee your “errors” and that you want to be honest about what you make, but try not to beat yourself up too much hey?
amts says
What Jazzlet said!!!
They are truly beautiful
chigau (違う) says
Another vote for beautiful!
Tethys says
Wow, the knives look really nice, but the block is a work of sculpture. Well done!
Ice Swimmer says
The block grows out of the table.
It’s truly a fine set, one can see the grain continue from the block to the handles.