Middle Earth Ranger Forum

I still really am digging that knife. The eket is also very nice looking. Been thinking about something similar to that as a secondary weapon.

Looking good. Really like the handle material for Ru's knife. The eket is looking good too. The crossguard looks nice. You might be able to go a little smaller on the pommel depending on the size the handle ends up so it doesn't hang too far over the sides of the handle.

Will be watching as the develop.

E.MacKermak wrote:Looking good. Really like the handle material for Ru's knife. The eket is looking good too. The crossguard looks nice. You might be able to go a little smaller on the pommel depending on the size the handle ends up so it doesn't hang too far over the sides of the handle.

Will be watching as the develop.

I can possibly go smaller on the pommel. My only fear is that it won't be heavy enough and will leave the point of balance farther down the blade than it should be. I will have a pommel cap though so that will add a slight bit of weight.

Always fun trying to find that sweet spot between correct balance and too big a pommel. I trust your judgement in the end.

That eket, tho!

Looking great, Eric. Admiring the progress.

E.MacKermak wrote:Always fun trying to find that sweet spot between correct balance and too big a pommel. I trust your judgement in the end.

Pommel... End...

Greg wrote:That eket, tho!

Looking great, Eric. Admiring the progress.

Thanks Greg. They are moving along. Of course the perfectionist in me is not very pleased with certain things. But if the E.Mac is happy, I'm happy.

Oh that eket is beautiful! I can't wait to see the final piece!

I'm hoping it holds a pleasant surprise. We'll see when everything comes together.

Okay, since I'm still a computer idiot, I'm posting these here. These are the guard and pommel for the eket. I was going to send these to the buyer, but ... yeah.











So I was concerned that I couldn't make these work right, but after looking at them again, I think maybe I can, if the buyer is happy with the route they are going.

I like the way these are coming out. The file work has that touch of hand-crafted artisan production lacking in so many production pieces nowadays. Remember that I intend for this to be a useable knife not a wall hanger and those that put their faith in a blade want quality good that won't fail in a crisis. This blade is shaping up to be just that type of hard use blade. I see no reason to start new pieces unless you see a critical flaw that doesn't show in the pics (or find one later) that would prevent the use of this blade for its intended purpose.

E.MacKermak wrote:I like the way these are coming out. The file work has that touch of hand-crafted artisan production lacking in so many production pieces nowadays. Remember that I intend for this to be a useable knife not a wall hanger and those that put their faith in a blade want quality good that won't fail in a crisis. This blade is shaping up to be just that type of hard use blade. I see no reason to start new pieces unless you see a critical flaw that doesn't show in the pics (or find one later) that would prevent the use of this blade for its intended purpose.

All right, great! I'll keep you updated on how it works as I shape the handle. That will tell us the truth about the pommel's usefulness.

Also, an unintended effect here is that folks are getting a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes when we are creating a project.

I've been wondering who the commission was going to. Erich, you are a lucky man.

One thing I failed to do on the eket was to temper the tang. I thought it would be okay without it. Well, I found that the tang was too soft and would bend very easily. So last night I took it to the gas forge. I wrapped the blade with a very wet shirt/rag and heated slowly, watching my colors carefully. After quenching, I drew the colors back to a nice springy blue. Once everything was cool, I was walking out of the forge. I decided to check the straightness and as I raised the blade to eye level.... it slipped. It fell right out of my hands and landed on a couple of bricks. For a minute, my heart stopped. I picked it up and gave it a quick look over in fading light. The tip was fine. The edge was barely nicked. But I couldn't see every detail. Once inside, I examined the blade under some better light. Aside from the roughed up section on the edge, there is a slight scuff near the fuller. Both of these are very easily fixed. They will probably happen anyway somewhere along the way.

SO, catastrophe averted. But this is what happens when you are tired and in a hurry to get something done.

I like Fridays. I get off work early and can get to work on blades - usually. So tomorrow, it's fix the two new scuffs, work on the handle and fittings and continue to work on fittings for Ru's blade. I'm hoping to get back on the kukuri also.

Okay! I don't have any pics, so as of now, it didn't happen. But Ru's knife is almost done. It is looking great, but there are some flubs here and there that will have to be fixed. Got it clamped up with epoxy drying overnight at the moment. I'm hoping to get MUCH done this weekend on some blades and maybe get what I need to go back to my leather projects too.

Okay, as of now, Ru's knife has been done for a while and the eket was finished tonight. But you're not getting pics yet for two reasons:
1) I want E.Mac to be the first to see it, so pics after this weekend.
2) It is WELL past my bedtime.

So, after the event this weekend, I will post pics of the two finished blades and show the progress on the kukuri. It will be up for sale.