Another nice looking striking knife *LINK*

10 bids

Jack Guzman from Maine

>I'll bet that had alot to do with the recent article and thread on that subject.---Jack

Old timers

Chad Boehlke

>Most old timers used a old kitchen knife to mark with. My dad used a mail to mark with, cheap and always was around.

Maybe so.

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>

This one looks like a Leftie's tool

Paul Kramer

>

Maybe

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>Of course, the user may have held the bevel edge against the straight edge, in which case a right handed person would be fine.

Pam

Re: Maybe

Adam Cherubini

>Pretty sure our old friend Jeff Gorman does that. Its an interesting approach. Last time I looked he had a blurb aout it on his wonderful website. Do you have a link Pam?

Adam

Re: Maybe *LINK*

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>Yap, here's the appropriate page.

Pam


Gorman on marking knives

How I Made a Couple

Garrett in Victoria

>Sadly, the marking knife I wanted wasn�t under the Christmas tree. When I came across one of the innumerable pocket knives I�ve accumulated in various drawers over the years, I realized I could finally give this one a purpose. I drilled out the rivets, tossed the thin metal spacers and plastic covers, and was left with some interesting pieces. The odd-looking bit left of the bottle opener was the lock-back spring.

I used the knife�s small blade � not shown above - to make this marking knife by slicing a piece of teak and chiseling out the interior to match the end profile � about the same as for the long blade on the left. Glued and riveted it back together, with a hole in the end to hang it up.

Although it turned out and works well, and is very comfortable in the hand, I wondered if I could find an easier way to make some more.

This time the scrap pile gave up some small pieces of arbutus from BC and hard maple from Ontario. Togetherness. I measured the lock-back spring and discovered it was 3/16� thick. Hmmm, I have a 3/16� thin-kerf combination blade for the table saw�

I ground a triangular profile on the fat part of the spring, cut the arbutus to size and ripped a kerf down the middle, then cut a piece off the maple to fit the kerf. (The piece of oak is the pusher stick I used to rip the maple.)

When I dropped the spring into the kerf and then pushed the maple in on top of it, it was obvious that I would have to fit the maple to the curved edge of the spring, so I traced it out and cut it on the bandsaw.

Since the spring had a convenient hole, I marked the location of the hole on the piece of arbutus and drilled it out.

With a 1/8� roundover bit already in the router, it took but a few seconds to take off all the sharp edges.

Satisfied with the fit, I replaced the temporary nail with a piece of a brass screw as a rivet, glued � plain yellow glue � everything together, and hammered the ends of the screw flat. (I should have cut a little less off the screw.)

A bit of sanding

a very little bit of handwork, and I now had two marking knives. By the way, I caefully dulled all edges except near the points.

This photo shows the value of marking knives over a sharp pencil.

Curiously, although I have an average size hand, and both handles are the same length (about 4 ��), I much prefer the feel of the wider teak knife.

Now, what to do with those remaining parts?

Cheers, Garrett