Knife Roll

[Bushmiller]

I expect most of us are familiar with tool rolls to hold such things as chisels, auger bits etc.. Recently we inquired of our daughter's partner what our daughter would like for Xmas. Our daughter has always been difficult regarding presents as she is distinctly minimalist and rails against material possessions. While that stance has eased a little in recent years, it is still an issue. However, it appeared that cheese and paté knives were a definite possibility. I don't really know what to call them"Platter knives?" I ended up with a couple of cheese knives, a butter knife and a paté knife.

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Originally I was going to make a box for the knives, but SWMBO came up with the soft tool roll idea and that allowed her to contribute too. This also enables the knives to be taken to other venues such as picnics more easily.

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There is one space left as I was talking with a friend and he mentioned that a small hatchet was useful for cutting harder cheeses so I will make that up too, but won't be able to get it organised in time for the day.

The metal is all from scrap stainless steel I had lying around. The timber is a combination of Bull Oak and Hairy Oak. The handles are finished in gloss varnish. The roll material is denim with bound edges.

Regards
Paul

[orraloon]

That's a great Christmas present. The combined project aspect is great too. Way more Christmas spirit there than just going shopping.
Regards
John

[Bushmiller]

That's a great Christmas present. The combined project aspect is great too. Way more Christmas spirit there than just going shopping.
Regards
John

John

Sometimes things just fall into place, but not often enough.

Regards
Paul

[Toymaker Len]

That is an excellent present, being both functional and decorative so I am sure she will treasure it. And I am a bit inclined to rail against material possessions too, especially around Christmas.

[Bushmiller]

That is an excellent present, being both functional and decorative so I am sure she will treasure it. And I am a bit inclined to rail against material possessions too, especially around Christmas.

TL

I think we are all guilty at some point of being sucked into the grand marketing exercise called "Xmas.".

Regards
Paul

[AlexS]

Excellent, Paul.
A few years ago D2 decreed a "hand made or 2nd hand" Christmas. Great range of imaginative gifts. Even 5yo Granddaughter made a set of wooden coasters using a Japanese saw, disc sander and lacquer.

[BMKal]

A great idea for a gift. Not something that anyone would expect to see in the shops.

[Simplicity]

Very nice Paul, I’m sure the Daughter is going too love them.

But I’m seeing a trend in the Bushmillar family off gifting each other knives or other sharp objects, with at least one family member collecting a certain cutting tool.
I’m just saying ok,

Cheers Matt.

[John Saxton]

That's a terrific gift Paul , something hand made with personal attachment is more likely to be appreciated than a store bought item.

[Bushmiller]

A few years ago D2 decreed a "hand made or 2nd hand" Christmas. Great range of imaginative gifts. Even 5yo Granddaughter made a set of wooden coasters using a Japanese saw, disc sander and lacquer.

I really like that idea and may well adopt it for Xmas myself. just two problems for me: The first is that I may have left the edict a little late for this years and secondly we don't have a 5yo grandaughter. Actually we don't have grand daughters or grandchildren of any age. We would have to drag in/co-opt a small child off the street. :(

I do really like the concept. :) I may have to adapt the concept a little.

Regards
Paul

[Bushmiller]

I mentioned at the onset that a fifth pocket had been reserved for a future addition. I realised that it may never get done if I did not make the effort now: So, here is the mini hatchet for cutting larger and harder chunks of cheese.

A couple of pix of the process:

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The polished stainless reflects everything :rolleyes:. There was a timber defect on the lower edge of the handle, which I thought would go when I rounded off the scale, but it didn't. I filled it with a combination of varnish and black CA glue. I am not a big fan of gloss varnish, but it seems to be more appropriate for knife handles and is slightly more resistant to fluids. I was thinking water more than blood. This last knife does have a serious cutting edge that was ground through a range of stones, but I doubt it will have a great edge retention. However, it will probably not be really needed.

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All tucked up snug.

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Merrry Xmas.

Regards
Paul

[labr@]

Looks like it's a self wrapping gift:). Nicely done Paul, merry Christmas.

[Bushmiller]

Very nice Paul, I’m sure the Daughter is going too love them.

But I’m seeing a trend in the Bushmillar family off gifting each other knives or other sharp objects, with at least one family member collecting a certain cutting tool.
I’m just saying ok,

Cheers Matt.

Matt

I am hoping the favourite daughter is happy with it. Won't know until Boxing Day. Perhaps I should have put the roll in a "Box!" Didn't think of that :no:

As to the exchange of sharp objects, Perhaps we just like to be at the pinacle of cutting edge technology.... from about 100years ago.

Merry Xmas
Regards
Paul

[Bushmiller]

Looks like it's a self wrapping gift:). Nicely done Paul, merry Christmas.

I had not thought of the self wrapping aspect: A bit like self saucing puddings?

In fact our gift wrapping is a bit below standard: if you like. We recycle the wrapping of our loo rolls, which itself is recycled material. So this is now the superfluous "Who Gives A Crap" wrapping around the knife roll wrapping :rolleyes:.

This is the daughter's knife roll (drum roll sounds in the background):

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A few more ( more to come, but that would be giving away secrets).

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Some have a form to fill out for multitudinous ocassions! :)

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Merry Xmas
Regards
Paul

[Bushmiller]

I/we made the mistake of showing off the above roll made for our daughter to a friend who was enthusiastic about them to the extent that she asked if we could make up a set for a granddaughter's 21st birthday. I suppose it had to happen :rolleyes:.

While I wasn't really keen to go into production, I suppose it is a little flattering and I agreed to make up a slightly smaller set:

The highly polished surface does present it's problems with the pix and I had a couple of goes, but never really got on top of it. The mini cleaver could actually double as a mirror. The stainless steel was recycled from an old, decommissioned piece of plant from my workplace. There are some minor blemishes in the form of tiny pitting. I had all the materials so that aspect was cost neutral, but it is a little time consuming. I achieved a higher polish on the SS this time (I will have to do a recall on the daughter's set) as I polished the blades on a buffing wheel using first grey and then green compound.

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The handles are again from the Casuarina Oak family. The small knife has a Hairy Oak handle while the other two have Bull Oak handles: I think :rolleyes:. The timber was sourced locally from the Millmerran area.

SWMBO made up another tool roll, which if anything may eclipse the knives themselves.

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What is the old thespian's adage? Never work with children and animals. I think that should be children, animals and wives!

:)

Regards
Paul

[GraemeCook]

Really like the way you are doing your handles, Paul. Simple, functional and the sheoak has so much character.

I meant to comment when you posted the photo of that little cleaver in December.

522908 Paul's Cleaver :2tsup:

I was in Japan shortly before lockdown and a Japanese friend had an almost identical one except his handle was Japanese red oak and it was antique. He said it was the perfect cheese knife - but Japanese traditionally do not eat cheese - only in the last 50 years or so.

He said that its original purpose - I forgot the Japanese name - was to cut tiny cubes of fish - 1, 2 or 3 mm square, and it is important that all the cubes were the same size, and perfectly square - it is Japan. These were then dropped into soup as or after it was served. Quite nice, and very distinctive texture. The technique was use the cleaver to:

slice the fish,
then cut the slices into strips,
then cut the strips into tiny little cubes.
Quicker to do than explain.


Well done!

[Bushmiller]

Graeme

I suspect, but don't know for certain, that a JP cleaver would be called a Nakiri, which was the ubiquitous kitchen knife in Japan since JP time began. I thought I had posted a pic before on the Forum, but I couldn't find it quickly so here it is (with the non standard handle in Spotted Gum and Gidgee).

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I didn't consciously copy it for the cheese cleaver, but maybe there was something going on in the subconscious. If that is the case, I am pleased that there is something happening up there.

Regards
Paul

[GraemeCook]

Graeme

I suspect, but don't know for certain, that a JP cleaver would be called a Nakiri, which was the ubiquitous kitchen knife in Japan since JP time began. ...


I think that is right, Paul; a nakiri is that ubiquitous light cleaver used everywhere as a vegetable paring knife - I always oggle at the size of them, and the dexterity with which they are used.

The repurposed cheese cleaver was much smaller and it was explained as a specialist fish dicing knife. The knife and its name might even be a specialist term in the old Kinki Region and dialect - now Kansai.

Over the years I have had that finely diced fish several ways, but only around Osaka:

Diced white fish in soup,
Diced raw tuna in a "savoury mayonaisse",
Tuna aburi - seared with a gas torch for 2 seconds - on rice.

[johknee]

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Hi Paul,

All of your knives are great! How are you shaping your scales? By hand? Belt sander/grinder?
I've just finished a knife for a friend and it's bloody atrocious (scales are asymmetrical).

[Bushmiller]

Hi Paul,

All of your knives are great! How are you shaping your scales? By hand? Belt sander/grinder?
I've just finished a knife for a friend and it's bloody atrocious (scales are asymmetrical).

johknee

Thank you.

I start off with the scales thicknessed, but they are usually too thick and have to be reduced further after being glued onto the knife blanks. This time I tried a new method of getting the scales even, because, as you have said, it is a little tricky. I used a linisher with a coarse belt. I reduced the thickness by eye and then checked using some old Vernier gauges as I have several digital ones that have given up the ghost. The Casuarinas actually make thicknessing by eye awkward as the medullary rays play tricks, particularly if the ray is not parallel to the tang.

As I use cultler's rivets, in addition to epoxy gluing, I have to check that the overall thickness is within the range of the rivet. Also, just by the way, I grind a more tapered point on the male rivet as I have once or twice found they have not engaged properly and they deform under duress! I use either my bench vice or an engineer vice to press them together initially and after that I tap them with a hammer using suitable improvised punches (made from heavy nails): You need one on each side for this.

Now, before I apply the rivets, I shape the handle. This is the point where the dead purists roll in their graves and the live purists insert hatpins into their voodoo dolls kept for such purposes.

I use an angle grinder with a coarse sanding disc, which I think is either 36grit or 40grit. I think I may have had both grits at various times. Ideally I would suggest a 100mm grinder, but I used a 125mm grinder because I couldn't find the backing disc for the small one. Use a low powered grinder as they are significantly lighter than the more powerful versions, which you don't need for this purpose. My good grinder is 1400W and weighs close to twice the weight of the 800W model. (The 100mm grinder is lighter again). I ended up with all these grinders when stripping back our weather board house, which is an awful job and I hope I never have to do again, at least not back to bare boards.

The grinder with a new sanding disc removes a lot of material so a "lover's" touch is recommended here. I usually hold the knife in one hand and use the grinder with the other. If you have an HSE representative close by you may want to wait until they are gone as they don't seem to understand that light weight grinders were always intended to be used one handed. In all seriousness, you are unlikely to cut off your hand with a sanding disc, but still be alert as it will remove some skin quite easily. I get the shape as close as I can and finish off with fine rasps and sandpaper. The Casuarinas are renowned for retaining sanding marks so care taken at this stage will save a lot of sanding later. Other timbers are more forgiving. An orbital sander can be used for finishing the flatter parts of these handles but being relatively small it is almost not worth the effort and I went straight to hand sanding.

It is well worth covering the blades with masking tape to prevent accidental damage. One last thing is that the finer sanding grits on an angle grinder don't seem to work well as they burn the wood. The grinder spins too fast unless you have variable speed control and then you are in the realm of the higher-powered machines that are heavier (and more expensive) and really a bit too unmanageable. A vice that clamps in the horizontal position is handy. I use my saw handle vice with a thick piece of wood to take up the space as it has a very restricted operating range. You could clamp the blades to your work bench for sanding purposes. Remember to keep checking for symmetry as it is terribly easy to be over enthusiastic. Go slowly as it is easier to take it off than put it back!

Not a complete "how to" but hopefully that will give you some ideas. Don't discount the value of improvisation.

Regards
Paul

[Sawdust Maker]

Mate

nice work

to lessen the glare from the blades I'd use a polarizing filter on my camera. Using a phone you could put your aviators over the lens ... maybe

[Bushmiller]

Hi Nick

Good to hear from you and thank you. I think you have been a little quiet of late.

Regards
Paul