En-Nep-inspired bushcraft knife in the making

....aaand yet another one design experiment. This one is inspired as well by Thai En-Nep designs as by the obsessive pondering about the whiplash line. I realized when drawing out the layout for the blade that you can draw a golden spiral towards the blade. A  recurve blade always has a kind of sweet spot where the most cutting force is cumulated, and you can portray this by a golden spiral ratio. This is not an earnest calculation ratio and of course you need no rocket scientist degree to draw a layout for a knife, but still I wondered. The handle is a bit longer than usual to give it more reach and slashing and chopping prowess when gripped farther back. When handling it I realized it is somewhat of a fast-forward and point-concentrated knife which would also make it a good Krav Magá companion, but the most power is indeed concentrated into the sweet spot. It is a bit awkward at first for small whittling tasks until you realize that you need another technique with it. Making fuzz sticks is a cinch, for all you need is a linear motion. With an arcing cut as with most straight designs you can easily cut a hazel stick one finger thick in one motion!

The blade is made from salvaged ancient leaf spring steel from an old carriage wreck, 150+ years old, 11,5x5 mm with a full tang. Scales are elk antler, brass tubing and mosaic pins. The blade has a selective temper and a high convex bevel. Estimated hardness is about 58 HRC.

It has to see some polishing and then it´s ready for the etch. 

On the bench- another Fimbulmuk from crap steel

This is something I have in the works to date. This design is becoming a favourite of mine, and I prefer to call it a Fimbulmuk;-P, for there are some minor differences to your common Nessmuk design. First and most obviously, the blade is offset to make it easier to use in a kitchen application. That way, slicing onions or processing herbs is a cinch. But there´s always some kind of downside to an offset blade, as e.g. the Grohmann Canadian Belt knife, which is good enough. But I find knives like the Grohmann a bit awkward when whittling. I thought long and hard about that, and one of my all - time favourite backwoods whittling knife is the Roselli carving knife with the 85 mm blade, closely followed by this one:

So I found out that a knife whittles best when you can draw an imaginary axle through the butt and it is in a straight line with the tip. Also, if you draw this axle through the blade, the major contact points of the hand should not be too far off. With the Fimbulmuk I think I solved the problem by radically curving the handle. Take note that both edge line and handle silhouette follow a whiplash line, which I think makes for more dynamic cutting. To put the balance point on the finger tip, however, I had to shorten the tang a bit, because drilling out the tang was not an option with the shallow silhouette. I solved this one problem with a cigar - shaped end, and the knife will get a short lanyard fitted with those lovely lanyard beads by my CUTIE *ggg*magic troll (she always get mad when I call her cutie, and she´s so cute when she gets mad*ggg*). The blade is made from an old wrench I found in the woods, apparently out of crucible steel, 85mmx3,5mm, olive wood handle, screwed and glued on with a screw cut / rolled into the tang and scales. Convex bevel, that will see a lot of polishing still.

The other pic, by the way, is of a knife I made years ago from cold -rolled file steel, selective temper, Scandi grind, elkhorn handle with brass fittings, 90x4mm blade. I tested it hard these years. The handle has minor cracks towards the end due to constant exposal to the elements, but is trustworthy as a rock still.

The more I get into knifemaking, the more I get interested into the finer points and details. Peter Johnsson did a lot to promote my thinking geometrically when blades are concerned. What´s good for a sword can´t be bad for a knife, if you know when to apply geometry. And the principle of the whiplash line fascinates me ever since I first heard about its use in the art nouveau movement which far transcended mere art.

Still so much to learn;-). As is, I am content with the outcome. If you want elegance, look elsewhere. But I think I can safely say that I am nearing the point where I can make knives that actually work.;-)