Every man needs a hobby...

They say that every man needs a hobby to keep the blues away.  One has to have ways to break up the day.  Now, if you know me as some do, you know that I have a million hobbies. 

Toy collecting:

Snakes and Bugs:

(FREE PET!!)

Origami:

And sharing it with my kiddo:

(Look at the haul we got at Replay Toys!)

Recently I've taken up a new hobby, but lets first talk about how I got there... 

Over the last few months, I haven't been really doing much.  I go to work in a place where I polish Truck Wheels and parts and I come home and sit and watch movies.  On occasion, when I get to see my Girlfriend, we go out and hang out with friends.  Small giggles and some good times but in between visits where she can afford to come down or I can arrange to come up, I don't do a whole lot at all. 

This fact alone bothers me... 

What do I do when it isn't movies or tv the catches my attention?  I turn my music spinning laptop into a $1500 Facebook and Youtube only machine, (Because that's all its good for). $1500 laptop that I spent about $350 bucks for (originally the funds were allocated for an engagement ring for a lady that would rather be schtooping a former best friend, this laptop has been for faithful quite obviously) is now after college being used as my personal entertainment device.  

I've gotten hopelessly addicted to Youtube Channels like Zombie Go Boom and the Slingshot Channel.

Now, these shows may appear as Puerile and Immature with grown men mashing things or blowing things up with household items. And that's why I love them!  We want to make something that makes something go smash because well... It's a guy thing! Not all guys dig it, not all guys have to, but there is a market for testosterone injected jockular fun. If Jackass: The Movie has taught us anything, that's it. 

So... Where does this lead me to my new hobby? Am I smashing things with hammers?  Well, sort of... 

You see, I saw on an older episode of Zombie Go Boom, a home made mace out of pipe and a trailer ball hitch.  I thought... I CAN MAKE THAT! 

(You know, because REASONS!)

And then I saw the Warhammer... And well...

(Again, because well REASONS!)

I should add, all photos are credited to Zombie Go Boom and you should watch and subscribe to their channel because well... It's just plain FUN!

I started going on a google search "How to make a mace", or "How to make a warhammer".  It's funny when you google "How To" videos that it brings you just about every possible how to make a weapon available.  Some, neat and attainable, some are just plain bizarre...  It's still fun to watch.

But I stumbled across a couple that really caught my eye and though... I can do that! 

Knife forging... 

I found several videos initially on how to forge a knife from a railroad spike. As seen Here: 

My first initial result does look pretty primitive. It reminds me of the Tommy Lee Jones and Guillermo Del Toro movie Hunted. In it, there is a spectacular knife duel between the two actors. 

In the movie, Guillermo Del Toro forges a knife out of a rail spike via a campfire, a rock, and a steel plate.  I figure if the process was that simple, I could do it too. 

I still struggled to figure out how to properly forge the bevels and grind out an edge.  But it is tempered well. It maintains an edge... Sort of. 

My second attempt was inspired by a very easy home made tutorial on how to do a home made knife from a file HERE: 

Initial result, easier to remove steel from a softened file than it is forge out a giant piece of steel like a rail spike.  I got a lot better about scribing out a center line and grinding out the bevels. 

The final product is here:

Rather than put scales on the sides, I opted for a wrap handle made from military grade boot strings. Those things are meant to never degrade.

This home made knife holds an edge PERFECTLY and even after heavy abuse is still shaving razor sharp.  Future efforts will include more recycled files.

My latest attempt, was to retry forging with another piece of recycled (what I thought was) stainless steel. 

In this attempt, I forged out the knife and bevels.  I drilled out the holes to add scales with recycled oak and brass pins. The net end result was a small but very sharp and functional piece.

It holds an edge but is not (to my regret) stainless.  It does rust when left with water on it. The scales however make it easy to hold and it maintains a perfect edge. 

My next attempt is going to be a Karambit knife. 

Not my image, that credit goes to Epic Fantasy and his youtube tutorials. 

This knife has a reputation for being a pretty brutal knife given the design. You can check out the Cold Steel video for how they perform HERE: 

That hooked bill can genuinely cut through a lot. And given it's reputation, can be quite deadly. 

I'll probably do an edit later as I come up with an image of the new Karambit knife I made. 

How do I make these knifes currently?  

Working at my Grandparents shop, I have access to a multitude of metal working tools.  I can cut, heat treat and forge, and smack out just about anything I want in that small little polish shop.  The wood stove proves to be a very effective forge and the large supply of pine firewood burns more than hot enough to bring metal beyond a cherry red color. 

The process, much like chainmail or origami, I am finding very zen.  To plan a new knife, draw out the design (in my head or on paper) and either smack it out with channel locks and hammer or grind it out with angle grinders.  

Throwing sparks is just plain fun either way. 

With each new forge or cut, I get better at the craft.  With each new attempt, the process of tempering the metal and heat treating it gets easier and better. The final product, still remains useful. 

I'd encourage anyone who is looking for something fun to try and they are blue with nothing to do, look up a "How To" video on Youtube.  For that matter, just do a random search of "How To" and just try it. 

For now, this is the Greaser Goth signing out.  Happy metal smacking!

Music in my head: 

Conan Theme composed by Basil Polidorios.

http://youtu.be/5ZY2mRG5mzg

How can you not want to forge steel destruction after hearing that?!