# NFS......................



## tgraypots (Dec 7, 2011)

I have postponed working on knives for pretty much two months in order to get out all my pots ready for the Celebration of Seagrove Potters, my trunk show at my sister's, and to fill the two shops here in town that carry my work. And now.....I get to work on some knives for gifts and myself. The pieces here are ones I cut out and ground in the profile today. I still have half a dozen from before that are awaiting heat treatment, beveling, handles and more. Between now and Christmas I hope to get them all ready for use by friends and family. And, I'm really looking forward to using a chef's knife that I have created myself. 






Cutting out the profiles with an angle grinder. 






Roughly cut out.






Grinding the profiles with my 2 x 36 multi-tool. Wish I could afford a 2 x 72.....maybe later.






In the making.....three nakiri, two kiritsuke yo-gyutos, and a couple of paring knives.

More later-Tom


----------



## Johnny.B.Good (Dec 7, 2011)

Wow, what fun. Cool shop Tom. Do the future recipients of your generosity know what is in store for them, or will it be a surprise?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 7, 2011)

my sister knows she has a knife coming her way, but no one else knows. my shop is actually 2100 sq ft, most devoted to making pots, and storage. it needs a thorough clean-up!


----------



## Andrew H (Dec 7, 2011)

Looking good! What steel are these made out of?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 7, 2011)

They are all 1075. I wanted to work with a steel that I wouldn't have to ship off for HT. Burners, bricks and pyrometers are the stuff I'm pretty comfortable working with. Clay too, of course. I'm hoping to create a hamon, fingers crossed, and want to try local clays mixed with wood ash, that kind of thing. Making knives is like any other craft, the learning curve to make what you can see in your mind's eye is pretty steep.


----------



## add (Dec 8, 2011)

Great set up you have there Tom, thanks for sharing.

Now I hope know, by posting, you have committed to show the finished knives here as well.


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 8, 2011)

Oh yeah, and almost all will be sporting Mark's scales!


----------



## jm2hill (Dec 8, 2011)

Tom, how tall are those Kiritsuke/gyutos? How long? They look like monsters!


----------



## Kyle (Dec 8, 2011)

Those knives look cool.

I'd be interested in seeing your pottery, do you have a photo album or blog or something that you can link to?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 8, 2011)

Jm2hill, right now they are 3mm x 250mm x 51.5mm. I am not very confident in my abilities at this stage of the game, so I'm allowing a little extra steel all the way around. 

Kyle, I can't link to my site out of respect for the forum rules.


----------



## rahimlee54 (Dec 8, 2011)

Tom's setup is pretty cool and he has a pretty big box of scales, can't wait to see and test out a finished knife. He definitely has some ideas going down in Seagrove. 

Kyle I have a few pieces of Tom's pottery and they both look nice and function well for the task.


----------



## mano (Dec 8, 2011)

tgraypots said:


> my sister knows she has a knife coming her way!



That'll give her time to duck!


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 8, 2011)

Mano, she just doesn't know from which direction it will be coming!


Thanks Jared. You know you'll be the first to try one!


----------



## SpikeC (Dec 8, 2011)

Tom is really easy to find on the net. I wonder how much he would charge to make custom dog food dishes? With the name and an emblem denoting the dog raised on the side of the bowl?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 10, 2011)

After a frustrating day yesterday, I got back on the grinder today and ended up finishing up grinding the sides and drilling tang holes in the rest of what I had cut out. It's amazing what a fresh approach and a new 50 grit zirconia/alumina belt can do! I'm still trying to figure out ways to utilize this old potter's wheel, w/o bogging it down! More to come-Tom


----------



## mhenry (Dec 10, 2011)

Love those Kiritsuke's Tom. One's for me right?


----------



## bcrano (Dec 11, 2011)

There is some really cool looking geometry on those. Hope they keep progressing well.


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 11, 2011)

Thanks guys. Spike, I use pots that didn't meet my expectations for bowls for our cats, dogs when we have them, and water for our free range chickens. Special orders are not my forte.....one of my many quirks. I can put off a special order for yeeeeeeaaaaarrrs, in hopes they no longer want it. Usually works. Sorry man. Our last dog developed a taste for free range chickens.....had to find a new home for him, where I hear he is happy as can be. One day I want another Chesapeake, but I don't think he/she would get along too well with fowl around, and my son and I do like our fresh eggs. Mike, I love the kiritsuke profile concept, and can't wait to get one finished up. I'm a long way away from letting knives go out to guys like y'all! My skin is waaay too thin. One of my favorite movie lines from way back is "I'm sensitive as s**t." bcrano, thanks about the geometry comment. All I want is to make knives that feel comfortable in the hand, scream "SHARP," hold that edge for a reasonable time, and make folks want to pick one up and start preparing food for their families and friends. You guys think that's too much to ask?


----------



## ajhuff (Dec 11, 2011)

tgraypots said:


> After a frustrating day yesterday, I got back on the grinder today and ended up finishing up grinding the sides and drilling tang holes in the rest of what I had cut out. It's amazing what a fresh approach and a new 50 grit zirconia/alumina belt can do! I'm still trying to figure out ways to utilize this old potter's wheel, w/o bogging it down! More to come-Tom
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## add (Dec 13, 2011)

mhenry said:


> Love those Kiritsuke's Tom.



The one on the far right... nice.



bcrano said:


> There is some really cool looking geometry on those.



That little parer at 9 0'clock is begs to be picked up.

Nice stuff Tom. :cool2:


----------



## Eamon Burke (Dec 13, 2011)

Nice! Just read on your blog that you stuck your hand pretty good a few months back. Doing better?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 13, 2011)

Eamon, much better. Thanks for asking.Belt broke and slapped a knife into my hand while buffing out a very sharp blade. 






I have 5 knives in the oven as I write, tempering at 335F after having been heated up to roughly 1500F. Tomorrow I will run another few knives through the HT, and hopefully finish grinding on the ones from today's HT. Lots of hours spent in front of a belt grinder in my near future!


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 13, 2011)

Thanks for the comments guys. Being a total newb at this, it's nice to get some encouragement here. The paring knife is my take on a William-Henry I acquired a few years ago. Traded pots for it. ZDP 189. Love the shape, but don't care for the steel. I'm chomping at the bit to get them finished over next coupla days. More to come-Tom


----------



## El Pescador (Dec 13, 2011)

thanks for update tom...its good to see you're back at it!


----------



## Don Nguyen (Dec 14, 2011)

Are those magnets you're using for grinding? What kind are they, and where can I get them?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 14, 2011)

Don, amazon.com has them. The one with the nicer handle has a 100# pull.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000J3RYMU/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
$10.00


----------



## Don Nguyen (Dec 14, 2011)

Thanks. I'll try it out.

Would there be any problems with a metal platen?


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 14, 2011)

Don, nope, the first time I saw these in use was when the flat grinder at school needed adjustment and we flattened on a belt grinder platen, with these.


----------



## Don Nguyen (Dec 14, 2011)

Perfect. This is exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks!


----------



## tgraypots (Dec 18, 2011)

In continuation, here are a coupla more knives that are going out for Christmas. The first is a 7" chef's knife with Mark's sycamore scales, and the second is a 7" usuba with Mark's koa scales. These are number five and six that I have made so far and I can find a zillion flaws in them. Nevertheless, I made them with my own hands, using limited equipment, and I'm pretty proud of that. BTW, the usuba is hollow ground on the back side, of course, and potatoes don't stick when slicing.


----------



## Eamon Burke (Dec 18, 2011)

Congrats! I love that you always use the funky woods.


----------

