Issue 17 - Autumn 2005
24 pages all-gloss tabloid-sized magazine packed with
information and photographs!
Spencer photo : Copyright 2005
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Edge-itorial: Keith
Spencer
I miss the carriers. You know, the blokes (most
of them are blokes) who deliver the goods to your workplace or pick some
up to ship elsewhere. Since shifting last year to the new workplace outside
of the metropolitan area the carriers don't call any more. We have them
deliver to a location half an hour's drive away and someone else gets to
talk to the carriers. For the most part, carriers are cheery fellas, although
sometimes you would get the odd grumblebum, but the challenge was to get
them to smile before they departed. Life isn't always easy when you're
on the road all the time.
...... cont. page 3
Cover photo: Twins Heather and Erica
with their 21st birthday knives.
See cover story - page 19
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Issue 17 features:
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Our Man in Japan - Glenn Waters
Many Skills Make Swords Work: Part 3
The Finishing Process
After the blade is finished the swordsmith will
give the blade a basic polish to check oh the hardness of the blade and
the quality of the Hamon temperline). He will also run his eye over the
blade to examine the condition of the steel. If all measures up to his
standard of quality the sword will then be sent for Togi (polishing).
Polishing is necessary to reveal the beauty
of the Hamon and the surface grain of thesteel. Togi also helps protect
the blade from rusting. The polisher spends many years as an apprentice
before he can obtain a license, which enables him to have his own sword
polishing business. A polisher's job for non Japanese is hard to do, mainly
because we are used to sitting in chairs, whereas the Japanese are used
to sitting on the floor.
..
cont. page 4
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Filleter from Florence
For an inland Queenslander, Paul Florence of
Ipswich, west of Brizzy, makes a darned good filleter. Filleting knives
are a dime a dozen in fishing stores up and down the east coast of the
continent, but getting a good fish filleter that will do the job and won't
let you down can be a bit of a challenge. Processing plate-size catches
can almost be done using a sharpened thumbnail (don't try it), whereas
the 'biggies' demand you use the right tool for the job. Paul Florence
makes the filleter you wish you had when the one you've got is a bit short
at the business end.
Curtain Closes on Waylands Forge
I got a letter I didn't want to get from long-
time blade smith Dave Robinson of J Mudgee in New South Wales. The rigours
of a hard-lived life have at last caught up with Robbo, but not before
he made his mark on the planet. He has now hung up his leather apron, laid
aside his hammer and tongs and allowed the soot to settle on the anvil
of the smithy known throughout the district as Waylands Forge. Dave needs
to rest and focus on fixing a few ailments that have sneaked into his latter
life. Doc's orders!
What a legacy Robbo leaves behind. In the
short time I've known the man I've come to respect him greatly for the
contributions he made for the benefit of others during his life, most of
which he gave gladly. Dave forever' seeks to freely share what he has learned,
some of which was gleaned the hard way by hard work and experimentation.
He sets a fine example for others to try emulating!
cont. page 5
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Timbertown Blacksmith Wayne
Saunders
President ABA-NSW
My curiosity about blacksmithing actually started
when my family visited Timbertown while I was still a kid. As you can see,
I've come full circle in the last 25 years. From a very early age most
of my holiday memories have revolved around hunting and camping - hence
my affinity with knives, axes and fire.The first knife I made had a Rambo
style blade I coaxed out of an old file during metalwork classes at school.
It would be ten years before I made another. In between I became a spraypainter
and then got the itch to travel Australia. Somehow, in late 1995 I ended
up back in my hometown of Sydney, dead broke and minus my good pocketknife.
I got a job working for a sign maker and
decided to make another knife rather than buy one. My boss had a very interesting
folding knife that locked with a twist of the collar and this was the design
I decided to go with. I think it was a French knife [it was most likely
an Opinel Ed]. For the blade I used an industrial hacksaw blade and was
so pleased with the result that I made a chef's knife with the remainder
of the hacksaw blade. It brings back memories whenever I use these knives.
....
cont. page 6 & 7
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Norslandic
Knives
Roselli of Finland
Not too distant from Lappland, in north
east Finland, bladesmith Heimo Roselli produces a fantastic range of traditional
Finnish working knives trademarked under his own name. Heimo's knife making
philosophy is simple, yet significant - I refuse to build anything nonfunctional
into my knives.
Nevertheless, no-frills Roselli brand knives feel
great in the hand and comfortably do all the cutting things they look like
they're supposed to do. Each knife is the embodiment of Northland design,
says Heimo, a simple, unique and stylishly shaped worktool.
Roselli's uncompromising selection of raw
materials is reflected in superior blades of carbon steel, maser birch
wood grips and top grain leather sheaths. Heimo Roselli combines proven
blademaking techniques from traditional blacksmith art with modern forging
technology to produce superior quality blades that are acknowledged throughout
Europe..... |
Fallkniven of Sweden
Anthony Baldachino, the boss of The Finer
Edge and the national distributor for fabulous Fallkniven bladeware imported
from Sweden, once asked me 'Is there a reluctance in Australia to purchasing
expensive top quality knives?' The answer is no, but Australians do need
to be convinced that what they're paying good money for is going to serve
the purpose they seek in a knife.
Due to the absence of a knife manufacturing
industry of any significance in Australia, we are bombarded with all manner
of brands and styles in both good and not-so good items of edgeware that
flow in from various parts of the world. And prior to Autumn 2001, when
Knives Australia hit the streets, the only knife magazines on the newsstands
emanated out of the USA, so we had become dependant upon information conveyed
to us by American knife writers..... |
...cont. page 8
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Shoemaker Knives by
Peter Bindon
A recent KA cover illustration that included
a small 'Fossickers knife' caught and held my attention because I have
quite a number of similar items lying on my workbenches or wedged along
a narrow board nailed behind them. The workbenches are in the shoe repair
shop and saddlery. Both businesses possess an array pf knives with blades
similar in shape to the one illustrated and quite a few of them are shaped
exactly like the knife on the KA cover.
My shoe knives gradually evolve through
the shapes that you see in the illustration, although I'll say more on
this later. When they arrive new in their waxed wrappings, they are unstained
and without blemish on their handles or blades. They are delightful functional
tools with a great tradition and long history behind them.
..cont. page 9
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Milspec - with Paul Bergen:
Police Utility Knife
The NSW Police Service is Australia's largest
police force and the third largest police organisation in the English speaking
world. Of the 16,000 employees 13,000 are sworn police officers, most of
whom spend a considerable amount of their on-duty activity forming that
'thin blue line' that divides social order and public safety from crime,
chaos and anarchy; a divide that is uncompromising and where the unexpected
can and often does happen.
More so than ever, serving in modem law
enforcement is tough and challenging. Having to carry out their duties
in the public domain under constant scrutiny, cops put their lives on the
line virtually every day. When confronted with an emotionally charged situation
a police officer must carefully balance the delicate line between steely
resolve and the velvet glove approach. Fast response activity places serious
demands on the training and performance of the duty constable day in and
day out. And it places unfailing performance on their ever growing equipment
belt
The array of gear carried by the uniformed
foot patrol officer is truly daunting and potentially damaging. The Equipment
Belt Project commenced in May 2003, when it was identified that numerous
operational police officers were suffering injuries attributed to wearing
the then current issue leather 'appointments' belt. To date the (Police)
Association has received responses from over 1,000 operational police officers
throughout NSW, who described their injuries in detail
... cont. page 10
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Collinsville Connection
Collinsville's got a mark on the Aussie map
about half way between Mackay and Townsville about 80-km inland, as the
seagull flies, from the Queensland coast. Mike Kaczmarowski (now there's
a good Irish name) lives there. After communicating with Mike a few times
by letter and phone, I asked him to send in some evidence of what he gets
up to in his spare time. He did and it's quite fascinating. Apart from
making and customizing bladeware, Mike's fertile mind sees him crafting
and modifying all sorts of things.
...... cont. page 11
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David Brodziak Does Damasteel
More and more discerning custom knifemakers are using the
best you can get in stainless Damascus bladesteel - Damasteel of Sweden/
Fulltime Australian knifemaker David Brodziak, whose exquisite art knives
are published in the 25th Anniversary Edeition of American knife annual,
Knives 2005, is an avid user of Swedish Damasteel.
David has mastered the art of maximising
the artistic effect of exciting Damasteel bladesteel patterns. Collectors
of Brodziak bladeware have confidence in the consistency of Damasteel patterns,
knowing they can get dissimilar blade styles in matching patterns year
after year. Or as shown here, discriminating buyers can accumulate
via the House of Brodziak a complete collection of same-style knives featuring
eight disctinctly different bladesteel patterns of Damasteel.
..cont. page 12 & 13
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The Trappings of Monastic
Life by Barney Foley, New York.
The year 1943 found my brother Larry and me
at boarding school in the outback monastic town of New Norcia, 82 miles
north of the Western Australian capital, Perth. American and Australian
convoys livened up our serene pocket of academia, scattering parrots, rabbits
and the odd kangaroo. Wartime food shortages were not drastic, but we all
seemed to crave sugar, and the soldiers' gifts of Hershey's chocolate,
gum, bully beef and Aussie army biscuits (probably the forerunner of the
Kevlar bulletproof vest) were welcomed by all.
The horrors of war seemed far away, and
we even found it exciting, despite the fact Darwin and Broome had been
bombed and machine-gunned. My 11 year-old mind could not quite grasp the
death of Father Thomas Gil ( of the same Benedictines that ran New Norcia),
along with a native woman and four children, when Kalumburu Mission was
bombed and strafed.
...cont. page 14
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Graft Craft by
John McLarty, South Australia.
Knifemaking invariably invvolves periods of
waiting - waiting for stock to arrive, waiting for knife blanks to be heat
treated, waiting for epoxy to cure - so in my spare time I collect apples.
No, this isn't about mouldering fruits. I collect varieties of apples for
grafting onto my backyard tree.
To date, I have successfully grafted seven
types, as well as a Williams Pear -all onto the one tree! Besides the novelty
factor, multi-grafted trees have advantages over single variety trees.
In particular, they flower at different times, which insures against unseasonable
weather.
... cont. page 15
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Stacked Leather Handles
The next lesson in a series of do-it-yourself by NSW
knifemaker Peter Bennett.
This type of handle has been around for a very
long time and is thoroughly tried and proved and in spite of a couple of
perceived drawbacks, it is still a very practical and attractive handle.
I prefer to use 3-mm thick leather slipped onto a rectangular tang, with
a threaded section on the end to hold the butt-cap in place.
The guard or bolster must be firmly attached
as it will have a fair bit of pressure on it to retain the handle and whilst
you can, peen the butt-cap into position. I like to be able to tighten
the cap in case the leather over time compresses - one of the perceived
drawbacks. The reason for the rectangular tang is so that the handle will
not over time turn on the tang.
Now let us start. All those off-cuts of
leather that you saved from making your sheaths will now find a worthy
use. Work out the desired diameter for the finished handle, then add about
3-mm for shaping and finishing. Using a piece of cardboard mark out a template
and transfer to the leather offcuts. Cut out the leather washers. Yes,
this is a slow job, but it will be worth it in the end. When you have done
this, calculate the centre of the washers.
.. cont. page 17
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Reworking
Knives by Bob Gough
About ten years ago I made a Loveless style,
drop-point hunting knife from D2 steel with a nice Red-gum bud timber handle.
The knife was functional, but at that stage I lacked the patience to finish
a knife off well. I was more concerned with function than finesse. Although
the knife had a good working blade I was never really happy with it, or
the sheath I made for it. The knife sat in the cupboard, never used, never
my knife of choice.
Last year I was walking along a dirt road
and noticed what looked to be a rusty piece of steel half buried in the
soft mud of the road verge. I looked harder at the item and saw that it
was a knife, a sheepfoot style blade with a plain handle that had been
run over and pressed into the soft mud of the road edge. The proverbial
light came on above my head and an idea came to me; I could clean up the
knife and see what it was like, perhaps even rework it into something better
suited to my needs.
..cont. page 18
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Twin
Blades for Twin Maids by Jack O'Brien
As I remember, the twins moved in next door
when they were about 11 or 12 yrs old, all teeth, knobby knees, feet and
angles going every which way from Christmas. Then, in the space of a day
it seemed, only a few years later I happened to look over the fence and
the damned angles had turned into curves, the knobby knees formed part
of legs that seemed to go on forever and the teeth had turned into smiles
that would make a politician tell the truth.
They are blonde. They are abso-bloodylutely
gorgeous - sweet, neat and petite. But one has a bloke in tow who looks
a bit like a walking Jarrah tree and the other picked a bloke with the
reflexes of a Ninja, so you just don't mess with these girls. However they
do have birthdays on a regular annual basis and they do live next door
to me, so when it became time for the twin 21st birthday it behove me to
consider a suitable gift from my side of the fence.
Now one would imagine a set of absolutely
identical gifts would be the go. Yeah.. . Right ! Truly identical the girls
may be in physical appearance, but in mindset they are like all twins -
CHALK AND CHEESE! A very simple exercise has now turned into an ulcer factory.
Being in the blade business and mainly concerned with making things to
cut and gut things with I decided upon a pair of blades for the twins.
...cont page19
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Sniper Survival Knives
Long term Top End bladesmith, Steve Sunk, phoned
me with the news he had just hand forged two items of bladeware destined
for use in Iraq by a soldier of the RAR Sniper Cell. By the time this article
is being read Josh is likely to be 'on a stalk' for the Australian Army
or ensconced in a 'possy' somewhere living off his wits, experience and
special training. With Josh will be the Sunk-made purpose built knife attached
to his 'on task' sniper stalking belt and personalised hatchet probably
tucked into his backpack.
I spoke at length with Josh on his mobile
telephone. Snipers are true survivalists. Alone, they travel light in hostile
environments and occasionally need to live off the land and make shelters.
What they carry must be relevant, practical and failsafe. Josh, whose military
service includes two operations in East Timor, must now adapt to an entirely
different scenario in the Middle East conflict.
...cont page 20
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Postcards From the Philippines
Regional knifemaker, Lionel Frampton of Broome
in the Kimberley, recently spent some time staying with his wife's family
in a village on Cebu Island in the Philippines. Lionel married Leticia
maybe 25-years ago and they've made a good life together since then in
the historic old pearling town of Broome. Over the years they've made a
few crossings to Letty's family village, but on this occasion it was a
special trip to celebrate her father's 100 birthday.
As is the custom for special events in a Filipino village,
the family roasted a couple of pigs. The young men of the family performed
the pig cooking ritual, which took five hours to complete. Lionel stood
by and watched and made notes; a 23-step process that began with boiling
water to shave the freshly bled pigs and ended with sumptuous portions
of steaming pork served up at the family feast.
..cont page 21
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Sicut Movie Status
The SICUT brand Parang of Borneo, an Australian
design in the vein of a Malaysian parang, appeared in the recently released
Anaconda movie sequel, Anacondas. Ostensibly set on the island of Borneo
- although the movie was actually shot on an island in the Pacific - the
story is about a scientific expedition in search of the rare Blood Orchid,
which can bring about longevity of life.
The local beasty-condas apparently also
munched on the long-life petals, which caused them to live longer and subsequently
grow longer. An acquired appetite by the conda mob for the not-so-smart
expedition members who persisted in paddling around in and around their
jungles puddles meant most of the actors got short pay packets 'coz they
kept disappearing down the conds gullets.
..cont page 22
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Custom-Made Down-Under Blades
Matt James - New Zealand
Tony Booth - NSW
Mal Hannan - NSW
Jeremy wheaton - WA
Joe Zemitis - NSW
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