Making My Own Training Blades, Need Some Pointers!

[XtremeJ_AKKI]

Howdy,

Recently I decided to look into making my own ( aluminum ) training knives, mainly because I need some good trainers, and I enjoy working with my hands ( I used to make balsa and plastic models back in high school ).

I'll be using a friend's workshop, he has ( at least ) most of the needed equipment, and Ray Dionaldo's " Making of a Trainer " webpage has been both an inspiration and a basic guide, however I am still VERY MUCH in need of any advice, pointers, or instructions ( my main concern right now is creating the bevels to simulate the cutting edges ).

Anyone have any links or pointers or advice for someone hoping to successfully start a productive and enjoyable new hobby?

Salute!

 

[Seigi]

What is the website for this page?

I've been interested in learning how to do this also, any advice would be appreciated?

Thanks

& Peace

 

[Stick Dummy]

FWIW

I've been making various blade trainers for a couple of years and enjoyed the results of my butchery of aluminum stock - Bolos, Karambits, D-E daggers, Machetes, Pinutis, etc, etc . :rofl:

The normal method is to use a hollow grinding fixture for live blade knife making ( great gift for x-mas huh......) , or I believe with some skill, a grinding jig, and a bench belt sander you could do okay.
I did a couple the second method, and it was a pain in the ***. Now I just radius the edges off at about 1/8" on 1/4" T-6061 stock and leave it at that.

I then use an electrical hand orbital sander and #220 grit pads to finish the blade before wrapping the handles with #550 cord.

This due to the fact they are used for full contact sparring, and real time speed drills, and nicks and dings just fade out with a couple minutes work.

 

[Seigi]

Thanks Stick-Dummy.

 

[XtremeJ_AKKI]

Thanks Stick Dummy! Do you have any photos of your work, or works-in-progress?

And Seigi, the URl for Ray Dionaldo's " Making of a Trainer " page is: http://warriorcraft.tripod.com/wchome/id16.html

Thanks again! I'm a little foggy on the machine terminology you mentioned ( I have plenty of experience with a ' flat-edge ' electric saw and a grinding wheel ), but I'll catch on. Thanks! :asian:

 

[Stick Dummy]

Sorry, Don't have any decent pix, I'm a lousy photographer - the guys at my school seem pretty happy with the results so far.


On the scales/grips - For the majority I use black #550 cord provided by some of my fellow students in a simple cross wrap although I have used an underlayer of alligator skin embossed black leather on a couple pair for giggles.

I've also been experimenting with various exotic hardwood scales and pinning them to the blade handle with two part epoxy.

I try to match the grain scale from side to side, or back to front and make the joints as invisible as possible.

The hollow grinders from my limited understanding, allow you to grind both sides of the blade parallel and to equal depth. Most use a pair of sanding belts or drums. Like I said its on my wish list.

 

[Cthulhu]

arnisandyz makes his own training blades. I'm surprised he hasn't posted yet. From what he says, working with aluminum is a lot like working with wood.

He uses paracord with an interesting braided wrap over plastic scales. A few of his training blades have wood scales riveted on to the tang and I have a kerambit trainer by him with thick plastic scales that were riveted on.

Cthulhu

 

[arnisandyz]

Hi guys,

The method that I use is pretty much the same as Ray's. 1" slack belt sander to do the bevel. (He is the one who suggested I do it that way, and even good brands of belt sanders to look for). takes some practice to get the angle right, but its not to difficult. Other than that I use a band saw to cut the template, a 4" belt sander and drum sanders for shaping, and a grinder/polisher mainly for finishing work. I use different methods for the handles. if i don't do the paracord I usually use epoxy and pop-rivets to hold the wood or ABS scales on. (Ray uses nicer Male/female screws by the way).

Right now I'm considering playing with kydex to make my own sheaths. I have an idea to leave the front side free so that the knife can cut forward on draw (similar to the sheaths on barongs were designed , the sheath consisted of two slabs loosely held together with twine or cloth that gets cut off on draw.)

 

[XtremeJ_AKKI]

Sweet!!!

Thanks for the reply. How do you manage to keep the ' lining ' of the bevel in line with the 'edge' of the blade? That's one of my pre-work concerns.

Also, do ye have any pics of your work?

Thanks again! :asian:

 

[Phil Elmore]

If you reach the point where you want some exposure for your work, you can submit training blades to me for review. Just PM me or something.

 

[Cthulhu]

A few pics of arnisandyz's work can be found in this thread:

http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=6470

There are also pics of training kerambits he's made elsewhere on the board.

Cthulhu

 

[XtremeJ_AKKI]

Thanks, Sharp Phil and Cthulhu!

All the help is greatly appreciated, everyone, thanks again.

( God help me when I attempt to tackle learning how to cord wrap...lol )

 

[Stick Dummy]

Andy,

Is the Sayoc style dagger ground on both sides, or is it a chisel profile?

I was thinking of grind lines that profiled up about 30--50% of the blades side.

What style Karambits are you making?? I find them very intriguing designs for X-CQC work.

 

[arnisandyz]

StickDummy,

Here is a link to some of my latest kerambits. Hardwood handles and ground on one side. I've done a couple different styles/sizes. I did another one that was smaller with a tanto style point.


http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5551&highlight=kerambit


The dagger is ground on both sides. On thing to consider when determining the amount grind is the weight loss(as you know, alloy is much lighter than steel). Yes it would look more realistic with deeper grind lines, but you would be giving up alot of weight/balance in exchange. One way around is to play with the blade profiles, if you make a wider tip to pull some weight to the point you could probably get away with grinding more off. Another small thing that might change the feel is the handle material. If you use a heavy hardwood or alloy/steel slabs instead of paracord or under the wrapping with alot of grind, all of the weight will be in the handle. I prefer a nuetural balance myself but I have made tip heavy (good for gunting/hacking) and handle heavy (tip is very quick) to play around with.

 

[XtremeJ_AKKI]

Quick question on trainers - how do you guys correctly line up the simulated bevels? I've been dabbling for two weeks now , but cannot seem to get even, smooth bevels for the life of me......HELP PLEASE!

Also, any places on the net I can find plastic scales ( 1/4 inches ) suitable for use on a trainer handle?

:asian:

 

[Stick Dummy]

Hey a witty tee vee version "Kung Fu" master saying would be good about now.

Bevels/ grind lines are trial and error and its best to rough grind a buncha stock before trying on a training blade. At this point my trainers are simply deburred on all edges and sanded down with #220 grit in a scratch finish to hide the classroom nicks and dings that occur over time.

The best thing to do is use bulk wood or plastic stock ( like I PM'd you about) and fit it to the blade body, you can glue, pin, or screw, depending on what you desire.

Make sure you keep sharp edges around the handle so the seam lines disappear when clamping. I have been using Devcon quick 5 minute epoxy that I snagged at Lowes along some other goodies.


More later

 

[Gama]

Here are some pics of a trainer I just finished a few weeks ago. My method is bascally the same as has been outlined already. Cut/grind out the profile, grind the bevels in, round off all edges, polish, then wrap the handle. The black under the red paracord is spray on truck bed liner. I also polished this through to 600 grit, then some jewelers rouge to get more of a mirror finish.

Gary

 

[arnisandyz]

Quick question on trainers - how do you guys correctly line up the simulated bevels? I've been dabbling for two weeks now , but cannot seem to get even, smooth bevels for the life of me......HELP PLEASE!

Also, any places on the net I can find plastic scales ( 1/4 inches ) suitable for use on a trainer handle?

:asian:

Takes a little practice, you have to hold it consistantly at a desired angle as your grind. Don't try to grind it all off on one pass, it will take a bunch of passes to get it right and maybe some adjustment to your angle as your working it. As far as online places for plastic scales...do a google search for "ABS plastic supply" and you should find a bunch.

Nice work Gamma! I used to polish mine as well, it takes a little more work and it shows the dings, scratches, handprints, etc of training more. I just do a textured, brush finish for most of my knives, but do polish the occasional one. Some of my stuff you can see at www.fcamelbourne.com in the supplies section.

Thanks

Andy

 

[Gama]

Nice work Gamma! I used to polish mine as well, it takes a little more work and it shows the dings, scratches, handprints, etc of training more. I just do a textured, brush finish for most of my knives, but do polish the occasional one. Some of my stuff you can see at www.fcamelbourne.com in the supplies section.

Thanks

Andy

This one is my own personal knife so I thought I'd go that little bit further with the finish. I have several requests from my class now for trainers, which I probably won't polish up so much. Next project for myself will be an espada y daga set, then I may try some of the other sword length blades.
I do like your kerambits. We don't use those, but I may try one just for myself to play with.

Gary