I finished these two in the last couple of days. The first is of 1080 steel forged from 1/4" x 1" flat stock. It's 7" oal with a 3.5" blade, 1/8" spine, and a cord wrapped handle made from a thinner variety of 200 lb. test utility cord I use for ultralight backpacking. It's flat ground for nearly all of the width of the blade, then rounds over slightly the last 3/16" of so into the final edge. I forged a Keesler-style finger guard and etched the whole shootin' match in saltwater. Nothing fancy, but it will get a wet-molded side draw sheath soon.
The second is a tiny, goofy-looking little 1080 blade that is only 2.5" in oal. A buddy wanted it for bird hunting. He's never acquired the knack for opening them up and cleaning them without a knife, so he asked for something that he could just start a small incision with to get things going. It works nicely, he says, as his index finger acts as a guide to keep it from penetrating too far. It's got a little Kydex sheath with a breakaway connector for safety. The scales are zebrawood attached with copper tubing and a small brass pin inserted in the tube, piened, and filed flush up front.
