Full hard M2 high speed steel knife

If your topic has nothing to do with Spyderco, you can post it here.
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

Full hard M2 high speed steel knife

#1

Post by kwakster »

Currently busy making a knife out of a old piece of Sandvik M2 high speed steel machine saw (about 65-66 HRC) with the help of my Tormek T7 wet grinder.
Since i had a couple of old G10 grips from a Strider DB-L the overall shape was an easy choice, but in the process i added a little belly to the edge.
The main edge measures 22.5 degrees with a mini-bevel, while the slanted portion measures 25 degrees inclusive with a zero edge.

ImageImageImage

ImageImageImage

Image
Last edited by kwakster on Tue Apr 09, 2019 12:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Holland
Member
Posts: 7567
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2012 10:37 pm
Location: Alberta

#2

Post by Holland »

Very nice! Would love to see it after you put grips on it
-Spencer

Rotation:
Gayle Bradley 2 | Mantra 1 | Watu | Chaparral 1 | Dragonfly 2 Salt SE
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

#3

Post by kwakster »

Next step is to try to drill the holes for the G-10 grips with these speciality drills:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdSim29s ... e=youtu.be
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

#4

Post by kwakster »

The 6 mm Artu drill bits arrived, so it was time to try them on the M2 steel.
The instruction paper said that when the drill bits are to be used on hardened steel to use a drill press with 2000 r.p.m, but since i don't own one (yet) i just tried one in a hand held drill.
I put the knife in a vise with a piece of wood behind it and started drilling; the deeper "dent" is the result of about 15 minutes drilling it this way.

ImageImage

ImageImageImage

As you can see i still didn't get through, but the Artu drill bit still did many times better than an average (re-sharpened) masonry drill bit that only managed to make a shiny spot on the M2 steel and go blunt right away in the process.
Seen with the naked eye the Artu drill bit shows no signs of blunting whatsoever.
I'm going to tinker with this drill bit some more in the coming days (and maybe look around for a reasonably priced drill press)
Last edited by kwakster on Tue Apr 09, 2019 12:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Stuart Ackerman
Member
Posts: 2080
Joined: Tue Dec 07, 2004 2:39 pm
Location: New Zealand
Contact:

#5

Post by Stuart Ackerman »

Make a dam of putty or plasticine like a small volcano on the area around the hole, and fill with oil or coolant, and hopefully that will keep the bit cool...the hardened tip is soldered in place, and too much heat will make the tip let go...wear eye and face protection... :eek:

And sharpen the bit often...
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

#6

Post by kwakster »

Job done with the help of the Artu drill bit and the drill press of a very helpful Dutch knifemaker.
The process worked exactly as i was told by an Australian knifemaker with experience in using these Artu's: at first nothing seem to happen until the material warms up a bit, then suddenly the drill bit starts to produce a nice blue burr and drills the hole in a few seconds.
Afterwards we inspected the drill bit itself, and except for some discoloration of the shaft it was completely unaffected.

The pics:

ImageImage

At first the grip screws didn't fit the holes exactly, but after i enlarged one of the holes with the help of a Dremel & a diamond cutter they did.
Then i shortened the screws (the M2 blade is of course much thinner than the original S30V Strider blade), put on the G-10 grips, and removed the "meat" around the grips for a good fit.
(except for the finger choil where i kept that little extra steel, since M2 isn't known for it's toughness according to the specs)

ImageImageImage

ImageImage

Both the long edge and the short edge now have a mini-bevel finished up to 6 micron diamond compound.
In the coming weeks i hope to find out how the edge holds up.
Last edited by kwakster on Tue Apr 09, 2019 12:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Evil D
Member
Posts: 27147
Joined: Sat Jun 26, 2010 9:48 pm
Location: Northern KY

#7

Post by Evil D »

That's really cool. I really want to make my own fixed blade someday or even a friction folder. I don't even care what kind of steel I use, I'll probably hit up the junkyard for a leaf spring. I just don't have access to the right tools at the moment.
All SE all the time since 2017
~David
Invective
Member
Posts: 1124
Joined: Sun Jul 08, 2012 1:46 pm

#8

Post by Invective »

Wow that looks good! How much did that drill bit run you? I've been looking for some decent drill bits for hardened steel, right now the ones I have do less than the punch I use to mark my drilling spot :D
Evil D wrote:That's really cool. I really want to make my own fixed blade someday or even a friction folder. I don't even care what kind of steel I use, I'll probably hit up the junkyard for a leaf spring. I just don't have access to the right tools at the moment.
I'm in the same boat as you actually, I just tried making a frikky out of an old saw blade I found in the street, but all the tools I have are some hammers and files, a vice, and a hacksaw. As one would expect, the knife ended up being pretty bad.

It's a shame because I have a ton of steel to use, a few leafsprings (found em in the street), some old railroad spikes (there's tons next to every railroad track) a few old files (found in the street, notice a pattern yet :p ) but nothing decent to work with. I've thought about getting some tools from Harbor Freight, but Spyderco just keeps releasing awesome knives and then my wallet empties again (curse you S110V Mule!!).
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

#9

Post by kwakster »

I bought 4 x Artu drill bits in 6 mm for about 54 US dollars including shipping from England to the Netherlands.
Used only one though, so the other 3 i'm currently reselling.
User avatar
kwakster
Member
Posts: 489
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2005 2:52 am
Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

Re: Full hard M2 high speed steel knife

#10

Post by kwakster »

A follow-up took some time, but here it is.
After some cutting tests with this M2 knife i arrived at a measured edge angle between 22.5 and 25 degrees inclusive, as this seems to be right at the balance point between as thin as possible, yet thick enough.
This edge survives multiple full force cuts into my wooden testblock (a piece of laminated desktop) without chipping or noticeable loss of sharpness.
Afterwards the knife could also still pushcut through this paperback.

Image
Post Reply