Elmax Steel

I’ve heard about Elmax Steel, but never handled it. I found a small knife in Elmax from Bradford USA and thought I would try it. This is basically handle assembly and sharpening to see how it works.

I went back to the left over pen turning block, aluminum tube, sanded and shaped, finished with Boiled Linseed Oil.

I like this steel, it holds an edge extremely well and it’s fairly light. I just ordered a 12×2 inch flat stock to make my own.

we will see how easy it is to work with.

I can’t do that

I’ve had friends tell me that they wish they could do the knives like I do.
I tell them it isn’t anything special, just patience. I grind flat stock into shape and file,grind, drill. And send them out for heat treatment. However, I’m not above buying a blade blank that I like and assemble the scales and finishing it. The rest is just putting it together.

You can start with flat stock
Cut it and shape it into what you want, plenty of patterns online
Or buy a blank online, this one came ready for scales. I picked up some deer antler cheap and designed the handles
g10 liners
Sand the back of the scales flat and glue up to the g10
Sand them to shape, drill the holes.
Epoxy them on, this blank came with screw attachments. Sand and shape to the steel.
There are all kinds of finish, or just polish them till you’re happy with it.
The sheath was $12 on Amazon.
There you are, a decent knife for your belt.

None of the things be shown here require power tools. But it will take more time by hand.

Two Titaniums

I got a great deal on two Camillus Titanium blade blanks. A small one called a Hex and a larger called a Mask.


this is the Hex
You can polish titanium. But it takes a long time
Boiled Ali seed Oil darkens the wood a little, you can still see the colored grain but it’s not as obvious
The Hex looks good. I may get another pouch style sheath for it

I like them both. The Titanium is very light, and they sharpen really well.

no stitches with these.

Latest Damascus Knife

I just finished this one. I was going to acid etch the spine back to the Damascus pattern but when I ground the spine and saw the brass liner and steel, I had to leave it.

brass liners
Black micarta pins
Some file work on the spine
that liner and steel looks too good to acid etch
Blue colored epoxy for assembly
three coats of Boiled Linseed Oil

This one needs a kydex sheath, after sharpening its getting shipped out.

The Ginsburg Games

Love or hate RBG, she loved the Court. She had great respect and admiration for the other Jurists.
Justices and Associate Justices are human beings and have different viewpoints. But they are not to be “presidents judges”

A liberal Executive will nominate a liberal Justice, that’s nothing new. But a Justice shouldn’t be a “my appointing president says to vote xxxx” and she wasn’t.
She was a progressive/liberal Justice and I agreed with very little of what she wrote. But she was who she was.


By many reports, the left wanted her to retire during the Obama administration so that “The Great and Powerful” could get another Justice. By many reports, she was not happy with Kagan and Sotamayor. She considered them political appointments and would be “Presidents Judges” that she disagreed with on principle.

She wanted Hillary to name her replacement. Bill appointed her and she wanted Hillary to nominate her successor. For whatever reason, she was not an Obama fan and Hillary was a shoe in.
We know how that worked out, the left has done everything to include donate internal organs to keep her alive until a Democrap can nominate her replacement.

Now she’s has passed and the Ginsburg Games begin.

Politics is hypocritical, always has been and always will be. When this side is in control “this” when that side is in control “that” only the D and R change. The arguments are literally the same. The left will demand that a liberal/progressive seat must stay that way. A female seat must stay that way, etc, etc

the Senate is in control of the process. The controlling party is going to have their own agenda which may or may not line up with the President’s agenda.

Let’s say you are a Republican Senator. You want another conservative Justice on the court for the remainder if your legislative career. You have a Republican President and you want to do this right now in case he loses the election. Securing the seat for the conservative side.

This is a Court/Party focus, let’s act now and get another seat secured.


Let’s say you’re a Democrook Senator, you want a liberal/progressive on the court to “balance the court” you want to delay and block any vote in hopes of winning the election. You argue about what “they” did last time, hypocrisy, whataboutism, etc


This is Party/Politics focused

Now, say you’re the President. You’re behind and struggling for poll numbers outside of your base. Many republicans have left you and you’re trying to appeal to them again. (The reasons are huge) If you get a nominee through and seated on the Court…you can’t campaign on the “Desperate Need” to vote for you so “they” don’t get a judge. (Leaving for the moment that the Senate is still in Republican control)

This is Trump/Election focused

so….the Senate wants to get a judge RIGHT NOW for the future of themselves and the Party. The arguments over hypocrisy and “last time” can be spun and handled in the media.
the President wants to campaign on the issue of “vote for me or Biden will appoint a commie, America hater, who will take all your stuff” and attempt to regain the voters who will hold their nose and vote to get a conservative Justice. Nominate a controversial judge and argue the Kavernaugh fiasco during the campaign or nominate a good judge and fight the lefts attack on a conservative. Nominate a woman and have the “conservative woman” issue. There are going to be a lot on memes created.

The interesting part is if and when the election is contested, which it almost certainly will be by either side (ala 2000) and there are only 8 Justices on the Court.
The decision would likely be 6 – 2 but it won’t matter. The empty seat will be the headline and the political argument.

It will be interesting

Small Hunters knife

I really like this one. Blackwood on Spalted Maple, mosaic cross pin, brass tube pins on 1/8 inch Stainless Steel.
Very light, very sharp.

Damascus Belt Knife

I just finished this one. I may play with the finish a little more, maybe some wax. But I kind of like the rustic look of it.

wicked sharp though

Grandson Knives

Two of the grandsons are old enough and want a knife for fieldwork. I didn’t want to make them folders and have them “conveniently forget” and take them to school.

black/blue micarta handles
File work on the spine

This one is blue, the other one will be green.