This knife represents the culmination of my first effort at knife making. I have named it the "ringing balisong" because of the curious fact that the safe handle rings somewhat like a bell when hit by the blade or the latch.

This project has taken about a month to complete. My ownership of suitable tools for knife making is quite modest. My most expensive equipment is a drill press. The rest of the equipment used consisted of hacksaws, files, a portable 3" x 21" belt sander, electric jig saw and a Dremel tool. Also, I encountered some failures which dictated that I remake some of the parts. I definitely had more desire than equipment. My inspiration was the knowledge that many beautiful knives are made everyday in the barrios of the Philippines in shops with little more than the equipment that I have available.

The blade was the first part that I made. It represents my interpretation of the classic Bowie style. It is made from 3/16" stock of A-2 tool steel. I chose this steel for several reasons. I like a high carbon steel because I have had better experiences sharpening them than a stainless steel. I also was anticipating an easier time heat treating an air hardening grade of steel. And I like the toughness of this tool steel.

The blade is ground convex in shape. This was dictated by a couple of circumstances. As I mentioned above, the grinder that I used was a portable grinder which was oriented in a vertical position. The possibility of hollow grinding on this equipment seemed daunting to me. Also, the blades that I really admire are shaped likewise ala Scagel and Moran. And lastly, I really donıt think that I have mastered the necessary skills to accomplish even a usable hollow ground blade. Flat grinding was definitely a possibility but I chose to try the convex shape. A suitable pattern was made and traced onto the steel stock. The jig saw and numerous 50 grit belts were used to reduce the stock to the desired shape of the blank. This was the least favorite part of the project. This process took the better part of a Saturday afternoon. Files and Dremel tool were used to cut and shape the tang area.

By this time, I was starting to get hooked on this project and I made a decision to resist the temptation to measure and mark everything in sight and just go by feel and intuition. My next step was to put some shape to my blank. My trusty belt sander was employed for this portion. In retrospect, I am glad that I used this grinder because of itsı relatively slow speed. I was not as intimidated when it came to putting my fingers that close to a moving sanding belt. I used my bare hands in this process because I wanted to control the heat going into the blade. When it became too hot to hold, it was time to stop and take a break. I found that I really enjoyed putting shape to this piece of steel. I became comfortable and more relaxed putting a cold piece of steel to a moving belt and feeling the warmth coming from the blade. As I relaxed the grinding became more uniform and symmetrical. I am glad that I chose to be intuitive during this process because all the different sides have to be ground down together to get to the point. If I were to grind just the sides and not pay attention to the bevel or belly of the blade, then I would have reached the point of the blade too early and I would have lost my tip. So all facets have to be ground together. I did use marks on the edge to make sure that I stayed symmetrical in my grinding.

The original handles for this knife was to be made from 6061-T6 aluminum. After the rough shape of the handles were made, I decided that there was just not enough weight. This is really a heavy blade for a 4" balisong blade. I was going to make bolsters out of brass and pin that to the aluminum. The scales were going to be made from a light green electrical insulating material. I ran into trouble during the pinning process and ruined the handles.

I decided to try brass next and the results were good enough to add them to my blade. The brass stock was ground to shape. I used a hacksaw to saw the two sides of the slot. I next used an end mill bit in my drill press and made a series of holes between the two previous cuts the length of the handle. The result is a slot or channel. The holes in the side were drilled next.

At this point, I spent a lot of time just looking at the blade and the handles to determine final shape and locations of holes. I realized that the location of the tang holes was going to determine many factors and the decisions made were going to be very crucial to the final product. The blade has a more full belly and a bit of upcurve on the tip. I was concerned that the knife pointed properly when in hand. This is one of the things I look for in a knife. In a tactical situation, it helps to know where the point is of the knife. It should be a direct extension of oneıs index finger. This aids in the precision of a manoeuver. Happily, I can say that I have achieved this. This knife does it well. I suspect that the orientation of blade and handle is a personal thing and each person holds a knife differently. This is definitely a good reason to make your own knife. For this blade style, the blade leads the handles just a little which leaves the tip right on target.

I have added a couple of ergonomic features to the handles. The safe handle has a slight relief at the sixth hole where my right pinkie wraps around the handle. The latch end of the latch handle is tapered slightly to accommodate my pinkie when in the locked open position. The small hole in the end of the latch handle was a failed attempt at a latch gate location. I intended to put a pin through to act as a gate but I determined that there was not going to be enough clearance for the latch to swing freely. I left the hole because this is a prototype model and it just leaves a record of the development of this project. I am not sure what causes the ringing in the safe handle. The latch handle doesnıt ring with the same clarity even without the latch. It could be an annoying feature but I think itıs neat and adds to the character of this particular knife.

I am lucky enough to have access to a furnace room where I could heat treat the blade. The blade was placed in an atmosphere controlled furnace at 1750F for 27 minutes and quenched in air. An acid solution was used to remove the little bit of scale that was present. A hardness test was taken at this point with the result of 62 Rc. The blade was double tempered at 400F for 70 minutes. The hardness after the first temper was 60 Rc. The final temper resulted in a hardness of 57-58 Rc. Hardness tests results are usually the average of several tests. I only tested once.

Because of the degree of hardness achieved with this blade, I had to work harder at achieving the final edge. I honed and I honed and now it is sharp enough to use. I am ready now for the next phase of this project which is R&D. I think that the ultimate measure of a knife is whether it performs the intended purpose it was made for.

In retrospect, I have found this project to be satisfying and enjoyable. I am not blessed with any exceptional machinist skills which proves that the building of a knife of this type is within anyoneıs realm who has desire, patience and doesnıt fear failure. Although I like the classic skeletonized handles, any future knives I make will be an opportunity to experiment with different materials. I want to revisit the original handle design for this knife.

-Mr. Ed Estoye (Sandy53@ameritech.net)