Step-by-Step Knifemaking: You Can Do It! [Paperback]

David Boye (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2000

A knife is the most basic tool, and the average adult uses a knife almost every day. Yet there are very few individually made knives in existence, and few people who know how to make knives. Step by Step Knifemaking, by master knifemaker David Boye, is widely regarded as the classic on the art of handcrafted knives. Thorough, clear, detailed instructions guide the reader through each step in how to make a knife. Generously illustrated with photos and drawings on most pages, this book reads like a one-on-one workshop with a thoughtful teacher. The reader is led to discover the spiritual connection between himself and his work, to develop his sense of artistry, and to acquire practical skills for self-sufficiency. Completely self-taught, the author guides the beginning knifemaker through the thinking processes necessary to make a knife; inspires confidence in the reader to begin at his own skill level; and shows how it can be done on a financial shoestring. Topics covered include tools, setting up a shop, knife design, grinding, heat treating, polishing, sharpening, blade etching, sheath making, and more. Boye's outdoor knives, kitchen cutlery, and utility knives are functional and "peace-loving," and the chapter on etching designs into the blades is one of the few guides to this unique art in print. With over 175,000 copies in print, Step by Step Knifemaking has deeply moved thousands to involve themselves in this craft, and they constitute a visible portion of today's knifemakers. This book can impel the reader to a personally satisfying, alternative backyard career, making his own useful knife art. It is an enjoyable, indispensable reference for those wanting to learn knifemaking, become more self-reliant, or for anyone with an interest in the ancient craft of blades. "Handmade knives are unique," writes David Boye, "reflecting the skills and personality of their maker. They impart a personal touch to what would be a cold impersonal item. Thus it is with a handmade knife, or a handmade article of any kind, that there is a subtle exchange of electromagnetic energy that is transferred from the heart and the hands of the craftsman to the heart of the person who sees and uses the handmade article. Hopefully, the product will be the embodiment and expression of love and beauty in a useful, sanitary, and safe cutting tool - a hint of a deeper, more profound spirit in the process of living." 272 pages; 170 illustrations; 155 photographs.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Boye is smart and original, and if you like his style you can learn here how he makes it." -- Blade Magazine

From the Publisher

Knifemaking may strike you as a curious endeavor. With so many good knives available, you might ask, why would anyone want to make one by hand?

That very question coursed through my mind when a friend who worked in the office next to mine began talking to me about the knives he was making. Almost every day he would work the word knife into our conversations in some way. And samples of the different blades he was making would be placed casually on his desk, used as paperweights and letter openers.

I was surprised by the beauty and especially the uniqueness of those handmade knives. They were sleek and graceful, with a more personal and mellow look than commercial knives. I knew that my friend was strictly a beginner at this craft. And he had no great amount of experience in metal or woodworking, either. Yet after just a few weeks of experience, he was making beautiful knives.

Finally, his goading got to me, and I ordered a blade from a company selling knifemaking supplies. My initial project was not to make a whole knife, but just to fashion a handle for a blade that had been turned out by machine. Soon I was gluing, cutting, filing, grinding, and sanding away at my own knife project.

My knifemaking lasted perhaps a year, and I turned out three knives before directing my attention to other crafts and recreations. But I was happy to have had the experience, not so much because I made exceptional knives but because I was able to feel the relationship that develops between a person and a knife that is made for personal use.

A knife is perhaps the most basic and useful of all tools. Most of us develop favorites among the knives we keep in our homes for kitchen use, gardening, sport, and carving. When you reach for a knife, you automatically feel for the one that you like, that has served you best in the past, or that has some unique attraction to you that is hard to explain.

When you have made a knife yourself and have shaped the blade just the way you want it and the handle is made to fit your own hand, a special relationship develops between you and that tool. David Boye says that effectively and even eloquently in this book, but putting the feeling into words captures only part of the experience. Just as you feel the handle of a knife, you also feel the specialness of a handle that is of your own making. And when you have ground and filed a blade to suit a purpose that is clear in your own mind, you have a special, more personal feeling when you use that blade.

In this age when we are flooded with machine-made products for almost every conceivable purpose, the experience of making and using your own special knife becomes more important. Making a knife is like fashioning a key to a wider awareness of your own abilities and relationship to tools. These days, we have too few such opportunities.

- Robert Rodale
Rodale Press
(original publisher)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 274 pages
• Publisher: Boye Knives Press; Revised edition (June 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0615116590
• ISBN-13: 978-0615116594
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #32,768 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Power Tools

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

66 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stock removal knife making and etching., May 5, 2000

By 

Michael P. "ArchAngel Forge" (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Step-By-Step Knifemaking: You Can Do It! (Paperback)

This book primarily covers making knives (mostly kitchen knives) by starting with thin plates of steel (HUGE bandsaw blades), cutting out a knife blank, and shaping the knife by grinding it. I personally far prefer forging a blade, which this author does not even touch on.

However, Mr. Boye does offer solid knowledge on grinding, heat treating, attaching handles and bolsters (all necessary skills no matter how you make knives)... and an extensive section on acid etching which I have yet to find equalled in any other knifemaking book I've read.

So while I may not care for Mr. Boye's chosen method of production, I recognize his pure artistic ability and am gratefull for his willingness to share his hard won knowledge.

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lovely designs, avoid his methods, February 5, 2006

By 

Timothy C. Corcoran "photon phreak" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Step-by-Step Knifemaking: You Can Do It! (Paperback)

This was the first book I bought on knifemaking, and my copy is falling apart (it's 28 years old!) I absolutely love David Boye's sense of design, and his work has inspired my own considerably. That said, I learned a great deal about knifemaking from other sources, and I use few of his methods. Specifically, I would never use a wheel grinder on knife steel, it generates a great deal more heat than a belt grinder, isn't nearly as accurate, and the cutting surface is smaller. I would NEVER cut out blades with a cutting torch, unless you wanted to grind away at least 1/4 in from the cut edge, you're messing up your steel's microstructure doing this (see p. 111 under grain growth!) I appreciate the lengths he's gone to to describe heat treating, but had little luck with it myself; I would strongly advise against trying to heat-treat complex steels like D2, 440C, or 154CM yourself, unless you like throwing your work away. Finally, though I absolutely love the acid etchwork in the book, the beeswax/asphaltum etching ground recommended here is a very tempermental one, I would use commercial etching ground if I were doing this. Since messing with aqua regia at home is not the safest thing, I'd suggest looking into some of the other methods, such as electrochemical etching. So, I would say to the beginning knifemaker that I'd use this book for inspiration, but go elsewhere for methods. If at all possible, talk to someone who's been doing it a while.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for the begining knifemaker., November 11, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Step-By-Step Knifemaking: You Can Do It! (Paperback)

I knew nothing about knifemaking when I started reading this book but now I've just completed my first knife using Step-by-Step Knifemaking and am very proud. The instructions were stright foreward and easy to understand. By the time I was finished with the book I had a good basic knowledge of knifemaking and a basic under standing of steels. I would recommend this book for any beginner.