Yeah, even tried once, but spent a ton of time on it and then couldn't get it heat treated properly, so it was pretty much useless.
Thanks for the compliment- nice stuff on your site.
I don't have a whole lot in the way of a workshop right now, and I don't have the money to invest in more (or a lot of mistakes), but heck, I'd love to be able to do that sometime- or even forge stuff. Just too many hobbies, not enough money or time. This is the first handle I've made in over a year. I've got a sword project I kinda started, but I can't afford to buy the bare blade I need for it, so it got stalled.
Trying to support a family on a dinky single wage really sucks. Don't get to go shooting more than a couple times a year, either. My big excitement on this project was getting to use the $10 no-name belt sander I got on sale at Lowe's, and the drill press stand for my Dremel, which was a Christmas present (and is my only drill press- larger lanyard hole was drilled with a hand drill).
Some of my earlier projects can be seen
Here.
Half were made while in a College dorm room, and half while living in small apartments. I have a house now, with a small shop set up (so I can have a non-baby-safe area), but that just makes the no time and no money problems worse, since it's an old, falling apart house. That bamboo flooring my dad helped me put in (and pay for) replaced three layers of molding linoleum.
Anyway, thanks for the compliments! I do what I can. I guess the plus side of that is I don't make something unless I have a real drive to do so, either in terms of inspiration or desire to do something specific and special. Heck, there's plenty of cheaper ways to get knives just as solid, so in my case, if it isn't personally meaningful to someone, there's no real reason to go custom.
