# Significance of "lines' on forgecraft knives



## thomashoard1909 (Nov 6, 2017)

Hi everyone. I am new to the forum and i have a question
I have been enjoying practicing my sharpening skills on Forgecraft knives
What is the significant of the "lines" on the top of forgecraft knives. 
My understanding is that forgecraft were from broken saw mill blades, but what if anything does that have to do with the lines?

Are the lines just a tradmark/gimmick thing of the blade, or an actual part of the bandsaw? 
How would old bandsaws be used to make new blades?

Thanks and sorry for all the questions. 

I'm really asking to measure how bad I should feel about thinning these knives and removing all those "cool" lines!


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## brianshaw (Dec 18, 2010)

I always assumed that it was their “look” and was intentional. Too regular and consistent to be coincidental.

P.s. I’ve never been tempted nor felt the need to thin to the extent you are talking. A bit of thinning “behind the edge” but nothing that extends to the spine.

But if you want to convert one to a laser or flexible fillet knife please let us know how it works out. They are easily available and in plentiful supply... and sometimes even rather affordable. Enjoy your experiment!


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## scott livesey (Jan 25, 2013)

the knives were not made from old saw blades. what the marks are supposed to mean, I have no clue except that Old Hickory and some knives made in Columbia have the same marks. 
old saw blades are cut close to knife size, then heated 1275*-1300*F for 30 minutes then cooled. steel is now soft again, cut shape and drill and make blade. heat to 1500*F, hold for 10 minutes or so, quench in canola oil till you can touch it, scrub in cold water, then bake at 350*F for an hour, rinse in cold water, bake at 350*F for an hour, then you can grind edge, attach handle. some older saw blades were made of L6 or 80CrV2 tool steel and make a decent blade. a lot of work, and you don't know what kind of steel you have, so the heat treat i mentioned above is best guess.
an old forgecraft knife would be a good thinning project.


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## mike9 (Jul 13, 2012)

This from one the most informed people I know on the subject. Those companies went out long time ago so history is a bit fuzzy, but here we go.
*
Quote - "[The story was that the original pattern was from Band saw blades used in lumber mills. The cold rolled forge allowed long continuous sheets of steel to be made and the ridges left over from the rollers actually proved to be beneficial in that they allowed the blade to run cooler by reducing friction from contact with the wood. Like many early knife makers, they were always looking for cheap sources of steel. When the band saw blades would snap or dull they would throw them on a scrap pile. In the early days they would just give the stuff away to get it out of there space. The knife makers found out it was good steel and they could make good inexpensive blades and sell them at a reasonably affordable price. During the Depression, There were a lot of public work projects and a lot of lumber mills were set up an a lot of surplus and used steel laying around. In the twenties all the way up to WW2 you see a lot of companies using this type of steel. During the War that sort of stopped as all that scrap went to the war effort. When the war ended you again had a surplus of steel lying around and this pattern went on for about 20 more years. Old Hickory continues with thie pattern today more for nostalgia's stake than anything else. Old Hickory really made their company what it is today. Unfortunately The origi8nal Forgecraft was bought up by Washington Forge and the brand was retired in 1968. Washington forge had over 40 plus individual brands and lines of cutlery and just over extended them selves and then The Japanese came to knife prominence in the 70's and things have never been the same for the American knife industry.]*

Tell you what - I love forgecraft knives - the profile is perfect, the grind is thin and thake a wicked sharp edge and hold it pretty well too. Someone over at KKF test one blade that tested out at 60 HRC. Not too shabby for 1095 carbon 'eh?


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