nick in blade

[mathcarver Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mathcarver]

I have what I thought was a good knife a friend had made me. The blade has developed a small nick and I have tried wheels, sand paper, sanding belts, rocks and arkansas rocks and just when I think I have the problem solved the nick comes back. Do any of you have any suggestions to help me alleviate this problem? Thanks, mathcarver

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Re: nick in blade

Boy, have you come to the right place!
There are a few 'experts' on blades here; I even know a little bit.
Without knowing how your friend made the knife, it widens the field of possibilities. It would help to know what he made the knife from, whether he heat-treated it or just ground it to shape.

Judging by your description, my guess, in layman's terms:
You probably have a crack in the blade.

In technical terms, you probably have one or more stress cracks.

[Guest Close Guest]

Re: nick in blade

I really didn't answer your question.

If you can see a crack (under magnification) you may be able to grind it out if it isn't too long.

If it is a 'soft spot' which I doubt, a few more sharpenings may eliminate it.

If the blade is brittle, you may be able to retemper it (depending on the steel used).

Probably the best coarse is to contact your friend for his opinion.

[Captain_Bandaid Banned Find all posts View Profile Close Captain_Bandaid]

Re: nick in blade

A crack is a good possiblity but I would also suggest that the blade may have a thin spot centered over the nick. When the thin spot is honed or stropped, it will abrade away faster than the thicker metal around it. In a hand ground blade, thin spots are more common than we would like to admit to.

Gently run the blade between your thumb and forefinger with a very light touch. It is amazing how sensitive your fingers are! You can find thin or thick spots of only a few thousandths of an inch.