My latest sgian dubh

[jmercier]

Well, I'm no Howard Clark, but in my limited spare time I'm a hobby bladesmith, blacksmith, and woodworker. Here's the latest sgian dubh that I've made.

Cable damascus sgian dubh
8 cm blade
9 cm curly maple handle (1cm brass center, 8cm of wood)
full flat grind

[shawhighlander]

Now that's gorgeous. Look at that blade! Mighty fine craftsmanship my dear fellow ith:

[Lady of the Forge]

Very nice!

[dfmacliam]

that is beautiful..... droooooollllllllll...LOL

[beloitpiper]

Gorgeous! I love plain, simple, sleek sgian dubhs like that.

[Old Hippie]

Justin, that's a very nice sgian! I like the sheen of the wood fibres catching the light.

One question, if I may: is your haft centred on the tang, or is it offset? I know there's a minor tradition that sgians dubh are made with offset handles so they lie next to the leg, rather than sticking out. I also know that's not a hard and fast rule, so I'm mainly curious about your decision process.

A sgian that lies next to the leg won't get bumped by accident and looks "sleeker" but one that is easier to grasp at need makes good sense, too.

Yeah. Where'd you get your pattern-welded steel? Did you make it?

:ootd:

[jmercier]

I do all my own pattern welding and forging. This sgian dubh is centered on the handle, the recipient is currently a mystery to me, and chances are slim to almost nil (not quite nil, but almost nil) that the person who receives it has ever worn a kilt or ever will wear a kilt. I made it for a knife in the hat sort of secret santa exchange. Bunch of makers make a knife, you get the address of another maker and send the knife you made, you get one from someone else.

[ShaunMaxwell]

Very nice! I like the simplicity of the design.

[YoungMan]

I love this design. I'm a big fan of items that look well crafted, yet that you could see yourself really using instead of something so elaborate that you could never imagine using it for it's intended purpose. Simply beautiful.

[Alan H]

Now, THAT is nice.