AuGres River mini-report

Posted by Greybeard on Jan 6th, 2009 in Fishing, Local | Comments Off

Average temperature for the past six days:  Hi = 27 degrees

Jan 1st thru 6th                                                  Lo = 11.8 degrees 

With one Sunny Day out of the six.

There’s light snow cover on the ground,  maybe 1.5 inches.   The ice on the river is now pretty much safe for snowmobiles, fishermen,  and general light rowdiness.  There are also a few fishing shanty’s out about 3/4 mile off of Point AuGres,  in Saginaw Bay.  It looks like there might still be a little open water way out in our part of the Bay,  and for sure,  in the outerbay (Whitestone Point and above).  But there’s plenty of shore ice for fishing,  all along the shoreline.  (Just be careful)  No word on who’s catching what,  I’m not allowed out there this year.  (Doc’s orders) 

P.S.  Jack at JLV LURES,  has a great sale on trolling, casting lures for this summer!

A knife a day 7, (series end)

Posted by Greybeard on Jan 6th, 2009 in Days of Old | Comments Off

This is the last of the bunch,  Oh how I drooled over one of these in the early  70’s Randall Catalog. This is another one, made out of 1/4 inch tool steel hardened to Rockwell 55.  12.5 inches overall,  with a 7.5 inch blade.  Standard edge on the bottom,  heavier knife edge on the top half of the blade.  It’s full tanged,  with red Rosewood scaled stocks.  A heavy brass guard, and (3) 1/4 in. brass pins to reinforce the Rosewood handles.

 Here,  it is again next to a classic partner.  An early seventies,  Smith and Wesson model 19,  with target grips and a 4 inch barrel.  (of course,  chambered in .357 magnum)   I’ve put a lot of rounds through this old Smith, and it shoots like a dream.  I just wish I could shoot groups with my carry Glock,  like I can shoot with this old wheelgun.

A knife a day 6

Posted by Greybeard on Jan 5th, 2009 in Days of Old | Comments Off

Back in the day,  I always wanted a Randall built knife,  but could never afford one.

  This one was a copy of a Randall “Alaskan Skinner”.    I believe this was my very first knife.  Looking on the Randall site,   (35 years after I built this one),  I note, that I didn’t exactly do a carbon copy.  But then all I had to go by was a Randall catalog.   There was no web site back then.  

The one is made of 1/4 inch high carbon die steel,  hardened to Rockwell 54.  The blade is 4.5 inches long,  and  1.75 inches tall at the crown.  It has a standard edge on the bottom and hatchet edge on the top half of the blade.  It’s HEAVY.  The full tang is pinned to the brass guard, and again to the large stainless steel butt.  The dark Rosewood handles completely surround and are pinned to the tang.  It’s overall length is 8.5 inches.  Tomorrow will be the last handmade knife a day.  A quick teaser:  It’s a copy of a Randall #1 Fighting knife.

A knife a day 4 and 5

Posted by Greybeard on Jan 4th, 2009 in Days of Old | 2 comments

 We had a 10 hour power outage yesterday.  Coupled with dropping temperatures, (low of 18 degrees), it got a little worrysome toward bedtime.  I cut the generator, and turned the (dead) power back on before hitting the sack,  hoping that the power would come back on before the cold woke me up.  Thankfully,  it did.

  Today’s handmade knives are pretty similar.  Full enclosed tang,  hatchet edge on the top half of the blade, dark Rosewood handles (internally pinned) fully enclosing the tang , with brass guards. (click on the photo’s for a larger view)  They have 5 inch, and 4.5 inch blades and are 9 inchs and 8.5 inchs overall length.   5/32 high carbon tool steel, handened to Rockwell 55.

A knife a Day 2 (and 3)

Posted by Greybeard on Jan 3rd, 2009 in Days of Old | Comments Off

  These two are somewhere in the middle of the knifemaker days.   Both are again high carbon tool steel, hardened to around Rockwell 55.  The top on is a 3.5 inch hollow ground blade, (my first attempt at hollow grinding),  with hard maple grips and a stainless guard.  The bottom is a petite little 3 inch blade,  built for my daughter.  The handles are Rosewood, pinned with stainless pins.    I remember the hollow grinding on the top knife as being very time consuming.  After shaping the blade normally with files,  I freehanded in the hollow section on a 12 inch grinding wheel.  After the hollow grind was finished.  I remember it taking hours of sanding to get the grind marks out,  and being a hollow ground,  it all had to be hand sanded.  (note:  all of the blades are mirror polished,  what might look like scratches,  is the layer of gungrease that I wipe on them for storage).