New Skiving Knife

[Marshal Will Wingam]

For years, I've used a lot of different knives for skiving, never being completely satisfied with any of them. In the following photo, mostly the round knife and the one to the right of it have been pretty much my go-to knives for the job.



Today I made one to use just for skiving. The material used was piece of a circular saw blade left over from when I made my round knife. I shaped it with a peanut grinder and roughed in the edge with my 90 RPM water bath knife grinder. It throws water all over the place but it works great. At first I made it with a straight cutting edge but it was not very good. The center of the cutting edge wouldn't cut completely through a piece of leather without the point or heel digging into the work bench. I put a curve to the edge and it works much better. It's only ground from one side so I can get down low with it if needed. I'll try it for a while and if it works good, I'll fashion some kind of handle on it. The hardest thing is going to be protecting the edge when it's in the toolbox. Maybe I can find something to cover just the cutting edge or something.



I see Osborne has a couple different knives that would work but I didn't want to wait for one to arrive and this scrap of saw blade has been getting in the way for a few years. It was a good excuse to get a knife and get rid of an eyesore hanging from a beam in the garage.

So the question comes to mind, what do all of you use for skiving?

[Cliff Fendley]

You'll have to make you a small sheath for it to cover the blade portion. It's always so satisfying working with tools you made yourself. Nice work Marshall

[Capt Quirk]

I use a Tandy skiver, sort of a cross between a plane and a safety razor I guess. It has replaceable blades, and is pretty simple. I appreciates that.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

You'll have to make you a small sheath for it to cover the blade portion. It's always so satisfying working with tools you made yourself. Nice work Marshall

Thanks, Cliff. Yes, working with tools you make is totally satisfying. As a bonus, you know they aren't made in China. I'm thinking about what to do for a sheath. Probably leather. Also it's going to need a handle of some sort on it. That will keep the knife from going too far into a sheath and cutting any stitching.

Capt, those Tandy skivers are interesting. I haven't tried one but  expect they would work well. Simple is a plus with most things.

[Rube Burrows]

You are a man with many talents when it comes to tools and making what you need.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Thanks, Rube. Been making or modifying tools all my life. It comes in handy when you want something that isn't available or at least not available quickly.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I don't like sharp things lying around the workbench loose so yesterday I glued some scraps of mahogany together and inset a rare earth magnet with a Forstner bit and JB Weld.



This morning, I cut it down with a bandsaw, hit it with sandpaper and a coat of Skidmore's. Made safe with a one-sided sheath.



After trying the knife some, I am not going to put a handle on it because it works quite well like it is.

[Rube Burrows]

Nice and functional. Now you wont grab the business end on accident while at the bench.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Nice and functional. Now you wont grab the business end on accident while at the bench.

You got that right. Thanks. I can also put it in a drawer or tool box without trashing it or something else.

[PAMuzzleshooter]

Wish I had metal working skills like that.  Looks great.  Also, a very functional sheath.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Wish I had metal working skills like that.  Looks great.  Also, a very functional sheath.

Thank you. Really it isn't all that difficult to make one. You just have to keep it from getting overheated when shaping it.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I like the angled skiving knife a lot but there are times when I find I want something like just the center section of a round knife without those big points sticking out on both sides preventing you from choking up on the thing. So I grabbed my last worn out circular saw blade and made one. That gets rid of another worn out saw blade and turns it into something useful. The protective sheath is assembled with rivets so the blade wouldn't cut through any stitching. It was only an 8" blade and there is a hole smack in the middle so I decided to use that to my advantage. Also, it keeps me out of the house which is running 80+ degrees in the afternoons. The garage is only around 65, which works for me. I'm done making knives for a while, now.

[Rube Burrows]

I like the angled skiving knife a lot but there are times when I find I want something like just the center section of a round knife without those big points sticking out on both sides preventing you from choking up on the thing. So I grabbed my last worn out circular saw blade and made one. That gets rid of another worn out saw blade and turns it into something useful. The protective sheath is assembled with rivets so the blade wouldn't cut through any stitching. It was only an 8" blade and there is a hole smack in the middle so I decided to use that to my advantage. Also, it keeps me out of the house which is running 80+ degrees in the afternoons. The garage is only around 65, which works for me. I'm done making knives for a while, now

Now that is nice. The hole in the blade lined up perfect to allow the snap. Awesome Job!!!

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Now that is nice. The hole in the blade lined up perfect to allow the snap. Awesome Job!!!

Thank you, Rube. Besides keeping the knife in the sheath, the snap through it also keeps the blade from getting jammed into the sheath too hard. Added benefit(?): how many knives are there that you can hang on a nail if you want to?