Custom Forged Blades by Dan Weatherby
GALLERY
Below are photos of previous knives I have made, illustrating various designs and materials used. As you will see, I love to use natural materials. All of my handle materials have been stabilized with resin in a vacuum chamber to eliminate shrinking, warping, and cracking as well as making it waterproof. Each blade I make also includes one of my handmade custom-fit leather sheaths. Finally, I include a signed certificate of authenticity describing the process and origin of materials used. If you are interested in a blade similar to one of the knives pictured below feel free to send me an email!
BUFFALO FIGHTER
This 7-inch Bowie style knife is forged from a Weatherby .30-378 caliber stainless steel rifle barrel. The blade features a mirror polish showing the subtle San Mai Damascus pattern with O1 high carbon steel forming the cutting edge heat treated to 57-58 HRC. The double guard and pommel are nickel silver. The stacked handle has a section of black Cape Buffalo horn from my father's successful hunt in Zimbabwe over 20 years ago. This section of horn is sandwiched between stacked leather, black Micarta, and nickel silver spacers. It is followed by a piece of polished caribou antler. The pommel displays a Weatherby .30-378 shell casing illustrating the blade's unique origin. Overall length of the blade is 12 inches.





PIONEER HUNTER
This full tang clip point hunting knife was forged out of a Weatherby 6.5-300 magnum rifle barrel. The unique forging process of inserting a high carbon steel rod in the stainless steel rifle barrel creates a Damascus pattern known as San Mai. This three layer pattern offers a blend of both beauty and durability. The high carbon steel, in this case O1, forms the cutting edge of the blade with an RC hardness of 60-61 after heat treatment. The blade length is 4 1/12 inches with an overall length of 9 inches. The blade was forged on the anvil down to it’s final thickness of 5/32 inch leaving the original forging marks and scale on the flats of the blade. The spine features custom vine filework done by hand. The handle scales are stabilized Eucalyptus burl with black Micarta liners along the tang. The scales are secured with two custom mosaic pins.





SAN MAI BOWIE
This 13 inch Bowie knife is forged from a .300 Weatherby magnum stainless steel rifle barrel. The unique process of forging a core steel, in this case O1 high carbon steel, into the 410 stainless steel rifle barrel, creates a damascus pattern knows as "San Mai" which means "three layers." This unique process creates not only a beautiful pattern, but also a more durable blade. The O1 tool steel is heat treated to 59-60 RC for great edge retention. The double guard, pommel, and spacers are nickel silver. The handle is comprised of African Blackwood and polished elk antler. The African blackwood was brought back from Africa by my grandfather from one of his safaris decades ago. The elk antler is a tine from an elk harvested by my father from one of his successful hunts. The pommel features a vintage .300 Weatherby magnum shell casing illustrating the blade's unique origin.





THE OUTBACK
I forged this drop point blade out of a .300 Weatherby magnum stainless rifle barrel. The core steel inserted in the barrel before forging is O1 high carbon tool steel. This steel forms the cutting edge and when combined with the stainless barrel creates a Damascus pattern known as “San Mai.” I added a bit of vine filework to the spine for added flare. The guard and pommel are cold blued mild steel that I actually took from and old workbench from Weatherby inc. before they moved their shop to Wyoming. The handle is made from stabilized Eucalyptus burl which I harvested from my property here in Paso Robles. There are brass spacers to tie in the .300 brass shell casing on the pommel which illustrates the blade’s unique origin.






DEER SKINNER
This 4 inch upswept skinning blade was hand-forged from a stainless .270 Weatherby magnum rifle barrel. O1 high carbon steel forms the cutting edge of the blade with an RC hardness of 59-60 after heat treatment. The guard and pommel are nickel silver. The handle is a multi-piece construction comprised of nickel silver and black Micarta spacers, African Blackwood, and polished deer antler . This African Blackwood was brought back from Africa by my grandfather Roy Weatherby after one of his safaris decades ago. The pommel features a .270 Weatherby magnum shell casing illustrating the blade’s unique origin.




WEST COAST HUNTER
This 4 inch drop point blade was hand-forged from a stainless steel .300 caliber Weatherby rifle barrel. O1 tool steel forms the cutting edge of the blade with an RC hardness of 60-61 after heat treatment. There is a section of file work on the spine for added handling. The guard is comprised of a brass spacer in between two nickel silver and two black Micarta sections. The blade features a partial hidden tang handle with a section of manzanita burl, followed by African Blackwood with a solitary nickel silver pin. This Blackwood was brought back fromAfrica by my grandfather Roy Weatherby after one of his safaris decades ago. The lanyard hole has a .300 Weatherby magnum shell inlay on both sides to represent the blade’s unique origin.
