Guinea Hog Forge: 2017

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

The XO (i.e. Executive Officer knife)

Every ship needs an Executive Officer, and every XO (i.e. Executive Officer knife) needs handles crafted from salvaged ship parts. The teak handles on these XOs were made from reclaimed BB-55 decking. BB-55 (aka Battleship USS-North Carolina) is a WWII era battleship.

The XO comes with two finish options - Belt Finished for a classic look or Parkerized to turn the blade black and protect the tool steel from corrosion. Two great looks, one great knife.

Steel: O1 Tool

Finish: Belt or Parkerized

Overall Length: 8.5 inches

Blade Length: 3.5 inches

Sheath: Leather

The XO and other Battleship Blades will be available at the NC State Fair while supplies last.

Hope to see you there -Village of Yesteryear, NC State Fair, Raleigh NC, October 12-22.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Sunday, October 8, 2017

Story of the Dreadnaught Knife

The Dreadnaught is an E. Scott McGhee creation infused with history.

The blade is Damascus steel forged-welded to a 1095 carbon steel core via a process called San Mai. In the picture below, the Damascus is the lighter grey exterior steel, while the dark core is 1095. This contrast cannot be seen until the blade is etched in acid, as they are truly one steel if forged properly.

While the 1095 core provides a wicked cutting edge, Dreadnaught's Damascus adds history and beauty. The Damascus is 4800kc forge-welded to hull material from BB-55 (aka Battleship USS-North Carolina). BB-55 is WWII era battleship, and (due to renovations) we were able to obtain discarded hull steel and deck teak from the ship. Here are some raw materials from BB-55 before and after a little Guinea Hog Forge love. While the hull steel is historically significant, you could never make a functional knife from it without marrying it to tool steel.

Below is the Dreadnaught in a rough forged state post heat treat. Proper heat treat transforms the steel into a knife - hard enough to cut without dulling quickly, tough enough for serious use.

Scott did a lot of grinding, hand-sanding, etching, and polishing to transform the Dreadnaught into a knife worthy of the hull steel that inhabits it and the battleship for which it's named.

And dressed in BB-55 curly teak handles, the Dreadnaught is truly pleasure to hold.

San Mai is a Japanese technique used to make weapons of great quality and beauty. The Battleship USS-North Carolina fought in the Pacific theater during the second world war. Resurrecting discarded BB-55 steel into a knife of great beauty via this ancient process seems appropriate.

The show side of the Dreadnaught proudly displays the name of her maker (ABS Master Bladesmith E. Scott McGhee), while the backside sports a special BB-55 mark to signify her origin story.

This knife will be available at the NC State Fair in the Village of Yesteryear later this week. If not claimed by Sunday night, it will be posted on our website and made available to the general public. Thanks for looking and we hope to see you soon.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Piranha Frenzy

A knife frenzy has erupted in the shop, and the Piranhas are especially active. Three different Piranhas will be featured in the Village of Yesteryear at the NC State Fair this year (Oct 12-22) - Damascus with Battleship Teak, O1 with Battleship Teak, and O1 Barebones Blackout.

Damascus Piranhas

Steel: 15n20/1095 Damascus

Overall Length: 6.125 inches

Blade Length: 2.75 inches

Handle: Teak from BB-55 (aka Battleship USS NC)

Sheath: Lined Kydex

Damascus Piranhas with teak handles made from BB-55 decking are everyday carry knives with bling. The bling comes from forge-welding two different carbon steels into a billet, crafting them into a knife, then marrying that knife to reclaimed decking from the Battleship USS-North Carolina.

O1 Tool Steel Piranhas

Steel: O1 Tool

Overall Length: 6.125 inches

Blade Length: 2.75 inches

Handle: Teak from BB-55

Sheath: Lined Kydex

Our O1 tool steel Piranhas with BB-55 teak are more subtle in beauty than their Damascus brothers but are just as wicked sharp. History and performance in a small package.

And for the minimalist who prefers a stealthy package,

the O1 Barebones Blackout Piranha is hard to beat.

This all tool steel Piranha (no scales) is blackened to darken the steel and help prevent corrosion. While not a Battleship Blade like the other two, the Barebones Blackout deftly demonstrates a method used on battleships to protect the guns from corrosion at sea - Parkerization.

All three of these special Piranha models come with a lined Kydex sheath.

Three great knives, one talented mastersmith and designer.

The Guinea Hog Forge Piranha by E. Scott McGhee - little knife, big bite.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Sunday, September 24, 2017

Battleship Blades

BB-55 is the hull number of the USS North Carolina - a WW II battleship that participated in every major on-water battle in the Pacific theater during the second world war. The USS-NC is now a museum ship and, due to renovations, a rare opportunity to obtain steel from the hull and teak from the deck became available. It was a temptation Scott couldn't resist.

Over the next few weeks, we'll be offering knives that incorporate steel and wood from BB-55. A few of our popular mid-tech models will get slight make-overs to incorporate wood handles made from ship decking, while some really special pieces will be crafted from BB-55 steel forged into Damascus and then forge-welded onto a 1095 carbon tool steel core via a process called San Mai.

The first of the BB-55 series came off the bench this weekend - Battleship Rovers in CPM 3V with teak handles made from reclaimed USS-NC decking. A few of these special Rovers are available now, but we'll also save a few just for our booth at the NC State Fair.

All Battleship Blades get our standard mark on the show side (McGhee Knives for stock removal pieces) and BB-55 on the back side to signify their association with the USS-NC.

You can see our battleship knives in person at the NC State Fair in the Village of Yesteryear, Oct 12-22. In addition to knives, we will have pendants made from BB-55 Damascus and wooden knives hand-crafted from USS-North Carolina decking.

We hope to see you there, but if you can't come, keep an eye our website as we'll post a few BB-55 products leading up to the fair so that everyone has a chance to own a unique piece of US history.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Three Different Bushman, One Great Knife

The Bushman is one of Scott's first hand-forged designs,

and it can be dressed in several ways depending on your style.

Bushman

Steel: Hand-forged O1

Finish: Rustic "Hammer-Marked"

Overall Length: 10 inches

Blade Length: 5.25 inches

Handle: Various Options

Sheath: Leather

If you want a hard-use Bushman, go with a Scalloped Micarta handle.

This very grippy handle material is nearly impossible to destroy.

For a classier look, go with a sculpted wood handle like this one dressed in Wenge

(aka African Rosewood).

And if you like an Asian flair, the Bushman in Ito Wrap isn't just gorgeous,

it provides an extremely secure grip.

Thanks for looking.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Saturday, July 29, 2017

SR-71 Elite Blackout

A Parkerized SR-71 Elite Hunter has been on Scott's mind for a while, but putting all the elements together to craft this little beauty was not as simple as one might think.

Meet the new SR-71 Elite Blackout.

SR-71 Elite Blackout

Steel: O1 Parkerized

Blade Finish: Satin

Overall Length: 8.75 inches

Blade Length: 4 inches

Handle: Green Micarta

Sheath: Leather Drop

The "Blackout" blade is great for users who prefer a more subtle finish,

and the Parkerization also helps protect the blade from corrosion.

The Elite Blackout's bead-blasted, expertly-shaped green Micarta handle has a nice grippy feel making it a great user for everyday chores and processing game in the field.