Guinea Hog Forge

E. Scott McGhee Receives ABS Journeyman Smith Certification

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 15:29:00 +0000

On Friday, January 27th at 9:15 am, E. Scott McGhee came out of the judging room in San Antonio with a smile on his face and a load off his shoulders. After laying down his five best knives at 7:45 for the inspection of master and journeyman smiths, the judges finally presented their verdict, and seven out of seven gave him the nod. Later that day, Scott and several other ABS knife makers picked up their JS stamps.

Scott will continue to work as an arborist part-time but with stamp in hand plans to increase the amount of time he spends at home forging knives. Now a new journey begins - the quest become a full-time knifemaker and a master bladesmith . . . think "Damascus, Damascus, Damascus".

Guinea Hog Forge

The Final Cut for San Antonio

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:12:00 +0000

We leave for San Antonio today, and Scott tests for his ABS journeyman smith stamp tomorrow morning. Here's the final line-up.

The Alamo

The Diamondback

The Cottonmouth

The Mamba

The Zulu

For knife specifics and more on Scott's journey, check out The Road to San Antonio.

Guinea Hog Forge

Kiridashi Style GHF Broadheads

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 17:54:00 +0000

Scott made Kiridashi style neck knives for his kids for Christmas. We're calling these wicked little single bevel blades Broadheads. See what you think.

Broadhead

Steel: W2

Finish: "Rustic"

Handle: Hammer-marked metal

Overall Length:

Blade Length:

Sheath: Kydex

Scott cold blued the back of each knife with a unique design.

Merry Christmas!

Guinea Hog Forge

When You Need a Little Xtra

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:41:00 +0000

Meet the EMc Xtra, Scott latest everyday carry. A customer commissioned an EMc/ Bushman cross and the Xtra is a hybrid of those two blades.

EMc Xtra

Steel: 5160

Finish: "Rustic"

Handle: Japanese Ito wrap over rayskin

Overall Length: 9 7/8 inches

Blade Length: 5 1/8 inches

Sheath: Kydex

The pictured EMc Xtra was forged from 5160 tool steel, has a Japanese Ito wrap over rayskin, and the overall length & blade length are approximately 1 inch longer than an EMc ("Every Man Carry"). This Xtra came with a Kydex sheath and custom GHF Shoulder Holster Rig.

Thanks for the order DK.

Guinea Hog Forge

We Got Your Huckleberry - A Unique Knife Shoulder Holster

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 23:06:00 +0000

Scott's been talking about making a huckleberry knife rig since he forged the Bushmaster, but I sold that knife so quick he didn't have time to try the idea. The recently completed Razorback offered a brand new opportunity, and I think the results are outstanding. Check it out - a knife huckleberry is a great way to carry a large chopper or camp knife.

The GHF Huckleberry is available for select knives.

GUINEA HOG FORGE

guineahogforge@gmail.com

CZ 452 Varmint 22 Long Rifle

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 01:37:00 +0000

What does an overworked bladesmith do for fun? Play with guns of course.

Scott just traded the Razorback and a huckleberry knife rig for a CZ 452 Varmint 22 long rifle, and he is in love.

He picked it up on Friday and did the following over the weekend.

Pillar bedded the action into the stock
Gave it a much needed trigger job
Mounted a Leupold VX-III 6.5 x 20 E.F.R. scope with Burris Signature ZEE rings and DIP 11mm - 3/8th Weaver bases
Attached a Harris bi-pod
Cleaned brown goo out of the barrel (the gunk all CZ owners know well)
Polished the stock with Meguiar's Scratch X 2.0 and waxed with Howard's Feed & Wax (great stuff on both counts!)

Not only does the rifle look great, it performs superbly.

The first 25 rounds through the gun shot at 25 yards. The bottom two holes were sighters.

Five shots at 25 yards.

Ten shots at 25 yards.

Five shots at 50 yards.

Five shots at 75 yards.

All groups were shot with Winchester Super-X Subsonic hollowpoints fired from the bi-pod with no rear sand bag rest, and the black squares are 2 x 2 inches.

Even I (Scott's wife) was able to hit 22 ammo boxes from 100 yards. It was a good weekend all around!

GUINEA HOG FORGE

guineahogforge@gmail.com

The Puma "Knight Owl"

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:34:00 +0000

Scott recently spent some time with his master Jason Knight honing his knife making skills prior to completing his Journeyman test knives. The result of three days work at Jason's shop is the Puma "Knight Owl".

Puma "Knight Owl"
Steel: W2 with hamon

Overall Length: 11 1/4 inches

Blade Length: 6 1/4 inches

Handle: Stabilized Curly Walnut
Guard: 416 Stainless Steel

Sheath: Custom leather

The blade is all Scott, was forged out of W2, has a Japanese style hamon, and is as graceful and predatory as the cat for which it was named. The handle has a lot of Jason's influence and the knife was completed during some late night sessions in Jason's shop, so we're calling this Puma the "Knight Owl" version.

Scott just started lining his sheaths, and this is one of his nicest to date.

This Puma is off to one of our favorite dealers. Thanks Les!

Guinea Hog Forge

The Razorback - A Hand-Forged Hog Sticker

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 21:05:00 +0000

Scott forged this GHF Razorback over coal at the Harnett County Regional Fair in Lillington, NC back in May and just got around to heat treating and finishing it inbetween commissions. It's made of 5160 tool steel, has a hammer-marked finish, sharpened clip, and flame-grain walnut handle with nickel-silver pins.

Razorback

Steel: 5160

Finish: "Rustic"

Overall Length: 13 1/2 inches

Blade Length: 8 1/2 inches

Handle: Flame grain walnut (from Burl Source)

Sheath: Leather huckleberry rig (in the works)

It's sort of a bowie, camp knife, chopper all-in-one, and we're calling it the Razorback because it's a wild hog sticker if I've ever seen one. Scott plans to make a leather huckleberry rig for this one, so stay tuned.

Guinea Hog Forge

The Road to San Antonio

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 02:28:00 +0000

Scott began a quest to become an ABS Journeyman this January when he passed his JS performance test, and he's now working feverishly to get five knives ready for the January 2012 ABS All-Forged Blade Expo in San Antonio where he hopes to take his final Journeyman exam - the brutal peer review.

So, needless to say, the rush is on.

I started another blog this summer (as a grad school project) to explain the Journeyman process to the uninitiated and track Scott on his quest. The blog is called The Road to San Antonio, and I'll be posting Scott's completed journeyman knives there as he progresses, so keep an eye on it, as we hope to start posting some knives in the next month.

And, if he doesn't get all five done in time? Hmmmm, I guess we'll change directions and see you at the Atlanta Blade Show in June. Stay tuned!

Guinea Hog Forge

EMc and Two Knife Shoulder Holsters

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 01:30:00 +0000

Finally, after a long hot summer of tree work and issues with our heat-treat forge and quenchant, Scott is back at the forge. First, he finished a commissioned EMc started a few months ago, then the Copperhead sold, and he crafted shoulder holsters for both knives. Check 'em out.

This EMc ("Every Man Carry") got a full Japanese Ito wrap over ray skin, was crafted from CruForge V, and has a hammer-marked, belt-finished, "rustic" blade (our favorite working man steel and finish). This blade is headed to a very patient customer in British Columbia. Thank you Kevin!

This EMc came with our GHF custom Kydex shoulder holster. The holster is secured via a belt loop, and the knife can be removed from the holster and worn on a belt with a Tek-loc clip.

The Copperhead below, which is also a CruForge V creation, got a custom kydex shoulder holster of its own and is on a plane to Afghanistan via Canada.

Yeah, he put the straps on before it shipped:)

Thanks guys. You Canuks are great!
Guinea Hog Forge

Functional Art by E. Scott McGhee

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 22:37:00 +0000

I just finished a multi-media graduate class where I learned how to do videos with music. The following is just a slideshow of Scott's work. More videos to come!

www.guineahogforge.com

2011 GHF Blade Show Line Up

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 29 May 2011 17:29:00 +0000

Scott just finished his official Blade Show knives. Here's the line up. See what you think!

Click on the blade names to view blog entries with additional pictures of each knife.

Copperhead

Steel: Cruforge V

Blade: Recurve with sharpened clip

Finish: "Regal" (hand-sanded)

Handle: Flame grain redwood (from Burl Source)

Overall Length: 13 inches

Blade Length: 7 1/4 inches

Weight: 10.2 ounces

Cottonmouth

Steel: Cruforge V

Blade: Recurve with sharpened clip

Finish: "Regal" (hand-sanded)

Handle: Curly black walnut (from Burl Source)

Overall Length: 12 7/8 inches

Blade Length: 7 1/4 inches

Weight: 11.4 ounces

The Zulu

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Hunter

Finish: "Regal" (hand-sanded)

Handle: African Blackwood (from Burl Source)

Overall Length: 9 1/4

Blade Length: 4 1/8

Weight: 6.3 ounces

Ocelot

Steel: Cruforge V

Blade: Spearpoint

Finish: "Regal" (Hand-sanded)

Handle: Black palm (from Burl Source)

Overall Length: 8 inches

Blade Length: 3 5/8 inches

Weight: 3.66 ounces

Thorn

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Spearpoint

Finish: Belt-sanded

Handle: Japanese wrap over stingray skin

Overall Length: 8 1/4 inches

Blade Length: 3 7/8 inches

Weight: 3.78 ounces

Push Dagger

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Double-edged

Finish: Belt-sanded

Handle: Textured steel

Overall Length: 4 5/8 inches

Blade Length: 2 3/8 inches

Weight: 1.86 ounces

Thanks for looking! We hope to see you at the 2011 Blade Show in Atlanta, June 10-12 - Table 17S.

Guinea Hog Forge

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Guinea Hog Forge Vipers

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 29 May 2011 15:55:00 +0000

Born of fire and steel, these GHF vipers aren't venomous . . . but they have a nasty bite.

Cottonmouth
Steel: Cruforge V
Blade: Recurve with sharpened clip
Finish: "Regal" (hand-sanded)
Handle: Curly black walnut (from Burl Source)
Overall Length: 12 7/8 inches
Blade Length: 7 1/4 inches
Weight: 11.4 ounces

Copperhead
Steel: Cruforge V
Blade: Recurve with sharpened clip
Finish: "Regal" (hand-sanded)
Handle: Flame grain redwood (from Burl Source)
Overall Length: 13 inches
Blade Length: 7 1/4 inches
Weight: 10.2 ounces

To see these Guinea Hog Forge vipers in person, come see us at the Blade Show in Atlanta, June 10-12 - Table 17S.

Thanks for looking!

Guinea Hog Forge
http://www.guineahogforge.com/

Ocelot for Blade Show

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sat, 14 May 2011 20:26:00 +0000

Ocelots are fierce little feline hunters, and this Guinea Hog Forge blade of the same name is a fierce little hunter in its own right. Hand crafted out of Cru-forge V with a black palm handle, nickel silver bolsters and pins, it is both beautiful and highly functional.

Ocelot

Steel: Cruforge V

Blade: Spearpoint

Finish: "Regal" (Hand-sanded)

Handle: Black palm (from Burl Source)

Overall Length: 8 inches

Blade Length: 3 5/8 inches

Weight: 3.66 ounces

Sheath: Leather (not yet crafted)

This Ocelot will be available at the Blade Show in Atlanta in June. Table 17S in the ABS section.

Dog not included.

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Push Dagger and New Thorn for Blade

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Fri, 13 May 2011 23:05:00 +0000

Two more knives are completed and ready for the Blade show in June.

Push Dagger

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Double-edged
Finish: Belt-sanded

Handle: Textured steel

Overall Length: 4 5/8 inches

Blade Length: 2 3/8 inches

Weight: 1.86 ounces

Thorn

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Spearpoint

Finish: Belt-sanded

Handle: Japanese wrap over ray skin

Overall Length: 8 1/4 inches

Blade Length: 3 7/8 inches

Weight: 3.78 ounces

Hope to see you at Blade!

Table 17S in the ABS section.

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Decorative (yet highly functional) Hand Hoe

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Tue, 10 May 2011 19:10:00 +0000

Scott got an order for another hand hoe, so he banged one out while heat treating knives for the Blade Show in June. See what you think.

Thanks for looking. More knives will be posted soon, so stay tuned.

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

The Zulu

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 22:44:00 +0000

Scott just finished this little hunter to take to the Blade Show in June. It has an African Blackwood handle, 416 stainless steel guard, and peened nickel silver pin. We're calling it the Zulu.

The Zulu

Steel: CruForge V

Blade: Hunter

Finish: Hand-sanded

Handle: African Blackwood with stainless guard and nickel silver pin

Overall Length: 9 1/4

Blade Length: 4 1/8

Weight: 6.3 ounces

The knife will have a dyed and stamped leather sheath.

Thanks for looking!

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Lake Waccamaw Southern Farm Days

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:56:00 +0000

Guinea Hog Forge bladesmith E. Scott McGhee demonstrated blacksmithing and traditional knife making at the 2011 Lake Waccamaw Farm Days Festival in March.

For the second year in a row, Scott forged over green coal and was assisted by his two sons - Jacob and Conner.

In addition, we displayed hand-crafted knives made in the gas forge at home, as well as knife making supplies and items blacksmithed on site.

On Sunday Scott banged out a Joe Keesler style primitive. It sold in about 10 minutes, and the proceeds were donated to the Lake Waccamaw Boys and Girls home.

Devotion pays off. Scott forged a letter opener for a young man who watched vitually non-stop for 2 days.

We'll be demonstrating at Harmony Hall in Bladen County, NC this Saturday and at the Harnett County Regional Fair on May 6-7. Hope to see you there.

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

East Meets West in the Kitchen

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:14:00 +0000

Scott was recently commissioned to make a unique knife. The customer wanted a slicer/carver with a Japanese look. The knife looks like a sushi blade, but sharpens European style. It has a single bevel, a clay hamon, and a faceted handle made of black and white ebony, accented with ram's horn and a mokume ferrule, and peened together via a single nickel-silver pin.

Steel: W1
Handle: Black and white ebony, ram's horn, black vulcanized spacers, ns pin, and mokume ferrule
Finish: Hand-rubbed
Blade: Ultra-thin Wharncliff
Overall Length: 18 1/4 inches
Blade Length: 12 1/4 inches
Blade Thickness: 0.110 inches
Weight: 9.8 ounces

The following links go to a couple of videos taken before the knife was finished. The first video shows the knife in action sans a handle, and the second video shows Scott sharpening the knife using a Spyderco Triangle Sharpmaker

A handleless test drive

How to sharpen a Japanese-European hybrid knife

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

ABS Journeyman Performance Test Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 21:32:00 +0000

Click the links below to view videos of the ABS Journeyman Smith Performance Test that Scott passed in January of this year. I just aquired them from Shelly Knight, who shot the footage. Shelly is the wife of ABS Mastersmith Jason Knight - Scott's Mentor.

Journeyman Performance knife CUTS ROPE

Journeyman Performance knife CHOPS FIRST 2x4

Journeyman Performance knife CHOPS SECOND 2x4 and still shaves

Journeyman Performance knife BENDS TO 90 DEGREES without breaking

Scott says, "Thanks for watching!"

http://www.guineahogforge.com/
guineahogforge@gmail.com

Great Smoky Mountain Bladesmithing Symposium and Knife Show

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 21:31:00 +0000

On Thursday March 3rd, Scott and I packed the truck, picked up the boys, and headed west to Clyde, NC for the 2011 Great Smoky Mountain Bladesmithing Symposium and Knife Show. A great time was had by all - here are some of the highlights.

Watching ABS Mastersmith Joe Keesler demonstrate and checking out his knives.

Battle of the Bladesmiths - Watching ABS Mastersmiths Burt Foster, Joe Keesler, Jason Knight and James Rodebaugh battle it out to see who could forge and complete the nicest knife in 2 hrs.

Keesler completed his knife in an hour and fifteen minutes, but Burt won the popular vote.

Cutting Demonstration - Guinea Hog Forge's own E. Scott McGhee competed against 13 others to see who could chop a 2x4 the fastest, cleave a golf ball in half, stab a tennis ball, spear and pop a small water balloon, and cut a 1" free-hanging manilla rope in one pass (some ropes were double and tripled to add difficuly and points). The one with the highest total score won.

Burt took the prize again.

Butch Sheely demonstrated tomahawk forging

Forging over green coal

Can't wait 'til next year.

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Swamp Fox Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 18:30:00 +0000

Another Swamp Fox left the forge this week - a regal, but vicious weapon reminiscent of the gentleman warrior of the Revolutionary War for whom it is named - Francis Marion (aka "The Swamp Fox").

This "Fox" is a little beefier than the original, but no less sleek or functional.

Steel: Hand-forged 5160
Blade: Recurve
Handle: Desert Ironwood with hand-shaped nickel-silver bolsters and 1/16 inch nickel silver pins
Overall Length: 10 1/4 inches
Blade Length: 5 3/8 inches
Sheath: Stamped and dyed custom leather

This Swamp Fox went to a childhood friend of mine who also bought the first knife Guinea Hog Forge ever sold. Thank you much, Mr. Bethune. You helped bring this business to life, and we hope you enjoy your newest blade.

Custom designed leather sheath was also made in-house.

Thanks for looking!

http://www.guineahogforge.com/

guineahogforge@gmail.com

The Native

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 21:31:00 +0000

Scott recently finished the Native - one of our Primitive Series knives. Hand-forged out of Cruforge V, this blade has our hammer-marked Rustic finish and a Desert Ironwood burl handle with 1/16 inch nickle-silver pins.

The NATIVE
Steel: CruForgeV

Handle: Desert Ironwood burl

Finish: Rustic

Blade: Recurve

Overall Length: 11 1/4 inches

Blade Length: 6 1/4 inches

Weight: 10.6 ounces

Sheath: Leather

Scott made the sheath as well. We put the knife to the test at our bi-annual hog harvest and it performed splendidly. The following pictures are a bit graphic, so proceed cautiously.

Let us know what you think.

guineahogforge@gmail.com

Guinea Hog Forge

E. Scott McGhee PASSES ABS Journeyman Performance Test!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:04:00 +0000

When it comes to making knives, bladesmith E. Scott McGhee suffers from a rather severe case of obsessive compulsive disorder. In preparation for his official ABS Journeyman Performance Test, Scott forged and destroyed four practice knives over the last year - one in July, one in October at the ABS Intro to Bladesmithing class, and two last week. In final preparation, Scott forged three knives recently - two practice blades and the candidate. All three blades were forged at the same time; then heat treated separately. Scott set aside the nicest one, then ground out the other two and put them through the paces. The following photos are from the test he did in July (I didn't photo the most recent tests), and you can view videos of these early tests on YouTube.

The ABS Journeyman Smith Performance Test
1. Cut a 1-inch diameter free-hanging manilla rope 6-inches from the end in one pass
2. Chop two 2x4's in half
3. Without sharpening, demonstrate that the knife still shaves after after completing tests 1 and 2.
4. Bend the knife to 90 degrees without cracking it more than 1/3 of the way from the edge to the back

All of Scott's practice knives have passed with flying colors. Of the most recent two, one suffered the 90 degree bend test four times before breaking, while the other blade went to 90 degrees twice, then broke after being pushed to 135 degrees. That, however, was simply not enough torture. Scott gathered up the remains of practice knives, wacked them on steel angle iron for a while, then on each other, and then snapped them in half to examine the grain structure. Here's what an OCD bladesmith can do to two perfectly good blades!

The real trick, however, is performing this feat in the presence of an ABS Master.

Feeling cautiously confident that the remaining knife would survive the official test, Scott ground the knife, crafted a micarta handle, let me snap some photos, and then drove down to South Carolina for a date with ABS Mastersmith Jason Knight.

Almost too pretty to destroy.

Upon arrival, Jason informed Scott that the ABS Journeyman Performance Test rules had recently changed. While the manilla rope test was essentially the same, candidates would now be required to chop through a railroad tie twice and bend the blade into a circle to pass . . . Jason has a wicked sense of humor.

We'll post the video that Jason's lovely wife Shelly took of the official test once it's processed, but for now, here are some photos of the brutalized blade. The candidate passed with no issues, and didn't crack at all during the bend test. Scott is now one step closer to his ABS Journeyman Smith goal. Unfortunately, he has only been an ABS member for a little over a year, so it will be June 2012 before a panel of mastersmiths at Blade will determine whether he receives the journeyman stamp.

Even though Scott can't take the final journeyman test until next year, we'll be at Blade in Atlanta this June (10-11) supporting friends and checking out the scene. We hope to see you there!

E. Jacob's First Paring Knife

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. McGhee) — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 22:31:00 +0000

Scott's eldest son Jacob (almost 13) began forging with his dad over coal at age of four, and he recently began making knives. The following paring knife is Jacob's third finished blade. He ground the knife out of 1080 tool steel, triple-qenched and tempered it, and then dressed it out in Desert Ironwood handles with nickle-silver pins. I think he did an amazing job. See what you think.

Steel: 1080 tool-steel

Finish: Hand-sanded to 800 grit

Handle: Desert Ironwood

Overall Length: 7 1/4

Blade Length: 3 1/4

Weight: 3.1 ounces

guineahogforge@gmail.com

www.guineahogforge.com