I started engraving 4 months ago and until this knife the only thing I have done so far is scratch around on steel practice plates and a few other steel odds and ends. I finally worked up the courage to try to engrave on something 'real' yesterday and this is what I chose. Its a cheap little single blade folder (2.5 inches long closed) that I dug out of the kitchen junk drawer. I know there is much room for improvement but I would appreciate your honest criticisms.
Here's what I know is wrong.
1. The design is a little undersized for the area. I learned this as I did the background removal and suddenly everthing shrunk. How is the best way to compensate for this shrinkage when you are laying out the overall design?
2. The border is a little ragged now because, try as I might, I nicked it here and there with the rotory. How do you A., avoid this apparent inevitability or B., repair it after the fact. I havent tried to go back and clean it up with a graver as I am afraid I'll end up just chasing the ragged border closer to the edge and end up with no border at all.
3. The mysteries of shading seem to elude me still. I tried to taper the shading lines by gradually lifting the graver / increasing the power as the line progressed to its termination point. I have practiced this with better success on practice plates, but the results were not as I had hoped for on this knife. I know this is probably mostly due to lack of graver control but if you can see what the issues are, please point them out.
With the exception of the shrinkage problem, I am fairly pleased with the design but I would welcome your criticisms there as well. I used a graver with 115 degree Lindsay grind, a 90 degree Lindsay grind for the shading, and a 1/16th" carbide dental bur ground to a needle point with a couple of flats ground at the tip. The project took about 8 hours total.
Finally, I see a lot of posts from very accomplished engravers on this and on Sam's forum. I always try to look for photos of new guys work to gage how I am doing compared to other beginners so I'd welcome comments from other newbies as well.
Thanks