About me
My name is Daniel Gurega, and I love knives since my childhood. Knives are passion for me. I made my first knive when I was 7 years old. Of course it was very simple one, made of nail and simple wood handle. I wanted to have a real hunting knive so I was begging my parents for a long time to get it for me. After a time I realy got one. Anyhow, there was always something on my knives I wanted to have better, different or nicer. That drives me to make my own knives...
During years I developed and improved my technique, technology, tools, tested different materials. I studied mechanical engineering so I have touched all what is needed to know about knive making. And after I made many knives, not always with the result I wanted, after many years of trials (I am 45), I can say I am a profesional knive maker.
My philosophy is making best knives using best materials. The knive must be practical, durable, sharp and also nice. All properties must be in balance. I like simple knives with the best properties for the purpose they are made for. And they are.
Knive is as good as the material used.
MATERIALS
Specialy the blade. I use the latest steels, designed for knive making, made by powder- metalurgy. Steels produced by powder-metallurgy show impressive performance properties: excellent toughness, extremely high wear resistance, uniform mechanical-technological properties, very fine grain structure allowing to get unique sharpness.
My favourite steel is M390 and Elmax, both made by the company Bohler – Uddeholm.
Uddeholm Elmax SuperClean is a high chromium-vanadium-molybdenum-alloyed steel with the following characteristics: • High wear resistance • High compressive strength • Corrosion resistant • Very good dimensional stability High wear resistance is normally connected to low corrosion resistance and vice versa. In Uddeholm Elmax SuperClean it has however been able to achieve this unique combination of properties by a powder-metallurgy-based production.
For knive handless I use differend hard woods, for example olive, palisander, zebrano, oak. In case it is possible I stabilise it. As well as I make my own micarta, resin based material, which can be made in any variety of colors and layers. I can also use more exotic materials like mamooth tusk or tooth. It is usualy customer choice.
PROCESS
All my knives are unique, made only manualy. There are not two identical knives I made. Even if I make the same model there is always something different from the previous one. It could be slight shape difference, different handle material, grind...
I cut the shape out of steel plate. The powder-metalurgy steels are delivered in the requiered thickness, so it is not necessary go forge it. I love forging, but the steels I use could be only destroyed by that. I make the grind on the grinder I developed for that. I use mainly flat or concave grind.
