Any info on David Boye's Folders

A lot on Bladeforums swear by them. I owned one and sold it. The blade is excellent. Mine was BDS. Mine had the oblong hole. Ease of opening was fair to good. I could open mine easier with my left than my right and I am right handed. The ergonomics of the handle were exellent. The handle was zytel which always felt cheap to me but I was not willing pay the big bucks for his premium. What really disappointed me and led me to sell it was the clip. It was stiff POS which is not removeable.
 
I owned one and got rid of it, which was a mistake. Cut like h*ll, and light. Was not a heavy duty knife, more light to medium. Given it's somewhat unique blade material I think it's a pretty good deal.

I concur about the clip not great but with careful treatment I think it would be fine.

Shop around for best price I've seen them from around $50 to $90.

DaveH
 
Mine is probably the lightest folder in my stable, it can sit almost undetected in a pocket and then come out ready to cut anything. The dendritic steel works very well, takes and holds a razor edge. One of these days I'll pick up one of his cobalts as well. I agree that the clip could use improvement, otherwise it's (IMHO) just about perfect for a knife in it's class.

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A dedicated ELU
Buck Collectors Club Member
Knifeknut(just ask my wife)

 
Mine has a wide design drop point BDC (cobalt) blade with Bow Hunter recess and greyish blue zytel handle. The blade grinding and sharppening is very clean and precise that I wish all my other knives can have. The sharppening line is nerrower than 1/64 of an inch. Can you believe this?

It's very light, and with very classic kind of styling. I would prefer if it can be a little bit more "tactical".

Ted

 
Here's my graphic mini-review on the cobalt specimine that's been in my pocket for a while. I had my doubts about that non-removable aluminum clip, but it does keep a good grip on my pocket. On the other hand, despite a recess molded into the Zytel-type stuff, it tended to rotate upwards to where it interfered with the lock release, and I was all the time pushing it back into place. A drop of thin superglue seems to have solved the problem for now.

SlightlyUsed.jpg


Here's a close-up of the "Celtic Horse," which is a mirror-image copy of the White Horse of Uffington on a hillside in Oxforshire, England:

CelticHorse-Detail.jpg



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- JKM
www.chaicutlery.com
AKTI Member # SA00001
 
What about his (boye's) custom knives.

Are they worth the price.

Thanks For all the replies
 
I have one of the first folders with the very thin micarta handle.I agree with the clip,it's one of the worst I've seen.The blade is one of the sharpest I have and it seems to hold an edge pretty good.The lock does'nt seem very secure.Maybe its just mine but the slightest pressure on the lock back will cause the blade to fold.
 
Steve Harvey had a problem with a dendritic cobalt folder. He was making radial cuts in the bottom of a plastic soft drink bottle, and the edge turned, deforming the blade for a slight distance above the edge. A very slight deformity, not visible unless you looked very closely, but the thin Co alloy is more easily deformed than most steel alloys.

Steve may wish to comment more.

Hope this helps, Walt
 
I have the Boye Basics, a Dendredic folder and a Cobalt folder. As well as the Boye/Loveless Persona which is a very handy size fixed bladed knife and extremely sharp due to it's thin edge profile.

The folders, I had been dissapointed with the Cobalt, didn't seem to keep it's razor edge very well, THEN, I discovered that when the knife felt dull it still was very aggressive at cutting fiberous material, like plastics and strings and such, so much so I was amazed and got the Ahhh experience. So I would suggest that if you like to shave hair off your arm as a display of sharpness, get another knife, the regular dendredic steel and not the Cobalt, but if you are into cutting fiberous material then go with the Cobalt.
I have also given not to use the clip on this knife, but just carry it in my left rear pocket, all by it's lonesome.
wink.gif

G2

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"There are no dangerous weapons;
there are only dangerous men."
.......... Robert A. Heinlein, 1959


G2 Leatherworks
 
Rick; you have a very good memory. There was indeed a failure with Talonite (r) that day, due to the blade being too thin.

There was also a problem with the Boye Co folder as well, however.

I might add that another Talonite (r) knife, a Kit Carson model 18 folder, chewed through plastic soft drink bottles and used flower pots without a bit of a problem.
 
My Boye Cobalt folder rides on its clip on the edge of my right rear pocket, and seems to ride there securely. That clip doesn't look like much, but it keeps its grip. That drop of superglue seems to have cured the rotation problem. And I'll concur with the observation that it makes a lousy razor, and there are better choices for whittling, but it will cut cardboard and paper all day.


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- JKM
www.chaicutlery.com
AKTI Member # SA00001
 
I got a BDS folder for Christmas, what can I expect as far as edge retention and cutting ability compared to ATS34 and some of the more common blade steels. I do like the thin edge.

There was an article a few months ago in Blade magazine on the cobalt version, it rated in the top 1% of any blade they had tested in rope cutting tests.
 
Rick, the Cobalt model folder I have, has the cool looking Indian with a bow, cuts string like crazy! When I make sheaths I back stitch a couple spots to lock the stitching and then I use that folder to slice the thread, now it's a polyester thread and my other knives tend to glide a while before cutting, but the Boye just hits it and cuts the thread easily, I was doing some tests last night to see if it was just my imagination but it does cut that material very well. I just have to get over not trying to impress folks with it's hair shaving ability, but rope or fiberous material? Look out, it does the trick.

G2

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"There are no dangerous weapons;
there are only dangerous men."
.......... Robert A. Heinlein, 1959


G2 Leatherworks
 
I love David Boye knives. I've got a half dozen folders or so. All the custom ones are without the cheesey pocket clip.

They have thin edges and they cut great, but this is a liability for the Boye Dendritic Cobalt blades. The edges are not strong enough for cutting tough materials in thin cross sections, the hard bottoms of plastic soda bottles being a case in point. The edge is easy to chip on hard objects like staples too.

The Boye Cobalt blades perform well for most cutting chores though, like rope and wood. I vastly prefer the Boye Dendritic Steel blades though. They hold an edge very well, and are very stain resistant. Take a wicked edge too.

Harv
 
I`ve had a Boye folder for a while now and love it dearly. I`d never heard of the clip rotation problem before and wondered if James had gotten a lemon. I took a closer look at the clip on mine and , son of a gun, I can see a little dried-glue residue just where James recommends some super glue! Looks like the dealer I bought this from had already fixed the problem before he sold it to me.

I do like these folders. I like the looks very much as well. If you squint, they look a little like an anorexic Bob Lum Chinese Folder.
 
I also got a BDC for Christmas and have only used it lightly. The strange thing about it is that it will take an extremely sharp edge, feels like thousands of tiny micro-serrations, but it will not shave. So far I really like it.

Jack

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Two degrees in be-bop, a Ph.D in swing, he's a master of rhythm, he's a rock and roll king.
 
I was considering getting a BDC to take while saltwater fishing, especially when wade fishing. What's the best price anyone has found then listed? Any help appreciated.

thanks,

John
 
I was considering getting a BDC to take while saltwater fishing, especially when wade fishing. What's the best price anyone has found then listed? Any help appreciated.

thanks,

John
 
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