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Back to the basics

J. Doyle

J. Doyle

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Feb 17, 2008
Messages
8,244
I was just thinking that sometimes we get caught up in the middle of debate over knives. Which grind is better, steel thickness, toughness and details like that. I get caught up in it too and debate is okay but sometimes we overthink stuff like that. Back in simpler times, I don't think they were necessarily concerned with steel thickness or grinds. The early trappers and frontiersman carried what they could get or make. I think knives have only become thick and heavy duty in more recent times and discussion over grinds was not such an issue. My grandpa used knives as much as anyone I ever knew but he wasn't very scientific about it. He knew if it was good steel by how it held it's edge and how it performed. He didn't care about convex, hollow or flat grinds. He used a knife for what it was for, to cut stuff and never broke one (at least not a quality one) that I can recall. If it cut and held an edge, it was a good knife.

There's nothing wrong with overbuilt tough knives or fancy knives with lots of detail and embellishments (I love those, by the way) but sometimes, I like to step back and make things simpler again. With that in mind, I just finished this small knife. Not exactly a historical or period correct knife but simple in concept. Rosewood handles and brass pins. Pretty deep hollow grind. Should be a good slicer and cutter. No frills. It's primarily a short handled skinner by design and I plan to test it as there's still a late deer season here. But I bet it will be useful for other small woods chores too. Do you guys see any other woodsbumming tasks it might be good for?

Now I just have to apply the final edge and make a sheath.

Skinner01.jpg

Skinner02.jpg

Skinner03.jpg
 
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Very nice -- looks comfortable, and the lines are great. Nice work.

Though I've just picked up a scandi Liten Bror, my favorite general outdoor EDC knife has long been a MRKT Mini Skinner. Though they're not super tough, a compact skinner design is very useful for all kinds of tasks.
 
Looks great John. :thumbup: :cool: :thumbup:


Must be the season for three fingers skinners.

Here’s one I made for a good friend (with Steg horsehide sheath).



I like yours better. :foot:


Big Mike
 
A good knife is a good knife.
Period !
This nonsense of bickering over grinds, styles, and metals is exactly that.
BS with a hint of mall ninja tossed in.
 
That's a good looking knife. What number is that for you so far?

I have to disagree with frontiersmen/mountain men/old timers just simply using what they had or what they made, with no regard to design elements. I think they were just as adamant about their preferences as we are today. It may simply be that we have more options than they did. Some perfect examples of preferred design elements are the Kephardt and Nessmuk knives, each being what their craftsman intended.

After all, our multitude of available design elements are just the evolution of the blade.
 
Thanks for all the compliments. I've made quite a few knives so far but only started numbering them recently. I think I have 26 that are numbered.

Steel on this is ATS-34.

Big Mike, I like that one you made too. :thumbup:
 
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