- Joined
- Jul 31, 2002
- Messages
- 2,954
The sad little 'smilies' don't do justice to the profound agony I've endured. This was my favorite knife; it was also one of the first big knives I made, and I poured my heart and soul into it. Though I started making it 5 or 6 years ago, I only finished it a few months ago. It was my constant companion ever since.
It actually happened about 2 weeks ago. My knife had just claimed its 16th and 17th raccoons with applomb. (If I include the mortally wounded coons that I merely finished off with this knife, the numbers would be 3 or 4 times higher) But number 18 was a bittersweet victory. As the coon tried to run past me, I slowed him with a quick cut somewhere in his hindquarters. I then reared back to deliver the death blow with all my adrenaline enhanced might. Unfortunately, I failed to notice the steel bar laying beneath him in the grass. There was the familiar sound of my blade ringing as it cut, coupled with the ghastly harmony of flesh and bone being cleaved. And then, that gut-wretching "clank". I intantly knew from the vibrations that something bad happened. I tried to cut the coon again, but my blade was now nothing more than a club. (many don't realize that a nick in an otherwise razor sharp edge will render a chopping/slashing knife useless) A notch about 4 mm deep had been chipped from the edge, and when I got home, I also noticed a crack running a half inch up into the belly of the blade.
I cried for two days. No kidding.
I first tried to grind out the notch, hoping that if I was careful enough, the crack wouldn't grow. Of course I was wrong. Within another week, the last 3 1/2 inches of the tip snapped off during some cutting.
I've now reground the blade into a classic Rio Grande Camp Knife profile, and it's still around 17 or 18 inches long overall. But it's just not the same. My beloved friend, my Bowie, my Son, is dead. I can't believe how much performance was lost along with that point. The thing just won't cut. I don't understand it. I guess the harmonics just got thrown off too much. You know what's really weird? It actually feels quite a bit heavier now. When I first handed it to my wife after I reground it, that was also the first thing she said. "It feels heavier now. Kinda clunky."
I'm slowly moving past my mourning, and turning my attention to designing a replacement. When I origionally conceived my Bowie 6 years ago, I chose stainless steel (ATS-34) since I wanted a big display knife. Years later, when I decided I'd get more joy from *using* it, I was doomed to failure. Next time, I'm going with a good high carbon tool steel, and finding a good smith to differentially heat treat it.
It actually happened about 2 weeks ago. My knife had just claimed its 16th and 17th raccoons with applomb. (If I include the mortally wounded coons that I merely finished off with this knife, the numbers would be 3 or 4 times higher) But number 18 was a bittersweet victory. As the coon tried to run past me, I slowed him with a quick cut somewhere in his hindquarters. I then reared back to deliver the death blow with all my adrenaline enhanced might. Unfortunately, I failed to notice the steel bar laying beneath him in the grass. There was the familiar sound of my blade ringing as it cut, coupled with the ghastly harmony of flesh and bone being cleaved. And then, that gut-wretching "clank". I intantly knew from the vibrations that something bad happened. I tried to cut the coon again, but my blade was now nothing more than a club. (many don't realize that a nick in an otherwise razor sharp edge will render a chopping/slashing knife useless) A notch about 4 mm deep had been chipped from the edge, and when I got home, I also noticed a crack running a half inch up into the belly of the blade.
I cried for two days. No kidding.
I first tried to grind out the notch, hoping that if I was careful enough, the crack wouldn't grow. Of course I was wrong. Within another week, the last 3 1/2 inches of the tip snapped off during some cutting.
I've now reground the blade into a classic Rio Grande Camp Knife profile, and it's still around 17 or 18 inches long overall. But it's just not the same. My beloved friend, my Bowie, my Son, is dead. I can't believe how much performance was lost along with that point. The thing just won't cut. I don't understand it. I guess the harmonics just got thrown off too much. You know what's really weird? It actually feels quite a bit heavier now. When I first handed it to my wife after I reground it, that was also the first thing she said. "It feels heavier now. Kinda clunky."
I'm slowly moving past my mourning, and turning my attention to designing a replacement. When I origionally conceived my Bowie 6 years ago, I chose stainless steel (ATS-34) since I wanted a big display knife. Years later, when I decided I'd get more joy from *using* it, I was doomed to failure. Next time, I'm going with a good high carbon tool steel, and finding a good smith to differentially heat treat it.
Little bastids are FAST!