Contagious Chopperitis

DaleW

DaleW

Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
2,194
You guys infected me and I came down with a whopping case of chopperitis. Fortunately I didn't get the Busseform strain, which is much more expensive.

So I got a 12" Tamontina machete last week and that wasn't too bad, in fact my wallet didn't show any of the bleeding symptoms that often accompany chopperitis, but I did get the multiple version of the affliction, so another big blade had to be procured.

Fortunately our very own Gravelface offered up a lightly used Kershaw Outcast for a mere $50, which is generally considered bus fare in the Large Knife universe. Heck, I don't think we could get a big knife collector half drunk on $50..... but I digress.

So I PayPal-ed the bucks to Gravelface and he shipped the blade and it arrived today. I signed for the package and my palms started to perspire and I know my blood pressure was heading up. My EDc was out in a second and the knife was in the light. [Homer Simpson voice] "D2! Yummmmm"

Down to the workshop and started up the belt sander, and a nice convex edge was produced. The tip is really thick-- I'm not worried about breaking it-- no easily anyway. A good honing with some diamond sharpeners and YOWSA I got a Big Chopper :) Cut my knuckle too-- it's sharp :)

It s a used knife and there were some light scratches in the black coating. It was also shiny, which didn't appeal to me, so I worked it over with some 600 grit and some steel wool for a nice satin finish.

I added some orange paracord to the handle and laced the kydex sheath with some black 550, ending in loops so I could attach a shoulder strap (see photo detail.

Now, there has been a lot of chatter about the use of D2 for large blades. After grinding on the stuff and using several sharpening mediums on it, I say HOOEY. It's steel. I plan to get this one out in the woods and put the theory to test. I'm gonna baton the daylights out this one and see how it holds up. My gut feeling is that it will perform just fine and that this is a bargain for a large tool steel blade.

Finally, I have a shot of my woods trio: the Outcast, a Kershaw folding saw, and my Fallkniven F1 with an On/Scene Tactical sheath and Firesteel.
 
Rad! Dig your combo. That looks like a mean chopper. Can't wait to see action shots.

I'm really thinking about getting a Kabar bowie after reading so many chopper threads. I'm not sure it will replace my Fiskars hatchet, but it will be a fun contest!
 
I like the look of the Outcast. It looks like a great functional design. I'm also a big fan of Ken Onion's style. I'd like to see how it holds up to hard use. Let us know!!
 
I have never handled an Outcast, but I have had a kershaw folder for about ten years. I've carried it about 90% of that time. Works good.
 
i've had my outcast for i think about 2 years now. its been a great work knife for me but the factory edge that came with it just didn't do. i re profiled the edge and gave it a convex grind. it is one of my oldest and my most treasured knives.

stripped the finish with sand paper and para-cord wrapped the handle because it was a tad bit small for me. this summer i took down a 20 foot tree that was about 4-5 inches in diameter with this knife. took along my HI BAS but it was heavy and not as easy to use as my outcast.

i'm glad you are liking yours Dale cause i sure like mine :D

some pics.

P9110003.jpg


P9110002.jpg
 
Now go out and beat it into submission and marvel at what a chopper can do and how fast it can do it.

Skam
 
how do you go about beating a knife into submission???

i think the user would submit before the knife :D
 
jca21 said:
how do you go about beating a knife into submission???

i think the user would submit before the knife :D
Click to expand...

Who said anything about "beating a knife into submission"? I said I was going to "baton the daylights out of it" meaning that I was going to do a thorough field test of the ability of the D2 steel to withstand impacts with a baton. If you search the forums, you will find a number of negative comments about using D2 for a large blade and particularly using it for batoning.

And you should never anthropomorphize knives-- they hate it when you do that :)
 
Not that I approve of senseless blood and guts, but a guy I knew vaguely in TX took one of those on a hunt for pigs and brought a camera. He showed me the pics of what it could do...He had smallish pigs that he had bagged hanging in his shed, and sliced one in half with one swing...it was pretty messy by the pic, but I was still impressed with the slicing power of the kukri style blade! So...if you ever run by the little pigs house, you can slaughter them all! One chop at a time.
 
gunknifenut said:
Not that I approve of senseless blood and guts....
Click to expand...

I was thinking more of things like branches and saplings for shelters and fire :cool:

I guess if I had a whole pig to butcher in a survival situation I would be in pretty good shape, but then I'd want apples and potatos and stuff :)
 
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