- Joined
- Jun 21, 2008
- Messages
- 676
Hey Guys, just thought I would share with everyone a few things I have been working on over the past month or so off and on. Please feel free to take them and use them as you wish, I know they are not original nor can I in anyway take full credit.
First for those of you who are into the minimalist type of gear, the lightest cheapest thing you can make your self to fill a niche I think this will tickle your fancy. I got the idea from a lightweight backpacking website, where a guy showed a pair of thread nippers he had cut down and sharpened for a makeshift scalpel or small utility blade. First is just the first link that popped up in google shopping for the items to give you an idea what kind of expense you are looking at. I bought mine on the bay in a pack of six from a seller that specialized in sewing equipment, for even less per pair.
http://www.findingking.com/p-5831-thread-nippers-4-18.aspx?ref=base
Now you will notice they are a very simple pair of scissors and very inexpensive. But cut them in half and you have two minimalist type knives that could be used for countless tasks. Here is a photo showing my before and after. The small knife in the picture is my other project and I will explain it later.
The plastic residue on the bottom one is Plasti-dip, after dipping the handles of these small knives, it gave me much better control with them.
They come sharpened on one side like most scissors so really all I did was cut them in half then sharpen the side that was flat til it was shaving sharp. The bottom one I actually did some mods to while drooling over the AH-1's. You can see I cut a barb into much like an arrow-head, and since these are screwed into the handles they have two holes that would work great for lashing with sinew, floss tape, or other small cordage.
For size comparisons I took a few photos first is the smaller one in an altoids smalls tin.
Then the full length one inside the lid of a regular altoids tin, the small metal round thing underneath is a magnet used to keep the fire card attached to the lid as well as this blade.
I don't mean to take any glory from the AH-1's, as I will be buying a few, and the quality is no where near the same. I just think these are a realistic option for those of us that like to have a small utility blade in everyone of our kits, and it can be done for under $10. This way too you could use them as actual arrowheads and if you lose on or two it won't be a big loss.
Now on to the knife, you will notice it USED TO BE a full size Buck knife. A diamondback model actually that served me very well as a necker/blade for my time in the Corps. It was very beat up and I had reshaped the tip a couple times after loaning it out and receiving it back tipless. Wasn't a big deal for an approximately $17 knife. Well I have seen so many tin/PSK knives on here but just couldn't bring myself to drop the dough on one. One day I came across this beat-up buck in some old gear and thought it was time to give it a new task. I figure it was a reliable blade in harsh time overseas so I have no doubt come harsh times when I have to break into my PSK it will do it's job. I meant to take pictures before and after but the camera battery was dead and I didn't want to hold off my work just to wait for that. So this is the finished product, it has an overall length of about 3-3/4 inches, a cutting edge length of about 1-1/2 inches, and the handle is about 2 inches.
I like wharncliffe/sheepfoot blades and find them very useful as utility blades and very easy to sharpen since they are relatively straight. I did the entire project with a dremel and sandpaper, stopping frequently to cool the blade. I cut a strip out of the blade about 1/8 inch wide so I could wrap it without the worrying about the wrap coming undone and it doubles as a lanyard hole. The handle was then dipped in plasti-dip and wrapped with jute. I figure it's a good way to carry some, I think its about 4 foot worth, and should I need to remove it the plasti-dip work well as a bare handle. Here is one last pic to show how well it fits in an altoids tin. Don't worry about the contents of the tin lacking, I don't carry one I just bought this one for the project and threw a few things in to see how well the knife fit around other items. My next project I think may be to make a simple sheath for this out of a milk jug (thanks for bringing that to my attention monsterdawg725).
Feel free to share your opinions, I have thick skin
First for those of you who are into the minimalist type of gear, the lightest cheapest thing you can make your self to fill a niche I think this will tickle your fancy. I got the idea from a lightweight backpacking website, where a guy showed a pair of thread nippers he had cut down and sharpened for a makeshift scalpel or small utility blade. First is just the first link that popped up in google shopping for the items to give you an idea what kind of expense you are looking at. I bought mine on the bay in a pack of six from a seller that specialized in sewing equipment, for even less per pair.
http://www.findingking.com/p-5831-thread-nippers-4-18.aspx?ref=base
Now you will notice they are a very simple pair of scissors and very inexpensive. But cut them in half and you have two minimalist type knives that could be used for countless tasks. Here is a photo showing my before and after. The small knife in the picture is my other project and I will explain it later.
The plastic residue on the bottom one is Plasti-dip, after dipping the handles of these small knives, it gave me much better control with them.
They come sharpened on one side like most scissors so really all I did was cut them in half then sharpen the side that was flat til it was shaving sharp. The bottom one I actually did some mods to while drooling over the AH-1's. You can see I cut a barb into much like an arrow-head, and since these are screwed into the handles they have two holes that would work great for lashing with sinew, floss tape, or other small cordage.
For size comparisons I took a few photos first is the smaller one in an altoids smalls tin.
Then the full length one inside the lid of a regular altoids tin, the small metal round thing underneath is a magnet used to keep the fire card attached to the lid as well as this blade.
I don't mean to take any glory from the AH-1's, as I will be buying a few, and the quality is no where near the same. I just think these are a realistic option for those of us that like to have a small utility blade in everyone of our kits, and it can be done for under $10. This way too you could use them as actual arrowheads and if you lose on or two it won't be a big loss.
Now on to the knife, you will notice it USED TO BE a full size Buck knife. A diamondback model actually that served me very well as a necker/blade for my time in the Corps. It was very beat up and I had reshaped the tip a couple times after loaning it out and receiving it back tipless. Wasn't a big deal for an approximately $17 knife. Well I have seen so many tin/PSK knives on here but just couldn't bring myself to drop the dough on one. One day I came across this beat-up buck in some old gear and thought it was time to give it a new task. I figure it was a reliable blade in harsh time overseas so I have no doubt come harsh times when I have to break into my PSK it will do it's job. I meant to take pictures before and after but the camera battery was dead and I didn't want to hold off my work just to wait for that. So this is the finished product, it has an overall length of about 3-3/4 inches, a cutting edge length of about 1-1/2 inches, and the handle is about 2 inches.
I like wharncliffe/sheepfoot blades and find them very useful as utility blades and very easy to sharpen since they are relatively straight. I did the entire project with a dremel and sandpaper, stopping frequently to cool the blade. I cut a strip out of the blade about 1/8 inch wide so I could wrap it without the worrying about the wrap coming undone and it doubles as a lanyard hole. The handle was then dipped in plasti-dip and wrapped with jute. I figure it's a good way to carry some, I think its about 4 foot worth, and should I need to remove it the plasti-dip work well as a bare handle. Here is one last pic to show how well it fits in an altoids tin. Don't worry about the contents of the tin lacking, I don't carry one I just bought this one for the project and threw a few things in to see how well the knife fit around other items. My next project I think may be to make a simple sheath for this out of a milk jug (thanks for bringing that to my attention monsterdawg725).
Feel free to share your opinions, I have thick skin
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