Eleven Bravo: Because Precision Matters.

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OneOneBravo

Joined
Jan 7, 2007
Messages
50
Psalm 144:1
"Blessed be the LORD my GOD, who teacheth my hands to war..."
Psalm 144:1



A little background:

I am a former US Army enlisted Infantryman, and a current retired Trauma/General Surgeon. I put my two loves together and decided to make knives, not for survival, or bushcraft, but, plain and simple, to confront the enemy. I put my countless hours in the Operating Room repairing hideous injuries, and my experiences in the Jungles of Panama, as an Infantryman, in to every knife design. I have managed to put together a small shop within the last year and am proud to show my first two handmade knives. As some of you know, it has been a long process getting things just right. All my knives have what I call a Scalpel grind, which is a modified Scandi grind, a very under utilized grind, on the battlefield, in my opinion. It is stronger than a hollow grind, and sharper than a convex grind, not to mention, it is very easy to maintain, at night, when the moon is out, and you barley have enough energy to powder your feet and oil your battle rifle.

The large one is called the Eleven Bravo, and the smaller, O'Dark Thirty. O'Dark Thirty is a utility blade, for opening MRE's, or cutting chores in and around your hooch. It is meant to be a companion blade to its bigger brother, but in a pinch, is a rather intense slasher in it's own right. The Eleven Bravo is patterned after a Number 11 Scalpel blade, which is used in Minimally Invasive Laparoscopic Surgery to puncture holes in the skin in order to pass narrow surgical instruments. The knife has a blade optimized to penetrate living tissue, and in particular, the thoracic cavity. It will simply dissect the ribcage, bone and all, and easily penetrate the vital organs of the mid thorax. The blade is long enough to reach the Abdominal Aorta, that lies in the posterior abdomen, from a frontal stab wound. The blade is specially ground with both a forehand edge and a reversehand edge to be used in an overhead attack, or the more discreet, under-waist attack, from below, which is much harder to see and defend against. The knife will leave such a wound, that the enemy will likely expire, even if he is standing next to a Trauma Surgeon. The blade is designed to place tension on the wound and then sever what it penetrates. It will preform when the chips are down, and your battle rifle is out of commission. It is to be kept sheathed, and kept sharp for just such a time as it is needed to end a potential deadly encounter with your foe. It is not a pry bar. It needs to be treated like the fine instrument that it is. The Eleven Bravo is for close combat, plain and simple.

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Thank You for looking.




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Below, I have provided a link to a video I shot a few days ago of my newly finished home knifeshop. Thank you for watching. Miguel

[video=youtube;1nsJtv9j4BQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nsJtv9j4BQ&context=C2d9b2ADOEgsToPDskK1MHNJE2dqM_vjNhVCptEL[/video]
 
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Hats off to you sir! Sounds like you have the credentials for producing such an item as this and that is what will very quickly develop a following for you. I hope to see more of your work on here in the future.

Kaleb
 
Thank you, Sir. That is a really kind compliment. I hope you are right. I enjoy making them. I hope my knives can find a needed niche. :D
 
Very unique knives! I like your "out of the box", thinking. Very creative and looks like they'll do what they're supposed to do very, very well.
 
The knives that you are building are very clean and looks like you have a good eye for detail.I like the Eleven Bravo,if the top swedge was not sharpened would make a great edc,with the top swedge sharpened would need to come with a surgeon to close up the wounds from the owners cutting themslves HAHA.I hope you stay busy with order,you have a winning duo.
Thanks,
Michael
 
Thank you very much Guys.

The Eleven Bravo is 5/32" 1095, coyote G10 scales. The blade is 5 3/4" and 10 1/2" OAL. It has and intersecting, blended, Scalpel grind.

O'Dark Thirty is 1/8" 1095, with black Micarta (Lon gave me the Micarta). The blade is 3 3/4" and 6 1/2 OAL. It has a compound, near blade hollow, and far blade scalpel, chisel grind. I wanted the thinness and sharpness of a hollow grind on the near blade, with more strength at the tip, with a Scalpel grind. I made it a chisel grind to eak a little more sharpness out of it. I have since changed the grind to full Scalpel chisel.
 
Could you be a little more upfront about this grind of yours. You say "It is stronger than a hollow grind, and sharper than a convex grind"

Well, that's means it's a flat grind of some sort or some combination grind, which is certainly not unheard of around here. Any grind (in the simplest of terms) can only be some combination of those three; flat, concave (hollow) or convex. That's geometry for you.


Speaking only for myself, I have never held a surgical scalpel, and have no idea what sort of grind they put on them. If I had to guess though, I would say it's the easiest grind they can to get it as sharp as necessary, which to me means a full chisel grind. One grind all the way to zero. Especially in these days of disposable implements. That doesn't necessarily means it's a bad thing. I just bought a chisel grind Fairly bushcraft knife from this forum. I also EDC an Emerson mini CQC-7B, another chisel grind (with secondary grind).

They are very good looking knives, and it certainly seems you've put a lot of thought into them.
 
And as a former Infantryman. Did you have to use your knife often for stabbings of people? Just wondering since that's what you seem to put the emphasis on with the bigger knife.
 
I also have an Emerson CQC7A and B and its Benchmade counterpart. The chisel grind on it was the inspiration for my O'Dark Thirty, except the scalpel grind does not have a secondary bevel. I Love'em.
 
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LX_Emergency said:
And as a former Infantryman. Did you have to use your knife often for stabbings of people? Just wondering since that's what you seem to put the emphasis on with the bigger knife.
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It's a purpose built knife. If you want a 1/4" pry-bar, there are plenty of other makers that will hook you up.
 
Don't get me wrong. I'm not being sarcastic. I'm honestly asking. You obviously claim knowledge of what an infantryman needs. And what you make with that expertise is a clear cut weapon. (according to you), not a tool. So I'm just curious. I've never been in the armed forces so I'm honestly asking....is a weapon like that needed?

Regards
Alexander
 
One One Bravo,

From one army man to another, thank you for your service to this country. Your knives look good, and I agree that your grind is easy to maintain in the field. I do have a couple of questions, however (and keep in mind I was a k-bar guy), your knives don't have guards. Are you concerned that a forceful thrust could result in a guy cutting himself? And second, the point looks very finely ground, almost as thin as the Fairbairn Sykes blade, which as I'm sure you know there are reports of tip breakage. Have you tested the knife to ensure the tips can stand up to heavy thrusting into clothes, vests, etc? just a few questions, and I hope you don't mind. Also, congratultions on a wonderful introduction into this forum. I wish you well.

regards,

Dave
 
OneOneBravo said:
The Scalpel Grind

The Scalpel Grind is a wide flat bevel that runs to the edge of the blade. There is no secondary bevel. The angle is engineered to match the quality of the steel and intended use. The result is a very keen edge, which is more durable than a hollow ground profile, and only slightly less durable than a convex profile.

The advantage is that it can be resharpened until the blade is worn away, without changing the angle of the edge. No jigs or other gadgets are required. All that is required is to lay the bevel flat to the stone, and work the entire surface of the bevel. It forms it's own guide. This requires some patience, but minimal skill. This is the ideal form on the battlefield, where everyone is expected to use and maintain a knife regularly. It's also ideal if you expect to sharpen your knife in the field, and don't want to carry a tool kit around.

In use, you will probably find that the flat bevels give you better control of the cut. It is this increased cutting precision, and simplicity of razor edge maintenance, that make the Scalpel grind a superior choice on the battlefield.

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Thank you for the reply.

Around these forums they typically call that a "scandi" grind. I also just saw your image code, and it appears you already knew that ;)

I am a fan of the scandi grind too for all the reasons you mention.



I would also mention that there is already a knife on the market called the 11Bravo (EnTrek), but it's nothing like yours. Just something to think about.
 
LX_Emergency said:
Don't get me wrong. I'm not being sarcastic. I'm honestly asking. You obviously claim knowledge of what an infantryman needs. And what you make with that expertise is a clear cut weapon. (according to you), not a tool. So I'm just curious. I've never been in the armed forces so I'm honestly asking....is a weapon like that needed?

Regards
Alexander
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If someone thinks they would need a knife like that, then they can ask me for one. The Battle Rifle is the primary weapon. If you are down to a knife, you're screwed. The Eleven Bravo will penetrate. It may give the one holding it an edge over the one who is not. That's my hope, anyway. Knife engagements are not typical on the battlefield. You are correct in alluding to that.
 
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David Stifle said:
One One Bravo,

From one army man to another, thank you for your service to this country. Your knives look good, and I agree that your grind is easy to maintain in the field. I do have a couple of questions, however (and keep in mind I was a k-bar guy), your knives don't have guards. Are you concerned that a forceful thrust could result in a guy cutting himself? And second, the point looks very finely ground, almost as thin as the Fairbairn Sykes blade, which as I'm sure you know there are reports of tip breakage. Have you tested the knife to ensure the tips can stand up to heavy thrusting into clothes, vests, etc? just a few questions, and I hope you don't mind. Also, congratultions on a wonderful introduction into this forum. I wish you well.

regards,

Dave
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Thank you for your service, Sir.

Thank you for the great questions. These were two issue I spent a long time in trying to address with my design.

There is a fine line of balance between safety and performance. Your hand will not slip. If you close your fist around that grip, it is impossible for your hand to slip. The grip is designed to lock your hand in. It has a very deep front choil, and a very aggressive pattern on the handle. The knife is dangerous, and meant for a skilled operator. It is dangerous, much in the same way as a Fighter Jet is dangerous. If you operate it correctly, and with skill, you will never get hurt, and it will be one of the deadliest knives on the battlefield, hands down. Dangerous tools, like dangerous people, require the operator to exist in the danger zone. This knife will flat out preform. Period. The chance of getting cut is minimized if you grip the knife firmly and allow the handle to do it's job. Sure, as with any knife, the potential exist to get seriously hurt. This knife is no different. I understand your concern, and attempted to address it with the handle design. As a surgeon who has repaired many hand injuries, operator safety was a primary concern factored in to my handle design. That's why it looks a little funny. It's a good design. If you ever get one in your hand, you'll agree.

On your second point. There is also a fine line of balance between strength/durability and penetration ability. I could not make my knife 1/4" and expect it to penetrate appropriately. The first line of strength was in choosing the thickness of the steel. I opted for 5/32". I think that thickness is a good balance between strength and lightness, and ease of handling. The second line of strength was in choosing the Scalpel grind as my grind. It adds more metal, to the edge, over a hollow ground knife. The third line of strength was in the actual design. I left a ramp of unground metal between the two edges, at the tip. (Please See Photo Below.)

Sorry guys. But I have decided to take my pictures down because of what happened at another forum. Thank you for your kindness.

The forth line of strength was in the heat treat. It Rockwells at 57-58. I did not want it to be so hard that it became brittle. The fifth, and final, line of strength is that all my blades are Cryo'ed, which helps reduce any internal stresses in the metal itself. But yes, the blade tip, as with any blade tip, is the weakness. I did everything I possibly could to mitigate blade tip failure.

Thank you, and I hope that helps. Sorry for being so long-winded.
 
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scouter27 said:
Thank you for the reply.

Around these forums they typically call that a "scandi" grind. I also just saw your image code, and it appears you already knew that ;)

I am a fan of the scandi grind too for all the reasons you mention.



I would also mention that there is already a knife on the market called the 11Bravo (EnTrek), but it's nothing like yours. Just something to think about.
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Yes it's a Scandi, just ground a bit higher on the blade, but few people in the US know what that is, and I'm an American, not a Scandinavian, so I call it a Scalpel grind. Not many Tactical Knives are using that grind. In fact, most military people don't even know what a Scandi grind is. I was surprised to find that even knife buffs, that attend knife shows regularly, and that own many, many knives, did not know what a Scandi grind was. But, everyone knows what a Scalpel is. It immediately left an image in people's mind of precision and sharpness. I saw an opportunity to provide a more American friendly name, that was more descriptive. And since I am a surgeon, it was a perfect fit. Introducing a combat knife into the military world with terms that are easily understood is just a plain old good idea. I gave Scandi a proper mention in my initial write-up at the top of this thread. Beyond that, I wont need to mention it but to a few people that are knife experts, like the folks on this forum. To everyone else, Scalpel Grind is just cooler. :-) Thank you, Sir.

Oh! Mine is not the "11Bravo". It's the "Eleven Bravo". 11B is the MOS (Military Occupation Specialty) code for a plain old Infantrymen. EnTrek cannot possibly copy-write it. :-D
 
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Eleven Bravo,
I did more than some, less than others. Even after more than forty years have passed, those years spent in the military are some of the most significant years of my life.

Thank you for the thoughtful response to my questions. While I still like guards, I understand and fully accept your response. The handle does indeed look as if the hand locks in. I especially like the ramp at the tip, good idea, and it should add strenght to the tip. It's been a long time since the Services have had a new combat knife, perhaps the Pentagon is looking for a new, improved blade. In the meantime, you can buy a knifemaker membership on this forum, which allows you to sell knives here. This particular forum is one of, if not the most, active knive centered forums there is. There is also a subforum called Passarounds. That forum exists to evaluate knives supplied by the maker. The evaluators are usually quite knowledgable, and provide excellent feedback. Good feedback equals good name reputation and helps with sales. Yet another forum is devoted to knifemakers questions on steels, designs, heat treating, and the full gambit of knifemaking.

Good luck on this new journey,

Dave
 
David Stifle said:
Eleven Bravo,
I did more than some, less than others. Even after more than forty years have passed, those years spent in the military are some of the most significant years of my life.
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I agree. Mine too. I am still quite close with my unit brothers. They will be sending plenty of pictures, from the sandbox, with my knives in use. (I hope nobody gets arrested. LOL!) Thank you for the additional information.
 
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