Making a slipjoint your own?

I guess I don't have anything new to add. With my new Case knives, which usually have really coarsely ground bevels and a nasty burr, first stop is the sharpening stones and the strop to put a decent edge on them. Once they are sharp, then it's time for a good cleaning.

I use a silicone spray to get the gunk out of the joints and use a wooden stick and some cloth to get down inside the liners and scrub. Then depending on how it looks, I'll polish the blades and bolsters with Simichrome and finish up with a coat of Renaissance Wax. Now that the knife looks as pretty as it is ever going to, in the pocket it goes if it's going to be a user.

I let use and routine maintenance take care of the "getting to know it" phase, plus the ritual drawing of the blood which seems to occur sometimes in the first two weeks or so. It's why I keep band aids around.
 
Sounds all very familiar! My parents lost the 'fruit/picknick' knife (a SAK) on their last trip so I bought them a new one. Once home I cleaned it, oiled the joint and removed a small burr from the edge. Now it is ready for them.
 
I'm in the camp that won't carry a knife I haven't sharpened. And I clean the assembly gunk out of the joints as well. Do a little fine tuning if the kick needs filed, ect.

But these alone won't make it "mine".

It is hard to describe but I usually don't initially get attached to knives. Sometimes it just never happens at all. But when I do it usually involves having the scales polish down in my pocket and the blades get an honest, well earned patina. Having the bone start to shine up and see the changes from the months spent in my pocket is one of the things that makes me value it and keep carrying it. Same for the patina. It's probably why although I will purchase a knife now and again for my collection I don't have a large EDC rotation and don't knife hop.

Will
 
Oil em up and blow compressed air through it. Then put my freehand edge to it and scratch the bolster ever so slighty with another blade. Then its good to go.
 
For myself I don't have any particular thing I do to make a knife feel like my own, it just comes down to using it enough. The more I use it, the more a bond develops between me and a knife. Now, if I'm using a new knife at work, cutting a few plastic straps or some plastic wrap doesn't really do it, not quickly anyways. Touching a blade to a plastic strap and having it cut apart so quickly doesn't do much, even if I use my knives a fair bit at work. That sort of use takes much time to make me develop a connection.

From the various things I use my knives for, food prep and cutting wood make a knife feel like mine the quickest. Whether it's carving something in particular (although I've only just gotten into whittling and haven't done much yet) or just whittling a big piece of wood into shavings, it brings me to understand the knife and feel it's mine. Food prep is the other one, and I think is what really makes me feel a knife is mine. Whether cutting up meat, cheese, or slicing fruit/veggies, it's personal. The things I cut up and then eat are literally becoming part of me, which is why I think it develops that bond. I don't mean this in a spiritual sense or a "gain your enemies strength by eating his heart" type of thing, although it does sound a bit silly I know, but I think that's something we can all understand. Or maybe not. *shrugs*. Sitting there eating an apple, carving off a slice, holding the slice in the same hand that's holding the knife, and eating that slice, both satisfying my hunger while at the same time seeing the blade darken and pattern as the patina forms, that's what makes me feel a bond with a knife.

The knives I don't really use on wood or food are nice to look at but feel foreign, alien to me. No bond there. Probably no sense of lose if they were to be lost or damaged. Maybe there'd be a pang of guilt/annoyance at having wasted money on a knife that didn't see much use, but that's about it.
 
Last edited:
The only thing I do to make a knife my own is to reprofile to my sharpening methods and let the patina grow naturally.
 
When I first get a new knife I make sure it's got a decent edge on it. I also deburr any sharp corners to avoid wearing holes thru my pocket. Otherwise no real changes, I just start using and enjoying it :)
 
ElCuchillo said:
Honestly, the only thing I do to make my knives my own is USE them. Memories and stories are what make my knives personal.
Click to expand...

yep, thats it. part of the process is of course sharpening them and cleaning them as they get dirty and whatnot. but carrying and using a knife is what makes it mine. there is no substitute and no shortcut for time spent.
 
RobbW said:
took me to his backyard and showed me a fig tree that looks 30-40 years old.

The secret, he told me, is that every winter he buries the tree 6' under. He just excavates one side of the ground and leans the tree over with whatever roots are still attached, covers the tree with plywood, and piles on the dirt. Evidently the soil that deep never freezes and the tree is safe until Spring. He even had a write-up in the local paper showing his tree and demonstrating the burial process.
Click to expand...

My Italian grandfather did something similar with his fig tree. He would tie up all the branches and then encase the entire tree in leaves, mulch and compost and wrap it all up in plastic during the winter. In think he had it for 15 years.

As for making a knife my own, if it's a new used knife I clean it up as well as I can and oil the pivot. If it's brand new I carry it exclusively for a month. Using it whenever I can.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top