Marbles and Fox N Hound Damascus

timsclips

timsclips

Joined
Nov 27, 2007
Messages
610
I have seen inexpensive damascus bladed knives from these two companies both on ebay and also some online stores. I have seen one honest retailer actually state that the Fox N Hound folding damascus knife is from Pakistan. I am assuming the Marbles knives are from China or also from Pakistan. Has anyone out there handled or actually bought either of these knives? Do not expect high quality custom made fit and finish, more interested in the quality of the blade itself. On my budget I can not look at the custom level damascus knives but I would like to experience the difference from a standard knife blade.
On a related matter, I have not seen much good said of the damascus bladed offerings from Bear and Sons or the previous manufacturer Parker.
 
For some reason, inquiries about Damascus here go largely unanswered. I suspect very few people here have ordered the F&H or no name Damascus knives. I can tell you Bear & Son makes a good knife, but though they have some 500 layers (good), they do it in random patterns (bad). Thus you have a servicable, but not gorgeous, knife.

Most of the truly beautiful knives I've seen are priced $200+. If you want a knife for display purposes only, go with any of them that strike your fancy. It doesn't really matter where it's made if it's done right, and price, unfortunately, may be your only indicator.

If you want a fine example, it's better to buy a small knife at a higher price than a large, heavy piece that is welded potmetal and steel.

BRWSB01D.jpg
AK02.jpg

Bear & Son knives are decent, but their patterns......................This no-name brand is cheap, but purty. Probably not a user.
look more like fingerprints than anything else.
 
its ok
the brass guard is loose and the blade has a shinny sealent that i hate.
I am going to sell it on e-bay (thats how i found this post actually).
Its made in Pakistan.
but what do you expect for less than $50?

I also bought this one and like it a lot better.
http://damascusknifestore.safewebshop.com/damascus_hunter_fixed_blade_knife.html

$38.95


Damascus Hunter Fixed Blade Knife
Model AK05.

9" closed length. 4 1/2" Raindrop Pattern Damascus Steel Blade. Hardwood handle. Nickel Silver guard and pommel. Comes with Brown Leather belt sheath.
thats about as good as you can get for that price.
 
Damascus is expensive stuff so cheap versions must be for a reason....ersatz fake versions.

Having said that, the Mcusta Damascus folder I have is not too expensive and seems very well made (like their other knives)

As for Fox&Hound I don't have anything in Damascus from them but I do have a stag lockback that is a wonderful small pocket mate and very well finished too. It gets a lot of EDC. Cheap knives (Opinel, Moras etc)can be really excellent knives but cheap Damascus isn't, because it isn't Damascus! save up, you won't regret it.
 
I bought a factory second blade blank to make a bowie with. I later discovered it was a Fox N' Hound brand blade....

Shiny sealant on blade is removable... However, keep it clean and oiled.
It WILL rust if you give it half a chance. However, that is true of almost all damascus and other high carbon steel blades.

We who are in love with knives won't have a problem lovingly cleaning and oiling our blades though.

The temper on the blade is not what you'd expect from even cheap stainless. Expect a softer edge. The upshot of this is incredible ease of sharpening. (I got mine WAY more than hair popping sharp) It has an edge comparable to my antique straight razor. Super easy to sharpen, but you have to do it more often.

I have no idea exactly how often though... I sold the knife... I will ask the buyer to provide me with some feedback if he ends up using it at all (it was sold as a display piece, but he's the kind of bloke who won't be able to leave it on the stand for long).

I am not sure, but I believe one of the steels to be 1085 (or so)... Not bad at all. However, the other steel used is almost certainly crap.
Cheap damascus is not as poor quality as you might expect. The expense in damascus comes from the labor and skill involved. Skilled labor in Pakistan/India/China is cheap and plentiful (there are more than 4,000,000,000 people in those three countries alone.

High quality damascus from Asia is routinely available on line for less than half the price of US counterparts. There is a reason that outsourcing is so popular.
 
I think that current damascus blades should be differentiated between full damascus and damascus clad. The Kanetsune is the damascus clad type and the pakistani versions in ebay are full damascus type. I do beleive the damascus clad variety offer better cutting performance than full damascus type generally if you were to search in ebay.
 
Just got my fox n hound small game knife today and it is made in Pakistan. At first glance it looked like a really nice knife, but upon further inspection I noticed that the guard and pommel are simply glued on and the handle scales are un-even and are not flush with the tang. The blade looks good and sharpened up nice, The leather sheath on the other hand is heavy duty and very well made. Pictures coming soon!
 
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