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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Mud Turtle Passaround
- Thread starter heefageLA
- Start date
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- Feb 14, 2012
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guess what was waiting for me when i arrived home tonight? uuuh, the mud turtle! you guessed it!
this knife is a bigger knife than i expected. well, of course, i didn't look at any specs. and, it now occurs to me that in fogdart's family album, it was about as big as the viktim, which i'm familiar with. with that said, i like the size. and first impression is that i like the balance, as well.
fit and finish is good. i like the blade shape. the grind is right. and heath, you weren't kidding when you told me to be careful. nice edge buddy. :thumbup:
my other first impression is that i immediately want to remove the "sharp edges" of the "belly" of the handle. it hits my fingers just wrong as i grip it. there are other edges on the "top" of the handle, but they do not seem to bother my palm initially.
heath, thanks so much for sending this to me. very much look forward to putting 'er to use. i hope to get some time this weekend, though it is supposed to be very cold this weekend. and, i'm old and soft now.
this knife is a bigger knife than i expected. well, of course, i didn't look at any specs. and, it now occurs to me that in fogdart's family album, it was about as big as the viktim, which i'm familiar with. with that said, i like the size. and first impression is that i like the balance, as well.
fit and finish is good. i like the blade shape. the grind is right. and heath, you weren't kidding when you told me to be careful. nice edge buddy. :thumbup:
my other first impression is that i immediately want to remove the "sharp edges" of the "belly" of the handle. it hits my fingers just wrong as i grip it. there are other edges on the "top" of the handle, but they do not seem to bother my palm initially.
heath, thanks so much for sending this to me. very much look forward to putting 'er to use. i hope to get some time this weekend, though it is supposed to be very cold this weekend. and, i'm old and soft now.
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2015
- Messages
- 1,783
guess what was waiting for me when i arrived home tonight? uuuh, the mud turtle! you guessed it!
this knife is a bigger knife than i expected. well, of course, i didn't look at any specs. and, it now occurs to me that in fogdart's family album, it was about as big as the viktim, which i'm familiar with. with that said, i like the size. and first impression is that i like the balance, as well.
fit and finish is good. i like the blade shape. the grind is right. and heath, you weren't kidding when you told me to be careful. nice edge buddy. :thumbup:
my other first impression is that i immediately want to remove the "sharp edges" of the "belly" of the handle. it hits my fingers just wrong as i grip it. there are other edges on the "top" of the handle, but they do not seem to bother my palm initially.
heath, thanks so much for sending this to me. very much look forward to putting 'er to use. i hope to get some time this weekend, though it is supposed to be very cold this weekend. and, i'm old and soft now.
Todd, good to know it made it. That knife is still true to John's specs during fabrication. I havent tweaked anything on it other than sharpening the blade, so everyone will get a good feel for what a new one would be like if they decide to order one.
What i like best about the MT is that it is just about perfect for any situation. If i had to have ONE knife the rest of my life, it would be the MT.
Like fogdart said in the picture thread, "Utility Redefined!"
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2012
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- 5,768
No delay here. Everybody take your time. We only got a few guys to pass this around to so im not in any hurry to get it back.
I could always use the Tool, or Kephart, or Daniels GAW knife, the Scandi fighter!
ha.
thanks man.
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2012
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- 5,768
so, -20 with the wind chill out today. but, i was itching to do something. there's a small little tree outback that shouldn't really be there. so, i decided to strip a couple of its little "main" beams. my intent was to take them inside and make a couple try sticks out of them using the mud turtle.
i got them back inside, but my youngest son is home from college this weekend, and we decided to watch a movie instead. i'll get back to it tomorrow.
heath got this knife sharp, but i gave it a quick strop last night. i just had it out admiring it. this knife is definitely one that wants to be in my hand. anyway, it "limbed" those branches with ease. and, it cleaned those limbs right quick....just a touch to each. granted, the cold weather helped, but still...i was impressed.
purty
before
after
after, after. time to go back inside!
i got them back inside, but my youngest son is home from college this weekend, and we decided to watch a movie instead. i'll get back to it tomorrow.
heath got this knife sharp, but i gave it a quick strop last night. i just had it out admiring it. this knife is definitely one that wants to be in my hand. anyway, it "limbed" those branches with ease. and, it cleaned those limbs right quick....just a touch to each. granted, the cold weather helped, but still...i was impressed.
purty
before
after
after, after. time to go back inside!
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2012
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- 5,768
you did a good job, for sure. i was impressed at the edge. what sharpening system you use? based on the symmetry, i'm guessing it's not freehand...yes? i do freehand (poorly)....and, i have to admit, seeing your results certainly raised my eyebrows.
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oookay. so, cold again. but, HAD to use this Mud Turtle a bit. worked on those branches i took inside yesterday.
i'm going to post a bunch of pics. i may have something to say on certain ones. i will post a summary at the end.
getting started. ahhh the mud turtle....
took just two whacks to get through. nice....
unfortunately, i was inside today. threw a sheet down in my livingroom and worked from the couch. this pic is from the floor, when i was doing the tip work at the end (drilling through)....
finished "try stick" ...
summary:
i thought the mud turtle really did a good job at it. this is obviously not a carving knife, but i think this really is an all-around performer. i liked the balance. and, i liked the sharp belly to help carve out the notches. i think the saber grind and sharp edge would make it fine for game processing, as well.
one thing i did not like was the squared off spine (for carving). now, this is obviously a preference thing. and, if it were mine, i would just knock off the sharp edges, and i'd be in business. for those concerned about sparking a ferro rod, you could leave a squared off area.
but, i wore my thumb and bottom of my index finger raw. i tend to choke way up on the blade.
to reiterate, this was only due to sharp edges on the spine of the "blade". i had no problems with the handle. it was quite comfortable, in fact. i particularly liked working with it in the reverse grip.
edge/grind held up great. no rolls (etc) and thing was still shaving sharp after ....
and, just cuz i like comparison pics. here ya go. from top to bottom...mud turtle, fish knife, vermont hunter, pocket muk....
and oh baby, it's miller time...
heath, i've really enjoyed my time with the JK mud turtle. i like 'er. it's a bigger knife (~5" blade), but i thought it performed very well. the edge retention and reliability was great. i would not hesitate to take this thing out in the woods with me as my only knife.
thanks very much for the passaround. it's now on my list. please PM me the address of the next person....
thanks again.
-todd
i'm going to post a bunch of pics. i may have something to say on certain ones. i will post a summary at the end.
getting started. ahhh the mud turtle....
took just two whacks to get through. nice....
unfortunately, i was inside today. threw a sheet down in my livingroom and worked from the couch. this pic is from the floor, when i was doing the tip work at the end (drilling through)....
finished "try stick" ...
summary:
i thought the mud turtle really did a good job at it. this is obviously not a carving knife, but i think this really is an all-around performer. i liked the balance. and, i liked the sharp belly to help carve out the notches. i think the saber grind and sharp edge would make it fine for game processing, as well.
one thing i did not like was the squared off spine (for carving). now, this is obviously a preference thing. and, if it were mine, i would just knock off the sharp edges, and i'd be in business. for those concerned about sparking a ferro rod, you could leave a squared off area.
but, i wore my thumb and bottom of my index finger raw. i tend to choke way up on the blade.
to reiterate, this was only due to sharp edges on the spine of the "blade". i had no problems with the handle. it was quite comfortable, in fact. i particularly liked working with it in the reverse grip.
edge/grind held up great. no rolls (etc) and thing was still shaving sharp after ....
and, just cuz i like comparison pics. here ya go. from top to bottom...mud turtle, fish knife, vermont hunter, pocket muk....
and oh baby, it's miller time...
heath, i've really enjoyed my time with the JK mud turtle. i like 'er. it's a bigger knife (~5" blade), but i thought it performed very well. the edge retention and reliability was great. i would not hesitate to take this thing out in the woods with me as my only knife.
thanks very much for the passaround. it's now on my list. please PM me the address of the next person....
thanks again.
-todd
Last edited:
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Awesome Todd ! Glad you got to use it.
The sharpening system i use is an Edge Pro Apex. Its kind of pricey, but when you spend all this money on knives it only makes sense to have a good way to sharpen them. Thats a 23 degree bevel on the MT. Ive found that any larger than that, say 25 degrees, it gets dull rather quick, and any smaller than that, say 21 degrees, and the edge tends to roll when used really hard. 23 degrees is perfect for an outdoors knife.
Thanks for all your input. Ill most likely smooth down the sharp spine where it tore up your thumb and leave it 'sharp' down toward the tip for sparking a ferro rod.
Ill PM the next guy in line and get you that shipping address.
The sharpening system i use is an Edge Pro Apex. Its kind of pricey, but when you spend all this money on knives it only makes sense to have a good way to sharpen them. Thats a 23 degree bevel on the MT. Ive found that any larger than that, say 25 degrees, it gets dull rather quick, and any smaller than that, say 21 degrees, and the edge tends to roll when used really hard. 23 degrees is perfect for an outdoors knife.
Thanks for all your input. Ill most likely smooth down the sharp spine where it tore up your thumb and leave it 'sharp' down toward the tip for sparking a ferro rod.
Ill PM the next guy in line and get you that shipping address.
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YC is next on the list.
YC, shoot me an email with your shipping address and ill pas it along to Todd. Thanks
Email: heefage07@yahoo.com
YC, shoot me an email with your shipping address and ill pas it along to Todd. Thanks
Email: heefage07@yahoo.com
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- Feb 14, 2012
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- 5,768
cool. thanks for the info on the apex pro. maybe i should take a look at it. and, that's what i'd do with the spine too; though, it makes it a bit more clumsy to spark with (the closer you get to the tip). i would say test sparking it prior to rounding the spine, so you find the right "spot". probably goes without saying.
anyway...thanks again Heath for the chance to use the JK Mud Turtle. really appreciate it. :thumbup:
EDIT: you know what? as i think about this more, the problem perhaps could be solved by rounding just one edge. you may be able to get away with that. when i use a pushcut, i am generally pushing on the right-hand edge of the spine (picture me holding the knife in my right-hand), if that makes any sense. in my mind, if i were to flip it over to spark a ferro rod, i believe i would be using the left-hand side of the spine. now i want to test this theory. hmmm...i may have that backwards. maybe i push on the left-edge of the spine (the underside of the edge angle).
or heck, maybe i do push on both edges! lol. anyway, you get the point. just something to consider....
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Email sent. Actually I sent it twice, because I forgot to provide my given name (mail lady and wife might think a package to YC strange).
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Great. I'm lookin forward to this, but no need to brave the storm to ship it. Take your time and be safe.
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thanks man. wouldn't be that big o' deal, except that i'm at my lady's house this week, and the knife is at my house...couple towns away. so, prob won't make it back til thursday. i'll keep you posted....