My first pass-around!!

[tonym]

The kydex sheath is ugly, but actually quite functional. It holds the knife very secure. I also like the fact that the belt loop is detachable. Nice design. You can trim it a lil closer to the rivets, so it’s not so bulky IMO.



The handle and blade are a great length and width for a belt knife.



You fit the scales and liner to the tang very good. There are no gaps at all. Great job!
The contours are a lil off and maybe a lil too abrupt for me. But It looks like you had the right idea going on. It is still comfortable and very hand filling.



Other than little things like in this pic; you really did a good job finishing the knife. I really don't pay too much attention to that stuff unless I'm paying over $100 for the knife. I kind of like the flaws of a handcrafted knife, as long as it doesn't affect performance.



The edge is ok. I think you left a lil to much at the beginning of the knife. There's quite a bit of shoulders on it there. Its about perfect closer to the tip though.



Enough of my blabber, lets see how she cuts.

1st to the Bass Wood.

Was pretty good. Once you thin the edge more it won't drag as moch though.



It did well Batoning. Felt solid and didn't bind much through the Maple.





Batoning didn't hurt the edge at all, as this fuzzed up maple tells you.



It push cut just fine.

More to come.

 

[tonym]

The tip was strong. No chance of it rolling or chipping while drilling.



Like I said before. The edge closer to the tip is very good. Look at these thin slivers it made from this cedar.



Speaking of Cedar. The spine throws good sparks on the ferro rod!



In closing; the knife performed fine! Its a helluva alot better than anything I can do!
However, since you want feedback, there are some things I would change.

I mentioned the edge. Try to concentrate a lil more on the geometry closer to the handle. In this area.



The edge doesn't need to be that thick on a knife this size. I don't think anyone is gonna do any chopping with it. Test it out by feathering soft wood. If it drags alot, take it a lil thinner. I have recieved knives that cut through paper like butter, but couldn't cut wood for nothing.....

The handle is a lil too thick in the belly area for me.



I would take it down a lil bit in this area. Also see how the taper of your contours are kind of abrupt. I would smooth it out a lil bit so its not as dramatic in this area.



My last bit of nit picking is on the tip. It is strong, but I wouldn't mind it being a bit pointier.



Thats it. I really enjoyed using it. I feel the knife worked well. I just got done using a $300 scandi, so I may have been too hard on it Sorry about that. However, you're just starting out, and I think you did a great job and you're heading in the right direction. I look forward to seeing and handling more of your work!

Here's one last Glamor shot!

 

[Noshtero]

Man! I couldn't ask for a better review! Thanks soooo much for the insight. I'm furiously taking notes already for stuff to do better on my next knife.

This is fun. Can't wait for the next one!

 

[tonym]

It was a pleasure to do Noshtero.:thumbup: Thanks for taking the constructive criticism so well! Remember, I'm only one person; others may like certain things that I didn't... Most importantly when you get it back, you try it and see exactly what works and doesn't for you.:thumbup:

The knife is all cleaned up and I sharpened the hell out of her! She's about shaving now:thumbup: I did manage to slice the tip of my middle finger while cleaning her though:grumpy:

Once I get me but moving today, she'll be on her way to John G

Thanks again for having me in your passaround!

 

[Noshtero]

I really appreciate it Tony. I'll take all the criticism I can get. It's the only way to get better. I knew about a couple of the things you pointed out, like the misaligned handles, but was unable to fix them once they were done Other things you pointed out, I really didn't think about.

I gotta say, I've been extremely lucky in this knife making adventure. Whereas most guys fiddle their way through and make lots and lots of junk knives, I feel like I'm cutting to the middle of the line. John (Stomper) knocked off months of messing up by setting me down the right path to start off. Now you guys are going to give me loads of advice. I'm really lucky. Thanks again.

I'm going to be working on a 3/16" thick 6" blade for my cousin. I'm already excited to pay attention to my handle contours and edge geometry. I should probably hold off until the rest of the guys get through this pass around, but I don't think I will It's too damn much fun.

 

[Rockywolf]

Good review. I vote that Tony is no longer allowed to go first as his reviews are too good to follow. Stop setting the bar so high with 2 kinds of wood and great fuzzies! Lol.
I'm looking forward to getting the knife later this summer.

 

[Sharp Eye]

Good review. I vote that Tony is no longer allowed to go first as his reviews are too good to follow. Stop setting the bar so high with 2 kinds of wood and great fuzzies! Lol.

I second that vote.
Great review Tony.
I'm glad that I have a couple of weeks before I get the knife. It will take me that long to think of something new to say.

 

[John G]

Knife received. Thanks Tony, for the prompt delivery! I'll try and take it out this weekend, give it a little walk in the woods, maybe get it dirty.

First impressions are that this is a handy sized, if chunky, knife, the finish is rough (though my girlfriend did say "ooh, that's a pretty knife!" She then asked if she can use it too.). I like the size and shape of the blade. The handles are blocky, almost as if Noshtero was apprehensive about removing too much material? If so, I understand. I was the same when I first started wood carving. The knife feels alright in hand, but I'll see if I can work up any hotspots or other irritation during use. The sheath is rough but functional.

More to follow!

 

[MacHete]

I second that vote.
Great review Tony.
I'm glad that I have a couple of weeks before I get the knife. It will take me that long to think of something new to say.

My thoughts exactly! - and I'm right after you!

 

[John G]

John G's review of Knife 3

Let me begin by saying I am not a knife maker. I've never so much as put together a kit knife. Not yet, anyhow. I'm a knife user. I carve wood, forage for wild edibles, hike, camp, open packages, and prepare food with knives.

Nosh's third knife, affectionately dubbed Knife 3, arrived on Friday. I hit the woods with it Saturday afternoon.

Shown here side-by-side with some familiar woodcraft knives, an Ontario RAT3 and a classic Mora. Three knives, three different handles, three different grinds.

The blade appears slightly thicker than the others.

First, I cut up some small spears for self-defense against gnomes (it's that time of year!). I expected the blocky scales to give me trouble, but was suprised to find otherwise. I was able to use a variety of grips with no problem. The width of the blade gave me good control when choking up for detail work.

Next I attempted to make an Apache throwing star. I got the idea from a thread on this board, posted by Pitdog I believe. First, I cut notches in two double-ended short spears.

I tried natural cordage, but ended up reinforcing it with 550 cord.

The finished product.

Egads, it worked!

 

[John G]

After playtime was over, and all clumps of moss trembled at the sight of my prowess with a throwing star, I got back to knife testing.

Knife 3 curls wood well, with only slight drag.

I brought a block of butternut for a spoon project. I started it with my crooked knife.

Knife 3 helped with the next stage. Again, some drag when slicing thinly, but excellent when carving notches or chips.

I even carved a little chicken just for fun!

I collected the top of a dry old cattail, threw some sparks at it with my fero rod. For this task, the spine of the knife worked like a dream. You can see a small flame dancing over the top of the cattail here.

Let's not forget food prep. The cheese gave me a little resistance, but nothing to whine about. Celery and peppers sliced easily and consistently. I also carved a chicken with the knife, but neglected to snap pics before it was eaten. My bad.

And finally, a group shot for size comparison.

Knife 3 is a hard worker, if a bit rough around the edges. The grip appears squared off, and thick in the middle, but didn't hinder use and didn't give me any new blisters or hot spots. This afternoon I used it some more on my spoon project. I showed it to some buddies and eveyone agreed it didn't look like a "third knife." More like a tenth. Overall, my issues with this knife are minor, and easily improved. As novice bladesmiths go, I'd say Noshtero is far ahead of the power curve. I look forward to following his career.

Noshtero, thanks for including me in this passaround. It was lots of fun! :thumbup:

 

[Noshtero]

Awesome! Thanks so much John!

I'm furiously scratching down some more notes (actually I'm saving all these pictures and text to files and compiling a comprehensive review).

If I haven't said it a hundred times yet, thank you guys so much for doing this. I know a usual passaround gives you the chance to handle top-end knives.

 

[John G]

My pleasure, Nosh! I stopped by the post office today. Knife 3 is on it's way to Sharp Eye.:thumbup:

 

[pimpnugget]

great review john g

 

[Sharp Eye]

Knife arrived to me.
I hope the rain lets up long enough for me to do some testing this weekend.

 

[Sharp Eye]

I got outside and tried out the knife yesterday.
VERY impressive for an early effort.
I will post pics soon.

MacHete - I will get the knife out to you soon.

 

[MacHete]

MacHete - I will get the knife out to you soon.

:thumbup:

 

[Sharp Eye]

Let me start out by saying that this is a very impressive knife for an early effort.
It finally stopped raining around here for part of last weekend and I was able to get out and give the knife a little workout.
First a few beauty shots

The handle needs some work. the palm swell is too thick and extends too far to the blade side of the handle and has too acute an angle to its curvature. Still it is a lot better than anything I could have made and it did not give me any hot spots as I worked with it. It was just not as comfy as it could have been.

I gave tha knife a firemaking workout.
The well squared spine worked great for getting some shavings of fatwood. (Unfortunately, I did not get any photos of this step.)

Noshtero's knife #3 was easy to baton.

It made some nice fuzz sticks.

And with 2 strikes from a ferro rod......

Fire.

The point was a bit broad for making a nice drill hole but the knife made a decent notch without too much work.

I had a blast playing with this knife.
Thank you Noshtero for allowing us to try out this knife and to TonyM for running the passaround.

Have a great 4th of July all!

 

[Rockywolf]

Nice review, SE. Can't wait for my turn!

 

[Noshtero]

Thanks Sharp Eye! Sorry I couldn't get to replying until today. This page 4 has so damn many pictures that it crashes my internet at home everytime I try to load it. I had to wait until I got to work

Boy your overhead shot really highlights how abrupt my handle curves are. Great shot!