My History Of Knives Here At BF

[kingsqueak]

Digging through drawers to find old friends...still missing two, a Spyderco, all stainless, small thing, can't recall the model and an old Barlow. I'll find them eventually.

Top is some non-descript skinner that is now shaving sharp. Markings are "Precise stainless steel hand crafted" Aitor Spain. It's seen a bunch of deer for sure, but I can't figure out where the sheath went. I think it will be my first Kydex experiment as it isn't very useful right now without a sheath ;-). (Turns out from Googling, Aitor Precise weren't all that bad a p.o.s., explains why it takes a nice edge).

Next one down is a Gerber Magnum LST. Basic lockback. Very solid lock on it, ugly blocky handle with very nice deep finger grooves. This thing has cleaned a _ton_ of deer and was another very sure grip when completely drenched in blood. I forgot I still had this one. Ugly, but very utilitarian.

Next one down, another I forgot I still had. A Craftsman (not sure who made them for them, but it's very nicely made) from the late 80's, slippie. This one didn't even really need the quickie 1000 grit polish I gave it. Was utterly corroded and gross until i cleaned it up but the blades were still perfectly sharp.

Somewhere around is a small Schrade slip joint with two blades and stag handles...I hope I can find that one. It was taken from me at six yrs old in school...they were oppressing EDC even back then .

 

[kingsqueak]

Mr UPS has been busy again.

I added a CRKT folding razel to the pile and really really like it. For the money it is very solid and the steel is as nice as the ringed model...so once I reprofiled the miserably unbalanced factory bevels, the thing is razor sharp. Both are holding their edges well too for general cutting use that I've put them through. Of my growing pile this has been my EDC for a good week or so now and I think it may wind up being 'the' EDC for me.

I just got this one in too, found a leftover Buck 655 short Nighthawk with the plain blasted blade for $35. I couldn't pass it up. I was mulling over a fixed field blade for general use and looked at ESEEs, Bark Rivers, Moras, I was all over the map. I realized that the amount of use I would give it, this Buck when I found it should be perfect.

It's got a very heavy blade on it, length is just right for my taste and should take a lot of abuse. The sheath really is crappy. The only retention it has is the thumb strap, period. Though I can't carry this in the open around here anyway so it will be living inside a pack...so it's not as big of an issue for me. I may try making my first Kydex for this knife as it's a perfect test case.

The handle for me is pure utility. Yeah it's a bit ugly, but I have large hands and it's very comfortable, very functional. I like it a lot. If it had a lanyard hole it would be perfect.

I also got my first strop. I've never used a strop before so I figured I would give it a go. Really, anyone reading this, if you don't have a strop GO GET ONE. It was totally the missing link in my sharpening. I take edges up to 1000 on the Edge Pro generally and now stropping them for just a dozen or so per side....it's yet another level of sharp.

I took this Buck with the gritty factory edge and just stropped it two dozen or so times a side and now it's as sharp as I would need on a thick heavy blade like this one. Stropping, I'm sold, what a huge difference. I also took a few blades and just touched them up on the strop and they are good to go again. Will save a lot of metal where I might have been using the stones on the blade again.

 

[kingsqueak]

So I retitled this post and will keep poking it as I get new toys or generally add new ideas to my collecting.

First, thanks to BF, I've simply learned a ton here in a very short time. The chat group #bladeforums.com on I think the Newnet IRC network have been great too. More people should check out this chat, particularly in the evenings starting around 8pm Eastern or so.

I went to my very first custom knife show, the NYCKS. It was great. Interesting on many levels for me and I got a major adjustment in perspective out of attending.

I'd never really seen true custom knives, particularly not in any quantity and definitly no custom folders (I have a bit of a 'problem' with folders...I just like them). Being able to handle a good number of them, particularly a few that I had my eye on, answered a lot more questions than any pictures or postings/reviews could do for me.

I discovered there are wild variations in fit/finish/quality across knives that are all very similarly priced in the $600 range. It was a bit of a shocker honestly. Some very 'legendary' knives, when I finally got to play with them are really not at all what I expected and frankly I have some $150 factory models with far better fit, finish and function to them. I won't name them here, I generally don't like to ever knock anyone's handiwork. Even the worst of them are lifetimes better than I could ever do.

I will make a specific note about two of many really excellent makers I saw there. I got to handle a 'real' Crawford Kasper vs the two CRKTs I now own. What a remarkable difference. The original 'real' one is a piece of industrial art.

Also Ohta's slip joints just blew me away. It's the truly subtle differences in finish and fit detail that make a knife 'pop' and he definitely puts in the time and skill to do that. I never though I'd want a slippie so much...his are fantastic.

It all just put my budget and want list in more perspective. I realized that buying production knives is really in my best interest right now. I'm in a tool collection phase that is almost completed. With affordable, well made blades, I can get work done, fiddle and play without any care for scratching them up or 'depreciation'.

I'm not in a place where starting a safe queen collection makes any sense. I can also always go to shows and read the forums just to see what people come up with as simply seeing the designs people make is a big enough part of the hobby to me.

Looking forward to my next shows and I really want to look into making my own, doing modifications and I'd love to get my hands on some forging to give that a try. This is all a curiosity for me, a nice distraction from my day to day living in a sea of cubicles. An old interest that I'd almost forgotten about and glad that I've found again.

 

[kingsqueak]

So I've found it a bit annoying to use the EdgePro on blades much over 5". it's all me, but I just don't let the blade rest well on long blades and blow the consistency of the edge with the blade rocking up and down.

So I picked up the Ultimate Woodworker's sharpening set from sharpeningsupplies.com. The kit consists of

10" DMT Duo-Sharp in x-coarse/coarse with the stand
Norton water stones in 1k 4k/8k

I also added one of their Xl sized paddle strops too.

I just did my first blade on it, a rather cheap kitchen knife and it's by far the best edge I've put on a big knife yet. I can just huck shards off a paper with no trouble.

I'd say the edge is about 85% where I want it to be but it's yet another step. I can draw a micro fine strip off a business card with the full edge, but there are still one or two spots that are juuust shy of fully push cutting sheet paper and will catch a bit.

I've never had a proper set of water stones before and was surprised at how soft the 4k/8k stone was so I quickly corrected and just let the blade lay on it with little added pressure at all. Very happy so far with the results.

 

[kingsqueak]

I couldn't resist playing with a few Moras so I fired off the requisite order and got the following as my intro.

Top to bottom

Mora clipper in carbon
Mora Hi-Q All around in stainless (I think that's the one I got)
Mora Small filet
Mora Filet knife

Very happy with all of them. Didn't even need to touch a stone with them, simply just stropped them all well and they are now the sharpest blades along with my CRKT razels that I own. Really really sharp.

The clipper fits in the outside pocket of my Max jumbo versipack perfectly too. Perfect.

The clipper and the HiQ have nice sturdy blades for general use and are comfortable in all sorts of grips which I like a lot.

The short filet is flexy but in a medium way so it will work for some boning and that sort of use too.

The big filet is very flexible, a really nice true filet blade.

All the stainless are more for around the kitchen and house.

 

[Big Bo]

king, did you sharpen/polish the Rajah II? Pics?

I have a Rajah II and I need a sharpening system for it.

 

[kingsqueak]

No, I've stropped it a bit on a flat strop the best I could but haven't done anything else yet.

The EdgePro I could get the narrow stones to do it, but I haven't yet. virtuovice has vids on youtube sharpening a Rajah using the narrow stones.

A Spyderco Sharpmaker or other rod type system would also work.

I love the knife, but really, recurve blades are a pain in that you need something narrow to sharpen them with.

Luckily it's still quite sharp though.

The thing I was pondering that I think would work great is emery cloth wrapped around a wood dowel. I just haven't found a local source where I can get nice fine grits in an assortment yet. I need to look for an autobody shop.