Need advice for custom forged hunting knife

I

islander123

Joined
Feb 23, 2021
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Hey all!

It will be our 10 year wedding anniversary this August and I am wanting to give my husband an extraordinary, one of a kind, gift. He is an avid hunter/camper/outdoorsman, also he is in the military.
I am looking for a knife that would be perfect for his lifestyle, he has dozens of knives but I want this one to be his favorite lol Gorgeous handle (bone/naturally stained hardwood with a metal accent?) ... (the handle on this knife is GORGEOUS), full tang, strong, maybe a small engraving of an X for 10, will be used for gutting/skinning animals so needs to be able to be sharpened, will possibly also live on his belt at work. I would describe it as the most awe-inspiring utility/hunting/camping never you ever did see.

Does anyone have any advice on how to describe what I am looking for and who may be up to such a task?

Thanks so much :)
 
Welcome to the Forum. It's really great that you know what you want. Forged definitely eliminates a lot of very good makers. I would look at Phillip Patton's work, I recently got a forged camp knife from him. I'm pretty sure he can make what you want and probably suggest a way to incorporate an X. He's on this forum and is really easy to deal with, here's a recent post he made featuring his last years output:

2020 year in review | BladeForums.com
 
Win Heger said:
Welcome to the Forum. It's really great that you know what you want. Forged definitely eliminates a lot of very good makers. I would look at Phillip Patton's work, I recently got a forged camp knife from him. I'm pretty sure he can make what you want and probably suggest a way to incorporate an X. He's on this forum and is really easy to deal with, here's a recent post he made featuring his last years output:

2020 year in review | BladeForums.com
Click to expand...

Thank you! Phillip looks like he has some very nice work :)
You mentioned that Forged eliminates a lot of very good makers, how do other makers create knives without forging? Sorry, not super knowledgeable about knife making, just a collector!
 
I'll second Phillip's work. Had a custom done by him recently. He is easy to communicate with and is quick on the turn around.
Some knives are just stock removal ergo grind it out of flat bar stock. Quality is just as good, nothing to worry about there.
Phillip forges his own Damascus and his wood handles are spectacular too! Check out his Instagram page for a full show of his talents.. My knife is a stock removal Damasteel rose pattern blade with green canvas micarta handles and two kiridashi's with the leftover steel..

Good luck. There is so much good talent out there!IMG_20210109_132334.jpg IMG_20210121_183054.jpg IMG_20210109_132400.jpg
 
jfk1110 said:
I'll second Phillip's work. Had a custom done by him recently. He is easy to communicate with and is quick on the turn around.
Some knives are just stock removal ergo grind it out of flat bar stock. Quality is just as good, nothing to worry about there.
Phillip forges his own Damascus and his wood handles are spectacular too! Check out his Instagram page for a full show of his talents.. My knife is a stock removal Damasteel rose pattern blade with green canvas micarta handles and two kiridashi's with the leftover steel..

Good luck. There is so much good talent out there!View attachment 1515557 View attachment 1515558 View attachment 1515559
Click to expand...

Thank you! Looks like Phillip really does some nice work :)
 
If you are willing to wait, I definitely recommend Danijel from Malanika. I waited about 5 months for my hunter and the craftsmanship is A+ and the leather sheath retains the knife so well. He comes up on Google and you can search YouTube for some vids. I got mine with wood handle cru-wear steel and a leather sheath, the cost is about 325$ shipped from Croatia.

Edit: he's on the custom maker part of this forum as well and sometimes he posts stuff for immediate sale it seems.

Good luck!
 
I'd recommend John Doyle - his work is killer, and he's a super nice guy. Not sure if he is taking orders though...

Bill
 
Also from Croacia there’s Dalibor, from Daliborknives. He can make you a hunting knife in 52100 or in ball bearings from an Hellcat tank turret. He is the nicest person to talk with, he has great attention to fit and finish and his heat treatment is spot on! I have an edc made from those Hellcat bearings and can’t say enough good things about his work. I also have a giant 5160 steel cleaver made by him and it’s a mass destruction instrument! No wood is hard enough to stop that thing.
 
Sorry Hugo but I'm afraid you've never skinned an animal.
Dalibor is my neighbor and friend, thank you for your kind words but it seems to me that you have miss the topic ... the hunting knife that is supposed to do the job needs to retain its sharpness and the 52100 cannot achieve even 10% of what modern steels offer.
CATRA-4-27-2020-2.jpg

And you ma'am, the shoes you can't walk in are also Gorgeous ...
given how you described your esteemed husband I think he would appreciate the tool he uses more than it just looks nice ... and a compromise is possible to make it look nice and purposeful.
All the best for the wedding anniversary
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/4-fixeds.1774807/
 
Last edited:
Hello! Never skinned an animal, but I’ve allways regarded 52100 as a steel that retains it’s sharpness for a good time. And I recall reading that at least one of the makers suggested above used 80crv2 on his hunters, so 52100 seems more than capable! Even not being a hunter, animals are dirt and those dirt may cause microchipping in those “super” steels. Of course, the OP can give Fredrik Haakonsen a call (another great guy to deal with) and he will make her husband a hunter in Vanadis 4 extra, hardened to 66hrc and it will keep its sharpness forever (cutting soft materials)! But wasn’t the knife forged? Good luck forging “super” steels!:D

chumaman said:
Sorry Hugo but I'm afraid you've never skinned an animal.
Dalibor is my neighbor and friend, thank you for your kind words but it seems to me that you have miss the topic ... the hunting knife that is supposed to do the job needs to retain its sharpness and the 52100 cannot achieve even 10% of what modern steels offer.
CATRA-4-27-2020-2.jpg

And you ma'am, the shoes you can't walk in are also Gorgeous ...
given how you described your esteemed husband I think he would appreciate the tool he uses more than it just looks nice ... and a compromise is possible to make it look nice and purposeful.
All the best for the wedding anniversary
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/4-fixeds.1774807/
Click to expand...
 
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