No frills outdoor/hunting blades

[rodriguezryan14]

https://hosting.photobucket.com/ima...89456D7B.jpeg?width=320&height=320&fit=bounds. 3 of my current knives. I don’t build these to be overly pretty, granted I’ve made some nice blades before. These are for heavy use. Mostly hunting guides and outfitters. Two in ztuff, and one in 3v. I have a like for a slight recurve to the grind, I feel it makes it easier while breaking down game, or even wood carving. The recurve seems to bite into whatever I’m cutting a little better than a straight edge. These are relatively thin on the edge. The red one is my current ztuff, hardened to 62rc. Around 15 thousands at the edge. It’s more of a test blade for me. It’s the low temper, pre quenched blade I recently made, flat convex ground. It has a terotuf handle, 1/4 inch corbys and epoxied with gflex. I’m basically beating the hell out of it to see what it can handle. Just figured I’d post some pics of some of my crappy work. Lol

 

[mobilerd]

Looks like some handy tools to me. Keep us posted.

 

[rodriguezryan14]

Looks like some handy tools to me. Keep us posted.

Thank you. Most of the people I’ve sold to don’t take care of their knives. So I have chosen function over anything. Reliability goes a long ways in the woods!

 

[Pinoy Knife]

Thank you. Most of the people I’ve sold to don’t take care of their knives. So I have chosen function over anything. Reliability goes a long ways in the woods!

if they don't take care of them why do you sell them a knife ?? how will they ever learn to take care of it ?? teach them (if they are willing to learn)
about taking care of it and making it a close well taken care of knife they can depend on.. instead of a "Hold my beer" while i beat the crap out of it thing..
none of my business either way..

 

[Ken H>]

if they don't take care of them why do you sell them a knife ??

They got money??

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Let's drop the selling/buying talk, please.

 

[rodriguezryan14]

if they don't take care of them why do you sell them a knife ?? how will they ever learn to take care of it ?? teach them (if they are willing to learn)
about taking care of it and making it a close well taken care of knife they can depend on.. instead of a "Hold my beer" while i beat the crap out of it thing..
none of my business either way..

So this is my view on that subject. I make and sell a tool, tools are to be used. I take care of my tools, but they are definitely used. Some people don’t. So I make tools that hold up to whatever it’s needed for. These guides have a job, their job is to break down an animal for their hunters. A knife to them is nothing more than a simple tool to do so. They don’t care about taking care of those tools like we do. They’ll use a rock to baton through a pelvic bone without even thinking about it. I can’t tell them what to do necessarily. I ask them to try and take care of it. I’ve had one knife retuned after being broken, in m2 steel. It snapped in half. I asked the guy what happened, he said it just broke. Of course that’s a lie, knives don’t just randomly snap in half cutting meat. So I moved away from that steel and use tougher steels now. I warrantied the knife regardless, and upgraded the steel. I know he battoned through a pelvic bone with a semi fragile steel. It is what it is. Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith i upgraded my membership, so we should be good now talking about sells. Thank you.

 

[rodriguezryan14]

They got money??

Most do. But most don’t take care of much regardless, Just another tool to them.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

I give a sheet of knife use and care instructions with my hunting/fillet/kitchen knives. It explains proper use and care as well as the abuses that should not be done.

About three or four times a year I get back a blade with the tip broken off or the handle destroyed by repeated dishwasher cleaning. The owner usually is honest and says he or his wife was prying a stuck drawer open or running it through the dishwasher often.

I repair it as needed to make it usable again. When returning it, I give them a new care and use sheet with the parts about misuse and dishwashers highlighted.

 

[EngrSorenson]

About three or four times a year I get back a blade with the tip broken off or the handle destroyed by repeated dishwasher cleaning.

These statistics are alarming, even in you ran full production levels of knives each year.

 

[Horsewright]

It happens. Customer sent in this knife:

So reground the primary bevel, reshaped the tip, re etched the blade (did lose most of the original hamon), gave er a lil buffing, reground a secondary bevel and sharpened er up.

Sent er back.

 

[Cushing H.]

It happens. Customer sent in this knife:

So reground the primary bevel, reshaped the tip, re etched the blade (did lose most of the original hamon), gave er a lil buffing, reground a secondary bevel and sharpened er up.

Sent er back.

Looks to me like was just a case of a thoroughly and well-used working knife (nothing lasts forever).

May i ask whether the customer said something like “hey dave … i love this knife and use it ALL the time. But now it is feeling its age and the miles on it … is there anything you can do to touch it up?” … or did they say something like “this lousy thing is falling apart … will you replace it?” I ask that kind of jokingly, but really am curious as to what the customers expectations were?

 

[Horsewright]

Looks to me like was just a case of a thoroughly and well-used working knife (nothing lasts forever).

May i ask whether the customer said something like “hey dave … i love this knife and use it ALL the time. But now it is feeling its age and the miles on it … is there anything you can do to touch it up?” … or did they say something like “this lousy thing is falling apart … will you replace it?” I ask that kind of jokingly, but really am curious as to what the customers expectations were?

Yeah it'd seen some life for sure. Most of mine do. I like seeing em used and abused. We didn't talk really. He just said he'd broken the tip (we all know how that happens so I don't even ask). He did say it was his favorite knife of all time and he was overjoyed with how the knife cleaned up. I saw a couple IG posts about it after he got it back. I think it helps coming from the culture that most of my customer's do too.There is quite a bit of realist in most of us I guess and responsibility for our own actions. We do know that nothing lasts forever. I've never had anyone say bolded above. Our stuff in our world gets used and abused. One of my son's pair of leggings I made him tells the story:

Another pair and a feedbag:

Same with knives and sheaths. Working cowboys use stuff pretty tough on occasions. That sheath shows that its seen some use. Just received a lil vid from him a couple of mins ago. He's horseback pushing about 800-1000 head (they don't know exactly cause they didn't count). Bout 8-10 inches of snow on the ground, currently snowing, 22 degrees and feels like 18. They've got to take them about 5 miles. He was not using nice words but thats the job sometimes.

Our ranching partner Steve's sheath also shows the wear and tear:

 

[Crag the Brewer]

Yeah it'd seen some life for sure. Most of mine do. I like seeing em used and abused. We didn't talk really. He just said he'd broken the tip (we all know how that happens so I don't even ask). He did say it was his favorite knife of all time and he was overjoyed with how the knife cleaned up. I saw a couple IG posts about it after he got it back. I think it helps coming from the culture that most of my customer's do too.There is quite a bit of realist in most of us I guess and responsibility for our own actions. We do know that nothing lasts forever. I've never had anyone say bolded above. Our stuff in our world gets used and abused. One of my son's pair of leggings I made him tells the story:

Another pair and a feedbag:

Same with knives and sheaths. Working cowboys use stuff pretty tough on occasions. That sheath shows that its seen some use. Just received a lil vid from him a couple of mins ago. He's horseback pushing about 800-1000 head (they don't know exactly cause they didn't count). Bout 8-10 inches of snow on the ground, currently snowing, 22 degrees and feels like 18. They've got to take them about 5 miles. He was not using nice words but thats the job sometimes.

Our ranching partner Steve's sheath also shows the wear and tear:

I sometimes get a laugh at how well dressed your whole group always looks. Bright, clean, and fancy. (professional)
It's good seeing some real dirt and scuffs once and awhile...... haha! ;P

 

[Cushing H.]

Another pair and a feedbag:

That must have been ONE hungry horse!

 

[C_Claycomb]

Most do. But most don’t take care of much regardless, Just another tool to them.

Hi, hard to tell from the photos, but do you bevel the leading edge of the handle to where it meets the blade, or have the end of the handle 90deg to the steel to keep the cutting edge as absolutely close to the hand as possible? Carving wood I like a close cutting edge, been told hunters use that bit of blade less than wood workers. Anyway, I have found that angling the front of the handle 20 or 30deg off perpendicular to the steel makes it lots easier to clean any blood, fat, dirt or moisture from the handle/blade join.

 

[Busto]

I never under estimate the "Mcgyver" Factor, when it's handy and available it will be used in some crazy way. I had one come back that had been used to pry up the rusted locking lever on his horse trailer hitch...I laughed cuz I've done this myself, but I had a screwdriver.

 

[Horsewright]

I sometimes get a laugh at how well dressed your whole group always looks. Bright, clean, and fancy. (professional)
It's good seeing some real dirt and scuffs once and awhile...... haha! ;P

Its a traditional, cultural thing around here, particularly at brandings to be looking dapper. An old Californio saying from when a young vaquero asked the older vaquero he was riding with why do we have silver on some of our gear. The reply was so we have pride. If we don't have pride in our horse how can he have pride in himself and a horse without pride is not a horse. I have literally been to ranch ropings where I have seen competitors in coats and ties. Maybe a lil extreme but I have seen this.

That must have been ONE hungry horse!

No doubt!

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

When I was riding, back in the 1950's, 60's, and early 70's, I would always see folks dressed in coats, vests, and ties at horse events. Many in a regular tie, the rest wearing a bolo tie.
You would often see a row of coats tossed across a fence rail from the guys riding in just their vest and tie.
I still wear (and make) bolo ties today.

I also remember "show saddles" and other tack with hundreds of silver conchos and studs. A lot of the conchos were handmade in Mexico from silver coins.
Back then a silver coin was only worth the face value, so it was the perfect blank for a concho or other project. I have dapped hundreds of coins from dimes to silver dollars over the last 60 years to make everything from earrings, to buttons, to conchos.

 

[Horsewright]

When I was riding, back in the 1950's, 60's, and early 70's, I would always see folks dressed in coats, vests, and ties at horse events. Many in a regular tie, the rest wearing a bolo tie.
You would often see a row of coats tossed across a fence rail from the guys riding in just their vest and tie.
I still wear (and make) bolo ties today.

I also remember "show saddles" and other tack with hundreds of silver conchos and studs. A lot of the conchos were handmade in Mexico from silver coins.
Back then a silver coin was only worth the face value, so it was the perfect blank for a concho or other project. I have dapped hundreds of coins from dimes to silver dollars over the last 60 years to make everything from earrings, to buttons, to conchos.

We use to have the Mexican coins made into conchos for use on tack and or as wildrag slides. The guy that did the work for us was the son of one of the old time Californio bit and spur makers. He retired and gave all his tools to his grandson but recommended that we did not use him, so we didn't. Kind of took a business change a lil too and only started selling stuff that we made so drifted away from these.

Wildrag slide:

On tack:

The tradition behind using the Mexican coins was that they had a higher silver content than US coins. I don't know if that is true or not but that was the reason for their popularity. That martingale has seen some wear and tear since I made it: