Northwoods mammoth ivory expectations

Stich2442 said:
I never said it was a problem, what I said in my post is "These sort of things don't bother me, especially when dealing with a natural material, mine is like this also, didn't phase me for a second" I just pointed out mine was similarly finished, I don't consider these things as issues or imperfections, it's like a knot in wood, character, when making things, you want to waste as little material as possible otherwise your cost goes up, when making anything planing your cuts to be efficient with the least about of waste is crucial, I like uniqueness in products, Derrick provides pictures, mine at the time only had the mark side picture posted, I contacted Derrick and he had someone take pictures and emailed them to me.
I consider mine to be perfect for me, might not be for you and that's ok.

Pete
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Pete I'm sorry I never meant to put words in your mouth, I should have phrased the statement differently. I.e. Pete's knives shares this feature.

I think my whole problem originally boiled down to my expectation like I said. This is my first knife with mammoth ivory and and one of the few with natural material other than wood. When I opened the package it didn't fit my idea of the finish expected with other materials.
I will be keeping the knife and appreciating it for its natural beauty. I picked this knife out in particular for how I liked the ivory.
Thanks all
 
Especially a thanks to Derek from knives ship free for his response. Involvement in the forums and communication like that is one main reason I continue to patronize his company!
 
Got my Presidential today and it is my first Mammoth Ivory scaled knife as well. It is absolutely gorgeous! The bark dips just before the bolster on the top left shield side: it is the only one of eight corners that is not flush to the bolster. Given the material, this is very impressive in my book! :thumbup:

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Thanks Derrick! Ya hit a home run with the Presidential, sir!

-Brett
 
If uniformity is an issue when buying a knife IMHO you should avoid Stag or Ivory as it is virtually impossible to achieve a perfect match with these materials.
Even bone as some of the other posters have stated may have flaws in them but I have always felt that it lends character & uniqueness to each knife.
Just received my Presidential in Blue Camel Bone today from Derrick & I couldn't be more pleased with it.
Thanks Derrick it's all that you said it would be.
George
 
Oldttymer am I correct in assuming when you refer to ivory it is no Mammoth ivory specifically. I only ask because in my experience all the northwoods knives I have in Preban elephant ivory have been perfect.
 
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I too, am impressed with the Presidential. This knife is a cut above anything else I have. I have the camel and the mammoth, and both knives are beautiful. I was a little dubious about the flat bolsters, but turns out that I love them. My goal now will be to get the ebony, jig bone, and the micarta in this same pattern. Gonna take some time to raise the money though. Yes, there is minimal blade rub on both of my presentials, but that does not bother me at all. This is a very fine knife.
 
Oh man, that would really bother me. But it is good to hear everyone talk about the realistic expectations we should have with such a material. I guess I will remember this later when I finally get a mammoth knife. I agree with everyone here, the Presidential looks phenomenal!
 
daver, just make sure if you're buying one, ask for pictures or ask pointed questions before you pull the trigger. Obviously not every knife with stag or ivory scales shares this characteristic, so if it's something that bothers you, just ask about it :thumbup:
 
This knife has one of 8 corners slightly low behind the bolster (far left).
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Doesn't bother me at all. It was a heroic effort to fit it as well as it was done, IMO!!
I would not want to lose one iota of that beautiful Bark, which can be remarkably thin! Sometimes you touch fine sandpaper once, and it is gone!!

It is much easier to fit elephant, if you are not trying to save Bark.
 
Well, I happen to agree with those posts that say be aware of this issue with natural handle materials. BUT--I totally don't get the 'a little blade rub is just something that you get with these knives' statement. That is unacceptable to me, much more so than some un-even-ness in natural scale materials on the handles. The mechanics of the knife the core of the knife and a blade rubbing has nothing to do with the handle material, and blade rub in a knife at this price point is unacceptable to me. I was very close to pulling the trigger on one of these knives, from KSF, but this comment has turned me off of one--regardless of how pretty the scales are.
 
Waynorth that really is a beautiful example you have there.
The more I'm handling this knife the more I'm love it, I'm not really even thinking about the low corner anymore.

Fish the blade rub is actually one thing that didn't bother me at all. The first thing that really attracted me to this knife is how thin it is and that is the reason for the blade rub. If you really want it thin the blades will have to touch.
 
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I think that's why Derrick mentioned it right on the store's page, he knew it was something that the buyer would either really care about or not mind too much, and he didn't want there to be any surprises. Personally, mine is a user so I don't really care about blade rub. Now, would I ideally like there not to be a line on the blade from blade rub? Of course. Do I want to pay more to remove that line? Not particularly. In the end, it's all about how much a particular thing is worth to you or me, the end customer. If it was a custom made knife, that would be one thing. But when it's a production run of knives/cars/electronics/you name it, each end customer gets to decide if the product and it's perfections/flaws/characteristics are worth that much. That's the beauty of being able to choose, as we all have our own points and characteristics that are important to us :)

"But because we were so specific on having a knife as thin as possible, Bill told me there was no way to avoid some blade rub. (at least not at a price we were willing to pay). So the price you pay for super thin, super cool, super sexy is a little blade rub."
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Having worked with mammoth bark, there are really two options you have when hafting the scales; you can either bulk up the handle and match it to the width of the bolster, or you have to sacrifice the match-up with the bolster to reduce the thickness of the scale. Working with end caps is difficult enough, let alone perfectly fitting mammoth bark between them. Looks to me that a dip in the ivory before the bolster is just a small compromise that had to be made in order to keep the slim fit of the knife with the natural beauty of the bark.

I absolutely love 'em and can't wait to get one for myself!
 
It adds character IMHO. It would also, not bother me to put it in my pocket, and use it. I have lots and lots of pre- banned ivory handled knives, and I like to carry them. I have my trophy ones too, that never get used, but I like to show them off to friends, and family. So, I guess what I am trying to say, if you have one that is somewhat flawed in your mind, use it as an EDC, and be happy.
 
It's a beauty, but it would probably bother me. I fact, I've seen other Northwoods knives sold at a reduced price as seconds for this very issue. I'm sure this one wasn't listed as a second because of the rarity of material, and difficulty of working with it (can't exactly call 20,000 year old Mammoth bark "flawed" and just throw it out, like you would with a wood cover that cracks, or bone cover that has a flaw like this). If you are getting used to it, and it is growing on you, as a bit of character instead of a flaw, then more power to you! It is a beauty, and I'm sure you'll be happy, whether you keep it or exchange it. That's one of the best things about KSF, how eager they seem to be to make sure the customer is happy with their purchase.
 
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