Northwoods Michigan Jack

I got a Broadway 2nd with oiled bone on the front and white bone on the back. It's a 'well-used' knife to say the least so I've been dyeing the back white bone with blue Rit dye. I've applied it several times (hot water) after holding the knife above steam for a while.

Its slowly absorbing the dye, getting bluer each time and it seems to be 'holding' in the bone and not all rubbing off.
A little more purple and less black than the GEC blue dye.
I'll get a pic up if anyone wants to see.

Learning a lot about how this bone soaks up color differently across the surface.
The oiled-bone front doesn't seem to absorb any dye at all.
 
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bleh said:
You mean like the Everyday Barlow in CPM154 they came out with last month? There are 2 series of Northwoods: the Rustic series that have the heat treatment finish left on the blade, usually a sabre grind, and the big northwoods stamp (fremont jack, hawthorne, broadway, michigan jack, etc); and the more polished series (I can't remember the name) that has polished FFG blades and only a Tang stamp (Madison Barlow, Presidential, Willimette Whittler, Norfolk, etc).
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Exactly, :wink: thanks for reminding me that the variety is already present. I guess I was using a biased sample to base my opinion upon. I like most of the Northwoods but can only afford a few.
 
I just started a thread in the "Feedback good, bad, ugly" sub forum on this topic. It is titled "Buying multiple knives as soon as available, to resell most". Sorry for almost hijacking this thread, which is about the Northwoods Michigan Jack.

Ted01 said:
I would also like to see such a discussion.
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Peregrin said:
I'm sure Frank will weigh in when he's around later. I'll just mention that the Traditional sub-forum is intended to be for the discussion of knives. It's a non-commercial forum. Anything commercial in nature really should not be posted here. We try to be reasonable in our moderation. You'll see the occasional post or two that doesn't get moved or commented on. When a thread starts to veer off track, or the discussion becomes totally commercial, it's time for a correction. I expect that's why Frank moved the posts.

FEEDBACK: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly! would be a better place for discussing "buying practices". Certainly better then the Traditional forum. If you start a thread over there you can put a link in your signature line, so others can be made aware there's a place to air the issue.

I don't think you'll see us allowing a thread for that discussion here. Frank and I will chat about it though. Thanks!
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Sorry for the late response. I don't have access to BF or personal email during the work day, which today was about 12 hours in length.

My opinion is the same as Gary's. The traditional forum is for talking about the knives, not questions about how many are left on a dealer's shelf, or about how hard it is to get certain models. Gary and I allow more commercial comments from our dealer members than the previous mods did. But, overall, the focus has to be about the knife, not the buying of it.

I think FEEDBACK-The-Good-the-Bad-the-Ugly ,is a good place to talk about people who scuttle in, buy up a bunch of knives, then sell them at very high prices. IMO, it's also a good place to talk about other knife related commercial issues.
 
So, now who's got one of those jacks and is ready to post a picture of it so we can ooh and ah.
 
Looks like mine will land in my mailbox today!
Fingers crossed -- USPS owes me one
Pics coming if I don't swoon over the knife....
 
I've got one of each coming. My first order was larger, but shipped a day later. Friday will be my first Michigan Jack incoming. Really looking forward to carrying these knives. I'm almost embarrassed thinking of what I've spent in a month on traditional pocket knives. Almost...[emoji41]
 
A few photos of my Northwoods Michigan Jack that came in the mail this morning. This is my first Northwoods, and I am very impressed. The bloodwood looks great.

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The majority of the Michigan Jacks have dyed camel bone handles; green, black, red, & blue. Camel shin bone is very dense. Perhaps this is why so little dye is absorbed ? The result is most of these have a few areas of light color with most of the handle still being the off-white bone.
I do not find these attractive at all. But they still get purchased. Are people buying these barely dyed camel bone Michigan Jacks because they really want a Michigan Jack or do you really like these handles ?
kj
 
kootenay joe said:
The majority of the Michigan Jacks have dyed camel bone handles; green, black, red, & blue. Camel shin bone is very dense. Perhaps this is why so little dye is absorbed ? The result is most of these have a few areas of light color with most of the handle still being the off-white bone.
I do not find these attractive at all. But they still get purchased. Are people buying these barely dyed camel bone Michigan Jacks because they really want a Michigan Jack or do you really like these handles ?
kj
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I agree, I wish they all turned out like the one I got - very dark. Maybe some of it dries longer or is from dehydrated camels or something.
 
kootenay joe said:
The majority of the Michigan Jacks have dyed camel bone handles; green, black, red, & blue. Camel shin bone is very dense. Perhaps this is why so little dye is absorbed ? The result is most of these have a few areas of light color with most of the handle still being the off-white bone.
I do not find these attractive at all. But they still get purchased. Are people buying these barely dyed camel bone Michigan Jacks because they really want a Michigan Jack or do you really like these handles ?
kj
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Derrick calls this his rustic series; and I agree, I think they went a little too rustic on the handles.

And - probably a little of both. The worn look - rustic - is fashionable now on traditional pocket knives. Look at some of the other - worn look - releases that sold out quickly. Even still, these stamped rustic blades from Northwoods are always loved.
 
Please post the Spydercos, Chris Reeve and other modern knives in another forum. They aren't traditional, they don't belong here and using them to compare size is not an excuse. Use a ruler or tape measure or another traditional knife.

We keep leaving the same comment over and over. I'm hopeful that someday we won't have to. Maybe it will take some official warnings or infractions. I only leave these posts so someone might learn that they aren't appropriate here, not to make an example of anyone in particular.

There's one thread in the Traditional Subforum where modern knives are allowed, when posted with a traditional knife. If you must post your moderns in this forum, do it here;Traditional and Modern pairings
Thanks.
 
kootenay joe said:
The majority of the Michigan Jacks have dyed camel bone handles; green, black, red, & blue. Camel shin bone is very dense. Perhaps this is why so little dye is absorbed ? The result is most of these have a few areas of light color with most of the handle still being the off-white bone.
I do not find these attractive at all. But they still get purchased. Are people buying these barely dyed camel bone Michigan Jacks because they really want a Michigan Jack or do you really like these handles ?
kj
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I think it is a matter of personal preference. I, personally, love the variation in the handle material. :)
 
chuckgp said:
Maybe some of it dries longer or is from dehydrated camels or something.
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People underestimate the difficulty of dehydrating camels. They were made for desert dwelling, so they are hard to dehydrate. It takes a very long time and the slightest bit of water brings them right back to their spitting selves.

We haven't tried freeze drying yet. I think it holds real potential.
 
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