anyone have input on the javalina vs the jag? i'm strongly considering one of them when the funds are available...was first thinking the javalina but then maybe the jag b/c i've already got an esee-6 which is drop point so thought the jag may cover a different niche...but essentially i'll likely go for whatever is the tougher more general use blade, and as such, i'm leaning back toward the javalina (more for the general use aspect, although the jag seems that it may be a tougher geometry). also, is the jag a chisel grind (single bevel, as some tantos tend to be from what i've seen) or ground on both sides (double bevel, i guess) of the edge? the jag is pretty sexy though, the shape def caught my eye immediately. all in all is it more an aesthetic difference than a functional difference between the two? hadn't really given the badger much thought although i'd be interested in opinions on that as well. thanks!
Ray doesn't make any chisel ground knives that I'm aware of. You see lots of chisel-ground "american style" tantos with their curve-less profiles for sale because that's the epitome of lack of effort----grind two straight angles onto a flat bar to create a blade shape, and bevel both of them into an edge, with no contour to the transition between them at all; thereby having to match no grinds from side to side or display other such signs of skill. Cheap and easy. Can it be done well? Of course, but if there's a Cliff's Notes version of a blade design, that would be it. You see it on a whole lot of inexpensive knives, and a few (I'm sorry to say) expensive ones, but not on anything Ray puts out.
I'm afraid I don't have direct experience with the two models you're looking at, despite having several Entrek knives, but you're not going to find a marked difference between them. They're (by spec) within 1/16" of an inch of being the same length as each other, ground from exactly the same stock thickness of the same steel on the same grinding wheel to approximately (they are handmade, after all) the same edge bevel. Basic difference is that the tanto has more belly up front without the point getting in the way, where the Javelina's point is more in line with the center of the knife, making it more useful if you want to pierce something (I'm not talking about stabbing a sentry) or use it to drill in wood, etc. Just based on the last time I saw them, the Jag probably has a slightly thicker tip, which would be stronger, but with Ray's geometries you're talking about the difference between silly-strong and goofy-strong.
As to the bead blasted finish, there's another option if you want to consider it---passivate the surface with a controlled corrosion process (essentially bluing it like a gun) to increase its rust resistance, and you'll still have the muted look without it turning brown. Now, it won't really turn blue, but go to Walmart (or wherever) and pick up some Naval Jelly, which is phosphoric acid, coat the blade with it and the spine too if you want with a Q-tip (try to keep it off the handles, although micarta is pretty tough) and let it sit for a day or so. Afterwards, wash it off with water and baking soda to neutralize the remaining acid, rinse it off with plain water, and spray the whole thing (won't bother the micarta or change its appearance at all) with WD-40 to displace any remaining moisture. When the micarta has dried out after a few hours, wipe the whole thing down with mineral oil or just an oily shop rag and you should see that the color has darkened a bit, going from a light grey to a darker one, though nowhere near black. The reason for this oil coat is to help the oxidation "cure" and become inert. This oxidation coat, in addition to the steel's chromium content, should hold rust at bay in all but the most extreme environments. Actually, unless you have a new, un-oxidized Entrek sitting right next to it, you may have trouble seeing that anything was done, as it only darkens a bit. I've been doing it for years on Entrek knives and it works like a charm.
Now, as to the bead blasted aluminum guards/bolsters (on the models that have such things) unfortunately there's not a whole lot you can do about how they end up looking. They scratch and wear very easily, even from just coming in and out of their sheaths, and eventually look pretty beat-to-hell, though this doesn't affect their performance in the slightest. Not a concern on the two models you're looking at, of course, just talking Entreks in general.
