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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Personalized Buck Vantage
- Thread starter GundaManiac
- Start date
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
I would dismantle the Paradigm to get more pictures of it but I'm honestly a little afraid of the task of putting it back together again. Maybe the next time I decide to tinker on my Vantages (which usually involves taking them apart) I'll take apart the Paradigm at the same time and get some comparison pictures of the number of parts and internals (kids, do not try this [ie, taking apart your Paradigm] at home!)
As far as the liner goes, I was afraid of the difficulty in disengaging the liner after grinding it down. So, I didn't grind the liner flush with the Dymondwood. Instead, I left just a little bit sticking out past the Dymondwood. To offset the fact that less of the linerlock is now available for the thumb to push on, I also ground down the opposite liner a bit so I could get more of my thumb into the gap between the liners. That little bit of grinding on the opposite non-locking liner made all the difference in ease of closure with the contoured ground linerlock. I will admit that the linerlock on my knife is not as easy to access as a stock Vantage, but it is not bad (I have small asian hands). It's actually more comfortable for me to close now, since the contoured linerlock matches the contour of my thumb perfectly and distributes pressure evenly all along my thumbpad.
Anyway, enough talk! Here's pictures comparing the stock liners to my liners:
You can see the recessed non-locking liner better in this picture:
This picture shows what I mean when I said I left a little of the liner sticking out past the Dymondwood scales:
Again, this mod was to customize my knife for me and is not necessarily for everyone. I myself am able to close the knife as easily as before, but by making less of the linerlock accessible I also made the knife harder to close for those with larger thumbs than mine. I will also admit that is also not aesthetically perfect (ie, both liners totally flush with the Dymondwood) nor is it functionally perfect (ie, ease of access for the liner lock) but it is a set of compromises that are the most appropriate for my tastes.
As far as the liner goes, I was afraid of the difficulty in disengaging the liner after grinding it down. So, I didn't grind the liner flush with the Dymondwood. Instead, I left just a little bit sticking out past the Dymondwood. To offset the fact that less of the linerlock is now available for the thumb to push on, I also ground down the opposite liner a bit so I could get more of my thumb into the gap between the liners. That little bit of grinding on the opposite non-locking liner made all the difference in ease of closure with the contoured ground linerlock. I will admit that the linerlock on my knife is not as easy to access as a stock Vantage, but it is not bad (I have small asian hands). It's actually more comfortable for me to close now, since the contoured linerlock matches the contour of my thumb perfectly and distributes pressure evenly all along my thumbpad.
Anyway, enough talk! Here's pictures comparing the stock liners to my liners:
You can see the recessed non-locking liner better in this picture:
This picture shows what I mean when I said I left a little of the liner sticking out past the Dymondwood scales:
Again, this mod was to customize my knife for me and is not necessarily for everyone. I myself am able to close the knife as easily as before, but by making less of the linerlock accessible I also made the knife harder to close for those with larger thumbs than mine. I will also admit that is also not aesthetically perfect (ie, both liners totally flush with the Dymondwood) nor is it functionally perfect (ie, ease of access for the liner lock) but it is a set of compromises that are the most appropriate for my tastes.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
New update! I actually performed this modification about two months ago, but never bothered taking pictures until just now. The stock Dymondwood scales are supposed to be colored Charcoal Silverwood. However, the silver parts on the front scale of my EDC Vantage started to look kind of yellow-y, and sanding the top layer off didn't remove the yellowing. The back scale retained its original Charcoal Silverwood coloring, resulting in what looked like two mismatched scales. I always wondered about whether I could dye the Dymondwood, since it's resin impregnated wood. So I disassembled my Vantage, picked up a pack of black Rit dye, and soaked the scales for about an hour. The scales came out pure black, but some of the fibers in the wood expanded, resulting in a very uneven surface finish. I sanded down and polished the scales to smooth them out again, removing the top layer of pure black to reveal some of the grain again.
Here are the results:
I like black, so the new darkened Dymondwood scales suit me fine. I will admit that the Charcoal Silverwood had some charm in its high contrast black-and-silver scheme though.
I know some Vantage owners have mentioned dyeing or otherwise customizing their scales, so hopefully this share will encourage you to go out and mess with your knives!
Here are the results:
I like black, so the new darkened Dymondwood scales suit me fine. I will admit that the Charcoal Silverwood had some charm in its high contrast black-and-silver scheme though.
I know some Vantage owners have mentioned dyeing or otherwise customizing their scales, so hopefully this share will encourage you to go out and mess with your knives!
- Joined
- May 27, 2012
- Messages
- 103
Any examples of dyeing Avid scales?
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
Standard22, my knife has Dymondwood scales, which is what the Avid uses. Technically my scales came from a Dymondwood Select model, but they are the same material. So my knife is essentially an example of what dyed Avid scales would look like.
I actually recently discovered, while polishing my knife handles, that the dye does not penetrate far into the Dymondwood. Light sanding will remove the dyed layer and expose the original coloring underneath. So I ended up redyeing my scales black, then looking into methods to coat Dymondwood so I could polish the scales without removing the dyed layer. I ended up using superglue, since it can apparently be used for filling in cracks in Dymondwood and as a wood finish. Pics of my current scales (black-dyed Dymondwood with a superglue topcoat):
The superglue layer took some effort, but I think it was worth it. I'm really liking the deep glossy finish (which, btw, was hard to photograph). Sure, it isn't super-grippy, but it isn't super slippery either. It's still about as grippy as the stock Avid Dymondwood scales.
I actually recently discovered, while polishing my knife handles, that the dye does not penetrate far into the Dymondwood. Light sanding will remove the dyed layer and expose the original coloring underneath. So I ended up redyeing my scales black, then looking into methods to coat Dymondwood so I could polish the scales without removing the dyed layer. I ended up using superglue, since it can apparently be used for filling in cracks in Dymondwood and as a wood finish. Pics of my current scales (black-dyed Dymondwood with a superglue topcoat):
The superglue layer took some effort, but I think it was worth it. I'm really liking the deep glossy finish (which, btw, was hard to photograph). Sure, it isn't super-grippy, but it isn't super slippery either. It's still about as grippy as the stock Avid Dymondwood scales.
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- Joined
- May 27, 2012
- Messages
- 103
I got mine and stopped looking. Nothing else has interested me enough to buy.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
I've found plenty of other knives I wanted and liked, but none of them has managed to kick the Vantage out of my pocket as my primary EDC. If I feel like carrying another knife I like, it's always in addition to, not instead of, my Vantage.
- Joined
- May 27, 2012
- Messages
- 103
What dyes nylon?
I'm going with RIT dye.
- Joined
- May 27, 2012
- Messages
- 103
Can't wait to see it. Good luck.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
Yes, RIT dye will work on nylon, so it should work on the FRN select scales. I'm looking forward to seeing how your scales turn out. Post pictures when you're done!
As to the superglue finish, I found this thread and followed the tutorial. I squirted a line of superglue onto the wood scales, then brushed it out with my finger, making sure to keep my finger moving so I didn't glue myself to the scale (admittedly, I was nervous the first time I tried this, but the guy who posted the tutorial used his fingers so what the hey). The hard part was not letting the scales anywhere near moisture, ie not blowing on them to try to get the glue to dry faster and not touching the surface again until I was sure it was fully dried, otherwise the superglue would form a white haze that could only be removed by fully sanding off the last superglue layer. I put on 2 layers of superglue, hit it lightly with some 120 grit sandpaper to smooth it out a little, then cleaned the scales and put on another 2 layers of superglue. There is no real way to apply the glue smoothly, so after the last layer was applied it was time to go to sandpaper. I progressed up to 2000 grit sandpaper then buffed the superglue finish with some Blue Magic polish on some old denim.
As to the superglue finish, I found this thread and followed the tutorial. I squirted a line of superglue onto the wood scales, then brushed it out with my finger, making sure to keep my finger moving so I didn't glue myself to the scale (admittedly, I was nervous the first time I tried this, but the guy who posted the tutorial used his fingers so what the hey). The hard part was not letting the scales anywhere near moisture, ie not blowing on them to try to get the glue to dry faster and not touching the surface again until I was sure it was fully dried, otherwise the superglue would form a white haze that could only be removed by fully sanding off the last superglue layer. I put on 2 layers of superglue, hit it lightly with some 120 grit sandpaper to smooth it out a little, then cleaned the scales and put on another 2 layers of superglue. There is no real way to apply the glue smoothly, so after the last layer was applied it was time to go to sandpaper. I progressed up to 2000 grit sandpaper then buffed the superglue finish with some Blue Magic polish on some old denim.
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2011
- Messages
- 487
This isn't really a case of personalization, but I've started sharpening my Vantage freehand. I always sharpened my Vantage with a Lansky knockoff; the guided system made it easy to hold a consistent angle and the diamond stones made quick work of the S30V. However, I was always frustrated at the way the clamp would occasionally slip, and the fact I had to tape the spine of the blade to prevent the clamp from marring the blade's surface, and the way the finger guard prevented the stones from reaching the actual heel of the blade edge, and the small size of the diamond stones, and the way I was so dependent on the guides, and...well, you get the idea. So, over a period of time, I taught myself how to sharpen freehand.
Nowadays, my sharpening gear consists of two stones, sandpaper, and a strop. If it's necessary (which is very rare), I start off with my dad's two dollar aluminum oxide combination stone...a terrible stone IMO but I reserve it for reprofiling edges or to quickly establish a rough apex on extremely dull knives. I then move to a King 1000 stone and then progressively work through 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit sandpaper. I finish up with a strop loaded with Mother's Mag (or, sometimes, Blue Magic). The edges may not be perfect mirrors, but they're shiny and sharp enough for me at this point
One lesson I learned the hard way is how chippy the S30V on my Vantage is if the angle is brought too low. I tried reprofiling and sharpening with the knife practically flat on the stone, and the edge developed massive chips just from sharpening...I lost a lot of blade stock working out those chips but it was worth the learning experience. I now try to keep the Vantage around 30 degrees inclusive. I sharpen with the back of the blade raised about one to one and a half spine widths above the stone. The blade of the Vantage is approximately one inch wide and 1/8 inch thick. Using some basic trigonometry (1 inch * sin(15 degrees)), the center of the spine should be raised about one quarter of an inch, so based on visual inspection there should be about one and a half spine widths worth of empty space between the back of the blade and the stone for an edge that's 15 degrees per side, or 30 degrees inclusive. My freehanded angles may not be perfect, but they're certainly good enough for me.
Just for kicks, while I was eating an apple recently I tried slicing it as thin as I could. I got a slice thin enough to read through, which is probably nothing new to knife knuts but was a first for me and incredibly fun to do. I tried taking a picture mid-slice, but each time I tried setting up the pose I wanted, the weight of the knife would finish the cut. I ended up keeping the pose and using a thicker slice so the knife wouldn't just fall right through for the pictures:
Nowadays, my sharpening gear consists of two stones, sandpaper, and a strop. If it's necessary (which is very rare), I start off with my dad's two dollar aluminum oxide combination stone...a terrible stone IMO but I reserve it for reprofiling edges or to quickly establish a rough apex on extremely dull knives. I then move to a King 1000 stone and then progressively work through 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit sandpaper. I finish up with a strop loaded with Mother's Mag (or, sometimes, Blue Magic). The edges may not be perfect mirrors, but they're shiny and sharp enough for me at this point
One lesson I learned the hard way is how chippy the S30V on my Vantage is if the angle is brought too low. I tried reprofiling and sharpening with the knife practically flat on the stone, and the edge developed massive chips just from sharpening...I lost a lot of blade stock working out those chips but it was worth the learning experience. I now try to keep the Vantage around 30 degrees inclusive. I sharpen with the back of the blade raised about one to one and a half spine widths above the stone. The blade of the Vantage is approximately one inch wide and 1/8 inch thick. Using some basic trigonometry (1 inch * sin(15 degrees)), the center of the spine should be raised about one quarter of an inch, so based on visual inspection there should be about one and a half spine widths worth of empty space between the back of the blade and the stone for an edge that's 15 degrees per side, or 30 degrees inclusive. My freehanded angles may not be perfect, but they're certainly good enough for me.
Just for kicks, while I was eating an apple recently I tried slicing it as thin as I could. I got a slice thin enough to read through, which is probably nothing new to knife knuts but was a first for me and incredibly fun to do. I tried taking a picture mid-slice, but each time I tried setting up the pose I wanted, the weight of the knife would finish the cut. I ended up keeping the pose and using a thicker slice so the knife wouldn't just fall right through for the pictures:
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