Pre-order for the new Kephart?

pre-order for the new Kephart?

  • Yes, start a pre-order

    Votes: 71 92.2%

  • No, bad idea

    Votes: 6 7.8%
  • Total voters
    77
I have to say, I am really liking Kephart in general. But the ,,true,, Kephart was really only from Becker (and I had plans to buy one). Other Kepharts are close, but those are more like artistic interpretation of that design. Some Kepharts are really only a spear point blade slapped on some handle...

So this CPK Kephart variation is something I am glad to see. I am hoping that I get one (still banging my head against the wall for not going for pre-order).
 
SharpPancake said:
I have to say, I am really liking Kephart in general. But the ,,true,, Kephart was really only from Becker (and I had plans to buy one). Other Kepharts are close, but those are more like artistic interpretation of that design. Some Kepharts are really only a spear point blade slapped on some handle...

So this CPK Kephart variation is something I am glad to see. I am hoping that I get one (still banging my head against the wall for not going for pre-order).
Click to expand...

Only real Kephart is the one he had made for himself. Definition of custom made knife! Becker one is the magazine sold knife, which we presume is 100% correct.

Can't wait to fondle mine! I will enjoy all the imperfections that make it different from other Kepharts.
 
SharpPancake said:
I have to say, I am really liking Kephart in general. But the ,,true,, Kephart was really only from Becker (and I had plans to buy one). Other Kepharts are close, but those are more like artistic interpretation of that design. Some Kepharts are really only a spear point blade slapped on some handle...

So this CPK Kephart variation is something I am glad to see. I am hoping that I get one (still banging my head against the wall for not going for pre-order).
Click to expand...


Mine isn't going to be 100% "correct" either, but I think it will be closer than Becker's. Theirs is really well done, I'm not disparaging their effort because they really strived to do it right and I'm impressed with how close they were able to get it but they're constrained by the limitations of their manufacturing process and a Berger blade grinder gives a flat or a hollow grind. The original Kephart was convex. I don't love convex grinds because they're not as slicey as a flat grind and the edge gets thicker as you sharpen it more than other grind types. However it is well suited to wood working tasks and splitting small wood. Their version of the Kephart is a good bushcraft knife but it isn't completely like the original in that regard because it's just a regular flat grind. Mine has the same handle and the drill point looks the same in profile but is better designed for actual wood drilling (my point comes to a burr on both sides). This is easy for me because I'm CNC milling it from a rigid fixture but an automatic blade grinder struggles with an unsupported point like that because things tend to drift around. But the thing that sets mine apart from other production Kepharts are my primary grinds which are actual two different grind angles (per side) that gives some of the function of the convex grind because the second primary is laid over a little more acute than the first primary which will give some relief when splitting small wood. So, while the specifics of the details aren't a historically accurate reproduction I like to think I got pretty close to the function and Horace's original design intent, but with modern materials and processes.
 
moparsbob said:
Another Kephart just showed up - Dogwood knives custom Kephart with 5.25" CPM-154 blade.
Click to expand...

Though I don't care for the gaudy materials used, Dan Eastland is one of the very few makers who have made a very accurate reproduction of Kephart's knife. Both he and Mike McCarter had the opportunity to examine an original Colclesser and their subsequent reproductions were featured in Knife Magazine. Excellent stuff.
 
When the pre-order was announced, and at a price of $250, I immediately ordered one.
I wasn't really familiar with the Kephart design yet, but trusted CPK.
Looking at an article about the originals, and assuming that the pre-order might take up to a year, I figured I would make a pair of them myself to play with now.
I knew that $250 is a good price, but when people recommend CPK in general knife discussion, you sometimes hear how "pricey" they are.
So I did something I never usually do...I kept track of expenses.
Here are the expenses:
18" x 1.5" x 5/32" CPM 3V steel, plus 2 strips of double red linen micarta: $108.64 (including shipping)
Belts, glue, pins: ~ $15
Shipping to Peters' heat treat: $11.30
Heat treat charge including return shipping: $82.55
Quote for two mashed cat kydex sheaths (with shipping both ways): $115
Total for two knives with sheaths: $332.49
Total for two CPK Kepharts to my door: $513

Notes: A hobbiest clearly gets killed by shipping and small volume materials/heat treat.
I put zero value on my time which was significant.
My version is CPM 3V treated by Peters' to 60 HRC, but not the delta protocol.
My bevels are a thin flat grind with a hint of convex, not the bi-bevel that is emerging in Nathan's development.
I do have a swedge that meets the bevel in a nice tip for drilling.
The edge was finished to 1500 on a WE sharpener set to 20 degrees per side.
These turned out pretty nice and cut very well, but that was a lot of work to save $90 per unit and lacks some aspects of the CPK version.

Anyway, here they are.
First a pic from an article about the original.
S2H2GLr.png

5SNvvNJ.jpg

CMfzzmR.jpg

Z7VDa5A.jpg
 
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SharpPancake said:
Richard338 Richard338 those are some nice looking Kepharts! Really clean job!
I am tempted to order a piece of RWL34 and make my own.
Click to expand...
It is an interesting design and feels good to handle. My son has already claimed one, and my daughter is eyeballing the other... I should have picked a less appealing color. Luckily I've got a CPK version on the way. I don't feel like hacking on any more myself. I was surprised how much it costs me to make such a basic knife, even without any screwups.
 
Richard338 said:
When the pre-order was announced, and at a price of $250, I immediately ordered one.
I wasn't really familiar with the Kephart design yet, but trusted CPK.
Looking at an article about the originals, and assuming that the pre-order might take up to a year, I figured I would make a pair of them myself to play with now.
I knew that $250 is a good price, but when people recommend CPK in general knife discussion, you sometimes hear how "pricey" they are.
So I did something I never usually do...I kept track of expenses.
Here are the expenses:
18" x 1.5" x 5/32" CPM 3V steel, plus 2 strips of double red linen micarta: $108.64 (including shipping)
Belts, glue, pins: ~ $15
Shipping to Peters' heat treat: $11.30
Heat treat charge including return shipping: $82.55
Quote for two mashed cat kydex sheaths (with shipping both ways): $115
Total for two knives with sheaths: $332.49
Total for two CPK Kepharts to my door: $513

Notes: A hobbiest clearly gets killed by shipping and small volume materials/heat treat.
I put zero value on my time which was significant.
My version is CPM 3V treated by Peters' to 60 HRC, but not the delta protocol.
My bevels are a thin flat grind with a hint of convex, not the bi-bevel that is emerging in Nathan's development.
I do have a swedge that meets the bevel in a nice tip for drilling.
The edge was finished to 1500 on a WE sharpener set to 20 degrees per side.
These turned out pretty nice and cut very well, but that was a lot of work to save $90 per unit and lacks some aspects of the CPK version.

Anyway, here they are.
First a pic from an article about the original.
S2H2GLr.png

5SNvvNJ.jpg

CMfzzmR.jpg

Z7VDa5A.jpg
Click to expand...
Nice looking knives, and great post!

This comment caught my eye . . . "when people recommend CPK in general knife discussion, you sometimes hear how 'pricey' they are."

I don't doubt it, but this slays me. There are just some real cheap bastids here at BF. LOL. IMO, CPK knives offer some of the best knife values you can find anywhere ever. Maybe why I don't spend a lot of time in "General Knife Discussion." LOL.

Go back and look at what Bob Loveless charged for a knife 50 years ago. In 1971 Loveless charged $95 for a basic 4" semi-skinner. That would be well over $600 in today's dollars. But Loveless never had any trouble selling them and his backlog was years long. And by 1975, he was charging $175 for the same knife ($850 in today's dollars). Apparently a lot of people did not think they were too pricey. In current dollars, CPK knives are quite a bit less than that. And as someone who still owns a few original Loveless knives, and has owned a few others over the years, I believe that CPK knives today offer far greater value than Loveless' knives offered then. And I have put my money where my mouth is in that opinion.

"The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten" - attributed to Benjamin Franklin.
 
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