- Joined
- Jul 20, 2006
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Scagel FruitPort Clippoint Blade review:
Background on Scagel Knives: They are a name owned by Knivesship free and are manufactured by GEC. The blades are then convex ground by Bark River. These knives get around quite a bit. I wont name prices but you can imagine this adds to the cost. Are they worth the price? Only time will tell for sure, but Ill give my initial impressions and of course a healthy dose of pictures☺. The knife also came with a nice little sharpshooter slip case. It is pretty decent leather but a little dry feeling (I find this to be the case with most sharp shooter sheaths). I put some mink oil to soften it up a little and it feels quite a bit better. I have not used a slip sheath before and will give it a try, but will likely not use it for the long term just because I am lazy like that.
First off I just want to say that I am fairly new at collecting traditional blades and have done so for just over a year now. So If I miss any key features please let me know.
The Basic Specs:
Blade Length 3 and ¾ Clippoint
Handle: Approx 4 (has steel liners)
Scale material: smooth bone
Weight: 2.3 Oz or 65 g
Steel: 1095 Carbon Steel
Pattern: Dog leg
Intro Pictures:
Fit and Finish:
Much like my other GEC knives the fit and finish is very good. The blade is perfectly centered and there are no gaps in the scale. The grind on the blade is very good and it is scary sharp (and convex).
After inspection the only minor flaw I could find is that there is a small gap between the scale material and the shield (maybe ½ mm). I like when the stamp fits perfect, but for a production Knife I think it is still very good.
The walk and talk of this knife is very good. The springs are relatively tough (it is a gec after all!) but with the clip point and hole style nick make opening the blade actually exceptionally easy. I simply just pinch the nicks on both sides and pull the blade open. The knife does have a half stop and it feels very quality and solid.
The smooth bone is well smooth! It is very beautiful and creamy in color. It darkens in some places and looks very classy and is well finished. Actually it is easily my favorite scale material to date.
Ergonomics:
This is probably my favorite point of the knife. It just fits m hand very comfortably. Given the relatively long handle I am easily able to hold it in a 4 finger grip. Given I have just received the knife, I have not had a chance to do any long carving work. But given how it feels I think it will be a real winner for long work use.
A few Comparison Shots:
The Blade:
I just really like the clip point blade on this knife. It just screams traditional to me even though it is kind of unique looking. I really like the flow through hole as the nail nick. It gives it kind of a unique look and I find it works quite effectively too. The only text on the knife is a small scagel stamp with two small swords on the shield side and 2010 USA on the other. I find they look very classy and also add to the knife. As far as cutting is concerned it works very well on fruit (Fruitport? ☺
. I only cut up an orange and it sliced through with ease. Ill do an update once I put it through some carving time. The full convex grinds is fantastic (Im a sucker for convex), and again find this a pretty rare and neat feature on a folding blade.
Final Thoughts:
I have made it my newish tradition to buy myself a traditional blade (or two) around Christmas every year. It just seems like the right time of year for traditional knives. This guy was on the menu for this year. Overall, I am extremely happy with the knife. However, I have only had the knife a few hours and have not put it through any real use. I will do follow up reviews in the weeks to come. I plan on carrying this guy for the year, and if all goes well beyond ☺
I hope you enjoyed the review and the pictures of my new companion,
Mark
Background on Scagel Knives: They are a name owned by Knivesship free and are manufactured by GEC. The blades are then convex ground by Bark River. These knives get around quite a bit. I wont name prices but you can imagine this adds to the cost. Are they worth the price? Only time will tell for sure, but Ill give my initial impressions and of course a healthy dose of pictures☺. The knife also came with a nice little sharpshooter slip case. It is pretty decent leather but a little dry feeling (I find this to be the case with most sharp shooter sheaths). I put some mink oil to soften it up a little and it feels quite a bit better. I have not used a slip sheath before and will give it a try, but will likely not use it for the long term just because I am lazy like that.
First off I just want to say that I am fairly new at collecting traditional blades and have done so for just over a year now. So If I miss any key features please let me know.
The Basic Specs:
Blade Length 3 and ¾ Clippoint
Handle: Approx 4 (has steel liners)
Scale material: smooth bone
Weight: 2.3 Oz or 65 g
Steel: 1095 Carbon Steel
Pattern: Dog leg
Intro Pictures:
Fit and Finish:
Much like my other GEC knives the fit and finish is very good. The blade is perfectly centered and there are no gaps in the scale. The grind on the blade is very good and it is scary sharp (and convex).
After inspection the only minor flaw I could find is that there is a small gap between the scale material and the shield (maybe ½ mm). I like when the stamp fits perfect, but for a production Knife I think it is still very good.
The walk and talk of this knife is very good. The springs are relatively tough (it is a gec after all!) but with the clip point and hole style nick make opening the blade actually exceptionally easy. I simply just pinch the nicks on both sides and pull the blade open. The knife does have a half stop and it feels very quality and solid.
The smooth bone is well smooth! It is very beautiful and creamy in color. It darkens in some places and looks very classy and is well finished. Actually it is easily my favorite scale material to date.
Ergonomics:
This is probably my favorite point of the knife. It just fits m hand very comfortably. Given the relatively long handle I am easily able to hold it in a 4 finger grip. Given I have just received the knife, I have not had a chance to do any long carving work. But given how it feels I think it will be a real winner for long work use.
A few Comparison Shots:
The Blade:
I just really like the clip point blade on this knife. It just screams traditional to me even though it is kind of unique looking. I really like the flow through hole as the nail nick. It gives it kind of a unique look and I find it works quite effectively too. The only text on the knife is a small scagel stamp with two small swords on the shield side and 2010 USA on the other. I find they look very classy and also add to the knife. As far as cutting is concerned it works very well on fruit (Fruitport? ☺
. I only cut up an orange and it sliced through with ease. Ill do an update once I put it through some carving time. The full convex grinds is fantastic (Im a sucker for convex), and again find this a pretty rare and neat feature on a folding blade.
Final Thoughts:
I have made it my newish tradition to buy myself a traditional blade (or two) around Christmas every year. It just seems like the right time of year for traditional knives. This guy was on the menu for this year. Overall, I am extremely happy with the knife. However, I have only had the knife a few hours and have not put it through any real use. I will do follow up reviews in the weeks to come. I plan on carrying this guy for the year, and if all goes well beyond ☺
I hope you enjoyed the review and the pictures of my new companion,
Mark
