Slip Joint fantasy

Rover-Friskey

Rover-Friskey

Gold Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2023
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136
If you won a contest and the prize was 2 custom made 4 blade slip joints, what 4 blades would you choose? Specifically, what "small" knife would you design, your "Sunday" knife to carry in your suit pocket(< about 2 1/2" closed)? And what would you design for a work or outdoor knife. Not a survival knife, but maybe camping or working in the yard or in your shop or whatever.
Which steel(s)?
What blade finish(es)?
Half Stops?
Swedged?
Bone handle?
Lanyard?
Bolsters?
Custom Shield!
Underliners?
Your own custom tang stamp?
It is your custom design, so some blades can have half stops, some not, some blades have one type steel, others another, or each blade of different steel, etc.
No precious metals or stones.
 
I've only recently gotten into classic folding knives, so this is an easy question

First:
Congress pattern with blades like my Queen Steel #33
3 1/2 inch closed
420 steel liners and bolsters (integral)
Just bone with wormgroove
Blade steel MagnaCut with Buck heat treatment and longitudinal satin like Harumi
Large blades with half-stop, small blades without half-stop
All the blade axles are stainless steel and inside the bushings are bronze.

Second:
Sunfish pattern - 2 springs, 4 blades located opposite each other,
What do we call this - a sunfish congress?
4 1/2 inch closed
Blade grind like Hibbard Spencer Bartlett #1541 1/2
archive.org

Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Co. : Catalog No. 61 : Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Co. : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

2058 p., illus., 20.2 cm, trade catalog
archive.org
If I understand correctly, Camillus did it for them, so grind like Camillus Sunfish.
CuBe liners (C17200 copper alloy), nickel silver bolsters like my old Wüsthof. I don't know what kind of alloy it is, but it doesn't have a yellow tint like modern nickel silver
2TJ8VtS.jpeg

Musk Ox handle lined with gold foil for shine - foil between the pads and liners, like they used to do with tortoiseshells
Blade steel MagnaCut with Buck heat treatment. Polishing with crocus, if it can be done on this steel
All blades without half-stop, but the movement itself is like the Sunfish from Marbles / Rough Rider. It does not have a pure half-stop, but the shape of the tail is such that there is a certain traction to the half-stop.
All the blade axles are stainless steel and inside the bushings are bronze.
 
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1) Equal End stockman, 4.62 inch closed. Double ended each blade on its own spring, like a Buck 301.
All full size blades. 1095 blade steel steel: Clip; Spear Point; Lambs Foot or Sheepsfoot; Spey/Budding/Grafting.
1040 or 1050 springs.
Integrated 4140 (gun action/barrel) or 1040 color case hardened bolsters, liners, pivot pins, and pins.
Pinned brass shield
Checkered Water Buffalo horn or Wart Hog tusk covers.

2) Same but with a drop point blade instead of the spear point
 
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Well since I get so many choices, I'm not going to fallow any of the set perameters.
Not in sizes, and not in blade count for the most part.

#1 would be a mini half whittler.
2.75" closed
1095 blades.
Clip main
Coping secondary blade
Drawn swedges
Ringed brass bolsters
Brass liners
Stag covers


#2
A Texas Jack/ square bolster serpentine jack.
3.5" closed
1095 blades
Drawn swedges
2.5" clip main
1.5" sheeps foot secondary
pinched NS bolsters
Peech seed jigged brown bone covers.

I have experienced little variety with shields, so I'd have to see a chart of shield options from said maker to decide what I'd want from either knife.
 
failbot said:
I've only recently gotten into classic folding knives, so this is an easy question

First:
Congress pattern with blades like my Queen Steel #33
3 1/2 inch closed
420 steel liners and bolsters (integral)
Just bone with wormgroove
Blade steel MagnaCut with Buck heat treatment and longitudinal satin like Harumi
Large blades with half-stop, small blades without half-stop
All the blade axles are stainless steel and inside the bushings are bronze.

Second:
Sunfish pattern - 2 springs, 4 blades located opposite each other,
What do we call this - a sunfish congress?
4 1/2 inch closed
Blade grind like Hibbard Spencer Bartlett #1541 1/2
archive.org

Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Co. : Catalog No. 61 : Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Co. : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

2058 p., illus., 20.2 cm, trade catalog
archive.org
If I understand correctly, Camillus did it for them, so grind like Camillus Sunfish.
CuBe liners (C17200 copper alloy), nickel silver bolsters like my old Wüsthof. I don't know what kind of alloy it is, but it doesn't have a yellow tint like modern nickel silver
2TJ8VtS.jpeg

Musk Ox handle lined with gold foil for shine - foil between the pads and liners, like they used to do with tortoiseshells
Blade steel MagnaCut with Buck heat treatment. Polishing with crocus, if it can be done on this steel
All blades without half-stop, but the movement itself is like the Sunfish from Marbles / Rough Rider. It does not have a pure half-stop, but the shape of the tail is such that there is a certain traction to the half-stop.
All the blade axles are stainless steel and inside the bushings are bronze.
Click to expand...
well done!
 
Ones gotta be a camp knife! Can opener, two blades, awl.

Second one… hmm…. How about a with moose pattern, with an extra spring holding a nail file and a sheep’s foot?

Maybe these are too similar! Fun idea though. I like the ideas posted

Covers would have to be jigged bone. No shields! Maybe some fluted bolsters on one.
 
Well done all! Lots of creativity and lots of knowledge as to various options. I am afraid i am not so knowledgeable as to super customize a knife, but...for my small Sunday-go-to-meeting knife I would start with a Congress, but with only 1 sheepsfoot, replacing it with a clip. Nickel silver bolsters, right side bolster with my initials on both sides. Brass liners, SS springs. Smooth white bone with black inner liners, and a square shield with the Battle Flag of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, like my avatar only square. For my work knife, a clip and spey on one end, and a spear and sheepsfoot on the other, all equal length. Again white bone with red inner liners, SS springs and brass liners, right side with my initials, and a Union Jack shield (my mother was from England). As for the steels, 440HC on my Sunday knife and 12C27 on my work knife. I asked ChatGPT about it and here is what it said...
1738883805969.png
 
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Rover-Friskey said:
Well done all! Lots of creativity and lots of knowledge as to various options. I am afraid i am not so knowledgeable as to super customize a knife, but...for my small Sunday-go-to-meeting knife I would start with a Congress, but with only 1 sheepsfoot, replacing it with a clip. Nickel silver bolsters, right side bolster with my initials on both sides. Brass liners, SS springs. Smooth white bone with black inner liners, and a square shield with the Battle Flag of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, like my avatar only square. For my work knife, a clip and spey on one end, and a spear and sheepsfoot on the other, all equal length. Again white bone with red inner liners, SS springs and brass liners, right side with my initials, and a Union Jack shield (my mother was from England). As for the steels, 440HC on my Sunday knife and 12C27 on my work knife. I asked ChatGPT about it and here is what it said...
View attachment 2782622
Click to expand...
ChatGPT got some stuff right but also some wrong, I think that's about par for the course. All of those are easy to sharpen by virtue of being soft and not having a bunch of carbides, but for an upgrade from 12C27 while keeping a super fine grain structure that makes sharpening enjoyable while managing quite high hardness, stick with Sandvik and go with 14C28 in my opinion!

Sandvik with your preferred carbon content is the way to go for stainless imo

I'd need to have...a medium stockman with a long clip opposite a full sized wharncliffe (exactly like GEC possum skinner for main blades), then for secondary stuff I'd want a bottle opener and a nice sharp punch. Not sure about the blade arrangement other than the clip and wharncliffe on opposite ends, wharncliffe main. Extra serpentine too!

Queen's amber carved bone stag is my favorite cover material, so buy the best example available and steal the covers (rehandle the Queen with abalone and pearl while we're at this whole project).

Filework on the springs and spines. Custom circle shield with a monogram of my initials engraved since this would never get sold. Look up Arthur Cottham microscope slides from the 1800s, something like his monogram.

And then for steel, I'd probably just go with magnacut. Consensus seems to be that it's very good and balanced. Main blades 0.05" at the spine, pack everything in tight so no half-stop and just smooth 6 on the pulls. Except the punch, put an 8.5 or a 9 on that.

Second knife I'll break the rules lol, single blade eureka pattern with abalone and pearl, wharncliffe main, everything else basically as described except a 7 on the pull and a half-stop.
 
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Rover-Friskey said:
Well done all! Lots of creativity and lots of knowledge as to various options. I am afraid i am not so knowledgeable as to super customize a knife, but...for my small Sunday-go-to-meeting knife I would start with a Congress, but with only 1 sheepsfoot, replacing it with a clip. Nickel silver bolsters, right side bolster with my initials on both sides. Brass liners, SS springs. Smooth white bone with black inner liners, and a square shield with the Battle Flag of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, like my avatar only square. For my work knife, a clip and spey on one end, and a spear and sheepsfoot on the other, all equal length. Again white bone with red inner liners, SS springs and brass liners, right side with my initials, and a Union Jack shield (my mother was from England). As for the steels, 440HC on my Sunday knife and 12C27 on my work knife. I asked ChatGPT about it and here is what it said...
View attachment 2782622
Click to expand...
If you're using a " artificial intelligence " computer program to make decisions you're doing traditional knives wrong.
Especially since the people filling the program with all this " information " probably don't know anything about them.

Ideally you just want to ask around here then start trying out some knives.
 
Hickory n steel said:
If you're using a " artificial intelligence " computer program to make decisions you're doing traditional knives wrong.
Especially since the people filling the program with all this " information " probably don't know anything about them.

Ideally you just want to ask around here then start trying out some knives.
Click to expand...
It seems like it just successfully pulled out steels commonly said to be easy to sharpen, and said to be good for the price, but doesn't understand why.
 
Carboniferous said:
It seems like it just successfully pulled out steels commonly said to be easy to sharpen, and said to be good for the price, but doesn't understand why.
Click to expand...
And that's why he should ask actual people.

Traditional knives are just something a computer program can't understand, it may understand modern knives that were probably designed using a computer program and largely manufactured using computer guided machinery but not knives designed and manufactured by hand with origins and tradition predating electricity.
 
I agree that AI is not the best source for "easy to sharpen SS", but it is interesting and will only get better over time Of course for now it is not intelligent but simply a large language model that quickly retries data and does assemble it into a usable form. I have relatively little knowledge about knives and especially steels. I do like Cases 1095 and Chrome Vanadium. and 440A.
RF
 
a small equal end or sleeveboard
2 blades: 1095 steel
primary: a lambs foot blade
secondary: A coping blade
Nickel Silver bolsters
brass liners.
nicely Jigged bone, rust red or strawberry (Robeson) red
 
Rover-Friskey said:
I agree that AI is not the best source for "easy to sharpen SS", but it is interesting and will only get better over time Of course for now it is not intelligent but simply a large language model that quickly retries data and does assemble it into a usable form. I have relatively little knowledge about knives and especially steels. I do like Cases 1095 and Chrome Vanadium. and 440A.
RF
Click to expand...
It will never be able to tell you what people who have experience with them can, but if you're happy with the answer's you get go ahead and keep using it.
Eventually you'll learn the right answers to questions it may have gotten wrong.
 
Rover-Friskey said:
for my small Sunday-go-to-meeting knife I would start with a Congress, but with only 1 sheepsfoot, replacing it with a clip.
Click to expand...

The Congress pattern isn't the best one to nest a clip blade. A Wharncliff blade would be perfect on a 2 1/2" long Congress.

Dan.
 
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