- Joined
- Jun 12, 2014
- Messages
- 31
Hey guys, I thought I'd do a little write-up on the Sneaky Pete I sharked a couple of weeks back since you all have been so helpful in providing Fiddleback information to me. Previous to the SP, I had only a 16" Fiddleback machete and hadn't handled a FB knife, aside from in my mind. The Sneaky Pete I present is 5/32" 01 Steel, SFT, with "Professor in a Blender" Shadetree herringbone burlap over natural micarta with white pinstripes and natural pins. It also has the new SP pommel design. I had set out hoping to score something with a TT (especially in 5/32nds), but like my dad told me when I was young: "You gotta dance with the woman that brung you." I'm quite happy dancing with this one.
The herringbone burlap is gorgeous when viewed in the sun. It presents itself very three-dimensionally, as I've heard others point out. My wife was the first advocate for this knife; she loves the maroon that comes out under light. Otherwise, it looks a mellow brown, which is basically my favorite color. Win-win.
The natural liners look great as usual, and while I wasn't crazy about the white pinstripes at first, I now think no other pinstripe would look as good with this burlap. Like I said, I was hoping for a TT, but after coming from 3/16" 4-5" blades, the 5/32" SFT feels practically sporty, especially with a handle profile which is out of this world. No regrets.
I have no issues with the actual blade being 5/32nds either. The first thing I poked into was a vinyl record package which arrived the same day as the knife; the slender, very pointy, spear tip of the SP is brilliant for opening packaging. I've never had an easier time removing the shrink-wrap on a record without damaging the sleeve. The Sneaky Pete is basically like having a scalpel with a bunch of bushcraft blade behind it. Pretty neat. The next thing I did was shear a lime for a gin and tonic (long days at work lately). This 5/32nds SP slices admirably, though it came so sharp I think it could have been 1/4" and still had no issue getting through a lime!
I ordered a pancake dangler sheath from Bonafide which MIRACULOUSLY delivered 5 days from date of order, even though it was a custom request. I'm a lefty, so I appreciate his ambidextrous sheath designs tremendously. His customer service was superb also. I like this sheath a lot: the level of artistry is practically on-par with the knife itself, and I think having the spider and the pebbling on there makes it look a little less threatening to people who see me dangling in public. I could have the totally backward though. If I want to go covert, I just slip it into my pants pocket and throw my shirt over the pommel. Really nice sheath.
In conclusion, I'm very pleased with the knife. I'll be taking it to Wyoming next week, and I'll find out how it performs for bushcraft tasks there, but I could easily see this thing as being my go-to for weekend carry. I work in aerospace, so I'm very familiar with composites which are manufactured using some of the same methods as the burlap handle, which I think is really cool. It's also the only polished synthetic handle I've ever held that is actually grippy. No need to bead-blast and take away from the eye candy here. The new pommel is interesting too. I think it's meant for setting your thumb on when in reverse-grip. I don't do a lot of stabbing like that, but if I needed to, I could imagine having a firm grip with that feature.
Being from a manufacturing background, I have a lot of appreciation for what Andy and the people at Fiddleback are accomplishing on these knives without using CNC equipment. Knowing what I know about the trades in America in general, it makes it a lot easier to drop the coin it takes to land of these knives.
Here's a picture with a four-month-old Americauna hen for scale (her name is Michonne):
Thanks for looking!
The herringbone burlap is gorgeous when viewed in the sun. It presents itself very three-dimensionally, as I've heard others point out. My wife was the first advocate for this knife; she loves the maroon that comes out under light. Otherwise, it looks a mellow brown, which is basically my favorite color. Win-win.
The natural liners look great as usual, and while I wasn't crazy about the white pinstripes at first, I now think no other pinstripe would look as good with this burlap. Like I said, I was hoping for a TT, but after coming from 3/16" 4-5" blades, the 5/32" SFT feels practically sporty, especially with a handle profile which is out of this world. No regrets.
I have no issues with the actual blade being 5/32nds either. The first thing I poked into was a vinyl record package which arrived the same day as the knife; the slender, very pointy, spear tip of the SP is brilliant for opening packaging. I've never had an easier time removing the shrink-wrap on a record without damaging the sleeve. The Sneaky Pete is basically like having a scalpel with a bunch of bushcraft blade behind it. Pretty neat. The next thing I did was shear a lime for a gin and tonic (long days at work lately). This 5/32nds SP slices admirably, though it came so sharp I think it could have been 1/4" and still had no issue getting through a lime!
I ordered a pancake dangler sheath from Bonafide which MIRACULOUSLY delivered 5 days from date of order, even though it was a custom request. I'm a lefty, so I appreciate his ambidextrous sheath designs tremendously. His customer service was superb also. I like this sheath a lot: the level of artistry is practically on-par with the knife itself, and I think having the spider and the pebbling on there makes it look a little less threatening to people who see me dangling in public. I could have the totally backward though. If I want to go covert, I just slip it into my pants pocket and throw my shirt over the pommel. Really nice sheath.
In conclusion, I'm very pleased with the knife. I'll be taking it to Wyoming next week, and I'll find out how it performs for bushcraft tasks there, but I could easily see this thing as being my go-to for weekend carry. I work in aerospace, so I'm very familiar with composites which are manufactured using some of the same methods as the burlap handle, which I think is really cool. It's also the only polished synthetic handle I've ever held that is actually grippy. No need to bead-blast and take away from the eye candy here. The new pommel is interesting too. I think it's meant for setting your thumb on when in reverse-grip. I don't do a lot of stabbing like that, but if I needed to, I could imagine having a firm grip with that feature.
Being from a manufacturing background, I have a lot of appreciation for what Andy and the people at Fiddleback are accomplishing on these knives without using CNC equipment. Knowing what I know about the trades in America in general, it makes it a lot easier to drop the coin it takes to land of these knives.
Here's a picture with a four-month-old Americauna hen for scale (her name is Michonne):
Thanks for looking!
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I have a SP in the same handle material, 1/8" TT, I LOVE IT! Everytime I pick it up, I have to admire the burlap! I'm a big SP fan, and Andy's more recent SP's have been exceptional! It seems the cutting edge in relation to the handle has lowered just a touch... I LOVE IT!
