- Joined
- Oct 2, 1998
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- 44,705
A few days ago while my community was in the midst of an anthrax scare at the local postal facility one non threatening delivery that day was this gem from knifemaker Dale Reif.
Dale had contacted me about the "Sting" a few weeks ago and told me that he had been working on a design requested by a member of a police SRT team for a narrow bladed fixed blade with an acute tip for ease of penetration.
I'd say Dale nailed it.
(The digital picture is a bit deceiving and appears more truncated than the knife really is. In reality the blade looks even longer, sleeker and more tapered than the image reveals.)
The Sting features a 5" cutting edge in a 10 1/4" OAL package.
The blade is 13/16" wide and has a serrated thumb rest on the spine.
The blade is ground from 1/4" 5160 stock and is coated with boron carbide for corrosion resistance and protection. Since the knife is ground to a thin swedge and only retains full thickness under the scales, it remains very light and agile in the hand.
Dale said that the rockwell hardness is in the vicinity of 58-60.
The handle scales are of paper micarta and are grooved for additional grip enhancement.
Because the knife tapers to the edge over a relatively short distance, the supporting steel behind the edge is somewhat thick sacrificing very acute slicing ability.
While still sharp, out of the box the knife did not slice paper very cleanly. I have been experimenting on thinning and sharpening the edge with diamond, fine india and ceramic to see what works best for me. So far I prefer the edge with a bit of a coarser finish for added slicing ability.
While I was leery of the grip it has proven to be not only comfortable but very secure during cutting and thrusting with relatively dry hands. (I have not tested it with wet or bloody hands.)
The knife features a well designed kydex sheath (images to follow) with an adjustable belt clip allowing the sheath to be worn at a variety of angles.
All in all, this is a very nice knife with an extremely acute point and good overall balance and symmetry as well as visual cues.
Dale can be reached at:
drknives@aol.com
316-796-0903
and his website, www.angelfire.com/ks/reif
Dale had contacted me about the "Sting" a few weeks ago and told me that he had been working on a design requested by a member of a police SRT team for a narrow bladed fixed blade with an acute tip for ease of penetration.
I'd say Dale nailed it.
(The digital picture is a bit deceiving and appears more truncated than the knife really is. In reality the blade looks even longer, sleeker and more tapered than the image reveals.)
The Sting features a 5" cutting edge in a 10 1/4" OAL package.
The blade is 13/16" wide and has a serrated thumb rest on the spine.
The blade is ground from 1/4" 5160 stock and is coated with boron carbide for corrosion resistance and protection. Since the knife is ground to a thin swedge and only retains full thickness under the scales, it remains very light and agile in the hand.
Dale said that the rockwell hardness is in the vicinity of 58-60.
The handle scales are of paper micarta and are grooved for additional grip enhancement.
Because the knife tapers to the edge over a relatively short distance, the supporting steel behind the edge is somewhat thick sacrificing very acute slicing ability.
While still sharp, out of the box the knife did not slice paper very cleanly. I have been experimenting on thinning and sharpening the edge with diamond, fine india and ceramic to see what works best for me. So far I prefer the edge with a bit of a coarser finish for added slicing ability.
While I was leery of the grip it has proven to be not only comfortable but very secure during cutting and thrusting with relatively dry hands. (I have not tested it with wet or bloody hands.)
The knife features a well designed kydex sheath (images to follow) with an adjustable belt clip allowing the sheath to be worn at a variety of angles.
All in all, this is a very nice knife with an extremely acute point and good overall balance and symmetry as well as visual cues.
Dale can be reached at:
drknives@aol.com
316-796-0903
and his website, www.angelfire.com/ks/reif
. 
