"Subtle" custom slipjoint knives

matus

matus

Joined
Apr 24, 2009
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I have a little odd question I wanted to ask since some time. I am eying a custom knife with 2 or 3 blades. Currently I have 3 production knives (Northfield #38, Nortwoords Willamette Whittler, Forum 2015) and all 3 are of relatively "subtle" contraction - meaning the blade stocks are rather thin, the liners too and so do the scales - the knvies are nicely slim and relatively lightweight. The GEC #38 whittler and the 2105 forum knife are in particulargood examples.

But when it comes to custom knives I often get the impression (judging from photos online and 1 single blade custom knife I have actually ever handled) that these are made more robust - thicker blades and liners. While this makes the knives certainly more durable to use and time, I actually prefer the lighter/thinner design of (for example) GEC knives.

So my question would be - which custom makers (also) do this kind of compact & lightweight designs?

P.S. Please do not hesitate to correct me if you find take on custom knives off the reality.
 
Hm. Your observation is partially right. At least for the customs in my collection. I'll try to get in a photo tomorrow showing the varying thickness between production and custom.

Custom knives..generally the thicker ones are the ones with materials that the maker decided to contour the covers in that fashion to bring more depth to the cover itself..
Mammoth and Elephant Ivory..Some micarta which in turn provides a more organic feel in hand. It could also be the steel bolsters on some customs. Contouring a knife to keep a nice balance in hand is a fine nuance I look for on custom knives.

As for makers who do a lightweight/compact design..Several makers come to mind. Bret Dowell's knives cannot be recommended enough. He also does linerless models if you require even more weight reduction but I like the solid feel of steel liners in hand. Jim Dunlap also does linerless lightweight knives, Jerry Halfrich, Gene Wiseman, etc.

Many of my Dowell single blades are all the same width as my GEC's. The same goes for blade stock and grind. Majority of custom makers do a hollow grind however instead of a full flat.

The only makers I can think of that may have a thicker liner, backspring or blade stock are the Modern Custom Knifemakers who are making their way into making slipjoints.
 
I think it depends on the customer's wishes for the most part.

I have a Kerry Hampton Teardrop and he made it of lighter stock as I asked for a knife that was not going to weigh down the pocket. As it is all stainless construction, it is going to be very durable indeed and of course, corrosion free.

Likewise, the Hiroaki Ohta I ordered directly from him where I was given a choice of three different pairs of Stag slabs, is no hulk at all. Fact is, most of my GEC knives are heavier, relative to size etc.
 
There are differences in production knives as well as customs. A good custom maker will be able to make whatever you want. I highly recommend Ken Erickson, Ryuchi Kawamura, and the boys from Wilfred Works... especially for a 2 or 3-blade knife. For production knives, thin liners are probably more a matter of economy and practical manufacturing more than anything else. But there are differences... sometimes even in the same model. For example, the brass "liners" (scales) on the GEC #15 "Beer Scout" are slightly thinner than the steel "liners" on the GEC #15 "Crown Lifter".

As one example, Ken Erickson makes his liners with integral bolsters. The liners are milled to desired thickness, forming the bolsters, out of the stock. In comparison, most production knife parts are punched out of stock and the bolsters are separate pieces.
 
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Agreed Will, just picking up my GEC's for these shots..some are far more weighty.

from bottom to top
Gene Wiseman Front pocket (Thicker contoured Westinghouse Micarta but lighter than my GEC 73)
GEC 79
Dowell Loveless City Knife Tribute
GEC 73
Erickson Zulu Spear
Scagel Northwoods Indian River Jack
Dowell Trapper
Dowell Swayback in Mammoth (thicker contoured slabs to showcase the material)
Modified Zulu by S&M (heavier than the largest/first knife in the group photo, the Gene Wiseman

tumblr_nzzjpucgTK1rzq6m9o1_1280.jpg
 
Most custom makers probably start with 3/32" stock. While most people (or they seem to sell better) prefer
this over say 1/16" stock I'm not sure why. With our modern steels we sure don't need the xtra blade
thickness for strength. I believe in this strongly enough that this year I purposely made myself a straight blade
boning type for our deer season out of 1/16" stock. 0 problems, cuts great, and realistically do I need a batoning
chopper for these purposes. While I do sell a few folders in 1/16" stock I sell far more in 3/32" thickness.
Ken.
 
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That's interesting Ken.

Myself, I look for slicing ability and keeping the weight down, certainly dislike thick blades in a pocket knife (or a fixed blade for that matter, lot of fixed blades are sort of bayonet thickness, for what?? When I chop I use a hatchet)
 
Agreed Will, my whole reasoning for going towards traditionals was the fact that they slice incredibly well. More so than many modern knives these days. There's no need for 'overbuilt' or 'toughness' with me on traditionals save for a farm knife or perhaps a backpocket to take hunting.
 
For blade stock thickness on a multi-blade, I think it will depend a bit on the pattern. It's interesting that the OP said the stock thickness on the #38 whittler is thin. The main blades may be *ground thin* but it's actually ground from *thick stock* since it needs to span both parts of the split backspring. A single blade can be any thickness.

I also like thin grinds. On a pocket knife, I don't think the blade should be thick behind the edge. But even a very thick stock can be ground thin.
 
Thanks for your replies. It looks like there is hope after all :)

I have in mind a 2 blade knife with larger clip-point and smaller wharncliffe (both ideally with convex grinds, but flat would do as well) - all in a neat, thin package. The 2015 forum knife goes in the right direction (apart from being very pretty), though I would like the handle to be a little taller to fit palm a little better.
 
matus said:
Thanks for your replies. It looks like there is hope after all :)

I have in mind a 2 blade knife with larger clip-point and smaller wharncliffe (both ideally with convex grinds, but flat would do as well) - all in a neat, thin package. The 2015 forum knife goes in the right direction (apart from being very pretty), though I would like the handle to be a little taller to fit palm a little better.
Click to expand...

On a double-end jack, the main blade will be made from thicker stock and the secondary blade will have a catch bit. The overall thickness of a double-end jack can be very slender.

Years ago, the pattern that I proposed for the forum knife would have met your requirements. It was a double-end jack with clip and sheepfoot blades like the 2015 forum knife but built on the taller handle of a sowbelly. The taller and curvier handle would swallow up the blades a bit better and fit the hand a bit better. It was patterned after this knife (replacing the spey with a sheepfoot). My suggestion made it to the final vote but didn't win.

 
supratentorial said:
On a double-end jack, the main blade will be made from thicker stock and the secondary blade will have a catch bit. The overall thickness of a double-end jack can be very slender.

Years ago, the pattern that I proposed for the forum knife would have met your requirements. It was a double-end jack with clip and sheepfoot blades like the 2015 forum knife but built on the taller handle of a sowbelly. The taller and curvier handle would swallow up the blades a bit better and fit the hand a bit better. It was patterned after this knife (replacing the spey with a sheepfoot). My suggestion made it to the final vote but didn't win.

Click to expand...

Outstanding knife Jake
Mike
 
Jake, the design you describe would go in the right direction indeed. I get however the impression that few makers offer two blades on the same spring (probably for stability and lifetime reasons).
 
Thank you, Mike.

Another thing for the OP to consider is that the overall thickness of a double-end jack depends somewhat on the size of the secondary blade. A larger secondary blade will require more room to accommodate.

A lot of vintage double-end jacks were very thin knives. Some of the smaller ones are wafer thin. And the old knives usually had very thin blade grinds. So you might also keep an eye out for a vintage knife in good condition.
 
matus said:
Jake, the design you describe would go in the right direction indeed. I get however the impression that few makers offer two blades on the same spring (probably for stability and lifetime reasons).
Click to expand...

Multi-blades are a bit more complicated to make. And single blades seem to sell well... my impression is that single blade knives seem to appeal better to folks who are more familiar with modern knives than traditional knives. The makers that I suggested above will all do multi-blades.
 
Check out T A Davison. He makes incredible customs. I had a linerless black G10 swayback that truly disappears in your pocket, and weighs next to nothing. He sells on the forum here as well!
 
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