- Joined
- Feb 8, 2012
- Messages
- 598
Haven't been allowed attachments yet, so putting up links. Please forgive the terrible photography. Any pointers on how to make it better would be much appreciated.
This is my little collection. Love the Outdoors, Cooking, Martial Arts so you can see where the knives would come in to the picture. I pursue 2 of those activities actively and have sadly dropped the ball on one for the last few years. My paunch will tell you which.
1. The Aruval- Reconditioned truck leaf spring by a blacksmith in Chennai. He actually hammered it into shape, heat treated it and quenched it in old engine oil and then annealed it. And it was his idea to put the CS Bushman style rolled handle on it! The racquet tape was my idea
. It's no Busse or Becker but it chops like its going out of fashion. Works as a machete too and batons through anything. And its cheap (all of $12 in total including the grip tape), so I am not afraid to whale on it.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Aruval/
2. SOG NW Ranger- The Ranger hasn't seen any real action except some youtube style foolhardiness with cardboard and bottles. Cuts like a laser and I haven't touched the factory edge yet. Still wave cuts newspaper. Fit is very good; everything stays where its supposed to. No loose handles or guard. Finish, however is a little off even to my untrained eye. For example the base of the edge where the grind ends has mismatched notches on both sides on my blade, and the grind on the belly seems to not follow the curve of the blade. I am sure the first issue wont affect performance and the second is easily fixed with my Lansky Kit, but still. And I have heard a few people say they had a little Kraton overflow into the lanyard hole.
I got it because I needed a bushcrafter for humid conditions and Adam from equip2endure did a comparative usage review with some other more expensive stuff (CS Master Hunter, Fallkniven F1, Fishwolf Custom etc). And it held up very well and won out on the cost/benefit ratio stakes. People say the leather sheath sucks but a well oiled leather sheath may work better in humidity IMHO. I soaked it in machine oil to make it supple and water resistant and now it stinks! Literally.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/SOG/
3. The Becker Knife & Tool BK-14 Eskabar- Latest acquisition. Incredible knife! Never have I held a small fixed blade that just feels so damn robust and versatile. Used it in the kitchen in place of my 8 inch chef knife and it did itself credit. Its finished beautifully except for the edge. My Scamp and Ranger came with scary sharp edges from the factory. The sheath doesn't seem to dull it but I don't know if that's because it wasn't very sharp in the first place or because I sheathed and unsheathed it a few times. I want to practice on my cheaper knives before I try to re-profile and sharpen it. I dare say there is little real "need" for more knife than this. But who here buys knives based on a literal definition of the word "need"?. The Zytel scales make me wonder why ever it was offered without them.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Eskabar/
4. Kershaw Scamp- My personal favorite. I have a bit of a "review" put up elsewhere on this forum. After a bit of work on the Lansky Deluxe it has taken a scary sharp edge. Shaves hair, cuts a wave in a newspaper, makes me afraid to touch the edge. And I KNOW it holds an edge. Thought it would be good experience before I invest in a top flight folder but it has seriously messed with my expectations. Especially cost/utility ratio. Linking my post about it on this forum.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/715067-Kershaw-Scamp?highlight=scamp
15th post in that thread.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Scamp/
5. No name Chinese slipjoint- Scandi Ground! Not kidding. Takes a good edge and keeps it through packages, tape, string, plastic wire (price tags) etc. Need to touch it up once a week maybe.
6. United Cutlery Combat Toothpick Dagger- Entirely impractical and useless piece of "tacticool". Ordered to test the delivery system
Plus its vaguely reminiscent of the FS Dagger. Says AUS-8 on the blade?!?!? For $20 shipped to my door.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Scandi Slipjoint/
Top Row in this set of pics.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Knife Stuff/
7. Carborundum Universal Benchstone- Coarse & Medium. Used to get good edges on all my knives with this and the Smith's ceramic rods and a thick old leather belt.
8. Swedish Firesteel- Added a piece of hacksaw blade to it to strike with because the attached striker doesn't create sparks. Its a novelty item with some niche utility in cold or wet environments. But I feel a $0.25 Clipper or Bic lighter will do just as well in the wet unless it gets soaked.
9. The Lansky Deluxe Sharpening system- Arrived in the same package as the Eskabar. Exceptional and highly cost effective product. Puts nasty edges on the 3 knives I have re-profiled and sharpened. The Arkansas Stones may not be very effective on super-steels like S30V, 154CM, A1, A2, O1 and so on but it does fine on 8Cr13MoV and I am yet to try it on Becker's 1095 or SOG's AUS-8. Might need the diamond stones for better steels.
10. Smith's 3-in-1- First fixed angle sharpener. OK product. Allows only a 20 deg per side angle to sharpen and the rest of the stuff (diamond plate and v-grinder) are not too useful for a newbie like me.
That's all I have for now. I think I will be OK in most situations with what I have. The literal definition of "need" has been met. Now to address my desires
Cheerz all
Vasu
This is my little collection. Love the Outdoors, Cooking, Martial Arts so you can see where the knives would come in to the picture. I pursue 2 of those activities actively and have sadly dropped the ball on one for the last few years. My paunch will tell you which.
1. The Aruval- Reconditioned truck leaf spring by a blacksmith in Chennai. He actually hammered it into shape, heat treated it and quenched it in old engine oil and then annealed it. And it was his idea to put the CS Bushman style rolled handle on it! The racquet tape was my idea
. It's no Busse or Becker but it chops like its going out of fashion. Works as a machete too and batons through anything. And its cheap (all of $12 in total including the grip tape), so I am not afraid to whale on it. http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Aruval/
2. SOG NW Ranger- The Ranger hasn't seen any real action except some youtube style foolhardiness with cardboard and bottles. Cuts like a laser and I haven't touched the factory edge yet. Still wave cuts newspaper. Fit is very good; everything stays where its supposed to. No loose handles or guard. Finish, however is a little off even to my untrained eye. For example the base of the edge where the grind ends has mismatched notches on both sides on my blade, and the grind on the belly seems to not follow the curve of the blade. I am sure the first issue wont affect performance and the second is easily fixed with my Lansky Kit, but still. And I have heard a few people say they had a little Kraton overflow into the lanyard hole.
I got it because I needed a bushcrafter for humid conditions and Adam from equip2endure did a comparative usage review with some other more expensive stuff (CS Master Hunter, Fallkniven F1, Fishwolf Custom etc). And it held up very well and won out on the cost/benefit ratio stakes. People say the leather sheath sucks but a well oiled leather sheath may work better in humidity IMHO. I soaked it in machine oil to make it supple and water resistant and now it stinks! Literally.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/SOG/
3. The Becker Knife & Tool BK-14 Eskabar- Latest acquisition. Incredible knife! Never have I held a small fixed blade that just feels so damn robust and versatile. Used it in the kitchen in place of my 8 inch chef knife and it did itself credit. Its finished beautifully except for the edge. My Scamp and Ranger came with scary sharp edges from the factory. The sheath doesn't seem to dull it but I don't know if that's because it wasn't very sharp in the first place or because I sheathed and unsheathed it a few times. I want to practice on my cheaper knives before I try to re-profile and sharpen it. I dare say there is little real "need" for more knife than this. But who here buys knives based on a literal definition of the word "need"?
. The Zytel scales make me wonder why ever it was offered without them.http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Eskabar/
4. Kershaw Scamp- My personal favorite. I have a bit of a "review" put up elsewhere on this forum. After a bit of work on the Lansky Deluxe it has taken a scary sharp edge. Shaves hair, cuts a wave in a newspaper, makes me afraid to touch the edge. And I KNOW it holds an edge. Thought it would be good experience before I invest in a top flight folder but it has seriously messed with my expectations. Especially cost/utility ratio. Linking my post about it on this forum.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/715067-Kershaw-Scamp?highlight=scamp
15th post in that thread.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Scamp/
5. No name Chinese slipjoint- Scandi Ground! Not kidding. Takes a good edge and keeps it through packages, tape, string, plastic wire (price tags) etc. Need to touch it up once a week maybe.
6. United Cutlery Combat Toothpick Dagger- Entirely impractical and useless piece of "tacticool". Ordered to test the delivery system
Plus its vaguely reminiscent of the FS Dagger. Says AUS-8 on the blade?!?!? For $20 shipped to my door.http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Scandi Slipjoint/
Top Row in this set of pics.
http://s1157.photobucket.com/albums/p583/raghavachari77/Knife Stuff/
7. Carborundum Universal Benchstone- Coarse & Medium. Used to get good edges on all my knives with this and the Smith's ceramic rods and a thick old leather belt.
8. Swedish Firesteel- Added a piece of hacksaw blade to it to strike with because the attached striker doesn't create sparks. Its a novelty item with some niche utility in cold or wet environments. But I feel a $0.25 Clipper or Bic lighter will do just as well in the wet unless it gets soaked.
9. The Lansky Deluxe Sharpening system- Arrived in the same package as the Eskabar. Exceptional and highly cost effective product. Puts nasty edges on the 3 knives I have re-profiled and sharpened. The Arkansas Stones may not be very effective on super-steels like S30V, 154CM, A1, A2, O1 and so on but it does fine on 8Cr13MoV and I am yet to try it on Becker's 1095 or SOG's AUS-8. Might need the diamond stones for better steels.
10. Smith's 3-in-1- First fixed angle sharpener. OK product. Allows only a 20 deg per side angle to sharpen and the rest of the stuff (diamond plate and v-grinder) are not too useful for a newbie like me.
That's all I have for now. I think I will be OK in most situations with what I have. The literal definition of "need" has been met. Now to address my desires
Cheerz all
Vasu
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