THE Hollow Handle Knife Thread

cricketdave said:
I went with s35vn on all 3 of mine, since I wanted them uncoated and didn't want to deal with any rust issues it seemed the best choice. Newt upgraded for me on them at no extra cost too. That didn't hurt my feelings a bit.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply cricketdave. How does the s35vn stand up to hard use. Because of the sawback I dont plan to baton with it or anything like that but maybe some medium chopping and the like. How easy is it to sharpen if your a beginner. I'm not really familiar with s35vn and I usually prefer carbon steels on knives that may see heavier use but for some reason on a Rambo style blade, stainless seems more appealing to me. I guess the question is how does s35vn perform on a knife thats gonna be used as a"jack of all trades" type thing.
 
Last edited:
I haven't had any trouble at all chopping with it or batoning either. The full flat grind makes it a good chopper, cuts deep and easy. S35vn isn't particularly hard to sharpen, I freehand on a dmt duo fold fine and medium and then finish on a leather strop. Usually just need to strop it back to very sharp. With so many nooks and crannys on a saw back blade there seems to me to be lots of spots I might miss that rust could start so stainless made more sense to me too. I have used it quite a bit, chopping brush, sawing some limbs, and split some wood for kindling and it just works great. I've chopped through some 5 or 6 inch logs with no problem at all so it will take some pretty hard use. You'd be surprised at just how well the saw back does work it will go through a 4 inch log faster than I can chop it.
 
cricketdave said:
I haven't had any trouble at all chopping with it or batoning either. The full flat grind makes it a good chopper, cuts deep and easy. S35vn isn't particularly hard to sharpen, I freehand on a dmt duo fold fine and medium and then finish on a leather strop. Usually just need to strop it back to very sharp. With so many nooks and crannys on a saw back blade there seems to me to be lots of spots I might miss that rust could start so stainless made more sense to me too. I have used it quite a bit, chopping brush, sawing some limbs, and split some wood for kindling and it just works great. I've chopped through some 5 or 6 inch logs with no problem at all so it will take some pretty hard use. You'd be surprised at just how well the saw back does work it will go through a 4 inch log faster than I can chop it.
Click to expand...

Again thanks a ton cricketdave. Much appreciated. Yeah on a carbon steel vers I was worried about possible moisture getting between the saw teeth that I could miss. I think that settles it, if I do end up going for the MCE2 I'll probably go with s35vn.
 
Got another question for you guys. While browsing through Mr. Martin's site I read one of the steels he uses is 440c. How does 440c compare to s35vn in terms of toughness, edge holding, wear and rust resistance, ease of sharpening etc? I know 440c often gets a bad rap these days but I also see quite a few well known and respected knife makers (especially HH knife makers) who still use it so I figured well heat treated 440c cant be all that bad but how does it do on a knife like the MCE that may see rougher use like chopping etc?
 
I'm not a fan of 440c i find it harder to get a good edge on and it looses that edge much quicker. With s35vn and s30vn I haven't noticed one or the other holding an edge better and both are about the same to sharpen. According to charts s35vn is quite a bit tougher and the edge is longer lasting than 440c. Its been that way in actual use for me as well.
 
cricketdave said:
I'm not a fan of 440c i find it harder to get a good edge on and it looses that edge much quicker. With s35vn and s30vn I haven't noticed one or the other holding an edge better and both are about the same to sharpen. According to charts s35vn is quite a bit tougher and the edge is longer lasting than 440c. Its been that way in actual use for me as well.
Click to expand...

Thanks again for your response cricketdave. Interesting you say both s30v and s35vn sharpen about the same. On what I've read, many said the s35vn was easier to sharpen than s30v. I have read from 440c can be difficult to get a shaving edge but will keep a "working" edge fairly well. 440c is interesting as it seems most people either love it or hate it. Anyway thats all hearsay on my part since I have no experience with either steel other than fondeling a few knives made from them.
 
Years ago 440c was the new hi end stainless and just about everybody made blades in it, some great some not so great. The newer stainless steels are a pretty big improvement though. While 440c does hold a working edge pretty well the s30vn and s35vn hold it much longer and take a sharper edge to begin with easier for me at least. They are quite a bit tougher as well, according to charts I have only ever chipped one stainless knife and that was a buck master in 420 i think. Never did warm up to that knife. Now we are seeing more knives in Elmax and it holds a better edge than s30vn or s35vn and is tougher to boot. Should be interesting to see a big blade out of that sometime too.
 
So I finally had time to look over my new Greg Wall knife, and compare it to my Randall Model #18. While Mr. Wall calls his a "Model 18 Style", I was immediately struck by the differences... and in most cases improvements.

Let's start with some pictures:





My first point of difference was in the blade shape. The Wall is noticeably blunter at the tip. Picking it up, it is definitely blade heavy compared to the Randall. Interestingly, the actual weights are the same (within 1/2 oz.), but the Wall feels more substantial. That's neither positive or negative, just different.

The next thing I noticed is that the Wall knife has a convex edge. The Randall does not. I definitely prefer a convex edge for this application, and I give substantial points to Mr. Wall for this improvement (IMHO).



While looking at the edge, I also noted that the soldering was perfectly clean on both. I really don't know how they do it... certainly my aborted attempts at soldering anything are not nearly that clean.



The next point is that the Wall knife has a longer handle... about 1/2 inch longer. This makes a HUGE difference for my hands, and again Mr. Wall gets points for an improvement. While the Randall has always fit me, it was close, and a little crowded.

But shockingly, the Wall has LESS space in the hollow handle:



The depth of the Wall knife compartment is a little over 2", and the Randall is just under 3". From a storage standpoint, this is a negative, but I'm assuming there is a reason for it... perhaps more handle strength. Curious.

I suppose it's heresy, but I rather prefer the Wall knife. I just wish I knew why the storage space is smaller.
 
I just ordered a Martin MCE2.
Finally, a quality Lile FB knife at a reasonable price. I can't wait.

When the original Lile FB's came out I really wanted one. However, the 500-600$ price tag was just too much. I bought a Buck 184 instead. That was my last HH knife.

Does anyone know if the current Robson x46's have changed to a threaded butt cap?
 
guns_and_labs said:
So I finally had time to look over my new Greg Wall knife, and compare it to my Randall Model #18. While Mr. Wall calls his a "Model 18 Style", I was immediately struck by the differences... and in most cases improvements.

Let's start with some pictures:

My first point of difference was in the blade shape. The Wall is noticeably blunter at the tip. Picking it up, it is definitely blade heavy compared to the Randall. Interestingly, the actual weights are the same (within 1/2 oz.), but the Wall feels more substantial. That's neither positive or negative, just different.

The next thing I noticed is that the Wall knife has a convex edge. The Randall does not. I definitely prefer a convex edge for this application, and I give substantial points to Mr. Wall for this improvement (IMHO).


While looking at the edge, I also noted that the soldering was perfectly clean on both. I really don't know how they do it... certainly my aborted attempts at soldering anything are not nearly that clean.


The next point is that the Wall knife has a longer handle... about 1/2 inch longer. This makes a HUGE difference for my hands, and again Mr. Wall gets points for an improvement. While the Randall has always fit me, it was close, and a little crowded.

But shockingly, the Wall has LESS space in the hollow handle:


The depth of the Wall knife compartment is a little over 2", and the Randall is just under 3". From a storage standpoint, this is a negative, but I'm assuming there is a reason for it... perhaps more handle strength. Curious.

I suppose it's heresy, but I rather prefer the Wall knife. I just wish I knew why the storage space is smaller.
Click to expand...

Nice to see another Wall 18 out there! I love mine as well. Thank you for the awesome pictures and the great comparison with the classic Randall.
 
bearcut said:
I just ordered a Martin MCE2.
Finally, a quality Lile FB knife at a reasonable price. I can't wait.

When the original Lile FB's came out I really wanted one. However, the 500-600$ price tag was just too much. I bought a Buck 184 instead. That was my last HH knife.

Does anyone know if the current Robson x46's have changed to a threaded butt cap?
Click to expand...

No firsthand experience with them, but I have read that the newer ones do have a threaded cap.
 
Great write up and pics Guns, I really like both the Wall and the Randall. I'd bet the wall has a heavier join with that much less room in the handle as well as it being just a bit longer than the Randall. I'd prefer the Wall were a bit more pointy would be my only improvement on it. Very cool, are you going to wrap the handle?

Bearcut I think you will really like the Martin I've been very pleased with the performance of mine. I had a Lile Sly2 back years ago and while it was a good knife it wasn't as good as my Martin, plus some A-hole stole it.
 
Sharp Knives 86 said:
Thanks for the reply cricketdave. How does the s35vn stand up to hard use. Because of the sawback I dont plan to baton with it or anything like that but maybe some medium chopping and the like. How easy is it to sharpen if your a beginner. I'm not really familiar with s35vn and I usually prefer carbon steels on knives that may see heavier use but for some reason on a Rambo style blade, stainless seems more appealing to me. I guess the question is how does s35vn perform on a knife thats gonna be used as a"jack of all trades" type thing.
Click to expand...
I did some testing a few years ago with an s30v strider fixed, a 3v Fehrman and a Busse. They were all VERY tough. The busse had the worst edge holding, 3v was much better. What really surprised me though was the s30v. It held its own just fine as far as toughness. If s35vn is tougher still, then I have absolutely no concerns with a large fixed blade made by a reputable maker.
 
Hello hollow handle knife lovers!! Sorry I have not been in here in some time. Ive just been going through some personal trials. But things are almost back to normal for me or at least a New normal, lol. Anyway though, I will ve coming in here more and more now.

I am still very much lover of hollow habdle knives. But my latest purchases have been full tang knives. One of them is my awesome handmade bushcraft knife called the Bushmaster. It was made by Tim Spry and guys, the freaking thing is a real beast of a knife.

The Bushmaster sports a full tang blade that is over 12 inches long and made with D2 steel. The handle length makes it a total length of around 18 inches. Ever part of the blade does something diff. Part of the blade, about an inch or so near the tang, is sharpened on one side only and is what you call a pullout knife. On the back is deep serrations for some very serious sawing, with one extended sawtooth serration near the tip of the blade. This is for wire bending/ breaking.

This knife is Only for the serious survivalist. So if you are just a basement Rambo, or you just play pretend games of survival and camping, do Not get this knife. Stick with those Chinese Cheapies, lol. Just kidding. But really, this is really a serious piece of hardcore survival knife.

The maker's nane is Tim Spry!!! Check him out!! Thanks for reading and I Shall Return!!
 
D
thedemonbeast said:
Hello hollow handle knife lovers!! Sorry I have not been in here in some time. Ive just been going through some personal trials. But things are almost back to normal for me or at least a New normal, lol. Anyway though, I will ve coming in here more and more now.

I am still very much lover of hollow habdle knives. But my latest purchases have been full tang knives. One of them is my awesome handmade bushcraft knife called the Bushmaster. It was made by Tim Spry and guys, the freaking thing is a real beast of a knife.

The Bushmaster sports a full tang blade that is over 12 inches long and made with D2 steel. The handle length makes it a total length of around 18 inches. Ever part of the blade does something diff. Part of the blade, about an inch or so near the tang, is sharpened on one side only and is what you call a pullout knife. On the back is deep serrations for some very serious sawing, with one extended sawtooth serration near the tip of the blade. This is for wire bending/ breaking.

This knife is Only for the serious survivalist. So if you are just a basement Rambo, or you just play pretend games of survival and camping, do Not get this knife. Stick with those Chinese Cheapies, lol. Just kidding. But really, this is really a serious piece of hardcore survival knife.

The maker's nane is Tim Spry!!! Check him out!! Thanks for reading and I Shall Return!!
Click to expand...


How about a photo?
 
I absolutely LOVE 440C steel. It is Old Skool steel. And I have had not one problem getting it razor sharp and it holding that sharp edge. If 440C steel is heat treated right, the sharp edge is easy to achieve and also easy to maintain. But more importantly, the wear resistance is awesome. And while I love 440C steel still (LOL), my new love steel is S35VN stainless steel. I've not seen anything like this steel. It has every aspect that a Supersteel could possibly have. But I will not compare it to 440C because to me, the two steels are in a class all by themselves.

Now, I had been favoring 1095 and 5160 steels as far as high carbon steel goes. That is until I received my Ray Matton handmade First Blood knife made with D2 steel. This is my first-ever D2 steel knife and I am just blown away by it. It is perfect in almost every way. And it may take a few extra push and pulls across the sharpening stones but once it is sharp folks, I tell you, it sure Stays Sharp no matter how many times you use it. I also now have a 2nd knife made with D2 steel and it has the same superior qualities as my Ray Matton FB knife.

There are other steels I like. For example, I love all 4 of the Japanese AUS 4, 6, 8, and 10 steels. I don't think the AUS 4 is used much at all. But I have knives made with 6 and 8 steels and hopefully soon one with 10. All I can say is Ohh Wow!! What some great knives!!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top