The new Nkonka!

Smooth Bone

Smooth Bone

Joined
Oct 31, 1999
Messages
392
Can't believe no one's posted this, yet. (Or am I missing something and this is old news?!)

A new redesingned one piece range fixed blade with a screwdiver kit designed to slip inside the handle. The kit consists of:
-six bit heads (slotted, phillips, allen, etc)
-3 1/2" hexagonal aluminum shaft
-aluminum bit holder/coupler
-plastic injection molded bit storage
-removable titanium tommy bar to aid torque
-set screw in the butt cap to secure tommy bar

The handle has been hollowed out to the limit to handle the screwdriver kit inside and still maintain enough strength to thread the butt cap. The kit will only fit in this knife and not the others in the one piece range.

Also, part of the handle is not round. It has been shaved flat on the sides so when you pick up the knife you know the blade is either up or down without touching the cross guard. There is no way to tell which, however (one could drill a dimple on one of the flats to rectify this).

The cross guard consists of two round bedpost style finials which had a mirror polish on the one I saw.

The blade reminds me of the Sable. A2 steel and I'm guessing around 7 1/2". Nkonka's not a limited run, but a new addition to the line and will retail for $325.

If I understood Anne correctly, there will be other blade shapes coming down the road.

I'll let the Reeves comment on the future of the current design.

ANYBODY GOT A PICTURE THEY CAN POST??
 
...and I believe the protoypes are currently selling in the $450 range while the regular productions will sell in the $300 range. My memory's kinda rough, so anyone who was there too and asked about the price please feel free to chime in!

Furthermore, Anne Reeve told me it was a collaboration with Anthony Marfione of Microtech, who likely milled the T6 aluminum parts for the stuff inside.

The little "guard balls" for lack of a better name are titanium, and the one's I saw were apparently black Kalgard-coated. The leather sheath allows for the "guard ball" on the backside to act as a retention point, much like Kydex.

Professor.
 
Didn't know the name of this knife when I saw it at the CRK shop, but I can tell you it is COOL! I am sure that CRK is thinking of many innovative and practical ways to utilize the hollow of the handle in the one piece line.

Good for us.:D
 
Sabel style blade 7 1/2 in., with screwdriver kit?
Is this intended as "workshop knife ," who is anticipated user? I am only curious, not criticism-
Martin
 
I've got the flyer in front of me and it mentions that the sheath has a patented "slit-cam" concept to retain the knife, and the leather has been soaked in a water based polyurethane to provide a "kydex-like" water resistance and durability.

I really did not pay that much attention to the sheath. It was black and came half way up the handle like the sheath for the Sable IV. Nothing really stood out that made it look that different. Did anyone get a closer look that can explain how the "cam-slit" works??

Who is the anticipated user? Chris mentions in the flyer that you could include a 5/64" Allen head bit for your Sebenza. We've all used the tip of a knife to try and loosen/tighten a screw (come on . . . admit it, we were all young and stupid once). Wouldn't have to carry around those extra bits for your multi-tool.

Size and shape? Think of a 7 1/2" bladed Sable with the described changes mentioned earlier.
 
This is a bad, bad, place. After seeing this post I had to drop into CRK today to see what it was all about. The knife is very cool, and since I am such a "big" CRK fan I decided I better get one. Since I have a few knives to use, I ended up scoring one of the numbered prototype. Since I was flying and I didn't want to check luggage ( ie my laptop case) I had Bridget ship it to me. I will post a pic on Monday if someone else doesn't beat me to the punch.

The "balls" on the prototype / #'d editions weren't black BTW. The knife was really named after Chris's nickname when he used to race motorcycles, and is a Zulu name for a Bushbuck according to his flyer.
 
Saw the knife at BLADE; it was really nice. Just imagine a Sable proportioned out to a blade length of 7.5" As anyone who has used the Sable can tell you, it is a really useful outdoorman's knife.

It would be great if htey could have the mini-tool kit (or a reasonable substitute) fit into the existing One Piece Range hollow handles.
 
Here are the pics of the NKONKA that was waiting in my PO Box this morning.

NKONKA
168861-Nkonka.jpg


Heritage Showing the size to scale compared to my South African CRK Jereboam ;)
168863-Heritage.jpg


Tool Kit
168866-Nkonka%20Tool.jpg


New Sheath
168868-Nkonka%20Sheath.jpg
 
Looks like a great new knife. It will probably be a "gotta have" with my other Reeve fixed blades.
 
A little clarification. The sheath actually has a cutout / groove that the "balls" displace to create a retention device.
 
How do the guards fit into the blade. Do they unscrew, or are they permanently attached?
 
Ad,

When I asked CRK about the finish on the "balls" Anne told me that the prototypes came both polished and coated like the rest of the knife. Not sure just yet where the productions are going to be, but Anne told me that if I wanted mine "coated" they could be done after the fact. I haven't taken any tools to the balls to verify, but I would assume they are removable.
 
...much like the thumb lugs on a Seb. So, while some effort could conceivably see them removed, replacement would probably required sending the knife back to CRK to have new ones re-fitted.

Professor.
 
Thanks for the replies. I do not own a Chris Reeve blade, but plan to soon; I am hoping to handle them at the upcoming Blade Show West. I like the Project II, the Jereboam, and the Sable. The Nkonka looks cool, too. Hopefully, they'll have these there.
 
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