The North Sword.

Can't see the vids at the office, but that sure looks like a sweet blade from the pics.
 
Looks very handy, Lorien. Thanks for sharing. I do not know much about a blade like this, but I am wondering if you considered having two sharp edges for cutting back and forth in both directions, which seems to me might be useful when cutting brush.
 
here is the final 'in the works' video that Dan put together;

[video=youtube;2FIcC3S-Va4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FIcC3S-Va4&hd=1[/video]


The last WiP photos will be posted a little later.


Thank you for the comments, guys :)

Ken, wrt a double edged blade for trail work; I've considered that as an option in the past, but you get very little power and control in a back cut which is also very hard on the wrist. One option I've been considering is a short, sharpened clip like you'd see on an old school bowie. That would be useful for picking up brush that's been cut and flinging it out of the way. It wouldn't have to be very sharp, just enough to bite a little. In fact, a serrated clip would probably be even better!
 
Terotuf is a very promising material for use in handling knives. Because it uses both polyester fabric and polyester resin, it is extremely UV resistant which gives it an enormous edge over phenolic based composites. It machines well and has a toothy grip to it which enhances its wet weather performance. It's extremely impact and wear resistant. Eric Ochs did an exposure study of various handle materials, which is where I first heard of Terotuf. Dan Keffeler swears by it.



I don't think that there is a stronger method for making a handle than with a ferrule. In the case where the handle material is mortised it makes even more sense.

Here you can see the handle be worked down to fit into the titanium socket;




The Terotuf block is fitted to the ferrule and the parts are lining up in the try fit;




Cutting the rough handle profile with the mighty bandsaw;




Everything looks roughly about right;




Handle's contoured, and this is where I started getting really excited;




The original design called for a kevlar or hemp cord wrap. This would be fine gauge cord, countersunk into the handle material. Dan was going on and on about tsunami cord, which I readily agreed to. Dan knows best! This material is extremely comfortable. It's like a chambrelle, or imitation leather. Doesn't shrink or dry out, and gives a hell of a great grip when it's wet. It does tend to hold moisture, but that's easily removed by squeezing a dry towel around it.

 
So, at the end of last month, after a little over three weeks of healing from a broken rib or two, I was finally able to get out and use this knife.

Backstory is, on the wednesday after I got home from the Seattle show, (April 30), I stacked really hard during a ride and wrecked myself pretty good. Swingin the blade around was just too painful- as was sneezing, coughing, or just regular breathing. But on May 25, I was feeling better and really needed to get out in the woods. Seeing as it was the ideal time to cut broom, (you do the most damage to the plant while it's blooming, but before it makes seed pods) that's what I did. I was also tying together a couple sections of trail that I've been working on, that will eventually be part of an 8 kilometer long loop of primo Vancouver Island mountain biking terrain.


This material is very dense and fibrous. Thickest stems are in the 2 1/2" range, and in this vid, most of the plants are pretty mature. There's another broom busting video on my channel showing the smaller stuff that you can check out if you like. As you can see, everything was going pretty well....before disaster struck!!!

[video=youtube;tzjv5zWsyLM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzjv5zWsyLM[/video]



At this point, I will leave a warning: if you are squeamish, you might want to avoid my next post.
 
Shortly after taking that last video, (maybe 1/2 hour) I was off trail, flagging my line. It was through hip deep salal, so not a lot of cutting, since I hadn't figured out exactly where the trail would be, and I only cut that stuff once I know where the trail is exactly going to be.

I had the North Sword in my right hand. I recall hearing a little buzzing, and then suddenly felt several stings on both my hands and on my legs- through my Carhartts. By the time I looked at my left hand, it seems I had already made a move with my right hand...and the 14" long razor blade held by it:eek: Maybe I tried to swat the hornets away with it, or maybe it was just some kind of spazmodic freak out due to the sudden unexpected pain. Before I balled up my fist, to stop the blood from flowing, and booked it outta there, I looked around me and saw a cloud of hornets all around. Thousands of them. Seems I stepped on their home.

If you still want to see the outcome, scroll down. If you don't like the sight of blood and gore, please do yourself a favor and leave this page now!









































The North Sword, it appears, also performs admirably with fleshy media. This photo was taken probably the day after. I hope never to repeat something like this, as you might imagine..


 
Lorien said:
equal parts carbon and tungsten, also mid range chromium with a healthy dose of molybdenum and vanadium. It's got it all!
Forged blades are appealing, but performance-wise, I doubt this material has a peer. Please prove me wrong!
Click to expand...
CTS-PD1 is the same composition as Vasco Wear. Several companies have their own iteration of the steel:

Carpenter - CTS-PD1
Crucible - Cruwear
Zapp - Z-Wear

All these steels can be traced back to Vasco Wear which preceded them by several years.

Steels that are comparable in performance are Uddeholm Vanadis 4 Extra and Crucible CPM4V.

I think all the alloys listed are excellent. Dan is an expert at getting the maximum performance from the steel by optimizing blade geometry and heat treating.

Chuck
 
Apparently your design works great Lorien. That coupled with modern steel and the best heat treat available make for one of the best performers I've seen before.
I always like to watch Dan chop boards and trees. I didn't notice until this vid that he can use either hand to cut. I can't tell if he is left or right handed.
 
All sorts of awesome. Your booboo finger must have sucked, but I suspect you actually came out of that altercation easy, bud. Just looking at the photos I can tell that the knife would have made short work of passing THROUGH your fingers.

I'll bet finishing that blade out was hell - looks to be some nasty wear resistance, judging by the chemical composition...

Regarding Terotuf... Is it any less nasty to work with, from a health and safety perspective? That's probably the single biggest reason I avoid G10/micarta/CF. Stuff scares the hell out of me...

Nice work, Dan - you make gorgeous stuff, that obviously matches it's looks with it's performance!
 
Alpha Knife Supply said:
CTS-PD1 is the same composition as Vasco Wear. Several companies have their own iteration of the steel:

Carpenter - CTS-PD1
Crucible - Cruwear
Zapp - Z-Wear

All these steels can be traced back to Vasco Wear which preceded them by several years.

Steels that are comparable in performance are Uddeholm Vanadis 4 Extra and Crucible CPM4V.

I think all the alloys listed are excellent. Dan is an expert at getting the maximum performance from the steel by optimizing blade geometry and heat treating.

Chuck
Click to expand...

Chuck, thanks so much for posting that information. It is hard to discover analogs without doing a ton of research, so I do appreciate you taking the time to inform us :)
 
Funny thing about the finger damage was that my whole hand was swollen and aching from the dozen or so stings it received. One of those little bastards even got under my wedding ring and stung the hell outta that finger and right at the joint. Needless to say, I suffered for several days and almost succumbed to taking pain killers, which I try greatly to avoid.

Thing that sucks the most, is that I cut the nerve which leads to the end of the finger. Makes it very hard to ride a bike, since I can't feel the grip, and typing takes about twice as long since I can't feel the keys. I keep mixing up the letters I'd be typing with my left middle finger.

You might think this is morbid, but I like to keep track of these things;

One week later;


Two weeks later;


Three weeks later;


And, no stitches! One of the dubious benefits of lacerating yourself with an extremely sharp blade...:rolleyes:
 
Looks like it is healing up nicely!! Sorry to hear about the nerve damage. But your right, a sharp knife makes it a little more bearable and heals up much better!!

I also dont care for pain killers, or any other pills for that matter. If it doesn't grow from dirt, water, and sunlight ill pass.

I have a competition cutter from Dan, and when i first received it i managed to cut myself as well... But i didnt even notice i was cut until i seen blood dripping... Now it was nothing like your cut and didnt go very deep at all, but it bled like a razor cut from shaving..... He does make some extremely sharp blades!!
 
when it comes to painkillers, there are two kinds that I like. One of them is alcohol.

[video=youtube;AtRwybPHU80]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtRwybPHU80[/video]
 
Lorien said:
when it comes to painkillers, there are two kinds that I like. One of them is alcohol.
Click to expand...

Yea i enjoy me some whiskey and beer as well. And i have another vice as well that works great as a pain killer but even though its all natural its not something to discuss here LOL

And nice cutting!! We should start a "Keffeler blades" thread for everyone, even Dan, to post videos of his different blades in use. I have a couple videos but i dont want to derail your thread :D

I love the design on your knife though. I love the curve and the handle looks great. Really an awesome knife.
 
we're on the same page, Mr. Wood :)

here's some trailbuilding philosophy and a little more explanation regarding the design and use of this fine blade;

[video=youtube;LifzI_hhug4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LifzI_hhug4[/video]
 
Awesome video. Looks to be a well thought out knife with great balance!!

I have been wanting a 2 handed large knife or "chopper" for a while now. Eventually.
 
worldwood said:
I have been wanting a 2 handed large knife or "chopper" for a while now. Eventually.
Click to expand...

just so happens I'm working on something like that right now! Drop me a pm with your email and I'll forward the initial sketch to ya :)
 
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