The Try Stick

hasco said:
Here is the current state of my try stick. The spear notch started to crack so I had to wrap it with a little artificial sinew.

I started out using my arete on it, but when I got my new kephart, I had to give it a go. Holy $@*#! This thing chews through wood! This is hand down the sharpest blade I own. Something about the way it was ground? This thing cuts through paper before it even touches it! No seriously, I love this kephart!

IMG_7420_zps66613ee9.jpg


Fun stuff!
Click to expand...

I love the way they worked the pin out in with that crazy grain of the wood. Killer knife, my friend!


Michael
 
Cool try stick hasco. And I agree with Michael, that handle is sweet. The grain makes it look 3D and the pinout just sets it off.
 
Slightly off topic; how are everyone's Fiddlebacks with a fire steel? Mine generally don't work too well so I carry a striker. With some of my other knives the spine works a lot better, but the slightly more rounded spines on the Fiddlebacks might be more comfortable..
 
I haven't tested all of mine, but the chamfered spine makes it difficult. They're more comfortable and look better, but hinder the use of the spine for fire steel or making scrapings from wood.

I just use a striker or the awl from my SAK.
 
Great question Thurin! I was wondering if someone would bring this up as many people will add the ability to throw a spark with a fire steel into their overall rating of a survival type knife. I have several knives with "sharp" spines that work great for fire steels because they have a sharp 90 degree edge.... I never use them because they are so uncomfortable on my thumb if I use the knife for more than a minute. The spines on fiddlebacks are one of the things I love the most about them. I actually have one fiddleback that is a little "sharper" on the spine than the rest and I must say it threw me off it at first. In fact, I thought of starting a thread to see if anyone else had noticed a variance in their fiddleback spine comfortability. I guess I use my thumb a lot when working with my knife and that is one of the reasons I also usually do not like jimping on the spine. Sometimes I see some nice looking knives by certain makers but they all have jimping and I just won't do it. I have one bark river with jimping and I had to file it down to make it more comfortable. All of that said, I don't mind carrying a striker, a lighter, a match, or making a bow drill fire. I love fiddleback spines!!!!
 
I may be in the minority (well, I am a minority anyways ;) ), but I do prefer a crisp spine for use with ferro rods and scraping wood. I just find that it streamlines the process a bit to have those applications be readily addressed using the knife. I had mentioned in another thread that if I could ever order a custom Fiddie, I'd get a duke (or a woodsman) with a sharp spine as a survival knife. I never found crisp spines uncomfortable to use (well, relative to a rounded spine, yes, but not to a point that it bothers me), but one's preference will vary based on application, personal preference, etc. In the end, the decision of such design element lies completely with the maker, and as buyers, we have the choice to purchase the items we want (variety being the spice of life). I love my Fiddies for in place of a sharp spine, I have a lovely 3D spalting, and when I'm bushcrafting with my Fiddies, I use the awl on my swisstool like Nathan does. Just to throw it out there, one could also just put a sharp spine on the knife himself, but I think very few FB owners (if any) would do that. And it wouldn't be as easy since it's rounded (at least the ones I got) and you'd have to take quite a bit of material out, then it wouldn't be flush with the handle...so yeah, not a great idea.
 
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Worked on the Try Stick some more including a Dove Tail and Pin during a break. Using the Arete this time.

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Not a try stick, but made this adjustable Pot Hook. Can adjust the height via multiple notches.

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That's cool Nathan! Let's see it in action.

I was going to ask where your pot was but being from Colorado, I thought you might get the wrong idea.
 
hasco said:
That's cool Nathan! Let's see it in action.

I was going to ask where your pot was but being from Colorado, I thought you might get the wrong idea.
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LOL. Will be putting into action this coming weekend when we're out camping.
 
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