Thin blade steel showdown!

I did say that I was hoping to build the perfect knife for me and yes, I do plan to make it thin... relative to a lot of what I've seen lately. Interesting that you would mention the numbers you did, as my current 3D modeled design is at .355". I'm shooting for not too thin in the hand and not too thick in the pocket. My Mini Barrage feels like a nice size but just a little too thick. My design is a little longer, a little taller and a little thinner so I'm hoping it will all balance into something that suits me. I've gone about as far as I can on the design though until I make one and actually carry it around for a week or two. Soon as the first round of tests is done I'll pick a steel and start work on that prototype knife. It'll just be a slipjoint with peened pins until I get the feel nailed down.

Also I'm kind of more interested in the actual testing and general screwing around with the different metals for the moment. So today I placed an order for some more steel! Sometime in December I should be knocking out a second set of blades from D2, 10V, 4V, XHP, N690 and Z-FiNit. :thumbup:
 
TexasWade I think you are on the right track as a Thin blade is what I call a cutting blade. Now if you plan to whack on trees or harder substances or hit the spine with a hammer or another object then a thick blade is needed. But for cutting things such as meat or kitchen duties not to mention a great Skinner and gutting knife thin is in. :)

I am brand new to this stuff but I have currently purchased a Green River 5" Buffalo Skinner to add scales to. What I would really like to find is a good skinning blade like the one mentioned but of a blade material that will keep an edge as when skinning and or cutting up a Hog it can sure kill an edge in short order. :(

As it is a pain to make sure that one has 3 or 4 sharp knives before even starting to work on a Wild Hog.
 
No tree whacking or hammering for me! In over 40 years of knife ownership I have never felt the need to pound on a knife, pry open a car door or hang my body weight off one in such a way that the lock would need to support me. I have broken the tips off a couple by prying on stuff when I was younger but that hasn't happened since I decided I would use my knives but not abuse them. That's not to say that nobody should ever do those things, but since I don't, my knife doesn't need to be built for that kind of use.

I also haven't skinned any wild hogs but I'm surprised that you would need 3 or more knives to do the job. I would expect one would do or two at most for different tasks. If you're looking for upgrade options though I'm sure there are several guys on the forum who can help pick out some excellent blades for hog processing.
 
I guess I will have to ask about good hog processing knife.

And yes usually 2 knives but if the Hog is big then it will take a bit of use from a 3rd.

But as mentioned I now have a couple of Green River 5" Buffalo skinners that I have put scales on that are made of 1095 I believe and will see how they perform.
 
Minor setback! I got my paper slicer rig all set up with a good sharp blade but it won't start the cut... I've tried a couple different kinds of paper and I've varied the angle of the blade on the mount but it seems pushing the paper even an inch instead of pulling it makes for a really difficult cut. I can pull the paper a bit to start it and the motor will drive the rest of the sheet through but it doesn't seem to cut very consistently. I ran enough paper through to get a "no cut", but was still able to make several more cuts afterward without resharpening.

I'll be out of town for several days coming up so I'll have plenty of time to think about a different approach. Also open to suggestions if anyone has any ideas.
 
Sonnydaze,

I find that I prefer folders, in my hand, that have a minimum thickness of roughly 0.350".
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I think in metric but decided to measure my Cold Steel Holdout III to see how it compares, which I consider a very thin knife (handle) for the blade size. It is about .038" (9.7 mm).

So yah, I sure agree with what you said.
 
cutting up a Hog it can sure kill an edge in short order.
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Just have your hunting Valet helicopter in a portable hog washer.
That's what I do.
Well Jeeves suggested it. He got tired of sharpening all those knives for me.

:p:D:p
 
Wowbagger said:
I think in metric but decided to measure my Cold Steel Holdout III to see how it compares, which I consider a very thin knife (handle) for the blade size. It is about .038" (9.7 mm).
Click to expand...

I suspect thay your conversion and/or measurement may be inaccurate... 1mm = ~0.0396"... perhaps you meant 0.380"?
 
singularity35 said:
I'd like to see 52100 as a player in this...
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I was going to say 52100 with a differential heat treat but I wasn't sure if the op could do a differential or what the testing would encompass. I just like the idea of a crisp 52100 edge on a thin knife that has the strength of a thicker knife.


Edit: You're killing me smalls! 2015? You got me. :)
 
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