Three Sisters Forge?

R

RipD

Joined
Dec 10, 2014
Messages
894
Anybody heard from these guys? I know Doc Jim "merged" with a machine shop at the end of last year. He said they had more equipment and could do a better job of production. He planned to stay involved in design. The web site went down and has been "coming soon" for at least 6 months. Jim pretty clearly handed off support and production to this shop.

The new guys do respond to emails but haven't been willing to send me screws. They want me to send my knife in. Given no web site, no presence here, and no apparent production, I'm skeptical about sending them anything. I found replacement screws locally so no issue for me.

Has anybody heard anything? Anybody had interaction with them? I'm starting to wonder if it's coming back to life.
 
Good to know. I was staring to wonder if they were going to ever start back up. Too bad they won’t send screws. I was going to make the same request. I’m sure The Dr would have happily sent screws before the merge.

On a side note, where did you get the screws? Any info in size?
 
I got the screws at a local hardware store that seems to have everything. You won't find them at Home Depot. When I get a chance I'll go back and ask them about the size and post it here.

It seems the new owners would rather do a review of the knife to get it up to their specs rather than just sending out screws. The web site says hardware was non-standard before March of 2018, which I get. From the web site, for $30 they'll do:
  • Cleaning
  • Adjustment
  • Replacement of parts
  • Quick sharpen
  • Return shipping
Seems more than reasonable to me. I'm going to send in my thin beast - I can't quite get the action where I want it.

The knives on their site look great, and the Thin Beast now appears to be a production knife! The green/black Gorgon looks fantastic. May ask them about cerekoting my regular Beast handle in OD green.
 
I sent my Gorgon in for service (weak detent) and replace the pivot screw (which I agreed to pay for) since the previous owner marred it up a bit.

There were some delays (knifemaker took vacation and construction on shop) which were fine since I wasn't in a hurry to get it back.

They did replace the pivot and gave it a quick sharpening at no charge (due to the delays) but I was a bit disappointed when they responded that there wasn't much that they could do about the detent except tighten the pivot.
 
That's discouraging. I would have hoped they would have swapped the frame if necessary to get the detent right. My Thin Beast could use more detent - will see if they can take care of that while it's there. I'm guessing there are limited options to adjust detent on a frame lock.

Mailing mine in today.
 
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Don't they usually just bend the lock in more to increase the tension between the blade and detent? Or perhaps replace the ball with one slightly larger or less worn. Doesn't sound too difficult either way for someone who makes knives.
 
Bigger ball would require a bigger hole. Certainly possible... but it's a real mod rather than an adjustment.
 
RipD said:
That's discouraging. I would have hoped they would have swapped the frame if necessary to get the detent right. My Thin Beast could use more detent - will see if they can take care of that while it's there. I'm guessing there are limited options to adjust detent on a frame lock.

Mailing mine in today.
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Curious, how much thinner is the Thin Beast compared to the Beast? Their site lists the same blade thickness for both models.
 
Wonder if that's a typo of if they're putting a thicker blade in the thin beast now? Seems more likely it's a mistake.

I measured blade thickness on my Beast at 0.158" at the top of the blade near the pivot. Thin beast is 0.121" in the same spot. Visually it looks much thinner, and it cuts much thinner. My Thin Beast will slice. My Beast cuts well but isn't exactly slicey. (Measurements taken with my calipers so could easily be off by 0.001" or more.)

I made a post in April comparing the two.
 
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RipD said:
Wonder if that's a typo of if they're putting a thicker blade in the thin beast now? Seems more likely it's a mistake.

I measure blade thickness on my Beast at 0.158" at the top of the blade near the pivot. Thin beast is 0.121" in the same spot. Visually it looks much thinner, and it cuts much thinner. My Thin Beast will slice. My Beast cuts well but isn't exactly slicey. (Measurements taken with my calipers so could easily be off by 0.001" or more.)

I made a post in April comparing the two.
Click to expand...
Thanks I'll go check out the post. I had wanted a Beast back when their site was down, and just learned from this thread about the Thin Beast. The thinner blade is much more appealing.

EDIT: Actually having seen the comparison pics I prefer the scale pattern on the regular Beast over the new one on the thin, lol... I wonder if a blade swap would work.
 
Not sure. Packed up my Thin Beast already or would give it a try. I can try swapping when I get back. It's certainly worthwhile to ask TSF if it would work and if they'd sell you a Thin Beast blade for your regular Beast.
 
FYI, ordered two Gorgon clips. They got here with no issue. Price and service were great. This is a great looking clip. Wish they had a logo clip for the gorgon as well. (Photo from the TSF site, not mine.)

Gorgon-Belt-Clip-Stone-Wash_600x.jpg
 
RipD said:
FYI, ordered two Gorgon clips. They got here with no issue. Price and service were great. This is a great looking clip. Wish they had a logo clip for the gorgon as well. (Photo from the TSF site, not mine.)

Gorgon-Belt-Clip-Stone-Wash_600x.jpg
Click to expand...

That's great but I'm curious, did they address your light detent?
 
Thin Beast isn't back yet. Will post an update with pics when I have it back. Really hoping it can move into my regular EDC rotation.
 
RipD said:
Thin Beast isn't back yet. Will post an update with pics when I have it back. Really hoping it can move into my regular EDC rotation.
Click to expand...


Can’t wait to see it. I’ve been thinking of getting one myself.
 
Got it back about a week ago and have been playing with it and carrying. My conclusion is that it's not much better. No pics as it doesn't look any different.

The detent is weaker than I would like. Still hard to find a balance between pivot tightness, centering, and blade play. It's just not where it should be for a $300 knife. Could be I just have a problematic one. Not sure. If you decide to get one I would make sure they'll take it back if you're not happy with it.

I still like the knife and it's completely usable. Just not quite where I want it. I may play with different washers or even try putting in bearings. As a last resort I could send to a customizer and see what they can do with it. It's a frame lock on washers - there's really only a couple of options. Not sure yet what I could to do tighten up the detent. Need to look into options. I could also send it back and ask them to try again.

And to be fair, my regular Beast is very good. It's a thicker blade than I want to EDC most of the time. As a smaller hard use folder it's excellent. My Gorgon is an amazing knife. Wife is a first responder and it's her duty knife. She uses it hard. After 3 years or so it performs incredibly well. Opens beautifully and locks up in the most satisfying way. That bank vault feel people talk about - this knife has it. That blade is great if you want a larger folder. It's almost like a small fixed blade in terms of size.
 
Some screw info for you guys. All the screws mentioned below are button head. It looks like USA Knifemaker has close-enough screws for replacements. In some cases you may need to get longer ones and file or grind them shorter. USA Knifemaker doesn't give the driver size for a lot of screws. I haven't found an exact match for all of these yet.

Gorgon: I checked two different Gorgons. Screw threads seem to be the same for both. They are both at least 3 years old, so newer ones could be different. The threads and measurements of the knife are the same between these two. The screw heads are different. So you'll need to know what you have to get replacement screws that look the same as stock (details below).
  • Gorgon back standoffs/spacers: 4-40 thread, 1/4" screws. (Stainless are T-10, black is T-8. I used T-6 replacements for black and they look fine)
  • Gorgon front standoff/blade stop: 2-56 thread, about 0.210" long (stainless is T-6 and black are T-8)
  • Clip: 2-56 thread about 0.230" long (stainless is T-6, black is T-8)
  • Thumb stud: 2-56 thread about 0.310" long (T-6)
The driver size doesn't matter a lot except for looks. The T-10 screw heads are thicker and stick up above the scales little. You can see this here. The T-8 and T-6 screws are little below the scale surface. Just consider the look when ordering screws.

Beast: Only have one Beast. Can't say if they all have the same screws.
  • All the standoff, blade stop, and clip screws are 2-56 thread and 0.230" long and T-8. I'm sure looking for 1/4" long is fine.
  • The thumb stud screw is 1-72 thread (90% sure but didn't check) 0.270" long T-5
I'll keep looking. Unless they were custom made they must be available somewhere.
 
RipD said:
Some screw info for you guys. All the screws mentioned below are button head. It looks like USA Knifemaker has close-enough screws for replacements. In some cases you may need to get longer ones and file or grind them shorter. USA Knifemaker doesn't give the driver size for a lot of screws. I haven't found an exact match for all of these yet.

Gorgon: I checked two different Gorgons. Screw threads seem to be the same for both. They are both at least 3 years old, so newer ones could be different. The threads and measurements of the knife are the same between these two. The screw heads are different. So you'll need to know what you have to get replacement screws that look the same as stock (details below).
  • Gorgon back standoffs/spacers: 4-40 thread, 1/4" screws. (Stainless are T-10, black is T-8. I used T-6 replacements for black and they look fine)
  • Gorgon front standoff/blade stop: 2-56 thread, about 0.210" long (stainless is T-6 and black are T-8)
  • Clip: 2-56 thread about 0.230" long (stainless is T-6, black is T-8)
  • Thumb stud: 2-56 thread about 0.310" long (T-6)
The driver size doesn't matter a lot except for looks. The T-10 screw heads are thicker and stick up above the scales little. You can see this here. The T-8 and T-6 screws are little below the scale surface. Just consider the look when ordering screws.

Beast: Only have one Beast. Can't say if they all have the same screws.
  • All the standoff, blade stop, and clip screws are 2-56 thread and 0.230" long and T-8. I'm sure looking for 1/4" long is fine.
  • The thumb stud screw is 1-72 thread (90% sure but didn't check) 0.270" long T-5
I'll keep looking. Unless they were custom made they must be available somewhere.
Click to expand...

You are the Man!!! Thanks for the info.
 
3eZXoWM.jpg


I just bought this Three Sisters Forge Beast from eBay from a seller that didn't have much information on it. Can anyone assist with a year/blade steel identification?

This particular knife has 2 unusual customizations: a rounded butt, and a thumb ramp on the handle leading to the thumb stud.

Question for owners of Three Sisters Forge knives:
Have you had any recent customer service issues? I reached out via Jim’s old knives@threesistersforge.com email; but haven’t heard back. Their website is still up, but theyonly seem to have a single item in stock, and a few pages (FAQ/About Us/Repair Service) have no content, which is a bummer since so many of the testimonials from owners talk about Jim's fantastic customer service and communication. Thanks in advance for any info.
 
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