Track Knives By Ithacagun (Stag Handle)

G

Grimalkin

Joined
Apr 7, 2015
Messages
162
Hey all.

Just wanted to share this beautiful knife that I got from my dad. He must have bought it 20-30years ago, it has his named engraved on the other side of the blade. It has a really beautiful mirror polish, and this is probably the most comfortable handle I have ever held.

I know some people collect these knives, but I was wondering if you all think I should use it for my bushcraft knife. I like how it was passed down from my dad, and it has his engraving so it's not like I will ever sell this thing. There was some copper corrosion from the sheath, green gunk, that I tried to clean off the guard. Any advice on getting the gunk off the leather?

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onojoe said:
Nice looking knife. I am sure your dad would appreciate you using it, but for bushcraft?
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I'm not a hunter, so I wouldn't be using it for that. It's the best quality knife I have for that size, and I figure why not just use it instead of getting a new knife. I realize it's not a typical bushcraft design but what the heck?
 
Hi Gimalkin - you have a beautiful older knife there and it has a great personal meaning to you.

As long as you are not batoning with the knife, carving notches and general camp work should be where that knife shines in use.

There is just something about the feel of a nice piece of stag, at least for me.

As to the vert de gris on the brass, you can use Brasso to clean and polish it up if you desire a like-new finish, or carefully wipe it down with newspaper if you want to leave the patina but remove the green.

For the leather I would be very careful as you could change the color of the area you clean, but you could try some leather cleaner and conditioner on the entire sheath, taking care to remove the area with the deposits.

It was a nice gift from your father, enjoy it for many years!

best

mqqn
 
I'd definitely use the knife. Might retire the sheath and have another one made for in the field. I don't no, I'd have to see it in person. [emoji41]
 
My dad just left the knife in the sheath, and probably didn't even touch this thing since he bought it. I won't ever baton with this, unless my life depends on doing such an act with this knife.

I tried stropping the edge, and I don't think I even made a difference, this steel is very hard. From what I can gather from research, its a high carbon steel, extremely high Rockwell rating. All I managed to do is mess up the mirror polish with the stropping compound. Easy enough to polish out, but I don't think a stop will even do anything for this blade.

The sheath is actually in really nice condition, except for the green corrosion from the copper that transferred onto the leather. It is a really nice old knife with some history behind the maker, she's a beut

I got a big bag of knives from him that he doesn't use anymore, I should post pics of them all, I wasn't planning on using this one, but decided to perhaps start because I don't care about the monetary value of it. Thanks all, I think when I get out into the bush soon, I'll be using this one.
 
I have used Montana Pitch-Blend as well as Peccard's leather dressing on my sheaths, light coats and they both seemed to work well. You might also consider a light coat of Mineral Oil on the handle. Put a light coat on, let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe off the excess. Enjoy using your Father's knife. John
 
John A. Larsen said:
I have used Montana Pitch-Blend as well as Peccard's leather dressing on my sheaths, light coats and they both seemed to work well. You might also consider a light coat of Mineral Oil on the handle. Put a light coat on, let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe off the excess. Enjoy using your Father's knife. John
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thanks for the tip on the handle, I had no clue I could treat stag. I got some mineral oil, I'll do just this!
 
I don't know if it's the kinda knife that I'd bushcraft with, but it would make a great food knife .

a couple years ago I received an mtech hollow handle survival knife, and I decided it would make a really manly steak knife so that's what I use it for
 
Use it, but don't abuse it, then hand it down to one of your kids. That's where the value lies in this knife
 
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