My new three-pronged knife carry method continues today. The Camillus is always with me. The Case mini-trapper still occupies my pocket and my heart, it's so sexy and sweet.
The knife of the day is the Lionsteel Shuffler in bone Micarta. I'll go on the record and say that I don't like traditionals with modern styling. Knives like the Benchmade Proper and the Lionsteel Bolus do nothing for me. Even the Lionsteel Best Man refuses to pique my interest. They just don't look enough like the traditional designs that I love, for me to be able to view them as a true traditional. But the Barlow styled Lionsteels are the exception to my rule. When I look at my Shuffler, I see a Barlow. The proportions look right. The shape of both the frame and blade are perfect. The length of the bolster looks spot on. It's a traditional to my eye, where all other modern attempts have failed.
It doesn't hurt either that the Shuffler is a functional juggernaut. I like my Barlows, but I love my slightly oversized Barlows. The size of the Shuffler is just right. It's also so light that I can actually forget it's in my pocket. The pull on the clip blade hits a sweet spot of maybe 6 or 6.5, with outstanding walk and talk. Most traditional knives dream that they had walk and talk like the Shuffler, it's so good.
Now the blade, that took me a few minutes to put a good edge on. The M390 takes some getting used to, when all you usually ever work with is 420HC and 1095. But it was time worth taken on my Sharpmaker diamond hones, as the thinner edge profile cuts incredibly well. So well that I haven't yet had to touch up the edge.
I'll also mention that the bone micarta is truly beautiful. It's not nearly as white and pale as the Collectorknives website depicts. The actual color is far more interesting, and almost has a depth to it, with just a very slight hint of linen grain mixed in. It looks almost like an old piano key after a few months around the house.
So there it is. I present to you the Lionsteel Shuffler in bone micarta and M390 steel. It totally gets my seal of approval. It's a keeper for sure. The only thing that's keeping me from ordering a backup is the upcoming Warhorse two-blade version, that I might like even better.
https://i.imgur.com/UdoFBJXh.jpg
