WIP of Sheffield inspired 3 thick Sportsman's knife - Ken Erickson

I guess it's time to 'fess up. I am the customer for this knife.
I am posting for a number of reasons.
First of all, I want to say that it has been a lot of fun for me to interact with Ken on the design of this knife. He has been more than patient, and I am learning a great deal.

Second, I am learning a lot from this thread. It's an added bonus.

After paying close attention to Ken's work on Bladeforums I decided some time ago to see if he was interested in making a knife for me. (one of the funny things about this business is that the maker and customer have to match. I am ot interested in buying a knife from someone that I don't care for, and I know many makers who don't care to sell knives to customers that they don't care for. Works both ways.) well, we seemed to have clicked, but I wasn't sure what I wanted, and it took some time for Ken to find a pattern on which to base this knife. So now I get to watch the progress as it's being made. Pretty cool.

I also want to say that I appreciate comments by the Traditional forums regulars. I have learned a lot from y'all over the years, and if you have something to say, go right ahead.

We are still working on the scales for the knife. I love black lip MOP, but it seems to me that the othe colors are more in line with the classic Sheffield knives. I could be talked into brown lip or gold lip pretty easily, depending on what Ken finds. To convince me togo with white, it would have to be a pretty spectacular piece.

By the way, I have every intention of carrying this knife and using it. Just as I do with every other knife that I own--except the ones that I have bought for my daughters. But this one is for me, and I look forward to getting and using it.
 
Congratulations. It is a beautiful knife. Fiery white mop was traditional for Sheffield knives. I don't think black lip, gold lip mop etc were used much. IMO that knife would look spectacular dressed in ivory. Very traditional and much more durable for use. Just my 2p. Regardless of the final scale choice, I'm sure it will be a joy to behold.
 
shaldag,
thank you for challenging Ken with this knife, therefore allowing us to have such fun and learn so much from this thread. Of course, it's not like being in your shoes, still somehow I feel a little bit involved in this project for the simple fact of witnessing the steps of it, and it feels great. As for Ken, I know he's the kind of knifemaker willing to face such challenges, and I really appreciate it (Ken knows I do).
If you allow me to make a suggestion on this particular knife (I know you don't need any, but I can't resist :rolleyes:), I do love black lip pearl, but, for some reason that I can't explain, I'd go for a brighter color on this pattern, maybe gold lip or even white (assumng you find a piece that satisfies your eye).
As for carrying it, after such a rich creative process, I'm sure it will be an outstanding pleasure every time you will pull this knife out of your pocket to use it.
Congratulations :)

Fausto
:cool:
 
It's going to be an extraordinary knife, no matter what covers you end up choosing. I think I'm with s-k on this one, though, because the pattern seems to call for something brighter like ivory. Maybe interior mammoth ivory?
 
Well, I have that Sheffield exhibition knives book, and I also have a few old sheffield knives that I have picked up over the years. I have never seen anything in black-lip, although I have seen one or two in gold-lip. Most of wat I have is in that while, but it's not very fiery.

I do have a couple of pieces in ivory, and I love the stuff. Ken and I have discussed it. i am under the impression that ivory is not as durable as pearl--it tends to change its size a bit with the weather. That is what I have been told by a few custom knifemakers in the past ( not Ken). This is somewhat belied by my old sheffield horseman's knife in ivory, so I don't really know.

There is another problem with ivory--i live in Israel. That means that the knife has to travel oversease at least once. I hate that. When you are dealing with ivory, it means that there is a nonzero probability that it will be confiscated by customs in one country or another on the basis that ivory is banned. I have no idea of how to convince any government authority that a piece of ivory is preban. I woukd hate for this knife to be confiscated; aside from being a big financial hit, it would hit me hard emotionally. That is one of the reasons that I was leaning towrd pearl.

Ig any of you have suggestions on how to deal with this, or any other suggestions, please keep 'em coming. Hell, i'd even be willing to consider tortoise for this knife if the customs problem could be solved and Ken could find a piece or two and would be willing to work with it.
 
Shaldag, thanks for stepping out of the shade of anonymity, I was curious about who is the the lucky guy :)
I was thinking about mammoth ivory for scales material, something with light brown hue that gives some vintage filling that this knife deserve.
I have no problems with knives ivory scales in the local weather, and as for customs, it is very unlikely that you'll end up with confiscated knife if using ivory for scales, but mammoth ivory or fossilized walrus will be totally safe to use.
Let me say that for my personal taste an old jigged bone would suit perfectly, or something like GEC primitive bone, but that's only me.
Anyway this is enjoying journey with great bonus in the end.
Mike
 
I had a chance to get a few things done on the knife today.
I made a slide-out tweezers , a first for me. I am happy with the results for the most part but I may make another one. I made this tweezers from a solid piece of CPM154 and while they work great they are just a hair on the large size for this knife. If I end up making another set at least I will have a cool tweezers for my shaving kit! Jury is still out on this one.

I also made the awl and the backspring for the master. Normally I would do all the heat treat at the same time, but in this case I really needed to fine tune the tang of the master and make a working spring before tuning the tangs of the pen and Wharncliffe blades.
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Ken,

Thank you for taking the time to show this work. Everything looks like it is coming together well. How in the heck do you grind those tweezers? The tips look like they will get the tweezing done. ;)

Even that does not look like much of a piece of cake to me.
 
Bastid said:
Ken,

Thank you for taking the time to show this work. Everything looks like it is coming together well. How in the heck do you grind those tweezers? The tips look like they will get the tweezing done. ;)

Even that does not look like much of a piece of cake to me.
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They will grab ahold of the finest hair and yank it out, so I felt good about the function. I exchanged a email with Richard Rogers and he was kind enough to tell me how he does his. He uses spring stock and silver solders two pieces together and also solders on the stainless lug. I chose to try and make mine out of one piece of Cpm154 and heat treat to spring hardness. When I make another tweezers I think I will go this route but incorporate the things I learned on this set.
Grinding them was a challenge!
 
Ivory does not change in size with changes in weather or climate. Intricately carved pieces can develop cracks over a very long time. I think pearl is more likely to chip or crack if dropped especially on a larger knife like this one which will have some weight to it. Big slabs of pearl don't look as good or 'correct' as do pieces on smaller knives.
My 100+ yr. old Sheffield Multiblade with ivory (pg. 212 of "Sheffield" book) is as pristine as the day it left #6 Norfolk St.
roland
 
Hard to not get a great result when the maker and client get along admirably through the process. One of the most enjoyable things about custom knives, in my opinion. I love to see Ken taking on these challenges and sharing the process along the way. This one is fun to follow! Thanks, guys. :thumbup:

- Joe
 
canineforge said:
Hard to not get a great result when the maker and client get along admirably through the process. One of the most enjoyable things about custom knives, in my opinion. I love to see Ken taking on these challenges and sharing the process along the way. This one is fun to follow! Thanks, guys. :thumbup:

- Joe
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I gotta say that I really would have a bit of difficulty enjoying a knife if the maker and I did not really get along. But ken's patience makes him a pretty easy fella to get along with. In fact, he is so patient with me, that I have been wondering if he is wasted as a knifemaker, maybe he should be in special ed, working with children who are a bit slow. (sometimes it takes me a while to understand things....)
 
I guess that after reading some of these comments, I give Ken a call and we can discuss the ivory thing. I've always been partial to ivory, especially the creamy kind that Those boys at Wilfred Works use, and a reaaly nice example is on that Tennessee Jack that Kerry made for me recently. And I do love that deep blue mammoth and walrus. There are a couple of things about the fossil stuff, though. i think that it would be a departure from the traditional Sheffield look. I am not sure I want to go down that road, and I am not sure that Ken does either. Second, I am pretty sure that all the really good stuff --the really deep blues and greens --is being hoarded by a dragon. i can just see him lying on a mound of first class fossil ivory. It has to be that way, cause he makes a whole bunch of knives with the stuff, and it is always the most beautiful, matched pieces. He must have a hoard. You hear me there, Don?

As far as bone goes, I grew up with jigged bone knives. Meaning, of course, I still like 'em. But this one just needs something a little dressier. Same goes for stag.
 
Ed,

You have been a pleasure to work with on this knife! I am glad we found a pattern that suited the direction you wanted to go. I am having a blast so far on this build.

I did find a supplier that has some pretty nice gold lip on his site that I have worked with in the past. I am also stocked with some pretty nice ivory. We have a bit of time yet to nail down the covers(pun intended). Also did you think about the through the tang nail pulls?

Thank you everyone for the comments and suggestions thus far. I think getting feedback and comments for me, really make the knife memorable down the road.
 
rprocter said:
Ivory does not change in size with changes in weather or climate. Intricately carved pieces can develop cracks over a very long time. I think pearl is more likely to chip or crack if dropped especially on a larger knife like this one which will have some weight to it. Big slabs of pearl don't look as good or 'correct' as do pieces on smaller knives.
My 100+ yr. old Sheffield Multiblade with ivory (pg. 212 of "Sheffield" book) is as pristine as the day it left #6 Norfolk St.
roland
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Roland,
If you don't mind telling us, which of the knives on that page is yours? ( They are all beautiful )
 
Congrats, Ed, glad to hear that this lovely piece of work is going to be yours. And even more kudos for your intention to press it into service. I know you won't be disappointed. :thumbup:
 
ED, upper left. Description is the second paragraph "A Joseph Rodgers 3 3/8" multi-bladed sports knife ---".
In hand it exceeds every knife experience i have ever had. Truly sublime.
A special part of the fit is the perfect rounding of the ivory along all edges. Not just a 'take the edge off', but a very generous rounding that allows the knife to melt into your hand as if it is a part of you.
roland
 
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