Knife snobs

[MangoFett]

Any others around here who are snobs about their knives?

For me I started out with hunting and tactical style knives but I never really got into them a ton. I got a few and they did what they did well and that was that for me but when I got into cooking and I make meals for the gal and me every night from scratch I got into cooking knives and I've been seriously snobby ever since.

We had an accident in the extended family where someone came to stay and heal up post surgery with us for quite awhile and I had been laid off work so I stayed home 24/7 pretty till they healed up. They finally went back home last week and I'm hopefully back to work here in the next 3 weeks so while I haven't been able to expand my collection past a few Japanese knives and a lower end chef knife I'm anxious to start growing my collection... hopefully... PRS can get expensive and that's where pretty much all my money goes but I would like to add in 4-5 custom knives.

There's nothing like cutting up your veg or trimming meat and feeling virtually zero resistance or effort from the knife. For sure satisfying.

Post up some of your favorite knives below be it kitchen or hunting/tactical.

 

[bourbonbent]

I like making bowies, and these are probably my favorite that I’ve made:

I like making hunters too:

Haven’t done much in the way of kitchen knives, but this one (sloyd-ish) is a laser:

 

[MangoFett]

Good God man, that's really amazing work.

 

[Spblademaker]

Don’t buy knives either now. This is the current project knife for myself. What I have bough is Ontario knives, if needing something bigger. This is 8670M steel. Even when finished it’ll be nowhere as fine as @bourbonbent shows. ?? @Switchblade This was done on a 6” belt sander. Needs to have the edge refinished and then heat treated.

 

[MangoFett]

Got up at 4am, currently sitting within one block of the parade start to watch my St. Louis blues parade with the Cup. 5 hours of sitting to go, keep the knife porn coming !

 

[Aaros143]

I'm a bit of a knife snob though don't own to many super fancy ones. Few Striders, a Kiku Matsuda and my recent favorite acquisition in a Helm Forge Benghazi warfighter. A Bowie like bourbon bent posted is definitely in my future.

 

[XLR308]

I wouldn't consider myself a knife snob but I do admire and own a couple of nice Damascus steel hunting knives with stag handles.
Not fancy by any means but my favorites would have to be my Kabar knives.
The WARTHOG I have carried and used extensively for years and really like the balance and compact overall length but the Tanto Kabar I have is growing on me as well it's just a lot larger and longer blade.
When I was working in South Korea a lot I bought several San Mai blade sushi knives that I gave to family members as gifts since they came in a nice gift wrap box. I should have kept one for myself now that I think about it.

 

[tomcatmv]

My #2 son is the head chef at the new (soon to open) Joey restaurant in downtown LA. He is seriously into kitchen knives and got me a really nice Shun smaller, about 6" blade chef's knife I guess you'd call it. I need to get a couple of the Japanese water stones like he has and learn to use them like he does. all his knives are like fricking razor blades.

 

[XLR308]

My #2 son is the head chef at the new (soon to open) Joey restaurant in downtown LA. He is seriously into kitchen knives and got me a really nice Shun smaller, about 6" blade chef's knife I guess you'd call it. I need to get a couple of the Japanese water stones like he has and learn to use them like he does. all his knives are like fricking razor blades.

Just order yourself a piece of xtra fine translucent Arkansas novaculite.
It's shipped all over the world for sharpening everything from surgical tools to chef knives and is most likely what is being called the Japanese water stones.
The last piece I bought in Hot Springs at a knife shop was a fairly large one and only paid $18 for it.

 

[bourbonbent]

@Spblademaker 8670M is a great steel, one of my mentors uses it quite a bit. It’s reasonably similar to L6, and it’ll take a temper line. It’s not shallow hardening enough to form a true hamon, but it’ll print a line, as will L6. Great choice for the steel.

This is a cutter I forged from Crucible L6, with forged and color case hardened 8620 fittings, and curly white ash from Maryland for the handle:

I really like to color case harden stuff. I even did it to a pizza slice shaped piece of steel, just for fun. Also for testing, but for fun too. It’s tricky getting it to cool slow enough in thin cross sections to get the dark blues and reds I like, and even trickier to get the fabled duck egg blue. I’m still working on getting it down.

Thanks for the compliments folks! I’ll poat a couple that I didn’t make later on when I can get a decent picture, it’s raining awful hard right now.

 

[hlee]

I'm not a knife snob, but I had that first photo pegged as a "Sharp by Coop" print before I saw the signature at the bottom.?

As an unrepentant stag fan, I really like that Bowie, especially in that you didn't ruin the stag by grinding down all the bark- like too many do.

 

[bourbonbent]

I'm not a knife snob, but I had that first photo pegged as a "Sharp by Coop" print before I saw the signature at the bottom.?

As an unrepentant stag fan, I really like that Bowie, especially in that you didn't ruin the stag by grinding down all the bark- like too many do.

Thanks! I have one I’m working on as a test knife with some stag, it’s not even halfway done yet so no judging lol

It’s Vanadis 4 Extra steel, I’m gonna finish grind it with a full height 14” hollow, and about a .010” edge, or as thin as I can get it before it gets hairy.

My first Loveless pattern, Crooked Skinner.

 

[Seed tick]

Very nice work B.B! Like the tampered tang on the Loveless

 

[Mwalex]

I have been collecting knives for about 20 years. Would not consider myself a snob but I know what I like, what I will spend money for and what I do not like about a knife.

@bourbonbent - great builds.

 

[Spblademaker]

@Spblademaker 8670M is a great steel, one of my mentors uses it quite a bit. It’s reasonably similar to L6, and it’ll take a temper line. It’s not shallow hardening enough to form a true hamon, but it’ll print a line, as will L6. Great choice for the steel.

This is a cutter I forged from Crucible L6, with forged and color case hardened 8620 fittings, and curly white ash from Maryland for the handle:

View attachment 7095519

View attachment 7095520

View attachment 7095521

I really like to color case harden stuff. I even did it to a pizza slice shaped piece of steel, just for fun. Also for testing, but for fun too. It’s tricky getting it to cool slow enough in thin cross sections to get the dark blues and reds I like, and even trickier to get the fabled duck egg blue. I’m still working on getting it down.

Thanks for the compliments folks! I’ll poat a couple that I didn’t make later on when I can get a decent picture, it’s raining awful hard right now.

I chose that steel, as I usually use 10xx, because I wanted a lot more shock resistance using it as a camp knife.

 

[pewpewfever]

Texas let its knife restrictions lapse awhile back so I took more of an interest in knives briefly. Out if all the knives at the gun show, I settled on a pair of these. I think German laws had just changed to put them out of business, so maybe they are interesting.

 

[LeftyJason]

Just order yourself a piece of xtra fine translucent Arkansas novaculite.
It's shipped all over the world for sharpening everything from surgical tools to chef knives and is most likely what is being called the Japanese water stones.
The last piece I bought in Hot Springs at a knife shop was a fairly large one and only paid $18 for it.

Waterstones are different.
From https://whetstonecentral.com/whetstone-composition/
"These are similar to traditional whetstones, but they are generally slightly softer than stones made of Novaculite. Japanese water-stones are composed of fine silicate particles with clay like texture. These stones are made from sedimentary rocks, and are traditionally used with water. There are three main grades of Japanese water-stones, based on the grit of the stone. These grits range anywhere between 200 and 15,000. Japanese water-stones are some of the best honing stones that exist. This is because their highest grit often succeeds the highest grit of other types of whetstones."

Synthetic water stones are made of aluminum oxide.

Water stones are softer, faster cutting, but need to be dressed more often.

Looking at various sites they say don't use oil on water stones because you can damage them.

Haven't used them much. I have a combination 1000/4000 that works great on wood plane blades.

 

[bourbonbent]

I chose that steel, as I usually use 10xx, because I wanted a lot more shock resistance using it as a camp knife.

It’s all in the heat treat.

 

[Seed tick]

They don’t heat treat on forge and fire!!!?

 

[bourbonbent]

They don’t heat treat on forge and fire!!!?

Don’t even get me started on that game show/knife circus. I’m supposed to be doing productive things today ?

 

[Seed tick]

Forge a period Bowie with a blade length between 12-14”. Your material: bicycle spokes!!! What a crock of shit! LOL

 

[MangoFett]

I've tried my hand at making knives and I'm not great. Infact I have some elmax steel just laying around I never did use and curly maple for a project I intended to do but till now I've forgotten about it.

 

[hlee]

Forge a period Bowie with a blade length between 12-14”. Your material: bicycle spokes!!! What a crock of shit! LOL

And, you've got 30 minutes. GO!

Don't forget, we're going to beat on ice blocks with the edge before attempting to hack through a pig carcass with the flat of the blade. If it survives that, we'll beat on the blade/tang junction with a hammer for a full minute. Good luck!

 

[bourbonbent]

Your surprise material is the blood of 10k gerbils, which you must use to get your iron from, make charcoal from their bones for your carbon content, and cook up an ingot, then forge a scimitar, which has to be no longer than 97 centimeters, and we’re gonna chop the floor with it.

Can’t forget about this purple carrot we found in the break room, that’s gonna have to be incorporated into the guard.

 

[armorpl8chikn]

I'm a knife snob. I've got Henkels, Wilkinson sword, etc in kitchen. Even a couple paring knives I made from l6 sawblades.
Other stuff I have are kbars, esee, cold steel, etc, but the knife I use most?
Case muskrat CV. That knife has skinned more fur and gutted, skinned, caped, quartered more deer, than you could load in a tandem dump truck.

Filet knives, Rapala with the wooden handle works fine, and I've fileted a lot of fish...a lot. I'd like to try a "snootier" blade, but I lose the dang things so bad I just can't make that leap.

Here is the kicker, this is my favorite kitchen knife:

Blade is bit over 6". Rada cooks knife. Why I grab this one I don't know, but it just makes quick work of whatever I want to do in the kitchen. It's light too.

 

[pmclaine]

Interesting.....

Looking for something sized right about or less than 8 inches OAL, battle belt sized, with historical reference.......

Tough to find.

 

[tomcatmv]

I'm a knife snob. I've got Henkels, Wilkinson sword, etc in kitchen. Even a couple paring knives I made from l6 sawblades.
Other stuff I have are kbars, esee, cold steel, etc, but the knife I use most?
Case muskrat CV. That knife has skinned more fur and gutted, skinned, caped, quartered more deer, than you could load in a tandem dump truck.

Filet knives, Rapala with the wooden handle works fine, and I've fileted a lot of fish...a lot. I'd like to try a "snootier" blade, but I lose the dang things so bad I just can't make that leap.

Here is the kicker, this is my favorite kitchen knife:
View attachment 7096951

Blade is bit over 6". Rada cooks knife. Why I grab this one I don't know, but it just makes quick work of whatever I want to do in the kitchen. It's light too.

That looks a lot like the Shun I mentioned my son got me, just about perfect size for every chore.

 

[Fig]

Waterstones are different.
From https://whetstonecentral.com/whetstone-composition/
"These are similar to traditional whetstones, but they are generally slightly softer than stones made of Novaculite. Japanese water-stones are composed of fine silicate particles with clay like texture. These stones are made from sedimentary rocks, and are traditionally used with water. There are three main grades of Japanese water-stones, based on the grit of the stone. These grits range anywhere between 200 and 15,000. Japanese water-stones are some of the best honing stones that exist. This is because their highest grit often succeeds the highest grit of other types of whetstones."

Synthetic water stones are made of aluminum oxide.

Water stones are softer, faster cutting, but need to be dressed more often.

Looking at various sites they say don't use oil on water stones because you can damage them.

Haven't used them much. I have a combination 1000/4000 that works great on wood plane blades.

SJ-250 Japanese Waterstone - Tormek

www.tormek.com

This on my Tormek makes everything razor blade sharp. I’ve tried everything, and nothing else comes close.

 

[Mwalex]

I sharpen my users with a Lansky kit and then use two strops with different polishing compound to finish the edge. In between hard sharpenings I strop to keep an edge.

 

[thejeep]

I’ve wanted to make a knife for a while. Could I order some annealed cpm3v flat bar, cut a rough shape of the blade/shank with plasma, grind on it a bit, and send out for heat treat?

How much would I have to grind away to remove the haz from the plasma cut?

 

[Deleted member 10043]

@Spblademaker 8670M is a great steel, one of my mentors uses it quite a bit. It’s reasonably similar to L6, and it’ll take a temper line. It’s not shallow hardening enough to form a true hamon, but it’ll print a line, as will L6. Great choice for the steel.

This is a cutter I forged from Crucible L6, with forged and color case hardened 8620 fittings, and curly white ash from Maryland for the handle:

View attachment 7095519

View attachment 7095520

View attachment 7095521

I really like to color case harden stuff. I even did it to a pizza slice shaped piece of steel, just for fun. Also for testing, but for fun too. It’s tricky getting it to cool slow enough in thin cross sections to get the dark blues and reds I like, and even trickier to get the fabled duck egg blue. I’m still working on getting it down.

Thanks for the compliments folks! I’ll poat a couple that I didn’t make later on when I can get a decent picture, it’s raining awful hard right now.

That's a Bowie I can get behind. Bitchin' knife, dude.

 

[bourbonbent]

That's a Bowie I can get behind. Bitchin' knife, dude.

Thanks man! I’m making more like it when I can get my shit together. We’re moving this year so things are all over the place.

Got all kinds of ideas and planned shanks floating around in my head. I’d post some sketches, but pencil on paper doesn’t quite have the same effect as a finished blade lol.

 

[TheGerman]

Knife people are weird.

It's like Beanie Babies that at least have some sort of utility.

 

[bourbonbent]

I’ve wanted to make a knife for a while. Could I order some annealed cpm3v flat bar, cut a rough shape of the blade/shank with plasma, grind on it a bit, and send out for heat treat?

How much would I have to grind away to remove the haz from the plasma cut?

Yes, there are several commercial heat treat operations that do small/single batch heat treats for reasonable prices.

The problem, is grinding it post heat treat. Things get wild when you have hardened 3V and similar steels. I only use 3M Cubitron II 984F ceramic grinder belts, and as soon as they stop biting I chuck them and grab a fresh one. It gets expensive fast at $9/belt. If you have a way to grind it, sending out for heat treat is a great option and I can recommend several excellent operations with good reputations and service.

To remove the decarb, I would just do the profile about 1/8” or so larger than final dimensions at the cutting edge, that’s the only part that’s gonna make much of a difference post heat treat.

3V is typically hardened in salts or vacuum, either by foil packet or a commercial inert gas purged furnace/kiln. Most of the truly alloyed steels are that way. If it can be forged, it can be hardened by more traditional methods, but 3V really benefits from a true LN2 cryo cycle. If it can’t be forged, assume it needs to be hardened in a way that occludes any oxygen from contacting it.

ETA: 3V can be forged, but I do not recommend trying to harden it with traditional methods. Think Jurassic Park, just because you can, doesn’t mean it’ll work, or that you should.

 

[bourbonbent]

Knife people are weird.

That is literally the most accurate thing I’ve ever seen on the internet.

Every single knifemaker I know is weird as shit, including me. Knife people are weird too.

 

[bourbonbent]

SJ-250 Japanese Waterstone - Tormek

www.tormek.com

This on my Tormek makes everything razor blade sharp. I’ve tried everything, and nothing else comes close.

I’ve been lusting after a Tormek for years.

Everyone reading this, listen to Fig. Tormeks are the best thing going for getting stuff really sharp, consistently, and without drama.

 

[W54/XM-388]

I’ve been lusting after a Tormek for years.
Everyone reading this, listen to Fig. Tormeks are the best thing going for getting stuff really sharp, consistently, and without drama.

So are you needing the entire machine such as the Tormek T-8 or just the SJ-250 Tormek Japanese Waterstone actual wheel?

 

[bourbonbent]

So are you needing the entire machine such as the Tormek T-8 or just the SJ-250 Tormek Japanese Waterstone actual wheel?

Correct, I have been considering the T-8 purchase for a year or two, my budget is just very limited and I have to prioritize the machines/materials I get.

I usually sharpen with my belt grinder and a loaded strop, took a few years to get it down but I can have an edge on a bowie that’ll clip an arm off in about 2 minutes.

I’m looking at the Tormek for thin stuff, it’s much harder for me to get a good edge established on slip joint blades and other small or thin stuff, or daggers. I love making daggers, it’s just tricky for me to get the edge established on there for the first time and keep the profile/lines intact. I’m neurotic about knifemaking lol.

 

[W54/XM-388]

Correct, I have been considering the T-8 purchase for a year or two, my budget is just very limited and I have to prioritize the machines/materials I get.

Do you know exactly which T-8 kit you want and the accessories / software etc all listed out?

Christmas is coming up and I need a few knives as Christmas presents to hand out so......

If you have slots available in your workflow, I'll have to get with you sometime and show you what I have and what I might like to get.

 

[jrassy]

I just received this skinner made by Charly Mann. 5160 steel and micarta handle. Feels great in the hand.

 

[Switchblade]

Nice looking stuff! One day my skills will be enough to make whatever I want...after I can make enough to satisfy myself they are worthy to sell and buy the tools I need as I go

 

[Bigfatcock]

I usually buy in the $300-$600 price range. Semi custom to custom.

I expect clean lines and seamless joints. I expect symmetrical grinds. I expect the knife to be razor sharp out of the box, with a symmetrical edge angle/bevel.

Failure of any of these results in me sending the knife back for a refund. If the maker won’t refund, my credit card company takes care of it.

 

[Switchblade]

I like where these are at right now. Need choils, edges, and kydex

 

[W54/XM-388]

Those would be great for carrying in places folks don't expect for a quick little pull and "suggest" someone stop attacking you if they don't want additional unlicensed surgery....

 

[Switchblade]

My stuff is shaving sharp. I like to carry little blades becuase they cut easily. Left side belt, sideways, and it's a mean crossdraw that comes out in an upper diagonal slice, or a half diagonal and cross the chest/neck slice. In SOB sideways on the back of the belt, they can come out stick stick stick stab stab stab liver, stomach, pancreas, kidney, because organs are typically only a half inch under skin, and skin, of boy does it cut nice!

 

[NY700]

I’m a knife snob on a moderate budget. Intake pleasure in having converted many a friend into a knife snob. (So this bear grylls knife isn’t the best choice )

 

[HeavyAssault]

Recently at the local gun store looking at a Winkler they had in the display. The sale guy was trying to pimp out some folders that had a base price of $500. While they looked super Damascus steel cool with oil stained grips in all, these things would be great for opening boxes and letters.....that's about it.

A sob and connoisseur are two different things. Know your lane.

 

[SmileMaker]

Few of my Autos

Custom Dagger

and my gateway into knives

 

[Holliday]

I have become a bit of a knife snob but nothing outrageous. The steel is important to me as well as the intended use being congruent with design. Some very popular blade makers and steels are just so grossly overrated.

I use my blades generally, so blade geometry really makes a difference. I did buy a Wicked Edge Pro, because what is the point of a great blade without an awesome edge.

 

[myronman3]

That is literally the most accurate thing I’ve ever seen on the internet.

Every single knifemaker I know is weird as shit, including me. Knife people are weird too.

everyone seems normal. right up until you get to know them. everyone is batshit nuts.