Knife Chatter. Show and Tell!

Modernflame

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My fascination with shiny, glowy things is well documented, but I like sharp, pointy objects just as much. It's a fine day for friendly knife chatter, so tell us about your edged matter separation implements. Why did you choose them? What makes them exciting for you? Did you buy them? Inherit them? Sound off if you love cutlery! Following is my humble collection in chronological order by purchase date.

1) Spyderco Endura. Purchased circa 2005. Blade steel: VG-10


I bought this at a local gun shop during my days of supervising security guards overnight. Despite being a large knife, it's quite thin and rides well in my back pocket. At the time, I liked the 4" blade, the strong lock, and the robust saber grind. Today, I prefer blades with thinner, slicier geometry.

Endura-1.jpg


Endura-2.jpg


2) Chris Reeve Knives Inkosi. Purchased April, 2019. Blade steel: CPM S35VN


The goal was to invest in one high end knife and marry it. Subsequent purchases reveal the self deception, but this remains my every day knife. I respect the maker and love the overall aesthetic, especially with the insingo blade. I won't argue with those who don't see the value, but this thing gives me a rush every time I touch it. For me, the main selling points are the simple construction, easy disassembly, the large sharpening choil, over sized pivot and stop pin, and the ceramic lock bar interface. It manages to be elegant without being flashy. Muggles hardly notice it.

Inkosi-1.jpg


Inkosi-2.jpg


3) Benchmade "Super" Freek. Purchased May, 2019. Blade steel. CPM M4


It's just sick, isn't it? My photos don't do justice, but the color, texture and ergonomics are awe inspiring. This was my first super steel. The thin blade stock and full flat grind combine for slicing nirvana. Because of this knife, my wife has a new reason to laugh at me: I break down cardboard boxes with giddy enthusiasm. It flies right through.




Super-Freek-1.jpg


Super-Freek-2.jpg


Super-Freek-3.jpg


4) Spyderco PM2. Purchased June, 2019. Blade steel. CPM S110V


This knife and I got off to a slow start. I bought it because of the blade steel, flat grind, and compression lock. Sharpening this knife is a form of medieval torture, even with diamond abrasives. After three attempts, I finally carved out a razor edge. The factory edge was not impressive.

PM2-a.jpg


PM2-b.jpg


5) Bark River Knives JX6. Purchased September, 2019. Blade steel: Elmax


The craftsmanship is exquisite. I wouldn't wear this sheath on my belt, but it works well as a pocket slip. This knife makes me wish I had more things to cut! The convex grind is still a question mark for me, but it responds well to stropping. I bought it because I'm exploring small, pocket sized fixed blades. This is the only knife I've ever bought that was snobbishly sharp out of the box.

20191026-140453.jpg


6) Benchmade Hidden Canyon: Purchased October, 2019. Blade steel: CPM S30V


I've wanted one of these since I first saw one. The wooden handle scales and leather sheath have a classic, rugged appeal. I'm no hunter but this serves well in a utility capacity. There were two quality control issues out of the box. First, the knife cut deep into the leather welt when taking the knife in and out of the sheath. Second, the edge grind was so uneven that I thought the tip was bent when I unboxed it. Even my wife noticed it. One side was ground at about 18 degrees, while the other was at roughly 30. I was shocked that it passed QC. After thoughts of returning it, I decided to fix both problems. I removed about 1/4" of material from the welt and reground the blade to 17 degrees per side with a lovely polish. It is now a fine cutting tool.

Hidden-Canyon.jpg
 
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nbp

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Oooh this could be fun; I like matter separators too! Sharp rocks or metal are probably some of the oldest tools in existence, and I don't think they'll ever cease being some of our most used tools.

I think I got my first knife when I was around 5 years old or so. A small red plasticky lockback folder I snagged from the items to give or throw away when my great grandfather died. I had it for years. It has been lost to the sands of time, but in the 27 years since, more than a few blades have come and gone through my pockets. Some cheap, some expensive. Some loved, some not so much. But unless I'm in the shower, in bed, or in a place like a plane where it's prohibited, there is a knife in my pocket. [emoji4]
 

nbp

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Haha, I'll have to take a few and post them up. It's always such a process to upload photos. ;)

Ti framelocks and automatics have been my main interests the last couple of years though.
 

bigburly912

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It definitely is a process since we can't post pictures from the app anymore. I'll have to throw some up when I get time to put them on a host site. Gonna enjoy this thread!!
 

xxo

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I am into knives as well, pretty much since I was 5 also maybe before that when I first noticed my Grandpa using a pocket knife bundling up news papers with twine for recycling (before recycling was a thing) and asked him about it.....turns out he had his knife since he was a kid and used it on his trap line around the farm he grew up on in Queens and sold the furs in Manhattan for fur coats and carried the same knife until he was an old man. And he told me about a relative who used a pocket knife to free a life boat full of people from a ship that was sinking fast after being torpedoed, "a man should have a knife" Grandpa said.

I got my first pocket knife at 5 (cut myself with it and got it taken away for a while) and carried a knife every day to school from the 2nd​ grade on through high school and most days ever since.

I'm into Spyderco, Cold Steel, Victorinox and Leatherman mostly, plus a bunch of different machetes and a few odds and ends, like Douk Douks which I posted about:


4eWPrg0.jpg




https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?459771-Douk-Douks


I don't have much more in the way of photos ATM having lost most of them to computer crashes and photobucket going haywire.
 

Modernflame

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...when I first noticed my Grandpa using a pocket knife bundling up news papers with twine for recycling (before recycling was a thing) and asked him about it.....turns out he had his knife since he was a kid and used it on his trap line around the farm he grew up on in Queens and sold the furs in Manhattan for fur coats and carried the same knife until he was an old man. And he told me about a relative who used a pocket knife to free a life boat full of people from a ship that was sinking fast after being torpedoed, "a man should have a knife" Grandpa said.

Grandpa's are priceless. Both of mine have passed on, but they were were WWII veterans and stalwart men of example. "A man should have a knife." This is the reason why I ended up with a pocket knife when I was eight years old. Like you, I lost my knife privileges due to tomfoolery, but I've never lost my love of cutlery. As a young man, my interest waned because I did not know how to sharpen. There were no YouTube vidoes in those days. More recently, my discovery of sharpening has awakened my dormant love of blades. Great photos!
 

nbp

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Those douk douks are neat looking knives; definitely a style I am not familiar with.

My grandpa has carried a pocketknife my whole life as well. He was a camper, deer hunter and fisherman for much of his life so he just always had one on hand. He just turned 90 but still lives on his own and carries a swiss army knife in his pocket everyday. Funny story: the SAK he has now my parents got him quite a few years ago (I cannot recall what happened to his previous one). Naturally, I just had to see it and play with it before we gave it to him! In the process, of course I sliced open my knuckle leaving a trail of blood through his garage. Lol. I still have a scar from that.

I was at grandpa's house a couple weeks ago to do some work on the house and on his dresser he has his little pile of EDC items. He had a couple flashlights, a pen, comb, etc. Probably his SAK goes there at night. I definitely take after him! I think I see where my EDC tendencies come from. :)
 

xxo

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Unfortunately my Grandpa passed when I was fairly young. There's a lot I would like to talk with him about. He never was much of a talker unless he had something to say and there were a point to it. I often wonder what he would think of all of the fancy knives that I have when he got by with one little slip joint knife that he always kept razor sharp, for basically his whole life (he did send away for a SAK or SAK knockoff from a mail order catalog shortly before he died).


The Douk Douks were created by Gaspard Cognet in France in the 1920's as a cheap knife to sell to the French colonies in Melanesia - Cognet picked the Douk Douk figure out of a book and it nearly doomed the knife from the start. In Melanesia Douk Douks were gangsters that terrorized the local population who despised them. Cognet tried selling the knife in North Africa and the predominant Muslim population was not too keen on the little Douk Douk dude on the handles at first but it caught on in a big way being used for just about everything a knife could be used for including shaving. The Douk Douk had become a staple in North Africa.


Douk Douks where all but unknown outside French colonial areas until after the Algerian war when refugees and returning French soldiers brought them back to France. Since then different handle engravings have been offered, including a squirrel for the French market, a Tuareg Cross for Muslims who object to Douk Douk and Tiki for Polynesia.


All of these are simple single blade slip joints with folded metal handles that makes them extremely thin. The Douk Douks generally have carbon steel blades and blued carbon steel handles, though they also make a version with a stainless blade and nickel plated handle. The Tiki generally has a nickel handle with a blued carbon steel blade ground a little extra thin (Douk Douks are ground thin to begin with). The l'Écureuil (Squirrel) version has a spear point blade a lot like they use on SAKs.
 
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xxo

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Starting with the ones on the left/pointing right, top to bottom:

Spyderco Stretch (one of the most ergonomic knives out there)

Spyderco Endura 4 Wave (opens itself when drawn from the pocket)

Spyderco Calypso Jr. (sort of a cult classic spyderco)

On the right pointing left:

Spyderco UK Pen Knife (non locking sub 3" knife originally intended for the UK market)

Kershaw Double Duty (lightweight one hand opening 2 blade knife)

Stainless Douk-Douk (posted above)
 

Modernflame

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I like the Stretch because it departs from the traditional Spyderco "bird bill" blade shape. You've already spoken of the Douk-Douk, but would you mind saying a few words about the others? What made them appealing to you?
 

xxo

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The Calypso JR was one of the first Spyderco knives I owned. I had a Endura before that and I wanted something smaller with a full flat grind so I got the Calypso Jr instead of a Delica – glad I did because not only does the full flat grind make it a better slicer but the ergonomics are vastly improved. It is genius the way Sal came up with that handle design, especially how the blade coil is mated with the handle forming a finger groove making the handle feel much bigger than it is – extremely secure and comfortable. The Calypso Jr was a hit with die hard Spyderco fans but it never really caught on with the public the way the Delica did and was soon discontinued. A lot of us pestered Sal for a Sprint run and eventually he relented with a batch with gray handles – the one in the photo is from this sprint run.


I got the UKPK because it was similar to the Calypso Jr in form and function but has a wire clip, which I really like and much prefer to flat clips. I thought the lack of a lock would be an issue but it hasn't been a problem at all....with that choil design your finger won't get cut because your finger keeps the blade from closing. Not having a lock is convenient for most light EDC tasks because you don't have to disengage a lock to close it.


Many of us used to improvise waves for our Enduras sometimes by grinding one into the blade or adding one to the Spyder hole – I ran a couple of flex cuffs through the hole in my old Endura and it worked great the blade snapped open as it cleared my pocket. Spyderco eventually came out with a official wave model which is shown in the photo, this works just as good if not better than the old improvised versions. Sal picked a blue jean colored handle for this one.


I also like the shape of the Stretch blade (most other Spyderco blades remind me of sails), the tip is a little more pointy without being too pointy or weak and best of all it has a good bit more belly. The Stretch slices like a laser. A Stretch bit my real good one time when I used it to cut a zip tie. The Stretch has similar ergos to the Calypso Jr and UKPK with a little bigger handle that really feels great. The Size of the stretch is just right for most uses, not too big, not too small. The Stretch would be the perfect knife if it had a wire clip.


I like the looks of traditional multi blade slip joint knives but I find most of them to be too heavy. The Double Duty has traditional good looks but is nice and light so I hardly notice it when I carry it in the bottom of my pocket. Other advantages are it's one hand opening blades and liner locks. A very well made knife with thin ground blades that cut like a breeze. Unfortunately the Double Duty is long discontinued.
 

Hogokansatsukan

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I used to buy matter separators in much the same way newbies buy flashlights... my first question was "How much matter can it separate in one swing?" Those now decorate the entrance to my home.
The sword though... that was actually the start of Thor's Hammer Custom Leather... so it's special, and none of the swords and axes are actual wall decoration, even though they are decorating the walls.

My CRK Inkosi is my EDC along with a SAK mini-champ... though I have CRKT, Benchmade, MicroTech...

img-5016.jpg


The spear by the pole axe is actually used quite frequently, and has taken quite a few rattlers heads.
Oh, and those canes behind the spear and pole axe... of course those are sword canes.

And the folders and fixed...
img-5017.jpg
 
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Modernflame

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Benchmade Bushcrafter, Ka Bar USMC field knife. I also see a CRK Inkosi, a CRK Nyala, an automatic Benchmade (stimulus?), a micotech auto (don't know the model name)..and that's the extent of my knowledge.

You've also got a spyderco something or other along with a benchmade of some sort with a G-10 handle.
 

wraithpc

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More of a knife guy then lights, but not by much. here are some of my more recent modern acquisitions.

Spydiechef and a MCBee
DgEWbbB.jpg


Massdrop Keen
4FDtOKe.jpg


ZT920 and 456
f2594be.jpg


St. Nicks Shaman
nwhHbks.jpg


Left to right: Para 3, Shirogorov Neon Lite, Shirogorov F95T, Cheburkov Russky, Kizer Begleiter, Reate Epoch
OaND1Fh.jpg


Bradford Guardian, Ace Biblio
ajorIbT.jpg


Boos Blades Smoke
HGuJetw.jpg


Top Manix Lightweight, L-R PM2 Maxamet, M4 Shaman, another PM2
jkLRZbC.jpg


Cruwear Manix 2
7MiQbqV.jpg


Lil' Native
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Kapara
xoPn29c.jpg


Smock
dmDgKnK.jpg


Again with the Russians S125V Russky, 95 Turtle, Neon lite.
csZ5uE7.jpg
 

Hogokansatsukan

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Benchmade Bushcrafter, Ka Bar USMC field knife. I also see a CRK Inkosi, a CRK Nyala, an automatic Benchmade (stimulus?), a micotech auto (don't know the model name)..and that's the extent of my knowledge.

You've also got a spyderco something or other along with a benchmade of some sort with a G-10 handle.

Yes, the Stimulus. Microtech Ultratech. Spyderco Police (I carried one in Japan back in 97' with a fully serrated edge... was considered a saw and not a knife, and was very handy on January 17th of that year). Benchmade Volli is the one with the G-10. On the bottom is a bayonet for an Uzi (yes, very silly) and under that is a custom Damascus by Dennis Cook (now with Dawson Custom Knives). There are a few others in the Jeep that live in there.
 

Modernflame

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More of a knife guy then lights, but not by much...

Thanks for posting. While I realize this is a flashlight forum, I think it could use more photos like yours. Lots of gems there. What turned you on to the Spydie Chef? I've had my eye on one also.

M4 Shaman

I love that Spyderco left those blades uncoated. Wish my Benchmade were that way!
 
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