Allan Blade Bushcrafter Arrival

[wentworth]

Hi all,
got home yesterday to find my new Allan Blade Bushcrafter waiting for me. Perfect. I ordered it with a figured maple handle. My question is; should I oil the handle with linseed to protect it, or has it already been sealed in some way? It looks to me to be untreated, but I can't be sure.
Also, it came with what looks like a bead blasted blade. If I wanted to get a shinier finish on it, what would be recommended?

 

[Mr_Rimps]

Hi Wentworth. I dont have a answer to your question but can I hog your thread for a moment and ask how you ordered your Bushcrafter? I been trying to find Allan's website with no luck.

Again, apologies for going "off topic"

Andy

 

[wentworth]

Hi Andy,
I ordered my bushcrafter one and a half years ago, and paid for it 13 months ago. His website is not currently up.

 

[Mr_Rimps]

Ahh. Thanks. That explains it. There must have been some hefty backlog.

 

[C_Claycomb]

More than a backlog. If you wish to know about ordering from Mr Blade, do a search on www.britishblades.com or for more of a thrill, look in the "Good the Bad and the Ugly" section on www.bladeforums.com

Having handled a number of Alan Blade knives I am far from impressed with the ergomomics. The Freelander he sent me was nearly useless with how he had shaped the handle and all the other, smaller knives of his that I have seen were merely scaled versions. The smaller ones do fit ones hand better, but that does not mean they fit it well Fit and finish varied, the earlier ones were better than the later ones, Micarta was better than wood.

Overall, I couldn't recommend him.

 

[gregorach]

I've never handled one of Alan's knives, but it would seem very strange to send one out without finishing the handle. I guess your best bet would be to ask the man himself.

As for the finish on the blade, getting it shiny is really just a case of lots of elbow grease and cutting compound (T-Cut or similar).

For anyone looking for a good, handmade bushcraft knife, who isn't prepared to wait months, I can heartily recommend the work of Paul Baker. I got one of his "New Graduate" knives a year or so back. He usually has the blades in stock, and just finishes them to order. Mine was sent out less than a week after I ordered it, and I'm very happy with it.

 

[MagiKelly]

As I understand it Allan is not taking any more orders due to the problems he has had. Indeed he has said when he is caught up he will quit knifemaking.

The maple handle is usually coated with the same thin varnish that he coats the blade with.

I am surprised Chris has found Allan's work to be of variable quality as I have used a number of his knifes and the finish was uniformly excellent. The handling of the Bushcrafter is also great with it being one of the most comfortable handles I have every used.

Second hand Allan's knives sell very quickly but you do get them coming up every so often so that is a way you might get one.

 

[Hoodoo]

I am surprised Chris has found Allan's work to be of variable quality as I have used a number of his knifes and the finish was uniformly excellent. The handling of the Bushcrafter is also great with it being one of the most comfortable handles I have every used.

I have a drawer full of Allan's knives and have always found them to be of high quality, especially given the price that he sold them for.

 

[Roefisher]

I remember that one of the first Sebenza folders I bought had curly maple and I thought the exact same thing ... that it looked unfinished. But of course, after an email to the factory I found out that it was fine. I would say it's already sealed, but a little linseed oil or if you're looking for a shinier finish then danish oil.

I, too, have had nothing but good results while using Allan's knives. The great pity is that there's a few people who seem to have found themselves on rough water in their dealings with Allan, from serious backorders on knives which have been paid for to some money he owes Mr. Joe Chen. We had a very successful auction on BB with the end bid going to Joe and I hoped that the ball would continue rolling. Sadly for everyone concerned, it's still an ongoing situation.

But I would dislike for this matter to have a bias on his workmanship. From owning three of his knives, please let me tell you, I am a very proud and happy owner.

Mark

 

[Wayne]

i too have been a happy customer of Allan. His has had a fairy unfortunate history financially.

it would be a shame if he gave up knife making permanently.

 

[mtnfolk mike]

i wish allan's backlog wasn't so big..... i would love one of his knives..... though i haven't heard very many good things about him lately.......

 

[redcollective]

Off topic:

The following comment is not alan blade specific :
I feel sorry for these craftsman who sell knives to order - they end up with so much work they can't possibly keep up. I have a knife on order from a respected maker, its been a long time, I knew it would be, and it's gonna be a long time yet - I can accept that. In the meantime I put handles on blades to keep myself happy. I just wonder if it's a mistake to take pre-oders if you're a small outfit. You can't hope to tool up and get help in to mass produce, so why try? Perhaps there's a more sustainable approach to the custom knife business in only selling what you can make: keep a waiting list of people who want your knives and only contact them and take deposits when you are nearly ready to make for them - perhaps 1 knife in advance?

I dunno. I don't know the business and am not a knife maker so who am I to say?

 

[mojofilter]

Wentworth, did the knife just arrive out of the blue or have you been in contact with Allan Blade?


I payed for a knife "that would be ready to be despatched in a few weeks" a year past August, and have not managed to get a reply since.

I see little point in discussing the quality of the product if you are most likely to have your money stolen.

 

[wentworth]

Hi Mojofilter,
yes I was in contact with Allan. I pestered him with emails for 13 moths asking where my knife was.

 

[C_Claycomb]

More than enough has been said about Alan's delivery problems. I didn't mean to start it all up again

I got my knife in 2004, it was a little later than planned, but the timing was good. I was in the US for 2 weeks and wanted to pick the knife up then. At the time I did not know of his history, but credit to him, Alan did manage to get it to me in time.

Don't get me wrong. The grinding and handle fit and finish on my Freelander is excellent, nigh on perfect to my eyes, particularly so for the price. Its just that some of the Bushcrafters that I have seen since had handles which were not so good. Really I can't fault the build quality, its just that I don't think his wood stuff was as good as the Micarta.

I will however stand by saying that the ergonomics are poor. The Freelander had a huge handle, 5" long, and didn't fit my hand in the least. I might have written that off since my hands are not so large, but it was an equally poor fit for people with large hands. I ended up filing it and refinishing much of it but couldn't overcome the original poor ergonomics, I just took all the nasty lumpy corners off. The lumps are still there on smaller knives, but the scale means they are not so intrusive.

redcollective,
Good comments

 

[riddleofsteel]

Making folks wait 8 to 10 months for a custom blade is not the problem. I just ordered a custom double bit belt axe from one of the best bladesmiths I could find. In his e-mail;

"The lag time is about ten months. When I get your axe finished, I'll let you know and we can settle up then. I've got your order down, unless I hear otherwise."

What a class act!

I don't mind waiting for a quality blade that I can not buy off the shelf. However, paying for a custom blade upfront and then sitting with little or no response to inquiries for a year or more is not my idea of good business.

 

[British Red]

RoS

Assuming thats Lee Reeves, he should be starting in on mine next month....

Red

 

[riddleofsteel]

It is him. I am looking at more like 10 months. That's OK I can put a Cookie jar on my dresser and drop in about $20.00 USD per month. Maybe if I keep my fingers out of it I will have enough to pay for it when he's done.

LOL

 

[sikearns]

I've been waiting 14 months for my order - just been informed by Allan (after much pestering) that he's shutting up shop; for the time being at least...........so that's that!

I am only finishing up the last few orders I do have that were prepaid prior to stopping taking deposits and after that I am no longer going to be making knives for atleast a few years. SO I have to cancel any orders that I have currently, sorry for this but I have just gotten burnt out and after I am finished caught up with prior prepaid I am moving on to other endeavors. The folks who have lynched me on bladeofrums ect.. for some past problems I am sure will enjoy the news about my quitting.

I wish the guy well............but also wish I had my knife