The perfect Bushcraft knife!

[leon-1]

I was wondering how this was going

I am sure sal will let us know when he has any developments, I seem to recall that he was on the other day so would of thought if he had anything new for us he would of said.

 

[sal.]

Update,

Thanx fer askin'.

We recently received protos designed by bushcraft experts that seems very nice. I'm studying the pieces.

We also received some very good sheath input from Tiffers & Red.

Now I've got to put it all together to plan production.

We're also tring to plan a sharpener to go with it.

sal

 

[Mr_Yarrow]

Sal,

Any ideas on time lines for the future with this one? Im not asking for a production date of course, just your gut feel is all, production in;

spring 2007
summer 2007
fall 2007
winter 2007

Rgds

 

[Freds Dad]

Ahh yes - want a real laugh? How do you think I do the trig to calculate bevel depth

For those of you not smiling now and scratching your head thinking "what is that book about" my response is "oh to be so young"

My sine and log tables don't need batteries either

Red

Some Old Hippos Can Always Have Tons Of Afters

 

[Quickbeam]

I'm interested to hear if there have been any further development, does anyone know anything?

Nick

 

[Craft Geek]

I'm interested to hear if there have been any further development, does anyone know anything?

Nick

I have heard that prototypes should be ready by the end of the year.

 

[justdave]

I kinda like this one......
www.brokenarrowknifecompany.com/index_files/Page307.htm[url]

 

[TheGreenMan]

...The project seems interesting, the input is certainly most valuable. It is an area of fixed blades for which we have nothing "in the works" so it's a good place to begin...

...We would want to produce that which would serve the best, so detail is great...

...Need more input on the sheath fastening methods mentioned, both for the sheath to person and sheath to knife...

...My first impressionis that two variations would be needed; VG-10, micarta handle, and carbon steel, wood handle. Leather and kydex sheath versions would also probably work best...

...I think blade shape, length and grind would be first to nail down. I think 4" spearpoint full flat grind with sharp spine, texture on the spine at the rear "might" serve? 1-1/4" wide, 3-3.5mm thick?...

...Tang is an important feature. My first though is skeletonized full tang. That provides function even if the handle is destroyed (fire, age, etc.), but still keeps the tang light like a tapered tang. I'm sure you have ideas on this as well. Thoughts?

sal...

Hello Sal,

I’m coming pretty late to this thread, and I’m not quite sure how I missed it, but here are my ideas anyway.

Blade length: 130mm. This is a little longer than the long established ‘no longer than the width of a man’s palm’ wisdom (which I believe is good sense). However, I believe the extra length would make ‘batoning’ of fire wood a little easier for those who insist on not taking a hatchet with them. And would be of value in a ‘one tool scenario’ such as an emergency survival situation (Which is a little different to a ‘bushcraft’ situation).

Blade thickness: 3 – 4mm

Steel type: Something from the existing Spyderco ‘stable’ for product continuity (And I’m no expert on steel, so am reluctant to suggest something specific, that has not already been mentioned). Although, for the purists, a carbon steel blade would be better in the sense that a spark can be generated when used with quartz stone.

Blade shape: Spear-point with no taper either toward the rear of the handle, or toward the point, for maximum strength at the tip. And little or no choil to maximise the length of the cutting edge (Having a cutting edge as close to the handle is better when cutting deeply into something, as one can exert a lot of body weight into the cut, when cutting close to the handle).

Grind: A flat Scandinavian type, with no secondary bevel at the cutting edge. This is a very easy grind to maintain at a ‘shaving sharp’ standard ‘in the field’ by honing only, with the fine side of the Spyderco Double Stuff ceramic sharpener. And so, no new sharpener would need to be developed.

This is something that is somewhat embarrassing to admit, but I messed up, badly, the grind on my UKPK when I tried sharpening it with the Double Stuff stone by hand. This was entirely due to my lack of skill <blush> (And I don’t own a ‘sharpening system’ of any sort which would have made it easy to maintain the correct bevel angle).

The solution, borne out of desperation, was to convex the bevel at the cutting edge. The happy result of this was that I only have to hone the edge on the fine side of the Double Stuff stone to keep it ‘shaving sharp’, which would be a plus when ‘in the bush’.

Therefore my slightly controversial suggestion for an alternative to the Scandinavian flat grind is to convex the flat grind. This I think, would be unique (In the sense that I don’t know of any other company who produce a blade with a cross-section that is parallel, until the cutting edge grind, which is then convexed instead of flat.

This cross-section I believe would produce an edge that would be easy to maintain (Even by the inexperienced) with a few stokes on the fine side of the Double Stuff ceramic, and keep the risk of chipping the edge to a minimum (At a blade thickness of, say, 3.5mm). And despite what novices think, a convex grind is one of the easiest to sharpen.

A convex grind might also off-set the concerns of those to whom vegetable preparation is important, in respect to a convex blade’s improved ability to slice.

However, I’m personally not of the school of thought that a ‘bushcrafting’ knife should be capable of julienneing carrots, of chiffonading herbs. My primary concern it that the blade should be very robust, and that a ‘shaving sharp’ edge can be maintained when ‘in the field’ with a minimum of sharpening equipment.

Handle type and material: A generous palm swell for maximum comfort if the knife needs to be used for many hours of continuous use. And I’d like to see something in bead blasted canvas ‘mircata’ (Because of the good grip) in tan/brown/olive green options. I think that many ‘bushcrafters’ shy away from black, as this can look a little ‘tactical’. And hand-to hand combat is definitely not part of the ‘bushcraft’ ethos, as I’m sure you appreciate

Sheath: NO loop for a firesteel. NO pocket for a sharpening stone. This is overly fussy, in my humble opinion, and adds unwanted weight. And we are all ‘grown-ups’ and know how to secure our fire steel and sharpening stone

As far as colour is concerned, again I’d like to see something ‘natural’ not ‘tactical'. Perhaps, tan/brown/options, in leather, with a friction fit. A belt loop that permits the knife to be held close to the body, and drawn with a single hand would be nice. I think that the need to access a knife while wearing a rucksack with a hip belt would be rare, but a low-dangling sheath would also be a nice option.

An alternative could be provided with tan/brown/olive green Kydex (Again, somewhat unique [Thinking from a marketing point of view] and Kydex might present an opportunity to address an ambidextrous solution), with a fitting that could provide both vertical and horizontal belt wear. The horizontal position would be more discreet, which might be useful in countries where people are a little nervous of types that have knives in plain view on their belts (A major problem in the UK). Kydex also provides an option for those who have the opportunity to hunt big game, and to clean the sheath to a high standard of hygiene when the blade has gore on it on a regular basis. Leather without a liner is a problem in this respect.

Anyway, hope this has been of use and/or interest.

By the way, having seen the image of the prototype, I’d just like to say it has a distinctive look and brings something new to the bushcraft/spear point design. Well done! Not an easy thing to do. My only negative criticism is that the small size of that flat grind is going to be difficult to preserve without a ‘sharpening system’, at least I, as a relatively inexperienced knife sharpener, would find it so.

Best regards,
Paul.

PS: Many thanks for the UKPK, I take it pretty much everywhere I go.

 

[TheGreenMan]

...And little or no choil...

Of course, I meant Ricasso not Choil.

I'm a fool.

Best regards,
Paul.

 

[Bogeyman]

Hello,

I've been watching this thread for the last six months, or so.
Is there any news about the development of the Spyderco knife?
I know that if there is it’ll be on this thread, but still…..maybe just a little news to keep the hope up?

 

[Arizroughrider]

Here is my idea of a perfect bushcraft knife. Maker Jason B. Stout. Steel S30V taper tang. Blade length 4 1/8 inches. Blade thickness 3/16 inch with the back grooved for added traction. Handle slabs, yellow G10 for high visibility, rough sanded for better grip. Stainless handle hardware for corrosion resistance. Black Kydex sheath.

Thanks for looking...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBeWpR2rGKA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpIe87Sntwg

 

[WeThePeoplexfbm]

-_-i just use a muela 18inch bowie <3

 

[mightyeskimo]

This is a great thread! Since I'm new here I thought I'd bump an oldie but a goodie. At present, my answer to the question "What is the perfect bushcraft knife?" is, the one I have (or the one I'm about to purchase which will be my first). I'm looking at the Camp King by Jeff White because it's on sale now for about $65. I plan to add a smaller knife in the future to compliment it (such as a Mora black).