Interesting knife maker, anyone heard of him?

[Balog]

Killing some time on ebay looking up trade knives, and came across this fellow. Anyone heard of / tried one of these? Looks like a pretty darn good deal for a small forge knife, especially if the maker really stands up to his unlimited lifetime warranty.

[mtnbkr]

Name seems familiar, I wonder if I saw it on bushcraftusa's forums.  1095, forged, warranty, inexpensive, seems like a win-win situation.

Chris

[vaskidmark]

Just what I need - a dozen more knives!

Must resist!  Must!

stay safe.

[Pharmacology]

Wow, I'm gonna have to pick one of those up.

Thanks for the post!

[De Selby]

On topic..I'm thinking of buying a pig hunting knife, custom made.   

Any recommendations for one that will look nice but also endure the hog expeditions?

[mtnbkr]

How much do you want to spend?

What kind of materials?

What size?

Chris

[De Selby]

How much do you want to spend?

What kind of materials?

What size?

Chris

I'd spend up to $1000 although less wouldn't hurt, materials I'm open minded as long as it's sturdy more than showy like some of the damascus stuff, and looking for between 7.5 and 10 inch blades...good finger-protecting hilt and grip are musts.

[mtnbkr]

I'm sure there are a bunch of makers that could do something for you, but none stand out in my mind.  I don't generally pay attention to that end of the market (I never need anything longer than 4" in a knife). 

Blind Horse Knives might be able to make something like that.  They tend to make more "bushcraft" style knives, but do have a custom shop and could make something to order.  I have one of their knives and find it to be good quality.  Prices are good as well.  I've met the guys in person and find them to be good sorts.

Otherwise, I'm drawing a blank based on your requirements.  Busse might make something.  I know he likes long blade knives, but I don't see him using guards much.

Wait!  There is a guy who makes what you're looking for, but his name escapes me.  He loves making the big pig stickers with guards and such.  Some are practically short swords.  If I can recall his name, I'll post it here.

Chris

[mtnbkr]

Jerry Hossum: www.hossom.com/

Also look into Jerry Fisk, though he's spendy.

Chris

[Perd Hapley]

I'd spend up to $1000 although less wouldn't hurt, materials I'm open minded as long as it's sturdy more than showy like some of the damascus stuff, and looking for between 7.5 and 10 inch blades...good finger-protecting hilt and grip are musts.

Randall, maybe? I don't know their price range, though.

http://www.randallknives.com/

[mtnbkr]

Randall would be a good choice, but they're not custom if that's a requirement.

Chris

[AJ Dual]

Randall would be a good choice, but they're not custom if that's a requirement.

Chris

The two biggest common custom items for a boar/pig hunting knife is a finger ring, or some sort of hook in the guard so you can get a good positive pull to bring the knife back out, so it's not stuck keeping the wound closed in a rather unhappy boar, or if the hunting dogs loose their grip on it's legs and ears/snout, and things "go rodeo" on you. Second is that it be long enough to reach the heart/vitals from a ribcage/armpit stab from just behind one of the front legs.

Personally, I think a spear is the way to go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJGd7G2wYuU

("Cybrown" is a Louisiana Cajun, who does interesting things like spear hunt wild pigs in rice paddies at night, barefoot, and set up FPV cameras and night vision and FLIR on RC aircraft to scout for animals doing crop damage etc. or just arms them with fireworks for the hell of it.)

[Pharmacology]

A buddy of mine told me that he preferred sub-hilts to rings, as he thought it would be easy for a pig to torque the knife in your hand and snap a finger stuck in a handle ring.

[AJ Dual]

A buddy of mine told me that he preferred sub-hilts to rings, as he thought it would be easy for a pig to torque the knife in your hand and snap a finger stuck in a handle ring.

True, but then you might be getting blade turned into your hand if the choil isn't very long. I think SOP is for a finger to go into the ring at the moment of drawing it out, and not one second before. The ring usually isn't placed such that you'd want your finger in them for the thrust anyway, unless your hand is unusually large, and strong.

And I'd think even the meanest boar has a pretty good disincentive to roll about on 12"+ of metal blade in his ribcage, in any direction but away/off of it. Although I guess panic, "not feeling it yet" and adrenaline could overcome that in the heat of the moment.

I think most designs now either have a heavily rebated choil that makes a deep finger groove/loop in the choil against the guard, or there's a false gaurd for the index finger on the grip itself that protrudes out.

All I know is I want to do a knife/dog hog hunt with a helmet camera, and alternately mutter/scream "IT'S BACON! BACONBACONBACON!" over and over again into the audio. 

A GOOD pack of well trained hog hunting dogs and a backup with a heavy caliber firearm is paramount.

[De Selby]

I really liked those Hossom knives, but it turns out that importing a double edged knife is different from buying one locally.  I've put out a few inquiries, but so far it looks like therere some pretty good Australian domestic makers.

[Matthew Carberry]

I really liked those Hossom knives, but it turns out that importing a double edged knife is different from buying one locally.  I've put out a few inquiries, but so far it looks like therere some pretty good Australian domestic makers.

Kyley Harris of New Zealand is an excellent knifemaker.

cKc Knives, has a youtube channel as http://www.youtube.com/user/knivesandstuff

Website http://www.sellyourknife.com/pdf.html

He's coming off a wrist tendon injury so is a bit backordered but he makes great bushcraft stuff.  Not sure I've seen a double-edged knife from him.

[Gewehr98]

I'd skip 1095 steel unless you like babysitting it over time.   It's a very plain carbon steel with basically no corrosion resistance. That's why the pictures of the new knives have so much patina already.

[De Selby]

I'd skip 1095 steel unless you like babysitting it over time.   It's a very plain carbon steel with basically no corrosion resistance. That's why the pictures of the new knives have so much patina already.

Thanks for the heads up, did not know that about the steel.  I'm looking right now at a maker who uses ATS34, so that should be easier to take care of by a wide margin.

Do you all have any opinions on a good knife length?  Looking at examples it seems like there could be a big difference between hunting with 7 inch versus 10 inch blades, which is e range I'm looking in.

Matt, unfortunately NZ is still an import for me - so single edged only

[MicroBalrog]

You must share photos of the pig when you hunt it.

[mtnbkr]

I'd skip 1095 steel unless you like babysitting it over time.   It's a very plain carbon steel with basically no corrosion resistance. That's why the pictures of the new knives have so much patina already.

I have knives in 440C, ATS-34, BG42, D2, O1, 1095, VG-10, and a mysterious saw steel that is certainly not stainless.  While the non-stainless steels are not mirror-shiny, they aren't rusting either.  I don't do much for them but keep them dry when not in use.  The O1 and mysterious saw-steel knives are hunting knives and have been bloodied multiple times.  Blood will rust a knife faster and worse than water. 

One thing I *do* like about the non-stainless steels I have is they tend to be easier to sharpen and take a keener edge.  The knife in O1 tends to hold an edge as well as VG-10, but gets sharper (despite being much thicker).

Chris

[Perd Hapley]

That's odd, because everyone else in the universe seems to notice a substantial difference. 

[mtnbkr]

I guess it depends on what you call "substantial".  Are the non-stainless blades darker?  Yes.  Are they "rusty"?  No, not at all.  I guess they would be if I left them outdoors, but I don't.  For the hunting knives, I rinse them in water and whip them dry.  No oil or special treatment.

Chris

[Gewehr98]

Don't get me wrong, plain tool-steel knives can be forged beautifully, will do fine with a differential heat treat, and they both take and hold an edge like nobody's business.

I have several from the days I apprenticed under a crusty old knifesmith in California.

His solution for his O-1 working knives was to bead-blast, then dunk them in the parkerizing tank.

After that, the only unprotected surface was just the edge, which is the part of a knife seeing the most maintenance over its lifetime anyway.

I have one O-1 knife that I color case-hardened to provide a vintage looking layer of protection. 

Depending on the humidity of the environment and what the contents you slice through contain, you could have a pristine chunk of metal or a pitted relic of what used to be a knife.

In the salt spray of beachside Florida, you could watch naked tool steel blades corrode in front of your eyes, and that was inside my house.  (You should see what it did to my Harley!)

Cut up a few deer during hunting season, then forget to thoroughly clean and oil the blades, and bingo!

I love my O-1, but it's protected.  Otherwise, throw a few chromium atoms into the alloy, please.  ATS-34, 154CM, A2, D2, Sandvik 14C28N, and I can even stomach 440C on occasion.  440A and 440B don't get a second look, however.

[Ryan in Maine]

Start here to figure out who you like: http://www.beautifulblades.com/products/list_view/2

You have a lot of options for under $1,000. Highly recommend Greg Benway and Barry Dawson.

Example of Benway: http://www.beautifulblades.com/products/show/1266
Example of Dawson: http://www.beautifulblades.com/products/show/189

[Pharmacology]

True, but then you might be getting blade turned into your hand if the choil isn't very long. I think SOP is for a finger to go into the ring at the moment of drawing it out, and not one second before. The ring usually isn't placed such that you'd want your finger in them for the thrust anyway, unless your hand is unusually large, and strong.

And I'd think even the meanest boar has a pretty good disincentive to roll about on 12"+ of metal blade in his ribcage, in any direction but away/off of it. Although I guess panic, "not feeling it yet" and adrenaline could overcome that in the heat of the moment.

I think most designs now either have a heavily rebated choil that makes a deep finger groove/loop in the choil against the guard, or there's a false gaurd for the index finger on the grip itself that protrudes out.

All I know is I want to do a knife/dog hog hunt with a helmet camera, and alternately mutter/scream "IT'S BACON! BACONBACONBACON!" over and over again into the audio. 

A GOOD pack of well trained hog hunting dogs and a backup with a heavy caliber firearm is paramount.

Ah, that makes sense.  Thanks.
I've been invited to hunt hogs like this on more than one occasion, but each opportunity fell through before the hunt.