| Author | Message | ||
     Pwnzor |
If you're a knife guy, check out my neighbor Andy Roy of Fiddleback Forge | ||
| 86129squids |
I got aggravated at a squirrel pilfering my birdseed yesterday. Shot the entire 12 bullet magazine of foam/rubber bullets while the squirrel ate/laughed/watched me. In my aggravation, I grabbed a garden trowel, felt good in my hand... almost filleted the dang tree rat in one throw, I was within 1" and about on plane for my sightline. Didn't even think, just threw. Just like archery, so silent. After my failed strike, the bluebird and mockingbird went to work. | ||
| Whisperstealth |
Damn beautiful knives! Would love to buy 1 or 10. Hope to be able to one day. | ||
| Sifo |
Nice stuff! https://fiddlebackforge.com/ | ||
| Pwnzor |
I've bought two in the last week... one's on my hip and the other one is on it's way to Fort Hood, Texas as a birthday present to PFC Lucas Capps... should actually be there in a few more hours, Gretchen is driving there right now. | ||
| Pwnzor |
The young Crew Chief is ecstatic about his new Fiddleback knife. I didn't know this, but apparently he will be allowed to carry it at all times! | ||
| Aesquire |
I have knife making friends. One won some tv show. https://www.history.com/shows/forged-in-fire/seaso n-4/episode-6 He deserved it. He spent weeks going out to his shop to practice forging & grinding a blade quickly. A couple a day. He makes jewelry and is a metallurgist. Another was a jet fighter mechanic ( avionics ) in the Marines and is now finishing work on a portable forge to replace the one in the 1867 barn the Fire department demanded he remove. ( but had used for 20+ years ) Turns out coal fired forges need to be zoned commercial in his town. Research shows that's to reduce competition for the boiler factory, now gone, originally The American Water Works Supply Company from the 1800's. ( Now a Brit conglomerate ) I've got stories from WW2 about that company, I worked with guys from there, and I used to listen to them do explosive metal forming while camping miles & valleys away where the valleys focused the sound waves, in the middle of the night. But that is not germane to this thread.  See also mystery explosions in the Finger Lakes, natural gas detonations in under water caves. My first & last scuba spelunking trip. I'm not claustrophobic, but that was too dangerous for a skydiver & test pilot.  Back on topic... I'll have to photograph the axe he made me. ( the Marine ) I've fought besides &sparred with, both guys. | ||
| Sifo |
Seems I lost my Benchmade knife about 10 days ago. Went knife shopping today and found a Zero Tolerance knife that seemed to fit well. Seems nicely made in the USA. Wish I could afford something from the Fiddle Back Forge line, but they don't have folding knives anyway. Images from an amazon add...   | ||
| Shoggin |
It that life size!? It will never fit in your pocket! LOL I just lost a really nice SOG I carry  The ZT looks thin and light enough for me | ||
| Sifo |
My Benchmade just made it's way out of the reclining sofa today! Spent about 10 days in there! Spending a day with the ZT in my pocket, I'll share my thoughts. I love the way it snaps open, with either my thumb (just like my Benchmade) or with my index finger on the triangle that sticks out on the safe edge of the blade. The lock release to close it is unusual. I won't even try to describe it. It has to be seen. I thought I was going to dislike it, but quickly found I can manipulate it well, but it does require both hands. It lacks the ability to lock it closed that my Benchmade has, but the Benchmade lock has gone out of adjustment and can allow the tip to stick out just a bit. It has also managed to open in my pocket a number of times when the lock has slid open. The ZT uses a ball detent to secure it closed. Only time will tell if it stays secure. The body is thinner than the Benchmade. Nice in the pocket. Not as ergonomic in the had though, but it's not a bad feel and provides a good grip with the textured composite material. The thin body would be real nice if you carry it in your back pocket. I carry it in my front pocket, and it's a bit wider than I would like in the dimension of blade edge to the back of the blade. That's just a matter of the style of blade though. The factory edge is probably comparable to the Benchmade. No complaints there. I'm assuming a similar metallurgy that will provide similar durability. I'm just basing that on the factory edge and price point being similar though. Their black blades have a DLC (Diamond Like Coating). I know Ducati is using DLC on pistons on their high end bikes, and it's supposed to wear incredibly well. I'm not sure what the coating is on my Benchmade, but it's showing plenty of wear. I think it looks good with the wear marks too, so not a big deal. ZT says they us a ball bearing on the pivot, so that should last a long time. It looks to be a well made knife. Worth checking out IMO if you are looking for a mid-range knife. | ||
| Sifo |
So I was just playing with the ZT and did figure out how to manipulate the lock so I can close it with one hand, pushing the back of the blade against something of course, just as I would with the Benchmade. It's just not as intuitive to manipulate. | ||
| Court |
Loosing a Benchmade is a "big deal". | ||
| Torquehd |
I've lost a few nice (>$100) Buck folders. Each time I'd buy another one. Managed to eventually find them all, now I've got 3 of basically the same EDC that all stay in known locations. So if I ever lost the one in my pocket, I've still got one in the glovebox and one at work. Not to mention the handful of other knives tucked away in the garage and in my pickup. I've got a few really nice Buck knives, but I never use them because I don't want to tear them up. A good EDC folder will do 99% of what I ever need a knife to do. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Since we're doing this, I'll go ahead and give my impressions after having carried my Fiddleback blade for a couple of weeks now. I'm really digging the strength of a fixed blade, and my sheath has a slot for a good sized fire steel so I've got my source of flame always at hand. I'm getting good at starting a fire quickly, but I'm really looking forward to putting it to the test at Buelltoberfest.  | ||
| Torquehd |
That's a great looking knife and sheath. I'm confused, no magnesium? | ||
| Pwnzor |
I've got a block of magnesium I can shave off if I need to start a fire with wet wood, but the firesteel only needs a 90 degree edge and some fresh kindling. | ||
| Torquehd |
I see. I learned on a magnesium bar. I guess if it's wet it's a trade-off either way. You can scrap off magnesium shavings, or cut into some dry wood... Mg just seems more reliable IMHO but I'll have to get a fire-steel and play with it. Maybe I'll convert. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Now I'm confused... how do you make fire with just magnesium? Don't you need something to make a spark so it will ignite? | ||
| Sifo |
Damn Pwnzor, now I'm just jealous! Straight up jealous! | ||
| Sifo |
Loosing a Benchmade is a "big deal". I'm actually REALLY happy to have found this one. It's one I got in the BW auctions when we were auctioning things to help out with Glitch's situation a while back. I forget who donated it, but somehow it feels just that much better when I use it. | ||
| Torquehd |
Yeah of course. Mg bars have an iron? steel? striker on the back side. I mean I'll have to play with it but for your fine kindling it's either spend a few minutes shaving off Mg shavings or spend a few minutes whittling up some dead wood to get to something you can get to ignite from catching a spark. Seems like it would have to be "lighter-knot" to be able to catch very easy. I've never done it that way so I'll have to try it. It's been a few years since I've made a fire without a lighter But it's always a good skill to have. My bug-out bags always have Mg bars in them. | ||
| Gregtonn |
This is a handy setup with good quality at a decent price. Great to keep in the car or on the bike. G https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007JIIQJS/ref=twister_B 01C44NK0G?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 | ||
| Pwnzor |
Torquehd, I get it now. I actually have one like that with the fat chunk of magnesium and a ferrous rod/strip down the other side. With this new knife, I can make kindling so fine that it catches immediately. A few years ago, somewhere on the interwebz I got a 50-pack of small ziploc bags filled with magnesium shavings. I keep a few of those in my go-bags, "just in case". The knife I got from Fiddleback was a bit of an anomaly. Their blades generally do not come with a sheath included. I was scrolling through the website puzzling over what to get... and grieving over the price of the sheaths... and noticed this one. I bought it instantly and couldn't be happier with it. In my color, as well! | ||
| Pwnzor |
Also... I have failed to mention that Fiddleback gives a Military discount... 10% I believe. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I've got a Benchmade somewhere that was a gift. Sold a Harley to a cop, he REALLY loved that bike and presented the knife to me to say thanks. I do need to send it back to have it re-sharpened though... | ||
| Torquehd |
That's one of the reasons I hate a lot of modern knives. They've got all these exotic powder steel that requires special tooling to sharpen. 440HC is so much easier to maintain. The S30V that Buck uses, while somewhat exotic, is still pretty easy to sharpen on a regular old whetstone. | ||
| Ratbuell |
my thing is, I'm just not good enough to do the serrated blade properly. This is an "old" knife, maybe 12 years or so. AFAIK it's just good ol' carbon steel... | ||
| Tootal |
I've carried a Benchmade for years. The coating is pretty worn and it's been sharpened many times. It was a NRA commemorative knife with plastic handles. It opens quick with it's thumb stud. I wish the steel was a little better as it needs sharpening more than I think it should. Buck knives seem to be the hardest to sharpen but do they ever hold an edge for a long time! Victorinox uses excellent steel also. | ||
| Fb1 |
It's one I got in the BW auctions when we were auctioning things to help out with Glitch's situation a while back. I forget who donated it... | ||
| Sifo |
Thanks! | ||
| Fb1 |
Thank YOU, for Glitch and Ann. | ||
| Fb1 |
Several flavors of SOG's Flash have been my EDC for many, many years:   | ||
| Pwnzor |
When I used to carry a folder, it was almost always a Spyderco similar to the current police model.  True story, hard to believe, but nonetheless: I was SCUBA diving in Laguna Beach and dropped my Spyderco knife into some rocks about 20 feet below me. I tried to follow it with my eyes, but there was a lot of wave action and the water wasn't all that clear at the time. I didn't even hear it hit, so I assumed it landed in the sand. Fast forward to the next day. I was going to dive a little farther north, but when I walked outside I noticed the water was uncharacteristically calm so I decided to go back out to see if I could make a better day of it. Once I cleared the surf zone and was swimming freely, I thought I saw a glint below me... so I went down to check it out. There was my knife, perfectly wedged between a couple of rocks. Unf**kin' real. I should have bought a lottery ticket that day. |
