Nathan the Machinist
KnifeMaker / Machinist / Evil Genius
Moderator
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2007
- Messages
- 15,666
THIS PRE-ORDER IS NOW CLOSED
Please post only one time to this thread. Please do not make multiple posts or chat. This is my order list and it needs to stay simple and uncluttered or it isn't going to work.
I estimate it will take about six months for this pre-order to start to ship and possibly longer. I'm only committing to ship before end of the year. If you need something faster this might not be for you.
These are some pictures of what it mostly looks like:
^ The next run may have a few minor tweaks.
The 6" Utility Fighter was designed as a collaboration with design and functional input from a family friend, US Army Green Beret Jason Landphair. It is a well made, durable, high performance mid sized utility combat knife designed to carry light, tolerate rough use beyond the abilities of most alternatives, and function properly as a mid size fighting knife in addition to normal cutting chores. In this newest release of this old pattern it now has the Delta 3V heat treat that is optimized for edge stability so it will hold a sharp edge in rough use better than ever. A side effect of this heat treat is a higher percentage of free chromium, so although it is not stainless, it is nearly so. I consider this to be one of the ultimate modern particle metallurgy super steels and a knife of this nature is an ideal application for it.
The handle is 3D sculpted CNC machined and ergonomically designed for a standard forward, reverse, saber and pinch grips for an average sized hand. Unnecessary weight is removed where possible and the tang is internally skeletonized for a neutral balance. The blade is made of .188" CPM "Delta" 3V. Despite being light (8 oz) and ground relatively thin (.025" before sharpening) it will tolerate rough use in demanding environments. You can baton and pry with it. It will tolerate punching holes in sheetmetal, cutting iron wire and even chopping through cinder block without breaking or developing excessive damage. One of the design requirements when developing this knife was it would be capable of opening a hole in a masonry wall without risk of breaking. You might damage the edge if you set your mind to it, but despite being light and reasonably thin (and subsequently a good cutter) the knife itself is practically unbreakable and comes with my rough use warranty: if it ever fails for any reason short of intentionally breaking it I will replace, repair or refund. Broken tips get re-pointed, broken scales are replaced with a material of my choosing.
Specs:
CPM 3V, Delta heat treat, tested 61 HRC, .188" at ricasso
Total length 10.8"
Blade length 6.0"
Edge length 5.6", 20 DPS
Weight 8.0 oz
Extra grippy 3D machined scales
Black oxide treated 18-8 stainless steel fasteners
The price includes a very nice Mashed Cat Kydex sheath with TecLok.
This is an old video that illustrates the excellent durability of this pattern in CPM 3V:
These are all utility field grade, as machined and stonewashed with visible tool and grind marks.
They are shown with buffed scales but you can request unbuffed for an ugly alternative with better grip.
Price is:
$305 in black or natural canvas micarta (I prefer micarta over G10, it's lighter, more durable and feels better)
$315 in black linen micarta
$315 in OD green canvas Micarta (Norplex product, starts off green, turns brown)
$315 in black or OD green G10 (cleaner looking than micarta)
$325 in black unbuffed TeroTuf on a black micarta liner
Shipping is $12
^this represents a very good value for an excellent mid sized, utility field grade, tactical fighter that will perform well and never fail you. This is a fantastic knife and very affordable for what it is.
By request I'm offering some custom options. These options are expensive and probably don't make it a better knife, so I don't recommend them, but it's nice to have options:
Options:
Grind the back of the tip 30 DPS to make the point double edged (tip cuts in both directions): $50
Acid Wash: $50
Add a bevel to the spine and then sharpen both sides to make it a stabby double edged dagger grind (tumbled): $150
After tumbling, apply a hand ground satin finish of some sort to the bevels and flats: $150
Antique micarta: $110
Mystery wood scales of my choosing, (probably something really awful, like wood from an old smelly hammer handle): $135
Although we generally ship in the order that the orders are received, be aware that adding special options can move things around a little because most of the custom work is done by Nathan and he's a useless lout.
Note on acid wash: Acid wash is a tumble finish with acid etch. It gives a darker low shine finish (that isn't paint), but it is just a finish and can rub off over time. If you're planning on using your knife a lot and you don't need or want a dark low reflective finish you probably shouldn't get acid wash.
Note on the antique micarta: This is very old surplus that I bought up. I don't know who made it, though Westinghouse was the big name in the business back when this would have been made. It is quality material that machines well, polishes evenly and is more thoroughly resin impregnated and harder than material I can find available today. It is proven to be "good stuff". The material is natural color but has aged into a deep brown throughout most of the thickness from oxygen, but there are some areas that are lighter in color, so it is streaky and multi color. It's actually a really cool look IMO. I will book match the pieces as I saw it up and make sure the two sides of the knife are a good match, but you get what you get. If you want light color, multi color or solid dark you can request it and if we have it I'll try to match up people's request with available scales, but understand this color is naturally occurring and varies and you get what you get, probably mostly solid dark brown.
Here is the order process:
I'm going to take full payment in advance and hold your money. While I think this is usually a bad policy, so I don't generally recommend it, I've been around a while, my shop is an incorporated business established in 2001, so I'm probably not going anywhere. I will ship your knife when it's finished. Once your order is confirmed there are no refunds, changes or cancellations.
We're going to order a custom run of 3V for this. I don't expect them to start to finish up for about six months. They will ship as they're finished, mostly in the order that they are ordered in. As I'm building them, some of the knives made will go to this pre-order and some will be sold in regular sales. This means you will see knives being sold while you're waiting for your knife.
When you place your order it will sit on the order thread for a day or more before we process it. In that time frame you can change your order. So, if you wake up and decide you want one instead of two, or you want micarta instead of G10 you can edit your post. Once Jo contacts you (you need email or PM "turned on" or send contact info to her) and you finalize your order it is finalized. Please don't add changes after-the-fact because it is this sort of thing that has made lists unmanageable in the past.
Jo will contact you to determine your payment preference. Options are check, cash, MO and paypal. You will also need to confirm where you want it shipped. This will be done by Jo the Machinist private message or email.
Unless the numbers get crazy I'll leave this list up for the weekend.
If, after a while, you don't hear from us and we don't hear from you, something is getting lost in the interwebs or spam filters. So if you haven't confirmed your order and received your invoice after a week or two you should contact Jo at carothers knives at gmail dought com.
Jo, Bo, Mark and I appreciate all of your continued interest in our work and your support.
Thanks for looking.
Please post only one time to this thread. Please do not make multiple posts or chat. This is my order list and it needs to stay simple and uncluttered or it isn't going to work.
I estimate it will take about six months for this pre-order to start to ship and possibly longer. I'm only committing to ship before end of the year. If you need something faster this might not be for you.
These are some pictures of what it mostly looks like:
^ The next run may have a few minor tweaks.
The 6" Utility Fighter was designed as a collaboration with design and functional input from a family friend, US Army Green Beret Jason Landphair. It is a well made, durable, high performance mid sized utility combat knife designed to carry light, tolerate rough use beyond the abilities of most alternatives, and function properly as a mid size fighting knife in addition to normal cutting chores. In this newest release of this old pattern it now has the Delta 3V heat treat that is optimized for edge stability so it will hold a sharp edge in rough use better than ever. A side effect of this heat treat is a higher percentage of free chromium, so although it is not stainless, it is nearly so. I consider this to be one of the ultimate modern particle metallurgy super steels and a knife of this nature is an ideal application for it.
The handle is 3D sculpted CNC machined and ergonomically designed for a standard forward, reverse, saber and pinch grips for an average sized hand. Unnecessary weight is removed where possible and the tang is internally skeletonized for a neutral balance. The blade is made of .188" CPM "Delta" 3V. Despite being light (8 oz) and ground relatively thin (.025" before sharpening) it will tolerate rough use in demanding environments. You can baton and pry with it. It will tolerate punching holes in sheetmetal, cutting iron wire and even chopping through cinder block without breaking or developing excessive damage. One of the design requirements when developing this knife was it would be capable of opening a hole in a masonry wall without risk of breaking. You might damage the edge if you set your mind to it, but despite being light and reasonably thin (and subsequently a good cutter) the knife itself is practically unbreakable and comes with my rough use warranty: if it ever fails for any reason short of intentionally breaking it I will replace, repair or refund. Broken tips get re-pointed, broken scales are replaced with a material of my choosing.
Specs:
CPM 3V, Delta heat treat, tested 61 HRC, .188" at ricasso
Total length 10.8"
Blade length 6.0"
Edge length 5.6", 20 DPS
Weight 8.0 oz
Extra grippy 3D machined scales
Black oxide treated 18-8 stainless steel fasteners
The price includes a very nice Mashed Cat Kydex sheath with TecLok.
This is an old video that illustrates the excellent durability of this pattern in CPM 3V:
These are all utility field grade, as machined and stonewashed with visible tool and grind marks.
They are shown with buffed scales but you can request unbuffed for an ugly alternative with better grip.
Price is:
$305 in black or natural canvas micarta (I prefer micarta over G10, it's lighter, more durable and feels better)
$315 in black linen micarta
$315 in OD green canvas Micarta (Norplex product, starts off green, turns brown)
$315 in black or OD green G10 (cleaner looking than micarta)
$325 in black unbuffed TeroTuf on a black micarta liner
Shipping is $12
^this represents a very good value for an excellent mid sized, utility field grade, tactical fighter that will perform well and never fail you. This is a fantastic knife and very affordable for what it is.
By request I'm offering some custom options. These options are expensive and probably don't make it a better knife, so I don't recommend them, but it's nice to have options:
Options:
Grind the back of the tip 30 DPS to make the point double edged (tip cuts in both directions): $50
Acid Wash: $50
Add a bevel to the spine and then sharpen both sides to make it a stabby double edged dagger grind (tumbled): $150
After tumbling, apply a hand ground satin finish of some sort to the bevels and flats: $150
Antique micarta: $110
Mystery wood scales of my choosing, (probably something really awful, like wood from an old smelly hammer handle): $135
Although we generally ship in the order that the orders are received, be aware that adding special options can move things around a little because most of the custom work is done by Nathan and he's a useless lout.
Note on acid wash: Acid wash is a tumble finish with acid etch. It gives a darker low shine finish (that isn't paint), but it is just a finish and can rub off over time. If you're planning on using your knife a lot and you don't need or want a dark low reflective finish you probably shouldn't get acid wash.
Note on the antique micarta: This is very old surplus that I bought up. I don't know who made it, though Westinghouse was the big name in the business back when this would have been made. It is quality material that machines well, polishes evenly and is more thoroughly resin impregnated and harder than material I can find available today. It is proven to be "good stuff". The material is natural color but has aged into a deep brown throughout most of the thickness from oxygen, but there are some areas that are lighter in color, so it is streaky and multi color. It's actually a really cool look IMO. I will book match the pieces as I saw it up and make sure the two sides of the knife are a good match, but you get what you get. If you want light color, multi color or solid dark you can request it and if we have it I'll try to match up people's request with available scales, but understand this color is naturally occurring and varies and you get what you get, probably mostly solid dark brown.
Here is the order process:
I'm going to take full payment in advance and hold your money. While I think this is usually a bad policy, so I don't generally recommend it, I've been around a while, my shop is an incorporated business established in 2001, so I'm probably not going anywhere. I will ship your knife when it's finished. Once your order is confirmed there are no refunds, changes or cancellations.
We're going to order a custom run of 3V for this. I don't expect them to start to finish up for about six months. They will ship as they're finished, mostly in the order that they are ordered in. As I'm building them, some of the knives made will go to this pre-order and some will be sold in regular sales. This means you will see knives being sold while you're waiting for your knife.
When you place your order it will sit on the order thread for a day or more before we process it. In that time frame you can change your order. So, if you wake up and decide you want one instead of two, or you want micarta instead of G10 you can edit your post. Once Jo contacts you (you need email or PM "turned on" or send contact info to her) and you finalize your order it is finalized. Please don't add changes after-the-fact because it is this sort of thing that has made lists unmanageable in the past.
Jo will contact you to determine your payment preference. Options are check, cash, MO and paypal. You will also need to confirm where you want it shipped. This will be done by Jo the Machinist private message or email.
Unless the numbers get crazy I'll leave this list up for the weekend.
If, after a while, you don't hear from us and we don't hear from you, something is getting lost in the interwebs or spam filters. So if you haven't confirmed your order and received your invoice after a week or two you should contact Jo at carothers knives at gmail dought com.
Jo, Bo, Mark and I appreciate all of your continued interest in our work and your support.
Thanks for looking.
Last edited:
