Forum Knife Updates and comments

[WValtakis]

Approximately .087” on the clip blade. Same as my Buck 301.

So they only took off about half the thickness before sharpening on yours?

Mine will definitely be seeing a trip to the belt sander if it is the same

 

[HeathH]

I got mine in today. It’s dark out now, so I’ll take pictures in the morning.

The good:

1. Scales are nice and thin, and evenly matched.
2. Great transitions from scale to booster.
3. Love the slanted bolsters.
4. Stamps and etches are all well done.
5. It’s so nice to have a traditional with CPM-154 blades.
6. Love the shapes of both blades.
7. I really like the size and weight of the knife.
8. The pull on the sheepsfoot is about a 4, but very crisp. I like it.

The bad:

1. I got unlucky on the covers. Mine are very light, with little contrast. I may try to improve the contrast with potassium permanganate.
2. The multiple gaps between the springs and liners are quite bad. Worse than even my worst Case or Queen.
3. The thickness behind the edge of both blades runs from about .038” to .040”. That instantly makes the knife a safe queen in my opinion.
4. The pull on the clip blade is about a 3, and not very crisp. Not terrible, but in no way impressive.
5. The long pulls are very wide and rounded looking. They are perfectly functional, but not aesthetically pleasing from a traditional perspective. Very modern looking, like the Lionsteel Roundhead pulls. But they look out of place on this particular folder.

All in all, I’m not blown away. Natural covers are luck of the draw, so no biggie there. The spring gaps are more cosmetic than anything, so I’ll grudgingly forgive. We all knew that the pulls on the Buck blades were a concern, and they’re about what we expected. Weak but not dangerously so. But the thickness behind the edges is an unacceptable mistake. Overall, the aesthetics are not good enough to make it a nice safe queen, and the thickness of the grind makes it even less valuable as a user.

Sorry, but I’m just not feeling this one.

Thank you for your honest review! I'll be interested to see other people's behind the edge thicknesses. This is a major pet peeve of mine. I've gotten some thick BTE Case and Queen knives and put them flat on some sandpaper and ground them down to acceptable thicknesses. .025 is about the thickest I can stand - ultimately, I like slip joints because of their thin edges. .040 is kind of crazy for a knife this size

 

[meako]

don't listen to em Buzz. The truth is often unpalatable.I for one admire your courage and candour for speaking your mind.
but lets face it...you don't go round to visit someone with a new baby and say ...christ it's got an ugly head! you say awwww how cute!....Anyway i seriously doubt you will be the only one to have a whinge...but I'm proud of you for having the goods to be the first...
I told yous we should have had a poll for grind thicknesses....but no one listens...everyones in too much of an all fired hurry nowadays

 

[Gary W. Graley]

We'll see how they are soon enough for everyone else, but I am guessing that the grinding was a preset thing, so that being the case, some thinning may well be in order, otherwise it looks great.

Buzz would you get some photos of yours, always a welcome thing while we're waiting on just getting the email....let alone the actual knife
G2

 

[SVTFreak]

I havnt done much with mine yet, but I cut some cardboard and it zipped right through it. I'm sure I'll thin the edge out if and when I have to sharpen it but until then it cuts.

 

[Barman1]

A little time on my EdgePro with the small blade attachment and all will be well in my little world.
Compared to reprofiling 3.5" of 4V@63RC this will be amusingly simple and I've yet to purchase a factory blade that meets my personal specs anyway.
Looking forward to getting mine!!

 

[knarfeng]

I'm not certain the thickness can be generically described as an "unacceptable mistake".

I have a lot of classic production stockman knives. A number of them are 4" long and have full flat ground blades. I measured some with a caliper. Camillus. Queen. Schrade. Utica. Buck 301 from the mid 90's when Buck used a full flat grind. The Schrade came in at ~.022" The others were in the mid 30 thou range by my measurement. 0.035 ± .002 inches. I have a Case 4" stockman, but did not count it as it is not full flat ground. It has a hollow ground clip blade, which makes it thinner immediately above the primary grind.

The clip blade on a classic stockman was not thin like the clip blade on a trapper. It was thicker stock and designed to be used for heavy cutting jobs. Yes there were some that were in the low 20 thou thickness range. Especially those that were hollow ground. But a blade that is ~40 thou immediately above the grind is not ridiculously thick for a stockman clip blade, though it is at the high end of what I measured.

 

[Will Power]

No shipping notice but I don't expect one soon as I'm overseas in Europe. So I MIGHT get my knife for Christmas but what with our P.O. only delivering 3 days a week now...the window is small

But, I'll still have something to look forward to long after you lot have become jaded

The pictures I've seen so far make me enthusiastic anyway Looks like a very nice knife, unique blade combo, excellent steel and inexpensive/real value. As to the debate about thickness etc, can't obviously say but I think Frank's point about the usual robustness of a Stockman Clip is important. It's not an Opinel. But, if the Forum Knife can cut open a large hard apple without splitting it and cut some decent slices of salami, you'll not find me complaining

 

[Pomsbz]

It's useful that I know it's over double the thickness I like. I'll send it immediately out for a regrind.

 

[Jack Black]

Well done for bringing this one in @skblades , you've accomplished a mammoth task

 

[Amir Fleschwund]

Buzzbait mentioned gaps.
Maybe a few careful hammer hits on the pins?

 

[jrawk]

Mike caught some flack when the first round of Lionsteel Roundheads shipped with thicknesses of something like .028”. This is much thicker than a first gen Roundhead.

LOL! Nobody was throwing around the words "unacceptable mistake". the bunch of us pointing out the roundhead edge thickness (me included) was to provide constructive feedback to Mike at CK to improve future runs (which it was), especially when the blade is M390 and takes a bit of time to profile.

 

[Maverick299]

Does anyone know the reasoning behind the width of the long pull being cut wider on the sheepsfoot blade than on the clip?

 

[rishma]

I wasn’t able to participate but I await pictures almost as anxiously as you gents await your package!

 

[Buzzbait]

LOL! Nobody was throwing around the words "unacceptable mistake". the bunch of us pointing out the roundhead edge thickness (me included) was to provide constructive feedback to Mike at CK to improve future runs (which it was), especially when the blade is M390 and takes a bit of time to profile.

LOL! Nobody was throwing around the words "unacceptable mistake". the bunch of us pointing out the roundhead edge thickness (me included) was to provide constructive feedback to Mike at CK to improve future runs (which it was), especially when the blade is M390 and takes a bit of time to profile.

Correct. The original Roundhead was a tad thick, but not terribly bad. If memory serves me, mine measured between .025" and .028". I have lots of traditionals with the same thickness. Very normal for a traditional, but future improvement was still very welcome, as I prefer very efficient cutters. Honest feedback was given, and Mike did a great job of improving an already excellent knife on the second round.

The new forum knife, on the other hand, is substantially thicker than the original Roundhead. Thick enough that I am not personally willing to let it go unmentioned. In my opinion, it is unacceptably thick for a knife of this size. But heck, this is just me giving my opinion. No need for everybody to get all worked up about it. If you don't mind .040", then you'll probably like the knife.

 

[Buzzbait]

Here are a few pics. The elk on mine is a bit lackluster, but some potassium permanganate will likely improve the contrast greatly.

Here are a couple pics of the spring gaps. The clip blade end has one extremely large gap. Big enough to stick two sheets of copy paper through. The blade has no lateral play, so it is unlikely to benefit from hammering the pin and re-peening.

The sheepsfoot end has a couple of gaps, but not nearly as large as the clip side. The sheepsfoot does have quite a bit of lateral blade play, so re-peening may help.

I'll be away this coming weekend, but perhaps I'll get to work on this knife next week, and see if I can fix the sheepsfoot blade play and gap, and make those elk covers stand out a bit more. Both are relatively quick and easy jobs.

 

[jmh33]

All quiet in 'The Rocks" !! Patiently awaiting my ship notice!! John

 

[gaj999]

If being .04 behind the edge renders a knife un-usable to you than you should probably only carry Spydercos in whatever super steel you fancy.

One of the reasons I quit buying Spyderco was too thick grinds. He won't find much joy there. Thick grinds are also a pet peeve of mine. Even when I reprofile one to my standard 10dps, the thick shoulders tend to wedge where a thin blade slices. I dislike scandi grinds for that reason. On a folding knife, which by definition is a light duty knife, thick grinds are stupid. Unless you offer a lifetime warrantee against stupidity ... then it's the user that's stupid.

Edit to add: Since some folks think I'm being insulting here, I'd better explain what I was getting at. I've left the original text as it was posted, for clarity. My comment was about the lifetime warrantee. When you offer a warrantee like that, you have to design for the guys who do stupid things with your knives or you soon go out of business. So you design for the stupid user. That doesn't make all of your users stupid. Sorry if that was unclear.

 

[Modoc ED]

For those that are complaining about the blade edge grind, grasp the handle of your knife with the blade spine up and place the cutting edge on the palm of your hand. Now, give the knife a yank. Are you bleeding? If so, you've got a good working edge.

Got a gap? Quit complaining. You can use that gap to see through for guidance while cutting with your knife.

Honest to God folks. At least wait until you have your knife in hand before complaining about it.

@skblades - Thanks for your efforts and time.

 

[Xr6x]

Here are a few pics. The elk on mine is a bit lackluster, but some potassium permanganate will likely improve the contrast greatly.

Here are a couple pics of the spring gaps. The clip blade end has one extremely large gap. Big enough to stick two sheets of copy paper through. The blade has no lateral play, so it is unlikely to benefit from hammering the pin and re-peening.

The sheepsfoot end has a couple of gaps, but not nearly as large as the clip side. The sheepsfoot does have quite a bit of lateral blade play, so re-peening may help.

I'll be away this coming weekend, but perhaps I'll get to work on this knife next week, and see if I can fix the sheepsfoot blade play and gap, and make those elk covers stand out a bit more. Both are relatively quick and easy jobs.

It looks like the scale pin might be a tad long causing the gap?