Observations on the Peasant and Peasant Mini:
*The Mini seems petite once you've handled a full-size, although it seemed quite cumbersome before. The Peasant seems very large in the hand, although it's not any bigger than a RAT 1.
* These knives ARE actually hand-made. I previously suspected they were actually machine-made, but I just got a Peasant ("P", okay?) and the spine behind the tip is visibly angled and ragged. I mean angled like the edge of a pair of shears, and ragged like broken metal. Looks very rustic, doesn't effect the utility at all.
* The wooden handles were just as blotchy and rough as on the MP, and sanded up and oiled just as easily. I also rounded all the edges down more to make it look more hand-shaped and organic. I used the sharp spine of an Opinel No.8 to scrape it all smooth (like they used to use broken glass before sandpaper was a thing)
* The blade of the P doesn't rely on friction when it's open like the MP does. On the MP when you open it, the tang snuggles inbetween the scales and holds it firmly open. It only contacts the blade stop pin if you force it open well past where it naturally rests. On the P when you open it it opens until it comes to the blade stop, which prevents it from opening further. At this point it isn't open far enough for the tang to quite snuggle between the scales, and so the blade is basically held open only by your hand and whatever friction you dial into the pivot screw. On the MP once open it is quite firmly there until you close it again, and doesn't touch the blade stop under normal usage.
* This means, as mentioned above, that when you use the P, all the force of the blade is being absorbed by the blade stop pin. Although I don't think this is a problem under realistic use (it would take a lot of shear force to actuall bend or shear that pin I think), it is more comforting to think of friction taking up the force with the stop being only a backup.
*Although I admit that once you grasp the handle firmly, there is enough flex in the wood that it grasps the tang of the P quite firmly. If you try to move the blade while grasping the handle, it won't budge under realistic force, even besides your hand being in the way of it closing.
* Unfortunately, the blade stop on the P is so positioned that when the blade comes to rest when open, a fair amount of the metal at the end of the tang is left protruding. Not only does this prevent the nice firm friction of the MP, but it leaves a rounded metal piece sticking out of the back of the handle which would be quite uncomfortable if you ever had to push down on the blade with force. On the MP it opens until the tang is barely visible. If they just relocated that blade stop a tiny it, it would make a huge difference in several areas.
* The tip of the blade on BOTH models will strike the rear brass post if closed too far. This can be prevented by keeping the rear screw tightened enough that friction holds the blade tip firmly when closed, preventing it from closing far enough to strike the brass. One can also put a rubber o-ring around the post, if you'd prefer.
* If the position of the blade stop and the design of the blade was just slightly altered, the single pin could serve both when closed and when opened, both preventing the blade from closing far enough to strike the brass post, and allow it to open far enough to get the tang fairly hidden inside the handle when opened.
* One could easily modify the tang by removing and rounding the tang head from the P, making it more comfortable and without materially effecting utility. Same could be done with the MP, and I suspect people have already done so. Another idea i thought was appealing was to re-shape the tang into a flat-headed screwdriver. It is already useful for prying and poking things, and a tapered head ought make it even more useful. Although it would also make it even more likely to poke holes in your pocket lining if you carry it in-pocket, as I do sometimes.
* The blades on both could really stand to be re-ground with a better bevel. They'll take a decent edge, but they don't cut the way I'd like them to.
* They ARE carbon steel and discolor and make food taste like metal, but they don't discolor quite like other carbon knives I have, and they also have a strange texture to them, as if they were filled with tiny air bubbles, especially around the cutting edge. Not sure if it's an illusion, or it it's something from the smelting process.
*The decorative ground-off and rough-surfaced areas on the blade are not symmetrical on the P; on one side, the light ground-off area curves up and back around the "SVORD, NEW ZEALAND" logo (as seen in photos online - my apologies, I cannot get photos to upload to a image hosting site, and now I can't find my camera cable), while the other side features a plain sloping line, just like the one on the MP (this bothers me a little bit). The MP is the same on both sides.
If I think of anything else worth mentioning, I will add it later.
Again, sorry for no pics. I have several taken of the knife when new, and as I improved the handle, but I can't upload them yet.
EDIT: I forgot to mention that on both the P and MP the blade tends to show arcing, light-colored score marks in the patina from closing in the handle. Probably from grit that gets inside from my pocket; this might be avoided by keeping the handles adjusted looser, but the blade will flop open more easily then and you have to worry about the tip contacting the post, again. That any keeping the screw that loose makes me worry about it backing out. I like to keep screws at least fingertip snug. And they do start working loose sometimes.
*And second, I just found out that both the P and MP work quite handily as shears for cutting aluminum HVAC tape. Haven't tried anything else yet. Set the tape on the handle, holding the handle outward and the tang in your hand, thumb on the spine of the blade (or however you want), and squeeze the blade closed, then tear off the cut piece. Works quite well. Not as well as just using scissors, I'm sure, but where's the fun in that? I admit an Opinel will do the same, but not as well. The tape tends to stick between the blade and handle, and there is not handy tang to hold it by.
