Which Rockstead folder for heavy use?

I suppose if you buy a ZDP189 knife it can be hard to resist the temptation to chop everything in sight.
 
Thought I'd post a picture of my lone Rockstead to encourage you to take the leap. This was taken on a lengthy wilderness excursion (into my back yard)
blVmeVA.jpg

Here's a thread you may find interesting as prospective buyer.
 
Blues Bender said:
It will lose its edge like every other knife, the steel isn’t magic. A Spyderco in ZDP-189 has similar edge retention to my Rocksteads in YXR7 IMHO.
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A voice of reason. I would also recommend something from Spyderco. They have a lot of tough, lightweight options that won't be such a loss if lost. I do see the appeal in taking a super cool, expensive knife if you have the disposable income, but another factor for me would be Rocksteads are liner locks, which IMO are not best suited for hard use.
 
CPP said:
Thought I'd post a picture of my lone Rockstead to encourage you to take the leap. This was taken on a lengthy wilderness excursion (into my back yard)
blVmeVA.jpg

Here's a thread you may find interesting as prospective buyer.
Click to expand...

Terrific pic! I've been following the rocks thread and it upsets me. I've just posted in it and am resigned to getting some abuse. Such is life.
 
jstn said:
A voice of reason. I would also recommend something from Spyderco. They have a lot of tough, lightweight options that won't be such a loss if lost. I do see the appeal in taking a super cool, expensive knife if you have the disposable income, but another factor for me would be Rocksteads are liner locks, which IMO are not best suited for hard use.
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I hear you. I've been looking at Spydercos. But I'm a sucker for the elaborate, time-consuming work which goes into Rocksteads. They're bordering on obsessive. And I love the concept of a knife which is so difficult to make that only the manufacturer can sharpen it. Although the Rockstead brochure does say they're developing a "sandpaper holder" so owners can do the sharpening. I wonder if that project will see the light of day.

I'm leaning towards the Sai Tanto, with the Tei ZDP in second place. When I'm living on the road for 6 months I have an instinct to fit out my mobile home with portable artworks. I don't know how to explain the rationale, but it's there. I would view either of those knives as sculptures. Maybe I could set up a pop-up gallery on my travels, and charge admission.
 
Nick H. said:
And I love the concept of a knife which is so difficult to make that only the manufacturer can sharpen it.
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Dude...seriously, dont buy the hype. That is nothing but a marketing spiel. It's a convex saber grind to a zero edge, not witchcraft. The ONLY knife this even vaguely applies to is a ceramic blade.
 
Nick H. said:
But you're a knifemaker, I'm not!
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On this Site, not all those who display an Orange Banner with their monikers are necessarily strictly knifemakers as they could also be a craftsman or a service provider in the knife realm; and / or being equally applicable to such membership level.
 
We've got wizards and trolls and blades...who's Sauron? And where are the plucky Hobbits? I'll be Gollum, driven crazy by the glittering treasure.
 
Nick H. said:
I hear you. I've been looking at Spydercos. But I'm a sucker for the elaborate, time-consuming work which goes into Rocksteads. They're bordering on obsessive. And I love the concept of a knife which is so difficult to make that only the manufacturer can sharpen it. Although the Rockstead brochure does say they're developing a "sandpaper holder" so owners can do the sharpening. I wonder if that project will see the light of day.

I'm leaning towards the Sai Tanto, with the Tei ZDP in second place. When I'm living on the road for 6 months I have an instinct to fit out my mobile home with portable artworks. I don't know how to explain the rationale, but it's there. I would view either of those knives as sculptures. Maybe I could set up a pop-up gallery on my travels, and charge admission.
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That's understandable. Sometimes you just want what you want. It sounds like an awesome trip, so have fun and stay safe!
 
Here's a great story from a German forum. Read it with Chrome and let Chrome do the translating. https://www.bladecommunity.de/index.php/Thread/15949-Das-Schärfen-eine-ROCKSTEAD-Messers-kein-Kinderspiel/ It's about a German dealer who goes to Rockstead to learn their sharpening technique. Then he gets a German company to copy the design of their sharpener, which he now sells at zukuri.de. Here's the sharpener on youtube:
It costs 340 euros. He also sells a Rockstead-style denim stropper for those who don't want to make their own. They are both in the zukuri online shop.

There's masses more info in the Rockstead section of the forum, mostly written by this dealer. https://www.bladecommunity.de/index.php/Board/252-ROCKSTEAD/ He explains the hole in the blades, he gives production numbers....lots to read.
 
Nick H. said:
Here's a great story from a German forum. Read it with Chrome and let Chrome do the translating. https://www.bladecommunity.de/index.php/Thread/15949-Das-Schärfen-eine-ROCKSTEAD-Messers-kein-Kinderspiel/ It's about a German dealer who goes to Rockstead to learn their sharpening technique. Then he gets a German company to copy the design of their sharpener, which he now sells at zukuri.de. Here's the sharpener on youtube:
It costs 340 euros. He also sells a Rockstead-style denim stropper for those who don't want to make their own. They are both in the zukuri online shop.

There's masses more info in the Rockstead section of the forum, mostly written by this dealer. https://www.bladecommunity.de/index.php/Board/252-ROCKSTEAD/ He explains the hole in the blades, he gives production numbers....lots to read.
Click to expand...

For like $10 you can sharpen the same way at home, no need to shell out almost $400 for something that overcomplicates a simple process.

And again, not all Rocksteads have a convex grind so that sharpener would be useless if you bought one with the Shinogizukuri grind.
 
Nick H. said:
Here's a great story from a German forum. Read it with Chrome and let Chrome do the translating. https://www.bladecommunity.de/index.php/Thread/15949-Das-Schärfen-eine-ROCKSTEAD-Messers-kein-Kinderspiel/ It's about a German dealer who goes to Rockstead to learn their sharpening technique. Then he gets a German company to copy the design of their sharpener, which he now sells at zukuri.de. Here's the sharpener on youtube:
It costs 340 euros. He also sells a Rockstead-style denim stropper for those who don't want to make their own. They are both in the zukuri online shop.
...
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From the video, it looks like a simple jig to stretch a high-grit sandpaper over a soft backing, but the angle(s) is/are freehanded. Is that right?
 
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