Blade

readers respond

Of Axes & Chef’s Knives I enjoyed “Chef ’s Knives Are Cooking!” (December BLADE®, page 12) and had the pleasure of meeting Don Nguyen at the Oregon Knife Collector’s Show in Eugene, Oregon. He is a very talented and nice young man. I would have liked to see some more about Harbeer Chahal than just a photo and a caption (page 20, same issue) but realize space is sometimes limited in articles.The dolabra in the photo (page 37 of the same issue) in part two of “Power of the Axe” by Ernest Emerson is unlike any I have seen before. The dolabra I am familiar with was a Roman legionary’s entrenching tool, with an axe head on one end and a pick head on the other, as seen in…

cover story

ADragonslayer OTF (Out-the-Front) automatic by Marfione Custom Knives with copious skull engraving by Jody Muller is this issue’s cover knife.Capitalizing on the continuing craze of human skull embellishment and other like decorations on knives, Muller covered all four sides of the Dragonslayer’s handle with skulls, including curving the horns in multiple directions on at least one skull, and incorporating 24k-gold inlay and flames throughout. Hank Greenberg commissioned the one-of-a-kind piece.The 4.375-inch hollow-ground blade is dragonskin-pattern damascus that deploys via a push button. The .12-inch blade has a plain edge. Handle thickness: .59 inch. Weight: 8.95 ounces. Approximate closed length: 5.875 inches.For more information contact Marfione Custom Knives, c/o Microtech Knives, attn.: T. Marfione, Dept. BL2, 15A National Ave., Fletcher, NC 28732 828-684-4355 microtechknives.com, and/ or Jody Muller, Dept.…

the knife that started it all?

The Edwin Forrest knife and James Batson (inset), author of James Bowie and the Sandbar Fight Books I & II. There have been more than a few claimants to the title of a knife that belonged to BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame® member James Bowie, but none seem to have as solid a claim to the throne as the Edwin Forrest knife. In James Bowie and the Sandbar Fight Books I & II, Cutlery Hall-Of-Famer James L. Batson Jr., not only reinforces that claim but makes an unprecedented, detailed case for the Forrest knife being the one Bowie used in the infamous Sandbar Fight on Sept. 19, 1827.If true, that would make the Forrest knife the original bowie, the knife that launched the bowie craze that reigned for…

knives with mad skulls

When it comes to iconic imagery, there are few if any images that instantly stir emotions like that of the human skull. Skulls have been incorporated into cultural symbolism since around 10,000 B.C., give or take a few thousand years. (I’ll leave it to the bioarchaeologists to argue the specifics.)For this exercise we travel rapidly through time, since skulls have been part of humanity’s most mysterious of décors seemingly forever. They denote themes of immortality, power, danger and even excitement, and are harnessed as the go-to allusion for an unimaginably wide swath of cultures, including the Aztecs, pirates, rock bands, bikers and even Shakespeare. (“Alas, poor Yorick!”) Nowadays, there’s even a skull emoticon: ! So, it should come as exactly zero surprise that skull imagery has found a loving…

the knife i carry

“For the last five years or so I’ve consistently carried a SOG Aegis. The one-handed operation always comes in handy and the assisted opening has a satisfying sound that always makes me smile—as if using it wasn’t fun enough already.”Jason Hartley, Aiken, South Carolina “I carry a Bear Swipe from Bear Ops. I like to think of it as a gent’s tactical that I can carry most anywhere or on any occasion.”Hanford Jones, a letter via e-mail “My Gerber Razorfish is with me most of the time. I like the straight-edge blade and the slick flipper action. It’s right in my price range, too.”Cynthia Burdette, a letter via e-mail To read about the latest knives, knife news and more, visit blademag.com …

secrets of the pros

Years ago I read every knife magazine that came out, including BLADE® and Knives Illustrated. The editor of Knives Illustrated back then was Bud Lang and he always put how-to articles in the magazine. How-to’s were something he did when he was editor of Hot Rod magazine, too.One particular article was written by BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame® member Buster Warenski on how to file out a slot in a guard. I would like to share this information as it was put out so long ago, and share some other tips I learned from knifemakers, too. FILING GUARD SLOTS As Buster explained, the first thing to do is mirror polish the face of the guard. To begin the mirror polish, finish sanding the guard face all the way up…