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My first question…what do you look at when you receive a new knife?

I have over the years had some very interesting discussions with manufactures, makers, collectors and users. I started having the discussions as a collector and they evolved as I became the owner here and they evolved again when I began publishing A Sharper Life.

My first question…what do you look at when you receive a new knife? How do you look at it? Donnie and I actually do two totaling different things.

Whether it is a user or a collector. If it is a manufacture knife I start with, how it fits closed in my hand. The first thing I look at is the back spring, no gaps, cracks, how big is it? Then when I open it, how hard is that? Is the half stop tight? When I close it, is it a smooth action? Then I get a good look at the blade, Is it rubbing anywhere? Is it sharp? Then it is on to the fit and finish. How do the scales look, are there gaps, are the pins seated or sticking up? LOL, then it starts all over with a polishing cloth.

Do I look to see if the blade is absolutely centered? No I actually do not. I need it to be seated where it is opening and closing unimpeded, straight and not rubbing.
Do I look to see if there are cracks in the scales? Sort of. If I see what may be a crack or a split, I run my fingernail over it. If my nail catches, there is a crack if not, then no.
Do I check to see if there is play? I certainly do. All knives are built to be tools, even if I am choosing it for a collectible. This is the point I am most critical of.

Now for the kick, I look at a custom differently. Over the years I have learned it is the difference between looking to buy a Jeep or a Range Rover. Do I expect them both to work as designed and hold up to use YES! Do I expect that paying 3 to 10 times more for one than the other means there will be more attention to every detail YES.

A maker gets more for his knives than a manufacture. Many will tell you that you are not paying for materials, you are paying for the talent that created it. Do I expect that the sole maker, selling knives at that price point, prove to me that his talent is worth the expense? Yes I do and rarely have I been disappointed.

I do not put either of those knives under a magnifying glass for their inspection, I would hard pressed to be using them for the intended purposes under those circumstances. I don’t take one out and baton with it unless it was created for that use. Never would I use one as a pry bar to see its strength. OK, I know your laughing now, but really…this is a conversation I had just last week. A collector told me they do all these things when they get a new knife. So let's have a bit of a survey

Now back to my original question… what do you look at when you receive a new knife?

Jan

Tags: a, at, do, knife?, look, new, receive, what, when, you

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Replies to This Discussion

In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 16, 2016 at 18:14

Open it .. observe how that felt .. any rough spots in the action .. smooth as silk ?

I check the sharpness ..then.. I close the knife.

If a locking knife .. I observe that. Specifically.. how much force is required .. did it lock up secure ? Do I .."like".. the locking mechanism ..or, more accurately.. is there anything about the locking system which I dis-like. When I release the lock .. is there now side to side play in the blade ?

Closing the knife .. I again observe.. is it smooth ..or.. are there rough spots ?

If "rough spots" were noticed in the opening & closing of the blade .. I identify those rough spots i.e. @ what degree of opening / closing does it occur at. I then inspect the slip-joint area & the knife itself until I identify the cause of the rough spot.
I check for un-wanted blade play ..or.. is it nice & tight in all directions ?

If multi-blade .. all blades are checked.

If smooth opening & closing action is present .. I roll it around in the palm of my hand .. grasping it .. feeling it .. closed. I then repeat that .. open.

I've been looking @ the knife during all of the above & now get critical of the fit-n-finish. Gaps .. cracks .. fit of scales to frame .. bolster solder / fit .. scales a good match to one another .. if a shield is present -- how's it's fit & mount .. can I feel the transition between scale material & bolster material & frame material .. are the stampings clear & distinct .. does the blade touch anything when closed ???

Then I repeat .. innumerable times.

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Permalink Reply by Syd Carr on January 16, 2016 at 18:39

Pretty much same as you Jan, except I do check blade centering, especially on a single blade. However, if it's off a smidge & doesn't rub anywhere I don't worry about that too much. However, if it rubs against the liners, (or neighboring blades), I consider that a "flaw". Some people are completely anal about centering, but I don't count myself among them, I just want it to work correctly. Like you I hold it in my hands first, then give it a good look to check the pins, gaps next to the bolsters, etc, & yes I do look for cracks. Next is opening & closing, and I always check the edge. I have found some knives, especially in my experience Case knives, which sometimes come with what I call a "one sided" edge, (which drives me crazy, and which I always attempt to correct). So that's pretty much it for a new knife. Unfortunately I don't have, and probably could not afford a custom knife, but I would probably use the same "procedure".

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Permalink Reply by John Kellogg on January 16, 2016 at 18:57

For me I rarely ever get a custom made knife and I am not much of an expert on customs. I do know I am expecting more from a custom. But for this I will only comment on factory knives I purchase. The first thing I look at is the scales, If there are any pin cracks, gaps, or shrinking it goes back to the factory. Lock backs for me have to be smooth action without having a hard time releasing the lock back. It must however open and close with snap. I always check for a loose blade, If its loose especially in the open position it goes back. If its a collector I expect it to have a good sharp edge, I'm not concerened to much with sharpness if its a user, I rarely feel the users today are sharp enough right out of the box and always sharpen any knife thats not going into the collection.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Rutherford on January 16, 2016 at 19:22

I look at the over all craftsmanship in the manufacture of the knife. This includes most everything, like blade centering, sharpness, polishing, tightness, smoothness of function, precision of inlays and mating components. I am almost ocd and everything is apparent at almost the same time I first look at the knife.

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Permalink Reply by Billy Oneale on January 16, 2016 at 19:40

Overall condition of the scales. Then sharpness of the blade and any side to side play when the blades are open and the fit of the blade in the frame when closed. Then I check how easily the blade opens and closes. I look at tactical and fixed blades differently.

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Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on January 16, 2016 at 19:50

Billy that is a good point about looking at the tactical differently

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Permalink Reply by Craig M. Bozorth on January 16, 2016 at 19:51

If I got it in the mail , I open it slowly since I know what's inside. Once it's unwrapped I just stare at it for a moment, admire it and then kind of lose interest in it and that might last for days until I pick it up again. Knives in the mail are a kind of 'what have you done for me lately' thing. Maybe i am waiting for the 'Holy Grail' of knives to arrive. Right now, I am still 'in love' with the Les Adams auto I bought at a show. I just 'fire' it off several times but then again, I like to carry the little 'Frost' ram horn handle folder where the secondary blade unlocks the master; $12. dollar knife. So I probably did not 'answer' correctly..

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Permalink Reply by Peter Creager on January 16, 2016 at 20:08

Its overall condition and workmanship/craftmanship. Quality of product is important to me.

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Permalink Reply by perry coleman on January 16, 2016 at 20:50

First and foremost, I open the blade or blades, check for play in the joints, basically walk and talk. Then I close the knife back up and look at the back springs. I also check the blade centering and where they fall in the blade well. Whether or not there's a smooth transition there. Lastly I check the handles and shield, to make sure the hafting, where it meets the bolsters is true. Then I start cuttin stuff.

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Permalink Reply by John Bamford on January 17, 2016 at 2:31

I scrabble around first hoping I don't find anything that means it has to go back , cos that is a big deal from the UK !!

Usually I don't and mostly minor problems I can live with or fix .

I had a tremendous surprise with the last knife I ordered, the one sent was twice the price of the one I ordered.

When I reported it to the dealer he said "everyone has to have a little luck now and then, enjoy the knife "

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Permalink Reply by Kiril Mitrashkov on January 17, 2016 at 3:26

First af all I must say for me the best folder is the small fixed blade knife..

When I see a new knife the first thing I do is to look at it and see if it is harmonical - are the lines smooth, do the knife "flow" or it is does the blade correspond to the handle, are the lines smooth and do they both "speak" with the sheath. Are the grind lines even and crisp. How is the blade finished - is it polished (I don't like polished blades) or not. How thick is the blade behind the cutting edge. Is the cutting edge even all the way from top to the ricaso.

Than I take it and try how it fits in my palm. Does the handle has any rough edges, is it smooth, does it "fill" the hand, how it feels. Is the blade too long, too short (I like shorter blades), how I can control it, where is the balance point.

How are the parts of the knife (blade, guard, handle, heel) fitted. Are there any gaps, how are the materials af the handle combined.

Than - the sheath. I check the leather - colour, any defects? The type of the sheath - is it a pocket or a sandwich (a pocket is when it is folded around the knife and sandwich is a three-part sheath). Does the sheath "finish" the knife. How is it sewn - what kind and colour thread is used, how is it sewn. How is it dyed. How does the knife fits in. Is it soft or hard. How are the edges finished - are they soft and smooth or "fluffy" and uneven.

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Permalink Reply by jeff on January 17, 2016 at 6:15

Fit and finish,how it feels in hand,then I open it ,(if it is a folder )and take measurements. Check to see if pull is hard (nail breaker) or good pull. sharpness....then I either admire( for a long time)...or.. get irritated..