New knife

[quychang]

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Besides guns I have a special place in my heart for Damascus steel. Though currently I only own a couple of pieces, I picked this up at the Ft. Bridger rendezvous this weekend, and I thought I'd share.

[JoeSparky]

Show off!!!!

Oh, and nice knife ya got there!

[faydee]

sweet knife

[Cinhil]

Are you certain that is a Damascus Steel Knife? It looks like a similar knife I sold at a gun show this year where the blade was wire wrapped to create the effect and then heat treated and tempered. I am not trying to dis your blade as it is beautiful however, I am a little curious at the same time. The one I soled actually said Damascus like in the order guide and I had not noticed that part when I had ordered it.

[quychang]

Are you certain that is a Damascus Steel Knife? It looks like a similar knife I sold at a gun show this year where the blade was wire wrapped to create the effect and then heat treated and tempered. I am not trying to dis your blade as it is beautiful however, I am a little curious at the same time. The one I soled actually said Damascus like in the order guide and I had not noticed that part when I had ordered it.

I've seen all kinds of fake Damascus, many of them quite attractive but there are signs like weight, depth of etching, etc, The blacksmiths at the rendezvous are there on their reputations. They'll spend literally hours discussing the process, the metals used and the tricks to get certain patterns. Also, the materials in the handles, who does their scrimshaw work, and so on. Yeah, bottom line,, I'm confident it's the real deal.

I've had smiths in the past point out cheaper Damascus looking blades when it was obvious I wasn't spending the money that real Damascus demands. I also own several hand forged blades that have a certain resemblance to Damascus that re great day to day blades, they cost several orders of magnitude less, but are nice blades in their own way.

I'm quite confident in the blade and I have the smiths business card for when I'm ready for the next one.

Mel

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[quychang]

I do respect both your question and opinion Robbie, as there are a lot of scammers out there, and you're right that people in general should be skeptical before spending the money involved. Wire wrapped, forged and tempered, over a decent steel core probably could be construed as a lesser form of Damascus. Much lesser, and looks or not, command a much lower price. On the other hand some of the more beautiful blades I've seen and handled were a form called cable Damascus where the starting metal was a heavy piece of steel cable, forged into a bar, bent, flattened, etc, to get the number of layers preferred. Cable Damascus creates some insane star burst patterns if done correctly by a master smith.

One of the deadest give aways to me in a factory fake, is perfection in the bolster, handle, etc. Most handmade knives have some flaws. Particularly rendezvous knives. Bolsters aren't perfect. Each are hand shaped and fitted to the blade. The fit is pretty close to perfect, the finish on the brass usually has minor flaws. This knife has a very minor flaw in the grinding on the handle. Probably why it was offered at a slightly lower price. He also had some Damascus created from transfer case chain. There was very little pattern because of the similarities in the materials, and the smith warned people that were looking for every day blades that they weren't hard enough to hold an edge for that usage. Even so, they had the work involved in the forging and were $200 knives. As to handle material, most cheaper knives simply use ivory micarta. This plastic ivory looks good and holds a scrim well, but it's pretty obviously plastic after you've handled them. The flats on this blade are fossil mammoth ivory. Hardness is way up, slight imperfection around pin rivets, and minor variations in color, also thin layers over a wood filler are dead give aways.

On this knife, you can see the signature of the scrim artist, on the opposite side you can see the makers mark on the blade. Artists sign their work. Factory's generally stamp a name and a serial number. There are probably lots of other signs, that I'm forgetting or missing. I'm not an expert, but I've been buying and using, and sometimes selling or gifting Damascus blades for over 30 years. They're something of an obsession.

Mel

[Photocell]

I was going to post a couple questions about the knife and handle and such, but you answered them in your previous post. So now all I have to add is that is a very nice knife. I've always wanted to attend that rendezvous and when you said that was where you bought it I knew from friends that there are some very reputable people that sell goods their. I have even heard that people setup blacksmith shops on location. It sounds like you probably had a good holiday weekend! Someday I hope to experience it.

[JoeRandall]

Awesome knife. I didn't get to see to much. We made it their yesterday right after the big rain and most were packing up or tents closed. It seemed cool though.


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[Cinhil]

Mel,
Thanks for the update on the info. I am glad you found a good knife, and in Damascus. It really is a pretty knife and should serve you well for a long time. Thanks for answering my questions so thoroughly.

[quychang]

Mel,
Thanks for the update on the info. I am glad you found a good knife, and in Damascus. It really is a pretty knife and should serve you well for a long time. Thanks for answering my questions so thoroughly.

This knife "would" serve me well, but frankly, it's artwork for my man cave. I have a factory Damascus folder the same size as your standard Buck folder, that I do carry and use sometimes. Usually for a belt knife, I'll choose one of my Buck's. Damascus, pretty as it is, has the unfortunate trait of rusting if you don't treat it fairly carefully. For instance, I would never store a knife like this in a leather scabbard. It isn't certain that it would rust, but it's a chance I won't take.

Thanks for the comments guys, I love the knife, and it brings a smile every time I look up above my computer monitors and see it resting on the top of my desk. Somethings were just meant to look at, and perhaps fondle lovingly from time to time..

Mel