Thanks, Betsy!

I just got a Kershaw Leek with the 1776 Betsy Ross design.  I think it's pretty damn icey!  Boths side of the smooth handle pays homage to Betsy Ross's original flag.

The story goes, George needed a symbol and Betsy stepped up

Kershaw's Leek, Ross Commemorative

I've always admired Kershaw knives, especially the Leek design line.  Kershaw expanded the line to include Scallon and Chive, both employing Ken Onion's SpeedSafe design and sliding safety.  I remember a larger version of the Leek called the Ramp.  Ramps are stronger garlic-like onions popular in West Virginia.  But you know what they say: ramp eaters sit in the back of the bus. 

The Kershaw Ramp is discontinued.  I liked the bigger, bulkier knife.

I wrote about Kershaw's Launch 13 at https://knifesearch.blogspot.com/2024/02/launch-13.html.  So, forgive me if I repeat a bit.

Pete Kershaw formed his own cutlery company based on his designs in 1974.  In those days, his manufacturing was done primarily in Japan by Ichiro Hattori in Seki City.  His early work caught the eye of the knife industry, and by 1977, Kershaw became a wholly owned subsidiary of the KAI Group.  They opened a U.S. production facility, which Kershaw eventually outgrew and moved in 2003 to Tualatin, Oregon.  Oregon has knife-friendly laws, and you'll find many companies with facilities there.

Ross Leek, complete with sliding safety on left and clip on the right

During the early stages of growth, Pete Kershaw worked with Ken Onion, Ernest Emerson, Grant and Gavin Hawk, Frank Centofante, Rick Hinderer, and RJ Martin.  That's quite a rogue's gallery of famous knife makers.

Kershaw introduced the Leek in 1998.  Ken Onion envisioned the Leek as a fusion of form and function.  He wanted a combination of elegant aesthetics with uncompromising performance.  The Leek, with its smooth handle and dagger-like blade, caught the world's attention.  Contributing to this was the introduction of the flipper and the SpeedSafe torsion opener.

Closed M-16 with Carson Flipper

Kit Carson designed a flipper, often referred to as the "Carson Flipper," for CRKT's M-16 in 1999.  The combination of flipper and assisted opening was an earthquake across the knife landscape.

When open the M-16 flipper becomes part of the guard

I'm going to skip who invented the flipper discussion and resulting flame war, to say that the Carson Flipper extends outward to form a finger guard when open, while the Leek's flipper, when open, is hidden in the knife's handle.  It is a matter of looks and end purpose.

When open the Leek's flipper blends into the handle

The defining feature of the Kershaw Leek is its innovative assisted-opening mechanism.  Assisted-opening knives hit the market satisfying a significant part of the growing demand for legal "switchblades."  Many states tried to ban it, but they stumbled on the legal definition: an automatic knife has a button or mechanism that releases the blade when pressed.  Assisted-opening knives require you to start opening the blade before the assist takes over.

It is widely accepted that the first assisted-opening knife was Meyerco's "Strut N' Cut", designed by Blackie Collins in 1995.  It was Kershaw's SpeedSafe mechanism that brought the technology to main street knife buyers.

A simple spring applies tension to the closed blade, securing it in your pocket.  When the flipper is depressed, the butt end of the blade slides from a closed position to a shape that utilizes the energy stored in the spring.  Cool design, isn't it?

Ross Leek

The Leek has a high shoulder, concave grind, drop point blade.  What appear to be opening studs on either side of the blade are actually over-travel stops.  They are too short and poorly placed to act as opening studs.  Use the flipper; it's much easier.  The blade is bead blasted, giving it a matte finish, and ground from Sandvik 14C28N stainless steel.  This steel is a high-quality Swedish martensitic stainless steel from Alleima (formerly Sandvik Steel).  14C28N is known for its excellent balance of hardness, corrosion resistance, and edge retention, while remaining easy to sharpen with traditional stones.

The composition?  I thought you would never ask.

0.62% Carbon,

14% Chromium,

0.1% Nitrogen,

and a trace of other elements.

It is a well-thought-of steel used by manufacturers like Civivi, Ruike, Boker, Bestech, and Real Steel, among others.

The Leek weighs 3.0 ounces and features a pocket clip, lanyard hole, and sliding lock that prevents the blade from opening.  You can adjust the tension on the opening lock if you desire.  The knife locks open with a liner lock that secures the blade open.

I wouldn't take this as my only knife if I were spending a month in the Alaskan bush.  But if that's all you had, you could make do.  This is an everyday carry for work, going about town, a day at the range, and everything in between.

Ready to cut

But I have to say, I suspect I'd make this one a barbecue knife.  You know, carry it when I'm out with friends to show off or sitting in the backyard with the grill and a beer.  The finish is too nice, in my opinion, to get scratched.

You can find them at many purveyors of sharpened edges, or at https://kershaw.kaiusa.com/leek.html for $100.  It's a good deal, no matter how you slice it.

 

How Sharp an Edge?

 Face it, you could use a knife until it goes dull, then send it back for sharpening, or just use a different knife until it goes dull.  Let's ignore those knives with a thin replaceable blade.  I've always thought that was a limited-use knife.

There's another option.  You could resharpen it.  God alone knows how many sharpening philosophies and systems exist.  We all have our favorite.

Work Sharp: simple, two surfacves, angle guide, pocket clip

I was surprised by Work Sharp's Folding Field Sharpener.  It's a simple but elegant system that resembles a thick carpenter's pencil.  There's a pocket clip on the end by the pivot.  Open the unit, and you'll find the basics, a 400-grit diamond surface, and a fine-grit ceramic stone.  At the end of each sharpening surface is an inclined surface which serves as a guide. 

Guides at each edge, folds together, clips in your pocket

Here's the tricky part.  The guides at either end of the coarse 400-grit are set at 20 degrees.  On the fine ceramic side, the angle changes to 25 degrees.  Work Sharp claims the 20-degree angle produces an aggressive functional sharp edge for heavy-duty tasks.  The 25-degree (ceramic plate) results in a polished edge, making it incredibly sharp and durable for everyday tasks.  I drew a few sketches and convinced myself it produces a compound edge that was the rage in the 1980s. 

The directions are simple to follow, you don't need oil or water, and you clean the system with soap and water.  It boils down to setting the blade at the angle and lightly pulling it across the surface as if you were trying to slice a thin strip of material.  Don't let the knife tip come off the surface; it always gets damaged on the stone's edge, no matter which system you use.  Repeat that movement from the other edge, pulling it toward you.

I rest on end on a something to stablize the system.  I like enough space so my hand withthe knife doesn't get tangled up

I do it a little differently.  I do it in one direction until I feel a wire edge across the entire blade.  Then I flip it over and repeat that until I feel a similar wire edge.

A nice little knife from custom maker Skip Begeot on the course side

Then I move to the fine ceramic.

A little work converts the coarse edge to a fine cutting surface

You'll be surprised by how sharp an edge you can get with it.  Many people just hold it in their hand, but I like to rest the edge away from me on a solid surface.  It gives me more control.

It's an excellent field sharpener.  Like many things, having one on you when you need it is better than the best sitting on your workbench. No, you're not going to get a mirror finish or an edge polished with a 0.5-micron chrome oxide finish.  But you can cut rope, shave wood to build a fire, prepare dinner with that knife, and keep it sharp as you work.

I sharpened an ordinary folder with it at the Blade Show last June and it worked well.  I needed to sharpen a small blade we use in the office.  It worked fine.  Remember to use a light touch; you're not grinding a crowbar in half.  You get a sharp usable edge in the field when you need it.

In both cases, I was working with a small to three-inch blade.  You could sharpen longer blades if needed, but it might take practice.  Give it a couple of test runs before you go hunting Dali sheep in the Rockies for three weeks.

Side view of Work Sharp's Folding Field Sharpener

If you still have any Christmas money left, consider treating yourself.  You can find it under $30 at https://worksharptools.com/products/folding-field-sharpener?srsltid=AfmBOor3tPOLQggSoRGNhxG2ZFL5DFEjwZqykBEFAB0Wk1etVWBkUpaH

But if you shop around, you'll find a better deal.

 

 

1984 NKCA

             I recently bought another club knife from the National Knife Collectors Association. It's the 1984 knife made by Hen and Rooster. As some of you may remember, I'm not a big fan of club knives. https://knifesearch.blogspot.com/2023/03/not-huge-fan-of-club-knives.html.

There are exceptions, based on looks and style. The 1984 NKCA is one of them. The knife is very nice and in excellent condition, and I like the non-symmetric bolsters that sandwich the jigged brown bone. The NCKA medallion is very striking. All of which made me want to reach for my wallet.

Hen and Rooster 1984 NKCA knife of the year

According to the 12th edition of  'Collector Knives' by Price, the 1984 NKCA club knife was made by Bertram, USA. The sequentially numbered knives, limited to 7000, came with jigged bone handles and cost $38. In 2025 dollars that’s about $119. In 1998, Price claimed it had a collector value of around $125.

I think the medallion is a classy addition

However, the true value is only what someone will pay for it. eBay shows two sold for an average of $65. Buyer beware. Other similar knives with a different medallion embedded on the handle were also seen. They weren't selling.

The interesting part is the history of the manufacturer.

Sometime in 1845, Carl Bertram started the Hen & Rooster brand. Carl was already an established and well-known owner of a poultry business in Solingen, Germany. Being nobody's fool, Carl capitalized on his reputation by creating the Hen & Rooster logo to mark his brand in about 1865. They were considered well-made, high-quality knives. The firm was handed down within the family and maintained the quality.

The tag line almost falls off the blade

The original firm also manufactured contract knives with Hen & Rooster on one side of the blade tang, and numerous other names on the reverse side. During the late 1960s and early 1970s Bertram made knives for Carter Cutlery, Carter, Jeffrey, Kane, Voss, John-I-Son, Ky-Col, Gutmann Cutlery, Fife Cutlery, Mar-cal, A.G. Russell, L & N Loan Co., and Field & Co.

In 1975, A.G. Russell purchased the firm. A.G.’s company operated the Bertram Hen & Rooster manufacturing facility and brand for five years. During this time, he produced Hen & Rooster knives as well as other knives bearing his own trademark. At some point, A.G. made knives for other companies with one side of the tang stamped with the Hen & Rooster logo and the contract’s firm name on the reverse side.

In 1980, the factory in Solingen, Germany, closed.

The Hen and Rooster Logo with Bertram Cutlery

This is curious. The 1983 NKCA knife bears the Hen & Rooster tang stamp, and the reverse tang stamp reads Rostfrie Solingen Germany. But if the plant was closed….?

Reverse tang reads Rostfrie Solingen Germany

There are several possibilities. My information could be wrong. It has been collected from several internet sources, and errors may occur. The blade could be new old stock, purposed for the NKCA knife. And while the factory was closed, it may have continued to operate to meet legal obligations.

In 1983, the Hen & Rooster trademark and the Bertram name were acquired by three individuals: James Frost of Frost Cutlery, Howard Rabin of Star Sales, and Hugo Schiesen of Robert Klaas, from Solingen, Germany. Robert Klaas may have been the creator of my Hen and Rooster. My original assumption was that the knife was made at the Bertram plant in Solingen, but it could have been made at another plant in the area.

After a short period of time, James Frost bought the sole rights to the trademark and distribution of all Hen & Rooster knives in the United States. In general, the Hen and Roosters manufactured before 1980 are thought to be of the best quality.

My knife is numbered 4092 of the 7000 made. The pivot is a bit tight, I suspect a drop of oil is overdue. The handle is lined with brass, and the lock mechanism is simply known as a back lock, made famous by the Buck 110 Hunter. The interesting thing, like some Italian autos, the spring is composed of two leafs. I suspect they are not replaceable. The bolsters are nickel silver, a cunning alloy which doesn't contain any silver. The brown bone grips are nicely jigged.

Double leaf spring

The blade steel is a little more problematic. It's listed simply as stainless steel. What stainless steels were available in 1980? There were a few, including 440C, the best of the 440 series, which was common, as were AUS-8, 425M, and S60V. I suspect 440C was utilized. It's still a good, inexpensive steel used today. But I suspect the NKCA year knives were never intended for use.

Collectors always want to know, "Did I get a good deal?" Of course, you can't really believe any of us about price. I'm happy with the knife, so, yes, I got a good deal.

 

 

 

 

 

After The Fox!

 

I blame it all on Mark at Knife Magazine.  The Little Valley knife show was terrific, and Mark had a variety of collectible knives he was selling.

What's that Logo?

   

Mark told me it was Swamp Fox by Tim Ridge

A specific one caught my eye.  It had a ten-inch, flat grind blade with a drop point and a sharpened top swage.  The spine next to the handle's metal ferrule was nice file work that adds to the look and increases your grip with a friction surface for your thumb.  The rosewood handle is round and sports a closed ferrule by the blade and a turned butt cap.  The knife is blade heavy, but surprisingly well-balanced for its size.

The knife came with a very nice leather sheath

It had a certain chef's kitchen knife look, if the chef was wanted for murder.  I fell in love with it, and it went home with me and a lighter wallet.

The knife was made by Tim Ridge of Swamp Fox Knife.  Tim makes historically accurate knives from the 1750-1865 period of American history.  He hand forges 1095, 5160, and 1084 carbon steels to the desired shape.  After grinding, Tim heat treats and tempers all his knives himself.

The file work adds to the look and gave me a felt index as well as friction surface

"(I'm) just trying to make good quality knives that will last someone a lifetime," Tim told a film crew.  (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04BopT0fxVQ)  Imagine making something that will live long after we've slipped off the plate.  That's a form of immortality in itself.

The round rosewood handle has a nice polish, but not slippery 

I found out that Tim has stopped making knives due to health issues.  But his knives remain in high demand.  The Swamp Fox website was purchased by someone who uses the name to link you to other sites. 

I found an image of my knife at https://www.bladegallery.com/shopexd.asp?id=88141, where they describe it as a rosewood dirk.  I don't like that description.  Most, if not all, the dirks (long-bladed stabbing knives) I'm familiar with are more symmetrical to the center line and not wider than the handle.  I wanted to get more information about it and the craftsman behind it.  It took a little work, but I connected with Tim and asked him a few questions.

The turned butt cap has the right amount of machining marks 

Tim tells me he has made over 6000 knives as a bladesmith.  I sent him a photo and he identified it as his version of the Scottish 'skein achlais,' or armpit knife.  I found a reference to this term. 

The term skein achlais is a Scottish Gaelic phrase describing a type of dagger, called an armpit dagger or sleeve dagger.  It's a traditional part of Scottish Highland dress, worn concealed in the armpit or sleeve.  This style evolved to the more familiar sgian dubh.

The knife is a little blade heavy, but not bad, especial considering the size

The sheath has what appears to be an attached frog with a belt loop and a retention stud.  The stud allows you to wear it in the French Canadian Voyageur style.

 

The Voyageurs  by Charles Deas 1846

The man standing up in the back of Charles Deas's "The Voyageurs" can be seen wearing a fixed blade in his sash.

Swamp Fox knives are historically correct and are in demand by collectors, re-creationists, re-enactors, and lovers of the art.  My little jaunt about Swamp Fox was started by Mark.  Thanks, Mark!  I enjoyed the trip.

And thanks, Tim, for making a great knife.

Lost Bean

 

I recently picked up an interesting knife, a Serge Panchenko Skull Bean.

Serge Panchenko Skull Bean

I didn't know it at the time; I literally picked it up from the floor near an escalator in a mall.  Nobody was around to ask if it was their knife, so it came home with me.

The blade was labeled 'Midtech Nitro-V,' but stamped on the frame was a stylized S P in a circle.  Being made with nitro-V was my first tip that this was a good knife.

Nitro-V stainless was first introduced in 2017 and sold by New Jersey Steel Baron.  It could be one of the first steels explicitly made for the knife industry.  It is known for its edge retention, high hardness, and corrosion resistance (especially in salt environments).  It can withstand impacts and stresses without chipping, a property always valuable for knife steel.

Another question was, what is the handle material?  Once upon a time, I could run detailed chemical analysis.  But now I just knew it wasn't magnetic.  It didn't look like aluminum, so I suspected titanium.

But who made the knife? 

I tried Google searching and looked through lists of maker's marks, but nothing clicked.  I tried a Google image search, which returned as 'looks like a stamp.'  Yeah, that was helpful.

The stamp looks a little like E.T.  on profile

Thanks to Facebook, I got the name Serge Panchenko.  Now my searches revealed it was one of his models called the Skull Bean – Harpoon slip joint.

I usually don't get excited about slip joints, but this one was different.  The bottom of the knife, where the slip joint spring is usually located, is open.  The tension spring is side-mounted under the clip with a ball detent that holds the blade closed or open.  A small screw head mounted near the tang of the blade acts as a travel stop for both the open and closed positions. 

The tension/spring bar is built into the side wall of the knife.  You can see it under the clip.

Very clever.  I don't know why other slip joints don't license or develop a version of this.  It would undoubtedly make their knives more interesting.

I wanted to clean it, but not drastically alter the knife's condition.  The first step was to cut the paracord weight off.  Then I tackled the Torx screws.  I wasn't sure what I'd find.  Panchenko described his knives as having a ball-bearing race.  I could visualize tiny bearings scattering everywhere.

The clip came off first.  One suggestion I got from Facebook was confirmed.  The clip was an aftermarket replacement from Steel Flame.  

A custom Steel Flame clip

Hiding under the clip

Then I removed the butt screw, followed by the pivot screw.  I got lucky here—no ball bearings to lose or struggle with.  Two very thin circles of white plastic acted as separators and lubrication between the blade and frame.  I assumed it was Teflon, which I'd use, but that's a guess on my part.  I carefully wiped them off so as not to fold, spindle, or lose them.

Most of the dirt and or corrosion was on the inside.  See the plastic washers?

How about now?  I wanted to be sure I didn't lose them.  The two indents in the blade tang click open or closed.  The white area is really a highly polished surface.

The parts went into to my ultrasonic for a mild scrubbing.  Ultrasound cleaning uses high-frequency sound waves to create cavitation bubbles.  With some solvents, cavitation bubbles can reach temperatures hotter than the sun's surface.  I once studied aluminum tire molds cleaned by ultrasonics.  Dirty tire molds became junk very quickly in soapy cleaning solutions.  Ultrasonics work best with hard particles on hard surfaces.

I didn't want that level of cleaning and used a 50/50 mixture of Clenzoil and WD40.  I wanted the protective nature of the solution to penetrate under any surface corrosion and loosen it up.

A couple of minutes in the ultrasonic peeled off a little surface grime and staining.  The discoloration under the clip needed a little light-duty persuasion with a Super Eraser.  So did the blade.  I could have bead blasted the frame and blade, but I like an honest working patina, so I cleaned it enough to make specks a little less noticeable.

I reassembled the knife with a bit of Teflon lube around the washers, and it works fine. 

Cleaned and re-assembled

It was the lanyard that gave me trouble.  The knife weighs about 62 grams, and the lanyard decoration weighs 35 grams.  The lanyard hanging out of your pocket is a great way to assist losing it.  Perhaps the non-locking, short-blade knife was set up as a flail.  Using the knife as a handle, whipping the heavy, raised surface sphere would make an impression in just about anyone.

I believe the knot is called a king knot.  

I picked out a cord I had and turned to YouTube to learn how to tie a decorative King knot.  My first one was perfect.  But that one wasn't on the knife; it was just practice.  The next three were near misses.  Finally, I tied the knot correctly, and I'm happy with the outcome, even if it does need a little more work.

Did I sharpen it a bit?  Sure. I touched up the blade with my Spyderco Sharpmaker.  It needed a little touch up and I'm happy with edge.

Finished.  I really like that blade shape and the opening lever is very interesting

But what's the knife worth?  Don't know.

I emailed Serge Panchenko with a few questions, but he never answered.  The clip is custom, it is a unique knife, and the handle is titanium, and I think it is worth…..?