Unfortunately what appears to be random violence isn’t. The victim’s perception of random violence is seldom shared by perpetrator. Peyton Quinn in his book “A Bouncer’s Guide to Barroom Brawling...” suggests that unprovoked violence is the result of the victim being too happy. The perpetrator loaded with misfortune, unhappiness, locked into a dead-end with no conceivable way out, finds a target that seems too happy. So the theory goes.
Usually the targets are weaker, less able to defend themselves. The attack comes at some moment controlled by the aggressor, usually when the target is the weakest. With perverse logic, the more helpless the victim the better the target, so who could be a better victim then children? This seems to be the pattern we see reported from China, where depressed, failed business men attack grade school children.
In a dictatorship, were it is unlikely, impossible and inconceivable a private citizen could obtain a handgun, knives and even hammers are used.
What I find surprising is the success of these attacks in land considered the sun-source of martial arts. With the martial art tradition of China, how can one man with a knife, assault several teachers and manage to harm children? Where is Kwai Chang Caine when we need him? Well Mao took care of him. Outlawing traditional martial arts, Mao promoted something called Wushu. No matter what you read about it, any fighting style in which the entire blocking surface of the forearm is replaced with the palm in a rising block is the art of the dilatants.
The latest attack seems different.
http://editicnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/05/19/china.knife.attack/
CNN reports that 5 or 6 men rushed a college dorm in the pre-dawn morning attacking anyone in their way. Armed with knives and meat cleavers, nobody was killed, but several were injured. One student hand his hand chopped off.
The story makes me wonder. Was someone caught red-handed in the cookie jar? Maybe trifling with someone’s daughter or broke some taboo? I suspect the news media for their lack of veracity. How should I evaluate the Chinese government controlled news media?
It is especially troubling to see knives fall into the category of favorite tools of children killers. Every time I read about these incidents I feel knife collectors and admirers take a right hook to the face and get a collective shiner. There’s no beef steak for this shiner either. I wonder how long it will be before somebody gets the idea that maybe knives should not be sold out of hardware and department stores to the general public.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Changes: The Only Constant
Dale Warther lost his battle to cancer. I don’t know if you’ll recognize his name. I don’t think he ever won an award from Blade Magazine. He was never on Celebrity Apprentice or WWF. Warther knife designs haven’t changed significantly in years since master carver Mooney Warther. Each knife comes with old fashioned quality and value, pride of workmanship and an understanding that form must be a handmaiden to function. With a little care on your part, they are the knives you’ll leave to your children.
Dale was part of the knife world foundation. I met him through a knife club and he always had a good word and time to talk about knives. He will be sorely missed.
Saturday was shaping up to be an exciting weekend but a turn of events raised the table stakes. Not all excitement is a good thing and sometimes change brings mixed blessings. My mother-in-law needed to taken to emergency with the blessings of her cardiologist.
Thankfully it wasn’t her heart after all, but she experienced a drop in hemoglobin while in the hospital. Hemoglobin is an iron based molecule in red blood cells that transports oxygen and carbon dioxide in our bodies. I vaguely remember studying its biochemistry. Microscopic changes in the body’s acid concentrations cause the molecule to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide. It’s another knife edge the body maintains.
We had to take the long way to the hospital because the expressway was backed up. I found myself at a T-intersection at University of Akron. (So now you know where I live…) The light was red for me and apparently red for the car on my left. It was also the only other automobile at the intersection or visible is this small part of the universe. Mom’s in the back seat and she’s as well as can be expected, but I need to get her to the hospital. Let me explain need.
It’s quite indescribable. Strip way the veneer of civilization, no matter how thick or thin. Then expose that inner primal creature with a single thought. That thought needs no justification or explanation; it simply exists to make a single demand. Last Saturday the demand was to get to the hospital.
So given this barking, gnawing, demanding creature locked in my soul, I gave serious thought to blowing the light. One little brain cell kept telling me that if I ventured into the intersection against the red, that would be the exact second the other car would also decided to blow the light. Knowing this is one thing, but the creature kept flapping its bat–like wings demanding that I do SOMETHING.
I was about to hit the emergency flashers and horn when the traffic light resolved the situation and we proceeded into the intersection under the green light.
Later in the emergency waiting room I realized we live on a knife edge. Some days it’s a little dull and the footing more relaxed. Your mistakes can slide you forward or backward and you can noodle around with impunity. Other days you’re unknowingly and precariously balanced on the wire edge and a mistaken breath will push you off the edge and into the abyss.
Dale was part of the knife world foundation. I met him through a knife club and he always had a good word and time to talk about knives. He will be sorely missed.
Saturday was shaping up to be an exciting weekend but a turn of events raised the table stakes. Not all excitement is a good thing and sometimes change brings mixed blessings. My mother-in-law needed to taken to emergency with the blessings of her cardiologist.
Thankfully it wasn’t her heart after all, but she experienced a drop in hemoglobin while in the hospital. Hemoglobin is an iron based molecule in red blood cells that transports oxygen and carbon dioxide in our bodies. I vaguely remember studying its biochemistry. Microscopic changes in the body’s acid concentrations cause the molecule to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide. It’s another knife edge the body maintains.
We had to take the long way to the hospital because the expressway was backed up. I found myself at a T-intersection at University of Akron. (So now you know where I live…) The light was red for me and apparently red for the car on my left. It was also the only other automobile at the intersection or visible is this small part of the universe. Mom’s in the back seat and she’s as well as can be expected, but I need to get her to the hospital. Let me explain need.
It’s quite indescribable. Strip way the veneer of civilization, no matter how thick or thin. Then expose that inner primal creature with a single thought. That thought needs no justification or explanation; it simply exists to make a single demand. Last Saturday the demand was to get to the hospital.
So given this barking, gnawing, demanding creature locked in my soul, I gave serious thought to blowing the light. One little brain cell kept telling me that if I ventured into the intersection against the red, that would be the exact second the other car would also decided to blow the light. Knowing this is one thing, but the creature kept flapping its bat–like wings demanding that I do SOMETHING.
I was about to hit the emergency flashers and horn when the traffic light resolved the situation and we proceeded into the intersection under the green light.
Later in the emergency waiting room I realized we live on a knife edge. Some days it’s a little dull and the footing more relaxed. Your mistakes can slide you forward or backward and you can noodle around with impunity. Other days you’re unknowingly and precariously balanced on the wire edge and a mistaken breath will push you off the edge and into the abyss.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Knives in the Net
It’s been an interesting couple of days for knives. I started searching online for news about knives, mostly in preparation for attending the Blade Show and found a link in the New York Times to a South American knife maker. http://www.artisanalknives.com/index.html
He specializes in Damascus steel with a traditional look that results in folding different steels onto themselves over and over…Did I mention you need to fold it over again?
I wish the website showed better images of his knives. The New York time suggest Damascus knives run about $150 an inch but Artisanal Knives charges significantly less. From the few images I saw at the website, I liked the simple, clean lines that give his knives elegance.
The UK is in the grip of weapon frenzy. Crime and violence continues to skyrocket. A recent news report recounts the tragic death of a youngster at the hands of a gang. The gang or mob (as they should be called) attacked him with baseball bats and knives. This adds to the growing tally of violence and death from crime in the UK. Of course pocket knives are a great bone of contention and are viewed by the English justice system as offensive weapons with no redeeming purpose. That little Case canoe the boys of your Scout troop gave you as Scout Master could get you hard time in England.
Concerned about UK’s problem of offensive weapons British scientists have warned the population about knife wielding robots. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/7692660/Danger-robots-with-knives-could-attack-humans-accidentally.html
It seems that these tools could be armed with other tools that could be used in an offensive manner injuring humans.
Somebody, please anchored them to ground before these bubble-headed ideas make them float away. It appears the scientists were not talking about autonomous Cylons bent on destroying their human masters in an orgy of knife fighting.
No, this is more of if robots-were-using-knives-to-cut-something-and-you got-in-the-way, or if they ran into you, you might be stabbed. There wasn’t any discussion of what could happen if a 250-pound robot runs into you at 45 mph, or if a metal arm weighing 30 pound whips into you at 100 ft per sec. If you are wondering, just a few words to help: bones break, metal bends.
I don’t know. Maybe we should be worried. My robotic floor cleaner, Rhoomba, has been hanging around the kitchen knife drawer a too much for my comfort.
He specializes in Damascus steel with a traditional look that results in folding different steels onto themselves over and over…Did I mention you need to fold it over again?
I wish the website showed better images of his knives. The New York time suggest Damascus knives run about $150 an inch but Artisanal Knives charges significantly less. From the few images I saw at the website, I liked the simple, clean lines that give his knives elegance.
The UK is in the grip of weapon frenzy. Crime and violence continues to skyrocket. A recent news report recounts the tragic death of a youngster at the hands of a gang. The gang or mob (as they should be called) attacked him with baseball bats and knives. This adds to the growing tally of violence and death from crime in the UK. Of course pocket knives are a great bone of contention and are viewed by the English justice system as offensive weapons with no redeeming purpose. That little Case canoe the boys of your Scout troop gave you as Scout Master could get you hard time in England.
Concerned about UK’s problem of offensive weapons British scientists have warned the population about knife wielding robots. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/7692660/Danger-robots-with-knives-could-attack-humans-accidentally.html
It seems that these tools could be armed with other tools that could be used in an offensive manner injuring humans.
Somebody, please anchored them to ground before these bubble-headed ideas make them float away. It appears the scientists were not talking about autonomous Cylons bent on destroying their human masters in an orgy of knife fighting.
No, this is more of if robots-were-using-knives-to-cut-something-and-you got-in-the-way, or if they ran into you, you might be stabbed. There wasn’t any discussion of what could happen if a 250-pound robot runs into you at 45 mph, or if a metal arm weighing 30 pound whips into you at 100 ft per sec. If you are wondering, just a few words to help: bones break, metal bends.
I must kill-kill-kill...and vacuum the floor!
I don’t know. Maybe we should be worried. My robotic floor cleaner, Rhoomba, has been hanging around the kitchen knife drawer a too much for my comfort.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Tools and Intentions
We drop our pocket knives in our pockets and sometimes forget how these tools can be used. I try to remember what Mas Ayoob told us about knife attacks every time I gear up. To paraphrase: “Imagine the smallest, most gentle woman you know standing with a 6-inch kitchen knife in her hand. Now imagine that person with a wild, distorted grimace on her face and swinging that blade like she was a Waring blender. Now, who wants to take it away from her?”
Recently Deputy Clay Grant Jr. was doing a little off-duty shopping at Target (the name suggests what’s going to happen) in West Hollywood, California and ran into a woman wielding a knife in each hand. http://www.kxxv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12419226
Fortunately it ended up okay. If by okay you mean injuries are acceptable but nobody died.
That wasn’t the case in the Big Apple, AKA New York City. The Akron Beacon Journal reported in the May 3 issue that Hugo Tale Yax from Guatemala attempted to assist a woman in the Big Apple. I don’t have the details, I don’t know who the woman was or why she was attacked, but in the end someone knifed Hugo. Hugo was a homeless man, but he felt the need to risk all he had, his life, to help this woman. The Beacon reports that security tapes show New Yorkers walking past his still bleeding body without any attempt to help him, much less call the police. I don’t have any real comment. The story says it all.
On the whole, neither New York nor West Hollywood has any really attraction to me as a destination.
I was looking in the employment ads (What! Don’t you ever wonder if there isn’t a better job waiting for you?) from last Sunday. Tucked in among the rest of the ads I found a little something of interest. A private bank, (that’s the way they described it) is looking for a financial officer with the usual and at least one very unusual criterion. They want someone with an underground degree in finance.
Did they want a deep rock miner? Or can you get a covert degree, one that no one will confirm or deny? Is this the handiwork of some secret financial task group working on the edge of international legality?
You tell me - IMF: International Monetary Fund or Impossible Mission Force?
This blog will self destruct when you are done reading it.
Recently Deputy Clay Grant Jr. was doing a little off-duty shopping at Target (the name suggests what’s going to happen) in West Hollywood, California and ran into a woman wielding a knife in each hand. http://www.kxxv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12419226
Fortunately it ended up okay. If by okay you mean injuries are acceptable but nobody died.
That wasn’t the case in the Big Apple, AKA New York City. The Akron Beacon Journal reported in the May 3 issue that Hugo Tale Yax from Guatemala attempted to assist a woman in the Big Apple. I don’t have the details, I don’t know who the woman was or why she was attacked, but in the end someone knifed Hugo. Hugo was a homeless man, but he felt the need to risk all he had, his life, to help this woman. The Beacon reports that security tapes show New Yorkers walking past his still bleeding body without any attempt to help him, much less call the police. I don’t have any real comment. The story says it all.
On the whole, neither New York nor West Hollywood has any really attraction to me as a destination.
I was looking in the employment ads (What! Don’t you ever wonder if there isn’t a better job waiting for you?) from last Sunday. Tucked in among the rest of the ads I found a little something of interest. A private bank, (that’s the way they described it) is looking for a financial officer with the usual and at least one very unusual criterion. They want someone with an underground degree in finance.
Did they want a deep rock miner? Or can you get a covert degree, one that no one will confirm or deny? Is this the handiwork of some secret financial task group working on the edge of international legality?
You tell me - IMF: International Monetary Fund or Impossible Mission Force?
This blog will self destruct when you are done reading it.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Laser Knives, Not Just for Luke Skywalker Any More!
In a CCW class I had a student with a laser sight on his handgun. It’s the first time I’ve seen one like his. Most are under the barrel or off to one side, but this one replaced the rear sight. This placed it above the bore.
The battery and on button were on one side and the laser on the other. You push the battery side once to turn it on and a little diode glows telling you and anyone behind you the laser is turned on. The fellow had a little trouble with it. After couple shots it would turn itself on. While some might think of this as a labor saving device, I like the idea of making my own mistakes and not leaving it to a faulty switch. Still the laser did give me an idea.
I’m surprised that someone hasn’t incorporated a laser in a knife handle. Sears has them in cut-off saws. The saw draws a laser line where the blade is going to cut, saving you from cutting something you don’t want to cut. Like your fingers.
That could be done with a knife. A couple diode lasers and the knife could show you the direction the blade will go if you push it. If the laser is on your fingers or your other arm, that’s the knife’s way of telling you to reposition something out of harm’s way.
Diode lasers use milliwatts of power. They are very efficient and just sip power out of a battery. If, or when we get the beam up to around a watt you wouldn’t need a knife. You’ll just blast through the object.
When that day occurs, I wonder… will there be laser collecting clubs?
The battery and on button were on one side and the laser on the other. You push the battery side once to turn it on and a little diode glows telling you and anyone behind you the laser is turned on. The fellow had a little trouble with it. After couple shots it would turn itself on. While some might think of this as a labor saving device, I like the idea of making my own mistakes and not leaving it to a faulty switch. Still the laser did give me an idea.
I’m surprised that someone hasn’t incorporated a laser in a knife handle. Sears has them in cut-off saws. The saw draws a laser line where the blade is going to cut, saving you from cutting something you don’t want to cut. Like your fingers.
The Bosch-5412L-12-Inch-Dual-Bevel-Slide-Miter-Saw-with-Laser-Tracking . Oh boy! How many knife blades do you see on it?
That could be done with a knife. A couple diode lasers and the knife could show you the direction the blade will go if you push it. If the laser is on your fingers or your other arm, that’s the knife’s way of telling you to reposition something out of harm’s way.
Diode lasers use milliwatts of power. They are very efficient and just sip power out of a battery. If, or when we get the beam up to around a watt you wouldn’t need a knife. You’ll just blast through the object.
When that day occurs, I wonder… will there be laser collecting clubs?
Monday, April 26, 2010
Swiss Army Knife
It’s hard to imagine not owning a Swiss Army style knife. I keep a few around including one with a bent knife blade tip, the results of flicking it into a wooden seat. The straight blade screw driver and bottle opener have proven in valuable to me!
The original knife was actually built by two different companies, both of which shared the Swiss military contracts. Why two companies? Here lies the tale of romance, competition and intrigue. But I’m going to leave that all out.
In 1890 the Swiss Army was supplied by a German company. This caused Karl Elsener a patriotic Swiss citizen, to start a Victorinox to provide the Swiss Government a knife made in the homeland. Later, his general manager, Theodore Wenger started a different company. I think you can guess the company’s name.
Hummm…the plot thickens!
The two companies were located in different parts of Switzerland, each with their own regional dialogs. In an effort to stay neutral, the Swiss government split the military contracts down the middle.
Eventually it was for naught, Victorinox now owns Wenger, but swears the two lines will remain separate and whole.
As a side note, Wikipedia claims “The term "Swiss Army knife" was coined by US soldiers after World War II, presumably because they had trouble pronouncing its original name, "Offiziersmesser.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Army_knife
One additional note: I asked Victorinox rep at the SHOT Show if they were ever considering the tactical knife market. At the time they said no, largely due to price considerations. Their studies suggest $30 was the best price point for their markets and they worked to stay in that neighborhood.
WIRED Magazine’s website thinks the Victorinox’s Presentation Master is one gadget no truly self respecting geek should be without. www.wired.com/reviews/product/pr_victorinox_pm_knife
It has the normal tools plus a few more. I don’t need to detail them for you, follow the link and find out for yourself. Just let me say 16 gigs of computer memory and a Swiss army knife for a $240 is quite a difference from $30.
You’ve come a long way, babe!
The original knife was actually built by two different companies, both of which shared the Swiss military contracts. Why two companies? Here lies the tale of romance, competition and intrigue. But I’m going to leave that all out.
In 1890 the Swiss Army was supplied by a German company. This caused Karl Elsener a patriotic Swiss citizen, to start a Victorinox to provide the Swiss Government a knife made in the homeland. Later, his general manager, Theodore Wenger started a different company. I think you can guess the company’s name.
Hummm…the plot thickens!
The two companies were located in different parts of Switzerland, each with their own regional dialogs. In an effort to stay neutral, the Swiss government split the military contracts down the middle.
Eventually it was for naught, Victorinox now owns Wenger, but swears the two lines will remain separate and whole.
As a side note, Wikipedia claims “The term "Swiss Army knife" was coined by US soldiers after World War II, presumably because they had trouble pronouncing its original name, "Offiziersmesser.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Army_knife
One additional note: I asked Victorinox rep at the SHOT Show if they were ever considering the tactical knife market. At the time they said no, largely due to price considerations. Their studies suggest $30 was the best price point for their markets and they worked to stay in that neighborhood.
WIRED Magazine’s website thinks the Victorinox’s Presentation Master is one gadget no truly self respecting geek should be without. www.wired.com/reviews/product/pr_victorinox_pm_knife
It has the normal tools plus a few more. I don’t need to detail them for you, follow the link and find out for yourself. Just let me say 16 gigs of computer memory and a Swiss army knife for a $240 is quite a difference from $30.
You’ve come a long way, babe!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Eyes of the Beholder
A recent knife club meeting proved what we already knew: There is no definition of beauty. It also showed, quite to my surprise, there is agreement on ugly.
Each participant in the show-and-tell had either a Barlow style knife or an “Ugly Knife” to show off. It’s the presentation of the knife and its story the club members find so delightful.
There are times though, you wish the raconteurs would either:
A) get to the point,
B) stay on the path to the subject.
Despite the wandering story paths, it is amazing to see the excitement and enthusiasm that knife owners generate over their knives.
What’s a Dodo?
The dictionary defines it as:
A large flightless bird that tasted like chicken to hungry 18th century sailors;
The pet named “Pickwick” owned by Spec Ops agent Thursday Next www.thursdaynext.com/index2.html or;
A single bladed knife made by Spyderco, but now out of production.
Spyderco’s Dodo was the bainchild of Eric Glesser. Designed with a bird beak, full belly blade and a handle of blue G-10, the knife was a proof of concept of a ball bearing lock design. It had a limited production run. The G-10 handle was almost impossible to slip out of your pocket. While there wouldn’t be any fast draws you didn’t have to worry about losing it either. Four years ago this Dodo went extinct too.
Recently one surfaced on eBay. e-Bay is quite un-predictable. The right person sees the item and the price can skyrocket. Other times the rocket has a fast fuse and blows up in your hand.
The right people were on line for this Dodo. It started at 99 cents and 38 bids later the Dodo went for $222.50!!! The winning bid sniped it in with 7 seconds to spare. His winning eBay bump? $2.50.
Today’s Rumor
Sal Glesser is rumored to be designing an updated Dodo. Big deal…You all ready knew that, didn’t you.
Each participant in the show-and-tell had either a Barlow style knife or an “Ugly Knife” to show off. It’s the presentation of the knife and its story the club members find so delightful.
There are times though, you wish the raconteurs would either:
A) get to the point,
B) stay on the path to the subject.
Despite the wandering story paths, it is amazing to see the excitement and enthusiasm that knife owners generate over their knives.
What’s a Dodo?
The dictionary defines it as:
A large flightless bird that tasted like chicken to hungry 18th century sailors;
The pet named “Pickwick” owned by Spec Ops agent Thursday Next www.thursdaynext.com/index2.html or;
A single bladed knife made by Spyderco, but now out of production.
Spyderco’s Dodo was the bainchild of Eric Glesser. Designed with a bird beak, full belly blade and a handle of blue G-10, the knife was a proof of concept of a ball bearing lock design. It had a limited production run. The G-10 handle was almost impossible to slip out of your pocket. While there wouldn’t be any fast draws you didn’t have to worry about losing it either. Four years ago this Dodo went extinct too.
Recently one surfaced on eBay. e-Bay is quite un-predictable. The right person sees the item and the price can skyrocket. Other times the rocket has a fast fuse and blows up in your hand.
The right people were on line for this Dodo. It started at 99 cents and 38 bids later the Dodo went for $222.50!!! The winning bid sniped it in with 7 seconds to spare. His winning eBay bump? $2.50.
Today’s Rumor
Sal Glesser is rumored to be designing an updated Dodo. Big deal…You all ready knew that, didn’t you.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Conterfeit Randalls
I don’t buy old knives. The guy at the table next to me did. The conversation went:
“Do you buy knives?”
“Sometimes,” said the vendor.
The seller unzipped a Randall Guardian with stacked leather washer handle and concealment sheath. The blade looked good and the leather looked likes it was handled a bit, but well taken care of.
“It’s a nice Randall. I’m not very good with Randall prices.”
“And you call yourself a knife dealer! WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? You should know what its worth.” The seller was getting more than a little cranky.
Every once and a while you get a prickly customer and I could see the vendor had dealt with this before.
“What are you asking for it?” The vendor asked politely. After all there is no sense in burning bridges.
“Well.” The seller drew himself up another three inches taller. “I know what it’s worth, but I’m not telling you. And you call yourself a dealer.”
“Well, okay, let me see the knife again.” The seller handed it over and the vendor produced a small, but powerful flashlight. He carefully studied the Randall stamp, looked at the edge and felt around the leather washers and silver cap.
“Well the edge is very straight and it doesn’t appear to be resharpened.”
“That’s right.” The seller leaned in to see what the vendor was inspecting.
“It’s too straight. These were hand-made and this edge is machine. Look at the fine polishing parks on the edge. Randall used a courser edge polish then and I think the stamp is too dark.”
It was obvious where the story was going. I just sat there hoping a customer wouldn’t come to my table and prevent me from hearing the end of the story. The owner stood dumb struck, so the vendor kept going.
“Well, there are some nice counterfeits coming in now, but ten years ago phony Randalls were the rage. Some were so good, well, they were very good. So buddy, here it is. If you paid more than $80, you got taken.
“I suppose” the seller said condescendingly, “you’d like to buy it for your fake collection?”
“No thanks, I got enough junk.”
The seller stood there riveted to the floor, slowly turning red. I swear his eyes started to bulge. If he had been a boiler, I would have hit the ground and prayed the safety valve would open before it blew.
“But Jimmy might. He’s usually at that end of the building,” the vendor waved toward a distant corner, “but I haven’t seen him today. He might give you 80, maybe 90 bucks for it.”
The seller grabbed for the knife, but the vendor pulled it back.
“Hey, watch the blade.” he said. “It may be junk, but it’s sharp junk.” He put the knife down and the seller snapped it up and was last seen jamming it in his case as he stormed off.
I looked at the vendor. “That was a counterfeit? Sure looked nice.”
The vendor looked at me and shrugged. “What do I know about Randall knives? That guy was an orifice. They I know about.” He went back to looking something up and I returned to hoping for customers.
“Do you buy knives?”
“Sometimes,” said the vendor.
The seller unzipped a Randall Guardian with stacked leather washer handle and concealment sheath. The blade looked good and the leather looked likes it was handled a bit, but well taken care of.
“It’s a nice Randall. I’m not very good with Randall prices.”
“And you call yourself a knife dealer! WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? You should know what its worth.” The seller was getting more than a little cranky.
Every once and a while you get a prickly customer and I could see the vendor had dealt with this before.
“What are you asking for it?” The vendor asked politely. After all there is no sense in burning bridges.
“Well.” The seller drew himself up another three inches taller. “I know what it’s worth, but I’m not telling you. And you call yourself a dealer.”
“Well, okay, let me see the knife again.” The seller handed it over and the vendor produced a small, but powerful flashlight. He carefully studied the Randall stamp, looked at the edge and felt around the leather washers and silver cap.
“Well the edge is very straight and it doesn’t appear to be resharpened.”
“That’s right.” The seller leaned in to see what the vendor was inspecting.
“It’s too straight. These were hand-made and this edge is machine. Look at the fine polishing parks on the edge. Randall used a courser edge polish then and I think the stamp is too dark.”
It was obvious where the story was going. I just sat there hoping a customer wouldn’t come to my table and prevent me from hearing the end of the story. The owner stood dumb struck, so the vendor kept going.
“Well, there are some nice counterfeits coming in now, but ten years ago phony Randalls were the rage. Some were so good, well, they were very good. So buddy, here it is. If you paid more than $80, you got taken.
“I suppose” the seller said condescendingly, “you’d like to buy it for your fake collection?”
“No thanks, I got enough junk.”
The seller stood there riveted to the floor, slowly turning red. I swear his eyes started to bulge. If he had been a boiler, I would have hit the ground and prayed the safety valve would open before it blew.
“But Jimmy might. He’s usually at that end of the building,” the vendor waved toward a distant corner, “but I haven’t seen him today. He might give you 80, maybe 90 bucks for it.”
The seller grabbed for the knife, but the vendor pulled it back.
“Hey, watch the blade.” he said. “It may be junk, but it’s sharp junk.” He put the knife down and the seller snapped it up and was last seen jamming it in his case as he stormed off.
I looked at the vendor. “That was a counterfeit? Sure looked nice.”
The vendor looked at me and shrugged. “What do I know about Randall knives? That guy was an orifice. They I know about.” He went back to looking something up and I returned to hoping for customers.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
American Switch Blade
Rumor has it…………..
I understand Schrade is making a limited production run of an American made retro switchblade. I hear it will be under 1000 total production with three different bolsters.
An American Retro Switch Blade!?!?!?!!!!! Tune in for more.
I understand Schrade is making a limited production run of an American made retro switchblade. I hear it will be under 1000 total production with three different bolsters.
An American Retro Switch Blade!?!?!?!!!!! Tune in for more.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Sharpening the Edge
All knives get dull. Thats not true. You know that’s a lie.
All used knives get dull and that’s the truth. So it was no surprise I needed to sharpen my Spyderco Salt I. I use that little serrated blade all the time.
The blade is made from H-1 steel which is completely rust proof. No really, it is. I made a paste of table salt and water and coated my blade with it. I tried to keep the paste moist, but I’m sure sometime during the night it dried out. No rust. A little discoloration on the steel blade, but no rust.
The H-1 steel carbon content is very low, only 0.15%. That leaves all the chromium available to form a nice chrome oxide film which resist oxidation or rust formation.
I like sharpening knives. It’s my own little Japanese Tea ceremony. The counter gets wiped off, several layers of newspaper a placed on the surface. I slide the stones out of the Spyderco Sharp-maker and inspecting each one. Each stone deemed dirty gets scrubbed with a mild cleanser to remove oxidized metal, dried and returned to the black plastic base. The dark medium grit stones are put in place first, then the brass protective rods.
The sharpening starts with downward strokes on both side of the blade. I let my mind go blank and just feel the stone and steel abrading. At some point I test the knife by cutting newspaper. Satisfied, I wipe the blade clean and replace the stones with the white fine stones.
The fine stone grabs the edge differently and the steel sings a different song. When I’m ready, I start running the blade upwards from the stone’s base to its top. This draws the wire edge out. There’s an element of symmetry here: The stone receives the metal from the blade and give the blade its sharpness.
When it’s time the blade is tested. Does it shave? It does. The blade gets wipe down and the pivot gets a drop of oil. I thumb the knife open, test the lock and slip the closed knife back in my pocket.
The sharpener is returned to its container. The newspaper is rolled up and placed in the trash. There is symmetry to the entire process, all of which turns on the exchange of metal.
You don’t sharpen a knife to use it: rather you sharpen because you have used it.
All used knives get dull and that’s the truth. So it was no surprise I needed to sharpen my Spyderco Salt I. I use that little serrated blade all the time.
The blade is made from H-1 steel which is completely rust proof. No really, it is. I made a paste of table salt and water and coated my blade with it. I tried to keep the paste moist, but I’m sure sometime during the night it dried out. No rust. A little discoloration on the steel blade, but no rust.
The H-1 steel carbon content is very low, only 0.15%. That leaves all the chromium available to form a nice chrome oxide film which resist oxidation or rust formation.
I like sharpening knives. It’s my own little Japanese Tea ceremony. The counter gets wiped off, several layers of newspaper a placed on the surface. I slide the stones out of the Spyderco Sharp-maker and inspecting each one. Each stone deemed dirty gets scrubbed with a mild cleanser to remove oxidized metal, dried and returned to the black plastic base. The dark medium grit stones are put in place first, then the brass protective rods.
The sharpening starts with downward strokes on both side of the blade. I let my mind go blank and just feel the stone and steel abrading. At some point I test the knife by cutting newspaper. Satisfied, I wipe the blade clean and replace the stones with the white fine stones.
The fine stone grabs the edge differently and the steel sings a different song. When I’m ready, I start running the blade upwards from the stone’s base to its top. This draws the wire edge out. There’s an element of symmetry here: The stone receives the metal from the blade and give the blade its sharpness.
When it’s time the blade is tested. Does it shave? It does. The blade gets wipe down and the pivot gets a drop of oil. I thumb the knife open, test the lock and slip the closed knife back in my pocket.
The sharpener is returned to its container. The newspaper is rolled up and placed in the trash. There is symmetry to the entire process, all of which turns on the exchange of metal.
You don’t sharpen a knife to use it: rather you sharpen because you have used it.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Edging into Trouble
It’s all a bad mistake and it’s getting worse. You got off at the wrong exit, the bar wasn’t what you thought, and the address said north not south, the neighborhood changed. There are a thousand reasons you’re in deep sh*t, but all you want is to go home in one piece.
They wanted more than your money and you knew they‘ll kill you and get your address and keys. While you were toe-tagged John Doe, your wife and daughter would be desperately checking hospitals. They would never know until too late the mad dog predators stalking them.
So you ran from them. They split up and chased you and by now you’re surrounded. Safety lies in the direction you came, but at least one thug is following you, driving toward the rest. They’re smart, organized and vicious.
You have a plan too. It’s not your best plan, but it’s your last plan. You’re going hide behind the dumpster with your closed knife in your hand and hope they pass. If not, you’re going to lure one in close. It’s important he doesn’t see the knife, so it’s got to be closed. When you stepped over toward the closest one you’d hold your wallet up and step even closer.
Your last move would be a surprise. A fast step, grab the thug and pump the blade in and out of his stomach eight or ten times as fast and hard as possible. If there was a second thug, you’d turn on him with the blade. It’s a terrible plan. It’s all you have.
Trouble is; your cold, bloodless fingers can’t hold the side opening auto knife without dropping it. And forget about the assisted or manual openers, fine if you can open them before you need them, but what if the person in the alley isn’t the thug? Did you really want to step out of the shadows with an open blade? What you need is an OTF.
I saw nice, clean out-the-front Piranha Excalibur at work. It’s a cool knife. A fellow could hold the knife firmly in this hand wrapped around it and push the button to open it. The double edged blade flies out the front. You don’t hold it with a partial grip like the ProTech out-the-side autos. Heck, that grip is already half way to losing the knife.
My opinion: A real combat knife needs to be either fixed blade or out-the-front auto. Assisted openers and manuals have their role in CQC, but out-the-front has them beat.
They wanted more than your money and you knew they‘ll kill you and get your address and keys. While you were toe-tagged John Doe, your wife and daughter would be desperately checking hospitals. They would never know until too late the mad dog predators stalking them.
So you ran from them. They split up and chased you and by now you’re surrounded. Safety lies in the direction you came, but at least one thug is following you, driving toward the rest. They’re smart, organized and vicious.
You have a plan too. It’s not your best plan, but it’s your last plan. You’re going hide behind the dumpster with your closed knife in your hand and hope they pass. If not, you’re going to lure one in close. It’s important he doesn’t see the knife, so it’s got to be closed. When you stepped over toward the closest one you’d hold your wallet up and step even closer.
Your last move would be a surprise. A fast step, grab the thug and pump the blade in and out of his stomach eight or ten times as fast and hard as possible. If there was a second thug, you’d turn on him with the blade. It’s a terrible plan. It’s all you have.
Trouble is; your cold, bloodless fingers can’t hold the side opening auto knife without dropping it. And forget about the assisted or manual openers, fine if you can open them before you need them, but what if the person in the alley isn’t the thug? Did you really want to step out of the shadows with an open blade? What you need is an OTF.
I saw nice, clean out-the-front Piranha Excalibur at work. It’s a cool knife. A fellow could hold the knife firmly in this hand wrapped around it and push the button to open it. The double edged blade flies out the front. You don’t hold it with a partial grip like the ProTech out-the-side autos. Heck, that grip is already half way to losing the knife.
My opinion: A real combat knife needs to be either fixed blade or out-the-front auto. Assisted openers and manuals have their role in CQC, but out-the-front has them beat.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Guess What I Have In My Pocket
I was at a gun show this week-end and heard the best reason to own more than one knife:
“I carry a knife everyday and I get tired of the same one.”
Of course what I mostly hear is: “I’ve carried the same knife for forty years. And I don’t understand….” They always reach into their pocket and pull out –
(Choose one)
A- a one and on half inch long two bladed Schrade trapper with 50% of each blade sharpened away;
B- a dull Victorinox Classic which has never been sharpened and has a bent blade from trying to cut string.
C- a small bone-handled Italian stiletto switchblade with a bolster release and a carefully polished razor edge.
“…why I can’t find another good one like this for $12!”
Answer: I’ve never see C, but variations on A and B are common. These are the same folk who don’t understand that a $12 knife when gasoline was 35 cents a gallon is roughly equal to an $85 knife to day.
Well, I hope I live long enough to be like them someday.
“I carry a knife everyday and I get tired of the same one.”
Of course what I mostly hear is: “I’ve carried the same knife for forty years. And I don’t understand….” They always reach into their pocket and pull out –
(Choose one)
A- a one and on half inch long two bladed Schrade trapper with 50% of each blade sharpened away;
B- a dull Victorinox Classic which has never been sharpened and has a bent blade from trying to cut string.
C- a small bone-handled Italian stiletto switchblade with a bolster release and a carefully polished razor edge.
“…why I can’t find another good one like this for $12!”
Answer: I’ve never see C, but variations on A and B are common. These are the same folk who don’t understand that a $12 knife when gasoline was 35 cents a gallon is roughly equal to an $85 knife to day.
Well, I hope I live long enough to be like them someday.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
WRCA: Knapping One Edge at a Time
At first thought it’s hard to see the connection between a flint knapper and a knife show. The differences are obvious. Knives use modern metals, plastics and production processes. Knapping flint arrowheads calls for rock, antler and another rock which you press together. Total different. Right?
Still, I’m sure the second, maybe third tool man ever used was an edgy rock. I think the first was the hammer stone. It seems obvious to me. Pick up a rock and smash something. The tie for second and third place goes to fire and sharp edges. I suspect it was sharp edges followed by fire.
Inventing knapping went something like this:
She: “My sharp rock is dull again. Go find me another one.”
He: “I just got you that one. Those things don’t grow on trees.”
She: “Well, unless you want fur on your meat, you better find me another one just like this one.”
She passes it, he butter-fingers it and the stone tool breaks on the cave floor.
She: “Now you’ve done it!”
Picking up the damaged stone tool he cuts himself on the newly sharpened edge and an idea takes root.
He: “Here. I’ll be outside talking to Uglar. Call me when supper is ready”. He walks off acting like he had planned it.
The seed of knapping was planted. You can chip stone to create a sharp edge.
The knapper holds the stone in his left hand and strikes it with a copper bar with his right. It's art in motion, a skill once in great demand now on dispay at the Western Reserve Cutlery Association's Knife Show
I had a chance to watch a flint knapper explaining his art to during the Western Reserve Cutlery Show. He explained how flint has very fine grain. We call it cryptocrystalline and it has no cleavage planes. When force is applied with a soft tool, like an antler, or rounded copper nail, a conchoidal fracture, called a Hertzian Cone forms and material flakes off. By skillfully applying this principle the knapper can flake off material to form an incredibly sharp edge.
That’s the connection. Knife, sword, axe, and arrowhead: It’s all about sharp edges.
He explained that he wasn’t using flint but chert. Flint is a rock that forms in chalk deposits. Chert is a sedimentary rock that forms in any deposit.
Chert? Sounds like what a Rocky Balboa bird would say: “Hey! CHERT!”
Still, I’m sure the second, maybe third tool man ever used was an edgy rock. I think the first was the hammer stone. It seems obvious to me. Pick up a rock and smash something. The tie for second and third place goes to fire and sharp edges. I suspect it was sharp edges followed by fire.
Inventing knapping went something like this:
She: “My sharp rock is dull again. Go find me another one.”
He: “I just got you that one. Those things don’t grow on trees.”
She: “Well, unless you want fur on your meat, you better find me another one just like this one.”
She passes it, he butter-fingers it and the stone tool breaks on the cave floor.
She: “Now you’ve done it!”
Picking up the damaged stone tool he cuts himself on the newly sharpened edge and an idea takes root.
He: “Here. I’ll be outside talking to Uglar. Call me when supper is ready”. He walks off acting like he had planned it.
The seed of knapping was planted. You can chip stone to create a sharp edge.
The knapper holds the stone in his left hand and strikes it with a copper bar with his right. It's art in motion, a skill once in great demand now on dispay at the Western Reserve Cutlery Association's Knife Show
I had a chance to watch a flint knapper explaining his art to during the Western Reserve Cutlery Show. He explained how flint has very fine grain. We call it cryptocrystalline and it has no cleavage planes. When force is applied with a soft tool, like an antler, or rounded copper nail, a conchoidal fracture, called a Hertzian Cone forms and material flakes off. By skillfully applying this principle the knapper can flake off material to form an incredibly sharp edge.
That’s the connection. Knife, sword, axe, and arrowhead: It’s all about sharp edges.
He explained that he wasn’t using flint but chert. Flint is a rock that forms in chalk deposits. Chert is a sedimentary rock that forms in any deposit.
Chert? Sounds like what a Rocky Balboa bird would say: “Hey! CHERT!”
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