by marbhán marfóir » Mon Sep 03, 2012 4:25 pm
Normally I'm not one to Necro a thread, but I felt no need to start a new one.
I wanted to say that after 6 months, I still love this little guy as much as the day I found it in the mail. it's a rugged little knife that has been beyond useful. so I have the following to add.
PROS:
-Durability
This knife has held up to everything I've trown at it, and everything it's been thrown at. the way Maldon chose to form the edge was not what I had originally imagined, I was expecting something a bit closer to a scalpel in size as far as the actual blade on the knife itself and have to say that I am glad he decided to shape it the way he did. the whole thing being made out of a wrench handle makes for a very little flexibility and the thickness of the blade has let me use it in ways it wasn't meant to to pry on things, the thickness of the wrench used was pretty limited since I limited Maldon to using an old parts bag wrench. the temper was done pretty well, as the knife hold's an edge well and I've only had to sharpen it twice; once about 2 days after I got it to put a good sharp edge on it, and maybe once a month to keep it up since it comes into contact with a lot of bone/hardwood/metal. there have been no nicks in the blade edge, no breaking/bending of the tip or bending of the shank. I've also oiled it every time I've sharpened it and I'm happy to report that it has not rusted or pitted.
-Ergonomics
the whole point of using the wrench as a blank, and having the very small blade at the end of a relatively long handle was to fit my pinky through the box end of the wrench/knife and be able to 'drop' the blade and let it hang from my pinky and then flip it back into my hand by 'gun-spinning' it backwards towards my palm so it flips back in.
the action makes it very easy to gut/clean fish and frees up my left hand for work without having to put the knife down.
ergonomically I'd say I lucked out in the box end size (22mm) and the length of shank left between where the box side ends and the base of the blade starts. the shape of the spine allows me to place my thumb over the top of the blade and have a lot of control over it when cutting. this small blade shape and longer handle make for having a lot of control when using it.
the feel when holding it, is not unlike holding a cheap wrench, which is exactly what it was when it started it's life.
-The Sheath
I'll be the first to admit I wasn't so sure about having a sheath made from a piece of vinyl siding. that's also a worry that's been laid to rest.
the shape of the sheath fits the knife well, the belt loop has been set up for left handed carry, since I am left handed. the design is simple, it retains the knife well with friction, Maldon was also so kind as to make a hole at the tip of the sheath for neck carry off of a lanyard, which I haven't tried yet but plan to try when I go pheasant hunting in a couple months.
CONS:
I don't really have too much bad to say about the knife that can be attributed to it's maker.
I kinda wish I could get one made out of stainless steel, but I understand the difficulty involved and the price for it made out of stainless vs. the uniqueness of it made from the wrench that was used and the ease of working with the carbon steel and sourcing of material far outweigh's the benefits of attempting a knife like the one I have in stainless at this point.
the sheath is something that I also can't really say anything negatively about, especially considering it was made out of free materials easily sourced, and made pretty expediently.
there were absolutely Zero Cons when it came to dealing with the maker of the knife. He's a great guy to deal with for sure.
-Comments from others
Friends of mine that ride Kawasaki's love it, friends of mine that fish and hunt small game like rabbits and squirrels or upland birds also remark on how novel and useful it is, friends of mine that are mechanics love the fact it started out as basically a 'throw-away' wrench and was turned into something that will more than likely outlive me in usefulness.
the only negative feedback I've got is from people that don't like when someone carries any blade, or people who have the kind of money to blow on high speed/low drag gear even though the only A/O they operate in is the gun range and local fishing pond.
given the choice to do it again, I wouldn't change a thing, I was happy with the price, happy with the product, and happy with the communication and speed that Maldon handled everything. I'm collecting more wrenches to get some more made possibly as Christmas presents.
TL/DR version?
I friggin love it.
"Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph."
- Thomas Paine, from his essay “The Crisis”
I live in MN now, we dont have a chapter yet. so no more cool AZ ZS 18 banner. I can still take the heat though
