Bulldog
"Bulldog" Custom Knife
- Size: Length overall: 11.8" (30 cm), Blade Length: 6.5" (16.5 cm), Thickness: .272" (6.9 mm)
- Weight: Knife: 15.0 oz. (425 grams) Sheath: 7.7 oz. (218 grams)
- Blade: 440C High Chromium Martensitic Stainless Tool Steel, Cryogenically Treated, Hardened and Tempered to 61.5HRC
- Bolsters, Fittings: 304 Austenitic Stainless Steel, hand-engraved
- Handle: Fossilized Stromatolite Algae Gemstone
- Sheath: Hand-carved leather shoulder inlaid with Burgundy Ostrich Skin
- Knife: This is a special Bulldog, custom made
for a great client. The blade is mirror polished 440C high chromium
martensitic stainless steel, chosen for great wear resistance and
toughness, with the maximum in corrosion resistance. The blade has a
beautiful matched hollow grind, with excellent depth and thinness at
the cutting edge, with a substantial spine for strength and a full
top swage to reduce the point profile thickness without sacrificing
strength. The point is extremely acute in this design, one of the
most aggressive points on any knife I make. I cryogenically treated the blade for its maximum
potential, with a long cryogenic aging period for the ultimate in
allotrope conversion and carbide precipitation for this steel. I
followed with triple tempering with cryogenic soaking in between
tempers for the ultimate in thermal conditioning and stabilization.
This results in a blade with relatively high hardness and increased
toughness, with a 120% increase in wear resistance over conventional
heat treating and processing. Another benefit of this process is an
extremely fine grain, resulting in high corrosion resistance and a
beautiful polish. The blade is fully fileworked with a bold, peaking
accordion pattern, throughout the fully tapered tang. The rear
finger ring is completely rounded, contoured, and polished for
comfort. I bolstered the knife with my signature 304 stainless steel
bolsters, permanently attached with zero-clearance peened pins. This
is super-tough and extremely corrosion resistant material, the same
stainless steel used to create stainless nuts, bolts, and fasteners.
I've hand-engraved a unique flowing and twisted ribbon pattern with
deep relief, and the bolsters are dovetailed and fully dressed,
rounded and finished for a seamless blend to the bedded handle
scales. The handle is Fossilized Stromatolite Algae, gemstone of
quartz, jasper, and hematite, and is the fossilized remains of
blue-green algae that lived literally billions of years ago. The
algae existed in Precambrian times, clearly some of the oldest
fossilized remains of life on our planet. The reason for the red
color and hematite (iron oxide) is that in those early times, the
earth's oceans contained much more iron than today, and iron in
accretionary sedimentation that replaces organics to create fossil
minerals produces red coloring. The patterns and colors of this
gemstone are striking, with clouds, swirls, and bands of red color
with shiny gray hematite interspersed. The fossilized Stromatolite
is hard, tough and durable with a bright polish and fascinating
patterns the more it's magnified (See enlarged photos below). The
knife feels solid and stout in the hand, with the balance point at
the front quillon.
- Sheath: The sheath for this knife needed
to be complimentary, that is, as stunning and beautiful as the
knife. I started with 9-10 oz. leather shoulder, though and thick,
and hand-carved the inlay pattern designed to match the engraving on
the bolsters exactly. The 21 inlays are burgundy Ostrich Leg skin, and
the sheath body is dyed black, hand-stitched with black polyester
and sealed with acrylic for longevity and resistance to aging and
the elements. Even the back of the sheath and belt loop are inlaid
for a complete and matching ensemble.
- A stunning knife for a great client. I've included a large photo
set below to share this beautiful knife and all of its aspects and
components, including some 7 power enlargements for detail!
Thanks, T. G.!
Mr. Fisher,
I received my knife today. It is everything I had hoped for and then some. It is beautiful.
Thank you so much for crafting this knife for me. I am sure that this is an item that will
be passed on through many generations of my family. My son already has his eye on it. Once
again thank you.
T. G.
Please click on thumbnail knife photos