Knife: Nihal is the name of a star in the
constellation Lepus (the Rabbit). This is a great small knife, and I
don't make many small knives, so this one is a real gem. The blade
is clean and smooth, made in highly corrosion resistant 440C high
chromium martensitic stainless steel, for almost no care and extreme
corrosion resistance with good toughness and high wear resistance.
The blade is clean and polished to a high mirror finish, and with no
filework, choil or abrupt geometry, is easy to keep clean. The blade
has a razor sharp single bevel edge with a substantial finger
depression behind the blade for a safe grip. The tang is fully
tapered for balance, and the blade is bolstered with zero-care high
nickel, high chromium 304 stainless steel alloy. This is a very
tough, durable, and highly corrosion resistant stainless steel. I've
hand-engraved a light intertwined leaf pattern in the bolsters, a
hint of Celtic style. The bolsters are dovetailed to bed a pair of
striking green Amazonite gemstone handle scales to the tang.
Amazonite is a potassium aluminum silicate, a microcline feldspar
that resembles turquoise or chrysocolla at first glance, but is
harder and more electric in intensity. You can see from the photos
that this is a bright material, with bits of white tipped crystals
throughout. There is nothing that quite looks like the intense
color, and though the knife is small, the extreme appearance will
not be ignored. The knife feels accurate and particularly light in the
hand, with the balance point at the junction of the front bolster
and handle scale. This is a three finger handle shape; the first
three fingers of the hand wrap while the small finger is draped
behind the rear bolster quillon, and it molds into the palm. As you
look at the photos on this page, please note that they are all
enlargements. Even the full photo above is over 2 times the size of
the actual knife, showing every detail.
Sheath: As always, my sheaths must be commensurate with the knife, so I created a high-backed
sheath out of heavy leather shoulder, and hand-carved and
hand-dyed the design that matches the bolster engraving. I wanted it
darker and less striking than the handle, so I chose a deep emerald
green against a background of black for the color dye arrangement.
The sheath is carved and tooled front, back, and on the belt loop,
and hand-stitched with black polyester for durability and strength.
The sheath is deep and protective, sealed from moisture and the
elements.
A beautiful and elegant small knife, with an vibrant gemstone
handle and pleasing sheath.
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