fair play davy ,and a nice bit of marketing on your behalf .
may i ask the first few questions ,
fixed blade or folder .
with new knife laws on the way blade length is a factor ,my preference is about 3.5-4 inch s no more.
going to sharp point for dispatching a deer ,by severing the spinal cord at the base on the head .from my experience death is instant for the animal.

thanks for the link jw

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Count me in on thisas well.
JW
Well done that man for pointing out the correct[albeit somwhat risky]way of using a knife to dispatch a deer.:D
What did you hear about blade length being an issue??Seeing that if you are out deer stalking that is more than enough "good reason" to carry a knife.Or shooting,or fishing.

45 ,mostly carry a buck 110 folder .its neet ,inconspicuas and ticks all the boxes for me so much so i wore the blade out.
i seen it on the news there is going to be a new knife directive shortly .

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

Davvy,
To save some time and debate.Why not do both designs ?Fixed and folder?Then both camps can compare merits of both designs ,and it cuts out the time wasting immortal arguement of fixed v folder.

Hi 45 ,yes design is every thing untill you use a knife in the field you dont know how it is going to work .
my knife has a job just a job. i dont wake up in the nite to look at it
its sharp and works im happy .
you like ur knifes you collect them ,there of interest to you and its a hobby for want of a better word sorry ,that could take you all over the world and is most interesting .
i have watched many times on diso channel the making of a samurai sword and i would love to have one as its most lightly the finest blade made. old style .
i think davy has a problem unless decisions are made early . i have a hand made knife that does not work for me .
the blade is to thick, to wide at the point .it is wrong for me .ie i dont use it often and thats my fault not knowing enough about what i want at the time .
davy has some lovely looking knifes . this will be interesting
. my no one knife is the ole buck 110 folder .
whats ur s 45 regards jw

Count me in too davy .
I use a 3.5 inch fixed blade EKA for nearly everything I do but I also carry a swiss army knife that I got as a present 9 years ago and i reckon i've used it every day since.
The blades have been sharpened so much they are basicly worn out to about 8mm deep.

Hi Dave,
I think i met you at the Game fair in Birr last year. This is a very interesting project. Firstly deer hunting is the fieldsport that needs a knife moreso than any other so i suppose it should be designed with deer hunter as a priority.
I been working with knives professionally since leaving school 15 years ago, four years boning beef and venison for Larry Goodman and the remainder as a Ranger culling large numbers of deer each year. I have come to settle on certain knives after years of trial and error. I have a collection of sheath knives that i bought in the early years, beautiful knives, fantastic workmanship but practically they were clumsy and useless in day to day use and hard to sharpen.

For butchering now i use the knifes i used in the factories years ago, a 5 inch semi flex boning knife
and a trimming knife

But we are looking at a field knife i guess.

In my opinion one blade will not suffice, therefore sheath knives do not suit me. They are also too bulky, heavy, need to be attached to a belt and when you are crawling on the ground or bending over they can be uncomfortable, digging into your ribs and snaging.

I use the two knives below, the second i only discovered last year in germany and i love it. The first i have used for the last 8 years. I love this knife for many reasons.
1. Great blade, light, narrow,(perfect for killing animals the way JWshooter described earlier) easy to sharpen and hold a great edge and plenty long enough and it locks!

2. The gralloching blade, the curved one , is blunt at the tip, with practice it opens a deers stomach like a zipper and never ruptures the stomach or intestines. It is also very handy for skinning.

3. The saw is handy at times

4. I have lost dozens of these knives over the years, they cost between €25- €33. I normally buy a few at a time and have spares stashed in my vehicle.

The bottom one cost €75 and thankfully i haven't lost it yet, it is basically a bigger version of the first but i can sharpen the gralloching blade and there is a longer stroke on the saw blade which helps. With both these knive i have butchered deer from the field to the table and they are really the ultimate deer hunting knives. But they are equally good for rabbits:)

Swiss Army Hunter

Hardwoods 57 - Hunter


I consider these knives to be perfect for the job they have to do. To design anything better would be difficult. To customise between the two of them i would lose the bottle opener, can opener , corkscrew and spike. I would keep the longer non serrated gralloching blade and the longer blades of the second knife. I would keep the shape, thickness and width of the blades. Maybe glam the handle up with a bit of Grizzly45's antique ivory:), or maybe a hi-viz handle. I would install an alarm on a keyring that when moved more 10 meters from the knife it would emit a loud alarm so you don't leave your knife beside a gralloch (again:rolleyes:) or leave it in your vehicle or at home. (how are ya with electronics Dave?:)) Practicality should come first with our irish knife.

davymoore wrote: »

Some Really great input so far. I have to say that I am absolutely delighted with the level of interest in this project.

Personally I would tend to go for a fixed blade knife, John G. I appreciate your comments about your sheath snagging or digging in to your ribs etc. and I suspect that we have all felt this discomfort at some time or other. But I think we can get over this hurdle when it comes time to design the sheath itself. We can look at several mounting options.

The main reason I would vote for a fixed blade is simple really, there's less that can go wrong with it. It wont freeze shut. It won't come loose or wobble or worse still close on your fingers when a locking mechanism or pin gives out. It's easier to keep clean and requires less skill to sharpen and maintain

For design purposes the handle has to be made to accomodate the blades in a folding knife and that puts quite a few restrictions on blade shape, length, thickness etc.

But that's only my vote and everyone has an equal say in the matter.


Regards

Davy

To be the ultimate hunting knife i believe it needs to meet all the needs of a deer hunter in the field. Light narrow blade for humane dispatch, gralloching blade, etc etc. Fixed blades tend to be thicker and much harder to sharpen. Most people cannot sharpen thick bladed knife and they usually end up using excessive force which is extremely dangerous.
I grant you that a fixed blade is easier to build and much more beautiful to look at. All your points are valid. But are we designing the Beautiful Irish hunting knife or the Ultimate Irish hunting knife. Most people that hunt occasionally and take the odd deer will have one because they think it is the right tool for the job and it looks the part. Anybody i have shown the knives i use in practice have immediately converted to them. It's like the difference between the musket and the bolt action rifle and axe and a scalpel.
If you can design a fixed blade to fit all the needs of an experienced deer hunter you will be the first. The gut hook was supposed to be the answer but it is not. It is simply a ripping tool and makes an awful mess of a deer, some are better than others but they are nowhere near as good as a gralloching blade.

fish slapped wrote: »

John, you use a flexi blade in the victornox as you have factory experience and can do so. IMO, The flexi blade could be quite dangerous in the hands of a learner or occional butcher in the field as it can flex nearly 90 degrees, so I think the slightly ticker stiff blade would suit better. I just think it a safty issue to those that are not expert in the use of a knife as you know I'm speaking from experience and have the scars to prove it:o

Not suggesting for a second that anybody would or should use a boning knife in the field. My fear is that too much emphasis is being put on the look of the knife and what kind of handle it will have as opposed to the practicalities of the knife. A knife is a tool to you and I, the same way a spanner is to a mechanic. I just want it to do the job and i think this is a good project. It would be nice to get a good practical knife from this and if it looks great all the better.

Just found your site Davy, beautiful looking knives. Don't get me wrong, i love beautifully crafted knives. I just have different priorities to most people i suppose when selecting a knife. It wasn't you i met at Birr:)

macadam wrote: »

Davy,

My ideal irish handcrafted knife would be similar to the crown series Deer skinner from Silver Stag(www.silverstagknives.com ), you could replace the handle with goat horn ,from one of the Pucks in Killorglin, to me that would be a real treasure.

I think we should all post pictures of knives we have,and specify our likes and dislikes of the various knives.

a fine knife to collect but not to use or carry as a every day tool .

macadam wrote: »

JW,

I thought this thread was on hunting knives , hence the title The Ultimate Irish Hunting Knife.

Everday tool/knife has to be the old reliable swiss or the leatherman.

The silver stag is a great hunting knife have one for years,but the sharpest tool in the box has to be the Cold Steel, Roach belly,friend of mine has skinned 8 deer and its still as sharp as new, I have one and it would shave you better than any wilkinson sword.

Knives are tools to some people and ornaments to be put in glass cabinets or worn in public by others. I work with knives so they are tools. The knives i use get a rub of a steel every day. In a day i could gralloch and field dress up to 30 deer. When used properly my knife will last all day. People that i let use my knife always comment on how sharp it is. You don't need to spend a fortune to have a good knife or a good edge. Most of the time you are paying for a fancy handle. A fancy handle does not make a good knife.

We do not have a tradional Irish knife, nor can we create one. We can design a fixed blade knife with a similar blade to hundreds of others with a fancy handle, it will do the same as hundreds of other fixed blades. Or we can design a knife that does not exist yet. We can take the best features of the swiss locking knives i described earlier and refine those features to give a unique knife that is totally functional, unique and new.