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Ordered a batch from AZ custom knives from Dozier. The Arno Bernard was a nice knife, but I sent it back. I didn't feel like it was as nice as the Dozier they sent. So I bought 3 more. Custom knives are pretty cool! | ||
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Be careful!  It's not just an addiction, it can quickly become an obsession! ya! GWB | |||
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I've got a few Doziers. I thought I had enough until my wife recently adopted one of them for her own use. | |||
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Dear GWB, I am thankful you are on here to feed my addiction problems. I am glad you have a 20+ year headstart on buying custom knives. I am not trying to keep up, but I enjoy your post. Keep on living the good life. German Hunting license class starts in March. Hopefully I'll be chasing down hacking up hogs with one of these wonderful knives soon. | |||
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BWW, 10/4 BTW,  Red Wine is appropriate with pork??? Ya' GWB | |||
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What a cutie. We raised hogs, I have had some that were little pets. But in the end they all ended up becoming bacon. The outfit I hunted with in Namibia had a couple warthogs that were pets on the front lawn. Raised them from little babies, the Lady of the house had quite a little zoo of babies. | |||
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Oh crap, Dozier has these in inventory. I better buy Mama some new jewelry.    | |||
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 Red wine is of course appropriate with anything | |||
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IMHO, Dozier does some real magic with D2. The Dozier I have is the only knife I've ever owned that I have to be really careful when I touch the edge. I have heard the phrase, "scary sharp". The only Dozier that I own, a Yukon Skinner, is the knife I always have when hunting, but it is a knife that I have to always watch when field dressing. | |||
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I can make a Scandi knife that sharp with a leather strop and jewlers rouge. But it doesn't last. This little Dozier is just as sharp, but seems to hold that edge. | |||
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Dozier has good ergonomic designs, but his steel, D2, unlike the magical qualities ascribed to it by some, is decidedly second rate. That doesn't mean they aren't fine knives, what it does mean is that very, very few hunters really need or use the sharpness and edge retention (toughness) of the best of modern steels tempered correctly. Dozier seems to get the best out of D2. If you want the best, or, at least one of the top three, always depending on steel, for that, try to get a Phil Wilson. From an old test (2010) on Blade Forums by poster, Ankerson.
xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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I also appreciate Mr. Dozier's work, having a Sisu clip point 4.2-inch blade. I also own three Morseth "Scandi" knives - Scandi because Brusletto manufactured the blade blanks. You want scary sharp that lasts? Morseth is your answer. I got caught up in "acquiring." Started with three [Steve] Morseth custom knives. All are a modest belly clip point, one being a NEW, never futzed with Michigan Sportsman, the other two basically the same knife with longer 4.75-inch blades. Although I have used both, the one I had generally carried has a 15-degree (30 degrees total) edge that lasts and lasts. Not many blades maintain such an edge for general purpose use outdoors. Morseths stain in use. While I enjoy the look, as I enjoy the look of a well-maintained, well-used blued single action revolver, I made a lateral move to Sisu. It is essentially a Morseth with a nearly stainless laminated blade. Not yet good enough? Now I have acquired a couple of Japanese "Scandi" custom knives - Cowry X damascus laminated stainless created by Ichiro who is now in his late 70s or early 80s. With these I stopped acquiring. Now I have three Morseth knives available for people who will use them rather than put them on a shelf, fondling them every so often. It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and then don't say it. Sam Levinson | |||
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I bought a Marttini Fin Skinner Condor Basic about an hour ago. Neat little Skandi with plastic handles. I am kind of excited about how sharp it is. The Sisu and Finnbear from Cold Steel follow that design, I think Cold Steel's owner is married to a Finn, and has a lot of respect for the knives. Spyderco also has a Skandi type knife. | |||
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A little sumpin' that I got from Schrodinger's cat a while ago. Reminds me of a Puukko style, which is not my ordinary purchase.  O1 steel, olivewood scales and brass guard. Sweet and sharp and being O1 it will re-sharpen easily. Works great on envelopes, boxes and meat! ya! GWB | |||
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Gawd, GW, with the amount of grease on that knife handle, here's hoping you had a bib. That's an interesting itemizationnof various knife performances. I see that the same steel has differing performances. Guess it shows that performance has a great deal to do with heat treating. I don't know, but suspect that those high pregnancy numbers by the Wilson knives might translate into a brittle knife. | |||
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Wilson makes his super steel knives to cut, not pry, chop, baton, or use as as screwdriver and he tells you that. For instance, on the one I have, he specifically said it was not for "heavy duty". There are now other knifemakers, Farid Mehr and Big Chris among them, who are following in his footsteps, but he was one of the leaders in the "super steel" makers. From review Big Chris S125V knife:
Try that with most knives. There are 3 basic ingredients, besides the obvious of sharpening, into a knife's cutting ability. Steel, heat treating (tempering) and blade geometry. Obviously, if you don't have a good steel and temper, then even the best blade geometry won't allow it to cut very well for long. Different tasks, or uses, require different blade geometry and steels. And, again obviously, you won't have the best cutting performance out of a tough duty, survival, combat kind of knife which will typically have a much heavier geometry than a slicer....a chef's knife would be on the opposite end, geometrically speaking. Very few people who own/use a Wilson knife either his hunters or his fillets will say there is something better out there for using. That is probably why they so seldom come on the secondary market. Of course, that depends on what steel he used, as he has used and tried many over the years. They ain't really pretty and they certainly ain't cheap, but they are among the very best users. I can't afford a Lamborghini, or similar, I can't live in a castle, I can't or won't buy the best shotguns, arguably Fabbris, etc. etc. but for roughly twice as much money as the average "good" hunter, I can own and use one of the best using knives in the world. It's kind of like most hunters buying really expensive scopes, they don't need them, probably rarely if ever push the envelope of their optics, they just like to own/use the best. BTW, you'll note on there that Big Chris, using similar steels, is getting close to Wilson's performance and his a bit less expensive. Finally, if by chance, a reader of this has a Wilson/Seamount knife, I am a strong buyer. I am the proud owner of one of his hunters, want more, and would love to have one of his fillets. I just missed a hunter on BF a few days ago, for well over what a new one costs that was about 20 years old. On the opposite end, I, like GW, own a bunch of Doziers and, as I said, they work well for my uses. Truthfully, I don't use many "good" hunting knives that much, because, unless I've got a guest or whatever, I normally carry a well used, relatively inexpensive Spyderco Native in S30V to work on hogs, scrap steel, whatever comes up. My Chinese "Real Steel" knife (14C28N) also comes into use quite often. Generally speaking, for the money, and in some of their limited runs, Spyderco offers the best steel for the money in the world. Notice how many Spydercos there are near the top of above list. Also note that this list is not meant to cover all knives, this guy tests each one individually and it takes time and money. The relevant thread on Blade Forum is over 150 pages long. xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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I'm certain that Wilson makes great knives: Those are very impressive numbers. That being said, I neither need, nor desire a knife that can field dress and skin 417 elk with touching up or re-sharpening. We all like our toys and it kind of makes me think of golfer friends who desire expensive putters all over in the misguided belief that it will make them a better golfer. If I have a knife that can take care of a deer, elk or bear, that's good enough in performance for me. After a knife can accomplish that, ergonomics and aesthetics are at the top of my list. But that's what makes knives so neat: You can by a really neat custom for relatively cheap and to damn near anything that suits your taste | |||
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Perchance, a little off the subject. IIRC, if it was Dale Howe of Howe Mountain Knives that mentioned the following statement, which he attributed to Tony Bose...... Who would you rather buy a knife from, a maker that has a kid chained to a machine in Communist China ,who stamps out dozens a day, from who know's what material, or a knife from an American craftsman that takes pride in what he does. I'm sure many if not most of my 100+ customs might not cut 2000 pieces of rope,then schitt and run rabbits. However, that is not why I ask a maker to create them. I will contact a maker, tell him what I am thinking of, and ask if he would be interested in the concept. If he sez' yes, I then tell him, I am not in a hurry, and to use his discretion in creating a knife that he would be proud to own. Sometimes I will suggest what scales or steel I am thinking of and why. However, he is the knife-maker. Having been self-employed all my adult life, I have subscribed to the theory that "if you'd rather be doing something else, its a job". Consequently, I find when one speaks to these men, who are artists in their own right, that if you give them the liberty to use their imagination and to only work on your project when they are in the mood, and if you allow them to do things exactly as they have a vision,the results are spectacular. In fact, what I have found what happens, many times, is that a friendship is established and many times communications are exchanged that have nothing to do with the knife being commissioned. In my old age, I like that ya! GWB    Menefee Made   Steingass  Olt Knives  Howe Mountain Ingram   ya! GWB | |||
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Yeah, to each his own. I want my knives to be the best they can be. I don't care about a "story" that comes with it. OTOH, I buy knives all the time because of their design/looks. To each his own. If someone is satisfied with custom knives that don't perform as well as many commercial knives they can buy, but hey, they've got a "custom" knife, suits the hell out of me. To each his own. Nor do I get off on taking pics of my knives, in effect, saying, "Wow, Look at what I've got", is not me, but, again, to each his own. AFA my Chinese "Real Steel" knife, I heard about them on Bladeforums because several of those American Craftsmen knife makers who undoubtedly take pride in what they do had bought them for their own use and were bragging about how good they were for the money. Just as they said, they are a helluva lot of knife for $50 or so. To each his own. xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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10/4 ya! GWB | |||
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I, for one, like seeing the pics. Sounds kinda of corny, but I think the love of fine knives is in our hunting DNA. I can imagine that 150k years ago, that around campfires, specially decorated knives were venerated objects. | |||
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Gato, you state, "Nor do I get off on taking pics of my knives, in effect, saying, "Wow, Look at what I've got", is not me, but, again, to each his own." I get what your saying: Kinda like the guy who buys a 200 mph Lamborghini and drives it on a highway with a 55 mph speed limit, or The guy who tells us a certain knife can cut 2400 lengths of rope with a re-sharpening. And, oh, by the way, I have one. | |||
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Somehow, I think mentioning that I own one of his knives in the context of saying that I would buy more, is not in the same realm as posting hundreds, if not thousands of pics of "my" knives. OTOH, without doubt I own more custom knives than anyone posting on AR and, while I've mentioned my long time passion for knives, custom and otherwise, in passing, am not pointing it out in every thread. Just to keep up my "tradition" of bragging, I bought a 125V knife from Big Chris yesterday after realizing that getting another Wilson was kind of like finding turds under a rocking horse, not to mention, because of loss during grinding, Wilson, AFAIK, doesn't make 125V knives anymore. I am really anxious to try it out on hogs. But to each his own, you keep making those O1 knives, good steel, just not real good. xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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Not trying to stir up a ruckus, but what do you call a good knife? I'll give you mine: It is a tool that serves the intended purpose of the owner and has the aesthetic appeal to confer pride of ownership. I have had occasion where I've had to quarter an elk on the spot. I needed a knife tough enough to have a rock pounded on the spine of the blade. My Dozier can perform the duty perfectly. As an aside, the only thing I don't like abou D2, as I've discovered, is that blood will cause rusting pretty quick if you don't get it off quick. Frequently, it takes long hours to get an elk out and get it hung. Then, exhausted, it's Miller time. The knife can develop problems in that time. I don't know about Wilson knives. It sounds like they are pretty incredible in their ability to hold an edge. That being said, it has been my experience that when there are multiple requirements demanded of an item, be it a optic, a gun or a knife, trade-offs are always made, when one requirement is developed to the extreme. Maybe not with Wilson knives. Maybe it's not guiding the lily. | |||
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I own 3 Doziers, and a slug of other knives custom and non custom. The sharpest knife I own are those knives made by Martenelli and Mora. They are easy to sharpen and hold an edge really well. A Cold Steel Finn Bear is also sharp and easy to sharpen. I need to figure out another photo hosting page, I have photos of all my knives, but they don't get the use GW's knives do. Hopefully in the next life I can perforate some pork like he does. I appreciate his photos, and I think the majority of people do. If anything else I have learned an incredible amount about knives from him. | |||
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The question I have BWW, is what steel and who heat treats it, that makes the sharpest knife. Of course, you want an edge to last, at l sat through processing an elk or bear and maintains its sharpness throughout the process. I'm far from an expert, but it seems that high carbon steel gets a great edge, but I just don't like dealing with the rust potential. Gato appears know a lot about knifes. It would be helpful for him to weigh in and tell us what steel and where to look for the best edge on a reasonably obtainable knife. | |||
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I have a small Dozier knife that has taken care of a half dozen or so deer and probably 100 chickens. No need for any sharpening yet. More importantly, the Dozier total knife geometry is just perfect for me for the different models I have. I did sell one that did not fit my hand. They are great "using" knives at a good price. I'm not a knife collector but I do like having some good quality knives to work with that I don't care if they accumulate some signs of use. | |||
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Well, if you'd look at the list above, it would give you a good grasp of steel and some of the makers. You will be hard pressed to buy a knife that will work and hold better than a Spyderco Southfork (Phil Wilson approved copy of his hunting design in S90V at about 60R(c)) in a fixed blade FOR THE MONEY or in a folder the Spyderco/Mehr K-2 in M4 is awesome. However, both of these cost about $250, about as much as many custom knives, slightly more than most Dozier, for example, which really are mostly production, not true customs. There are many, many custom makers who can make fine knives for less money and sometimes you will get better performance IF you know what to ask/look for. It just depends on what you want. Go spend a few days reading and keeping up on Blade Forums, watching the exchange, both by makers and individuals and you'll learn more about knives and steel. Be aware that most, but not all, really top custom makers don't sell in the knife makers area because they are usually running behind, some WAAAY behind, on filling customers orders. What you will see is mostly, again but not all, makers that are learning, but often making fine knives at less expensive prices. Big Chris (on list above) sells there,for instance, and his skills are way past beginner. There are some European makers that are knocking the ball out of the park, but, personally, I think their heat treating is not quite as aggressive as it could be. Note: Generalization, not applicable in many cases. OTOH, HT is something of an art, less is sometimes more, depending on steel. OTOH, you can find some outstanding knives, sometimes with very decent prices in the individual custom knife sale threads. S. Cat, the reason I haven't and won't really respond to your question about good knives is that it is kind of like asking what do you think is a good woman, and my immediate answer would be....."For what." and then, my ideas would very likely not be anywhere near yours. Same for knives. xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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Gato, thanks for the response. | |||
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It sounds like I'm a Phil Wilson fanatic and that really isn't so, I just plain like knives with good designs and have been buying, with many years interruptions due to wine, women, song, etc, custom knives since the 60s, starting with mostly Randall's (I know, not really custom, but that was then) from Dick Van Sickle, from, I believe San Angelo, Tx. I'm sure Dick has gone on to his reward by now, but he is the one who got me interested in custom knives. That has been an expensive habit. Here is a review of the Southfork, from when it came out in roughly 2012....... http://www.bladeforums.com/for...e-Review-and-Testing xxxxxxxxxx When considering US based operations of guides/outfitters, check and see if they are NRA members. If not, why support someone who doesn't support us? Consider spending your money elsewhere. NEVER, EVER book a hunt with BLAIR WORLDWIDE HUNTING or JEFF BLAIR. I have come to understand that in hunting, the goal is not the goal but the process. | |||
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If you can get into Expertcity or Promotive you can buy that Spyderco for $250. Maybe someplace else you can do it cheaper. | |||
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