Pruning knife

[Marius]

One more:

[ColoSwiss]

Rosewood on the left, hardwood on the right, and a couple of work knives at the bottom with handles that may be rosewood, but which I suspect are stained hardwood.

The ad for the hardwood Spartan said it was bubinga, but suspect (again) that if it was Victorinox would be mentioning the fact.

[Marius]

Rosewood on the left, hardwood on the right, and a couple of work knives at the bottom with handles that may be rosewood, but which I suspect are stained hardwood.

The ad for the hardwood Spartan said it was bubinga, but suspect (again) that if it was Victorinox would be mentioning the fact.

Very nice set you got there, Karl! 

There was a LE Huntsman with Bubinga wood handles. I do not have one (I wish I had...) but I see it mentioned for example here on this forum:

http://forum.multitool.org/index.php?topic=21658.2475, from Rainier:



Also here:

http://www.vicfan.com/tag/bubinga/



And here from SakWiki:



Quote from SakWiki:

"12.In 2011 Victorinox produced the Huntsman Bubinga limited edition for the French market. These knives feature wooden scales made of Bubinga from Gabon, include a leather pouch, a certificate of authenticity, and are packaged in a presentation box. This special offering is limited to 1000 knives and each knife is numbered with an etching on the main blade nnnn/1000. The wooden scales are darker than the Bubinga hardwood used on some other models to date."

However, I have not heard of a Spartan in Bubinga scales though... I do not say it does not exist, I may be just missing this fact. I do not see this mentioned in SakWiki either:

http://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Spartan

[Marius]

Hint: who looks at this thread, I posted a few more photos done today in daylight of the pruning knife, several posts, that now are on a previous page. So if you are interested please go back a bit to see them. I am only saying this because I see the view counters at rock bottom on those and I think they are being missed.

 

[Waterlander]

I'm with you.
A wooden handle feels warm in hand, smooth yet grippy, can be perfectly shaped, can be lightweight or tough as nails, waterproof as goretex, is anti-septic, and gains character over time.
To name a few.

The rosewood on the Swisschamp looks nice. See how dense and fine the grain is on my Opinel with Rio pallisander in comparisment to my navy clasp knife with reddish pallisander:

[Waterlander]

Want some? 

[Waterlander]

Quote:

"They also claim that the spirit of the Iroko can be heard in houses which use Iroko wood, as the spirit of the Iroko is trapped in the wood."

Is the spirit of the Iroko heard in the shop already? 

Quote:

"The tree is feared in some cultures where it originates and hence is shunned or revered with offerings. Yoruba people believe that the tree is inhabited by a spirit, and anybody who sees the Iroko-man face to face becomes insane and speedily dies."

I'm offering t(h)ree SAK's a day to the Iroko-Man 

[Waterlander]

BTW sharpening these pruners is a PITA 

[Marius]

Want some? 

Seriosuly now, have you considered doing custom SAK wood scales? (if not already done)

 

[ColoSwiss]

The ad for the hardwood Spartan said it was bubinga, but suspect (again) that if it was Victorinox would be mentioning the fact.

Very nice set you got there, Karl! 

There was a LE Huntsman with Bubinga wood handles. I do not have one (I wish I had...) but I see it mentioned for example here on this forum:


However, I have not heard of a Spartan in Bubinga scales though... I do not say it does not exist, I may be just missing this fact. I do not see this mentioned in SakWiki either:

It was actually the Huntsman which was listed as having bubinga handles (memory wasn't working so good that late). However it was bought years before that European limited edition came along, and was in a standard box. It looks like my other hardwood handles. I suspect it was the dealer, guessing or being 'creative'.

Going back and comparing the Victorinox 'Hardwoods' with the Wenger Bubingas. There is a similarity. Also slight differences. Might be the same wood with different processing, might be different  woods. Maybe Victorinox is using bubinga for their hard wood. Maybe they're using what ever's available that month and grouping it under a generic term.

[ironraven]

BTW sharpening these pruners is a PITA 

Once they get really dull, yes.

I used to carry a real elcheapo folding kerambit that was a surprisingly good buy. To get it very sharp, I used sandpaper thumbtacked to a 1" dowel, and I touched it up through the day with the ceramic rod I carry in my EDC. Loved it for cutting and stripping wire, breaking down boxes, cordage, I eventually wore out the pivot. Miss that ugly little thing

[Waterlander]

Want some? 

Seriosuly now, have you considered doing custom SAK wood scales? (if not already done)

 

Oh, I made myself a couple nice wooden scales in the past. At the moment I like carving wooden sculptures. 

[Waterlander]

BTW sharpening these pruners is a PITA 

Once they get really dull, yes.

I used to carry a real elcheapo folding kerambit that was a surprisingly good buy. To get it very sharp, I used sandpaper thumbtacked to a 1" dowel, and I touched it up through the day with the ceramic rod I carry in my EDC. Loved it for cutting and stripping wire, breaking down boxes, cordage, I eventually wore out the pivot. Miss that ugly little thing

Kerambit is a bit extreme for me, but I like the first pruner that Marius showed. Great for cutting curved lines in leather or thick paper. But you first gotta get a good edge on there. Then it's just a matter of easy touch-ups.
Me too use wooden dowels with emery paper and cardboard with several compounds and sharpening powder. I've got a specialy shaped fine slipstone that works wonders too.
I used to like a fine ceramic rod, but on a higly polished edge not so much.