I dunno it's completely correct to call it New Knife Day given that these are assembled from mostly used parts, but they're still new to me, so NKD:
OutdoorMechanic and
CyberExplorer.
These are two custom knives that I made for myself. My desire to create these was based on a feeling that while a multitool with a bunch of tools is great in a pinch, there are times when all the tools on one object isn't really what I'm looking for. Specifically, having an emergency pliers in one hand with emergency screwdrivers in the other hand just seems logical. So, as my current EDC was starting to get old and dirty I embarked on a journey to make a new EDC... or rather new EDC
s for myself. And these are the results.
OutdoorMechanic
The name is thanks, in part, to Huntsman who gave me a great name for my blue knife. So I completely stole the theme and used it for my red knife too. I feel like this knife combines much of the tool set of the outdoorsman (both original and new) as well as the tools of the mechanic. With the pliers and metal saw it's capable of simple mechanical work while the wood saw and fish scaler (which I use more as a nice poking stick
) make it comfortable for basic outdoor work too.
CyberExplorer
The name was suggested, as I mentioned above, by Hunstman as it borrows from the Cybertool as well as the Explorer. While the other knife has the cutting and holding tools, this one focuses, obviously, on screwheads. I've also got a main blade, serrated, as well. And opposite that is the watch opener tool, which I find great for prying things apart as it has both the fine "sharp" edge, but also some beef to put behind prying without concern of bending it.
One minor thing that just makes me extra happy here is that blue has always been my favorite color and I do love the blue scales on a SAK. But I've also always felt like a true SAK needs to be red. I've always EDC'd red SAKs before. I could never quite bring myself to EDC any other color. Now, I get the best of both worlds!
Of course we need a glamor shot of the two knife idea in action:
And what would would new knife day be without a new EDC pouch to carry everything in?
I really struggled to find something that would hold both my knives well... everything was either too small or too big, or not the right kind of fastener or not the right belt clip that I wanted. So, eventually, much like my knifes, I took pieces and parts and customized something that will work for me.
This is EDC pouch that I got off Amazon. It was a little too big, and it has a belt loop, not a clip that I wanted. So I also got some clips off amazon and added a belt clip to the back. It's a little too big, but this allow me to get creative. I designed and printed an insert that fits in the pouch perfectly. In insert has two large slots for each knife as well as a long thin slot in the back. Here I designed to the slot to hold a Space Pen, a Maglite solitaire, and then I also printed a small tray to fits between them for things like matches and thread/needles and some other things I'll add here.
I designed the insert in three parts. This allowed me to reprint just some parts when I needed to make adjustments. It also allowed me to add foam to certain areas to ensure a snug fit so there isn't rattle when I walk about with it.
When I got the fit and foam all set I just superglued everything together.
I'm very please with the results so far. I've yet to really "real world" test everything, so I may need to change things up later, we'll have to see. Thanks to everyone who provided feedback and tips in the custom knife process. These were a lot of help and gave me the confidence to try something I'd never done before.
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