Tribal Blade?

messerist

messerist

Well-Known Member
I don't know if this qualifies as a tribal knife so I will leave it up to you guys to decide. I have garnered a lot of inspiration on this site from Tai, Stormcrow, Mr. Church and Wade to mention just a few. The blade is forged from an old leaf spring and wrapped with 550 paracord that I picked up at Tracy's during the hammer-in. (Does anyone have a good link to a "how to wrap a knife handle?") I'm not sure if I like using paracord. I'm thinking of going with something more natural like rawhide, leather or hemp. Any ideas? Thanks for looking.
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I'd say it does. Did you see the tutorial that Stephen Stumbo (oldanvilyoungsmith) did on his style of paracord wrap he came up with?
 
Hey Troy,
I said this on another forum, I really like this blade and the cord wrap but not together. Your other choices would be more suitable to me. I would love the more natural look with this blade. Please don't take this wrong, and I think you must have some second thoughts about the cord wrap from what you are saying. Go with your instincts, they always lead us in the right direction. Yes, raw hide would work as well as antler. Or you could leave it alone and it is still a nice knife. Wade
 
Looks good. Most tutorials I have seen call for gutting the paracord of its inner strands so that the cord will lay flat. The problem with that is you would be removing the guts that make paracord valuable as a "survival cordage". Also you would hate to have to remove the cord to make a shelter, repair, fishing line etc...leaving you with an unpleasant bare handled knife. For these reasons I would prefer to wrap the sheath with a useful length of paracord or just throw a wad of it in a pocket. I think a natural material like leather or handmade bark cordage would look great but that is all aesthetics and personal taste, different strokes....

If it is a comfy handle, and you like it, then go with it. Really like the blade shape, looks like a nice slicer and sticker.

If it is your knife, do what you like. If it is for sale, that is another thing....The handle wrap will target more of a tactical/modern interest vs. primitive/traditional etc....What are your plans for the sheath? if kydex or nice new leather, the handle would go as is. If you are looking for something more traditional looking or old world, I would change out the handle wrap.
 
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Messerist, I love the blade and the workmanship in it. Leaf spring can be tough stuff to manipulate and except for that stuff on the handle, it is gorgeous. Just kidding, some people like it. Paracord has been in use for over 70 years so I guess it's a keeper. In WW11 the paratroopers were taught to cut out the suspension lines from their parachute for survival cords and it has been in every space mission , even fixed the Hummel during a space walk.
Grafton brought up a point, in these "survival " bracelets and tactical coverings they strip the guts out of it to make it lay flat, thus destroying the usefulness of the product, but a lot get sold.
I really like the knife, send it to me and I'll work it for a year or ten and get back to you on the handle wrap, might change my ornery old opinionated mind......Randy
 
Thanks for your most gracious and welcome comments. I will have to use a different cord on my next blade because I sold the knife this morning before I even had my first cup of joe! I friend of mine stopped by to look at a carpentry job I need to do and saw the knife on my workmate. I still need to make a sheath for it but he loved the paracord wrap. I have several more in various stages of re-construction so I intend to try some different material for the handles. I am thinking of going more "Tribal" on the next one!
 
Great job on the knife and the quick sale. I really like paracord for certain things. It looks just OK on this knife and I think this knife would look even better with a different handle treatment. The blade has that rustic look that contrasts with the paracord's "new" look. I am not knocking the knife or the handle at all, just saying a handle of wood or antler and maybe some raw hide would really set it off. I am looking forward to seeing your upcoming versions.

I just looked again and I must say I really like that blade shape.
 
I love paracord handles for hunting knives. They have a great grip, and you have the bonus of extra cord when needed. I've never understood the need to gut the cord in order to work with it, I've never had any issue with leaving it as is. I think this knife looks great, but with this style some natural material would probably be awesome. Maybe some twisted rawhide wrapped the same way and set in Massey finish (epoxy thinned with acetone)?
 
Thanks for the tip Gary. I visited the site you mentioned and saw Dave's tutorial. I just finished a knife and used a hemp and leather wrap coated in epoxy. As soon as I can steal my wife's camera I am gonna take a picture and post it. Thanks again -Troy
 
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