[Texas Gun Person]

Well went to the scuba shop today looking for a new knife.


Wenoka Big Squeeze

Titanium blade
4.5 inch blade
9.5 inch total length


I don't have any fancy set up for taking pictures. Just my desk and a cell phone with a camera. :neener:

http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/6332/weno1.jpg http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/8056/weno2.jpg
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/1040/weno3.jpg

Also bought some new dive gloves... so I got them in the picture too.

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/5522/weno4.jpg



I'm not the best when it comes to sharpening any sort of titanium... but I'm hoping I won't need to use this knife much while underwater. :)

The sheath attaches sorta on your calf. On this knife it's called the "big squeeze" because you have to squeeze in on the two blue things on the handle in order to pull it from the sheath, and it snaps back in when you push it in.

[Gordon]

Highly reccomend a lanyard on a dive knife. The coiled kind is best.

[Texas Gun Person]

Highly reccomend a lanyard on a dive knife. The coiled kind is best.

I plan on it... any guess as to why I needed a buy a new knife? :D

[ArfinGreebly]

Interesting.

What led you to prefer titanium over H1 steel?

I've never tried to sharpen Ti, so I don't know what the risks are, what the effort is, nor what the expected result would be.

Similarly, I have no exposure to H1, and don't really know how durable it is, nor how well it holds an edge.

What can you tell me?

[Texas Gun Person]

Well I am not a huge knife guy, and don't research what knives are made with what metal.

Only dive knives that I have heard of that come with H1 is Spyderco. (Feel free to prove me wrong) I really didn't feel like paying more for a fixed blade Spyderco, and I don't like folders for diving. However, I have never had any experience with Spyderco's fixed blade knives in H1. Maybe later. :D

As for the titanium... I have used the stuff for years, and it's never let me down before. Just have grown to like the stuff when it comes to diving. I also got the knife at a good price, and the straps run through the sheath just how I like them to. (Some of the more expensive Spyderco's attach the same way... but they are more expensive)



Sorry if the post is a little scrambled and disorganized, but I'm looking forward to laying in bed now.

[degunner]

how expensive was the one you lost? I lost a wenoka Ti model a few years ago. didnt know it was gone till i got out of the water.
Went crazy and got a Posiden Master diver knife, thing is heavy with a supurb sheath and rubber keeper on the handle. Aint loosin this beast

[sniper5]

Nice knife. My wife carries a Wenoka on her vest for a rescue knife when she is kayaking. When diving I usually carry a Remora grip down on my BC inflator hose just because I usually dive in kelp and the less stuff to snag the better. I also keep my snorkel in my BC pocket (folder) when underwater for the same reason.

[hso]

Ti dive knives are relatively inexpensive these days and there are ton of them out there. H1 and cobalt alloy knives are available, but expensive by comparison to inexpensive Ti dive knives. The only problem with inexpensive Ti dive knives is that they may not hold an edge well and they may bend when used to pry.

I had good luck just taking care of rust resistant knives, but these day's I'd invest in an H1 or cobalt alloy (stellite/talonite) just so I'd have a single knife that would cut/pry in any environment.

[The Highlander]

Cool knife. (funny thing, I was surfing THR late last night and in part of my dream your exact knife arrived at my doorstep instead of yours due to some "shipping error")

As for H1 steel, I've used a couple of spydercos offerings and they'd absolutely run circles around titanium. I've been edc-ing a tasman salt along side the usual tenacious and the H1 performs better (in my opinion) than the 8Cr13MOV steel (Given the knives do have significantly different edge geometries and blade shapes). It'd be better to match up something like a pacific salt (great knife) to an frn endura 4. (of course VG-10 would trounce H1)

EDIT: upon looking at your knife again, my dream version of it hat 2 more line cutters/gut hooks on it. Strange things happen when you surf the internet too late at night.

[Texas Gun Person]

how expensive was the one you lost?

$50-$60 If I remember right. Nothing expensive... but not something I wanted to replace just yet.

[Polar Express]

I have a wenoka knife as well. Not nearly as fancy as the current offerings, but I have been pleased with the value and quality.

As far as sharpening, the best sharpener I have personally tried/used is the Tri-angle sharpener by Spyderco. It ain't cheap, but it's designed to be able to sharpen serrated knife blades, and it does a fine job.

It would be a total guess, but I would guess that the ceramic sticks would sharpen titanium as well. Does anyone have experience sharpening a titanium blade with a ceramic sharpener that can chime in here?

By the way, my Wenoka is just steel. When I get out of the salt water, it gets washed with soap and water, dried, and a quick squirt of WD-40. No rust yet. I get pretty careful about washing and rinsing my BC and reg-set, mask, and suit after a salt dive. They seem to last a lot longer that way.

PE

[moxie]

Howdy, I'm over in Stephenville myself!
Very nice dive knife, although a bit bigger than I like for diving. The most useful part of that knife is the line cutter. A small "zip knife" attached to your BC and a pair of EMT shears in your BC pocket will complete your cutting kit. A lot of dive ops in the Caribbean nowadays won't let you wear a knife.
Do NOT use a lanyard on a dive knife. Better to lose the knife if it comes to that. You do not need a knife flailing about on the end of a lanyard when you are diving.
See you down there.