hso, JShirley, Jeff White, Lee Lapin and a few others understand "my" perspectives based on "my" experiences, and "my" tasks for environments.
They know exactly whom mentored me and why they passed forward real life experiences and observations to me. As my "needs" were the same as theirs
-Small pen knife, less than 3" closed, that does not have one hand assisted opening, and does not have a lock.
-I prefer two blades.
Main blade is "toothy" sharp, and is not polished.
Pen blade is going to be sharper. I did not say it was going to be "razor sharp", nor did I say it was going to be "polished.
-I prefer carbon, tool steel blades.
It is true I was born with a Case Peanut , with bone handles and CV blades.
I am "associated" with such a knife and in recent years the yellow handled one.
I do not own but one Case knife, period, at this time, and it happens to be a celluloid Case Peanut , with Stainless Blades. It is sentimental, a gift and the blade has been engraved with something special. I have never sharpened it, and doubt I ever will. It is a sentimental collectible to me, and it means something to those that presented it.
I give perceptions I choose to give, to whomever I choose to give "what" to.
There were other tools, including knives in that crib as well. Time passes and other small pen - knives and other "knives" were custom made as well.
Offensive and defensive tools.
Now I can "polish", and if I had access to what I used to have, I could scare the living daylights out of folks with "sharp" and "polish". I have restored some swords, and other neat edged weapons. I did it without a store bought jig.
I may have used some ingenuity, to protect the integrity of the Civil War patina, or whatever.
I will share again, I had some Mentors & Elders that were interesting folks. These ladies and gents, were in places were guns, and many other things were restricted.
Checkpoints, where one was to cross, and "Police" armed at checkpoints.
One was subject to search on the streets by "police" , anytime gathered with others, and just walking down a sidewalk, or riding in any type of conveyance.
That small thin piece of steel was a much needed and respected tool.
One blended in, for sure one did not attract attention, and one gave perceptions needed to stay safe, and to survive.
Now that "Policeman(s)" likes ladies and likes to have his/their way with them, especially girls, that want to "get past his gate".
You want to get past that gate, they might accept a "bribe" whether you intended the female to be a bribe or not.
Then again, it might just be easier to shoot the male and have their way with a female, especially a younger one, and especially "girls".
Those persons have information, they know things, they may even have something real important, a "package" that needs to be on past that gate.
Time is critical, a "deadline" if you will.
"War" is defined as what it is, and does what one must do to win a war and keep others safe in fighting this "war".
The word is out, that "Police" are going to want "bribes".
So a female tapes her breasts tight to look flat, her hair is either up under a hat, or has been cut in the style of a male.
She is going to act, walk, talk like a male, to "blend in" and give the perception of being a male.
Someone blabbed, it is not important if it was an accident, or intentional to get some items needed by "Police" still someone blabbed.
One "Police" at the gate, the other is eating.
Two persons approach, both appearing to be males, one is actually a girl, with her hair up under a hat.
The drill is to show papers, stand and be frisked, and if asked, remove hat.
The practiced plan goes in motion.
The male has a newspaper in hand, and it with hat in the other hand are extended as he is frisked first.
He is behind and to the side of the "Police" as he goes to frisk the girl. She extends her arms and leaves her hat on. This "male" is being a bit curious, and he reaches to remove the hat, the "paper knife" slices his throat.
His gun is removed and he is beat about the head.
"Policeman" two, comes to see and his face meets the butt of a rifle.
Two bodies are dragged out of sight..
Two persons continue down past that gate.
Some want a knife to cut poly rope, cable ties, wet sisal rope, duct tape, electrical tape.
Some want toothy and bite.
Some like a blade to have the ability to bend, and not break.
There is a place for hard blades.
Phil Wilson is just one person that "thinks" as I was mentored. Shing is another.
Take a steel, and for that steel and its properties make it hard. This is for those folks that understand knives, care, use and how to maintain.
Not for a lot of the "general knife folks".
Phil will sharpen using a Norton Crystalon stone, then a few strokes on a white stone, then a few strokes on a leather strop.
The strop sometimes has some of the "debris" from the Norton stone mixed into it.
His other suggestion is 600 grit diamond and a strop.
He wants a bit of toothy. His Vietnamese wife a chef/cook, I forget, is one that gives feed back to his geometry, heat treat, and sharpening.
There is a place for small sharp things, and for them to be sharp and polished.
A Jig repeats the same motion over and over. It does not allow one to properly sharpen a tool nor polish it to its best effectiveness.
If one engraves , by hand, using a graver, they will use tool steel, to engrave carbon and stainless steels.
The cuts made are polished, as they are cut.
Those fine intricate designs to not allow one to get inside them and polish.
Same principle for "bright cutting a diamond".
That diamond is going into a gold or platinum "plate". The hole is drilled, the diamond setter measure stone, depth of plate and gets the plate ready to accept the girdle.
Today's "brilliant cut" diamonds, the rounds are much easier. Diamonds were not always "brilliant" or "ideal cut".
Just like they do not make pear , marquise , emerald, or oval cut "burrs" that will cut pear, marquise , emerald, or oval 'holes'.
You never could chuck up a "burr" or use a jig, to cut these. Nor could one with a old mine, or other diamond cut.
The diamond setter sharpens his tool steel gravers and strops on a pc of leather, and uses oil of wintergreen as lubricant, as he /she slices gold or plat with a graver.
He/she cuts what is not needed to fit the stone into that plate.
A 'bead' is kicked up onto the diamond.
Meaning one had better not slip, and one can break a diamond so that sharp pc of steel need to be sharp. It also needs to cut "bright" as one does not need to screw up craftsmanship, with "polish".
Diamonds are 10 on the moh scale. Ruby and Sapphire are next , running 8.25 to 9.
Emerald is much softer and if that graver is not sharp, it will break a emerald in a heartbeat. Opals and Pearls rap up the seriousness of a sharp tool being effective.
Beading tool rounds that kicked up gold/plat. One that stone is secure, it is now a matter of the craftsman removing what is not needed by "Bright-Cutting" the metal out.
Some will use a "milgrain tool" to give the itty bitty beaded appearance, many instead cut each one of those by hand, using a "liner" or a sharp pocket knife with a small thin blade sharpened and polished.
The Master Polisher, knows to not touch that plate , bright cut, by hand and is polished. They will finish out correctly , often times by hand, the rest of the piece.
If the diamond is set into Plat, or White Gold, it is cleaned , and if the water beads, it means the pc still has oil or grease. When the water streams off, it is clean.
The item is masked using nail polish, "remove what needs removing only". So the White metal is left.
Rhodium is a whiter and harder, so that plate and the stone are "Flashed" or Rhodium Plated.
Acetone Removes the nail polish, the total pc cleaned and handled with gloves or smooth wooden tweezers.
Same principles apply to hand engraving a firearm, a knife, Sterling Silver punch bowl,
Define: effective, small, sharp, polish, and tasks.
I sorta have my own definitions of these.
When the criminals enter a setting, firing guns, and breaking up the joint, they have just un-nerved folks and gotten inside the mindset loop.
Employees are forced onto the floor, and concealed guns are removed from them.
One has a tendency to not argue with a shotgun barrel at the base of the skull, or a .44 mag revolver pressed against the forehead.
What is done is done. They own the employees, and they own the joint. Now the deal is to survive . Mdse is insured, it can be replaced, people cannot be replaced.
Zip ties, duct tape, and sisal rope ties up and shuts up employees.
The criminals take what they came for and leave.
Nobody got shot, none of the ladies were taken to the back and sexually assaulted or raped.
A small pen knife, is accessed, it is a small , effective defensive tool. It rarely gets anything but a coarse stone, and stropped on leather, dry.
It simply bites, and cuts.
It cuts the rope of another employee, and the same knife is used to cut cable ties.
That knife was accessible with both hands tied behind the back. There is one accessible if hands are tied in front, and there may be other "accessibles" on person.
The Police are called direct, the clean up and dealing with aftermath begins.
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The sales rep was caught by surprise, and tied and tossed into the truck of criminals vehicle, her guns had been removed from her person.
Bad enough to get taken down, and your mdse taken, it is even worse when you are lady, and these criminals raping you and letting someone hear this rape happening, will force them to open a business and get more goodies.
That young lady had a small sharp knife, she cut her hands free, then her legs in that trunk, she had practiced on many makes and models as to how to open a trunk.
Lady Luck showed, and the vehicle slowed down from having gone faster, it kept slowing and just before it stopped, she was out and running!
She escaped, some pretty nasty plans by two criminals.
Her mdse was recovered, the punks rounded up, and the other business was not forced opened due to her rape sounds.
Her larger knife, was taken off her person...
Her small knife was a Sterling Silver , B.A. Ballou key chain knife with a single blade.
I gave her that knife and I used a small diamond needle file, ~ 300 grit, to make that little bit of edge - "toothy".
She was able to access that knife, with her hands tied in front.
It cut, screw the contests on cutting rope and paper, that knife was that sharp to cut what needed for the "contest" of not being raped.
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