TITLE: Knife wear and tear
DATE: 2018-06-20
AUTHOR: John L. Godlee
====================================================================


I've had a Victorinox Swiss army knife since I was about 12, when I 
was given one as a present by some relatives who live near Grenoble 
in France. It's a fairly basic model, with a big blade, small 
blade, tin opener, bottle opener, awl, and corkscrew. It used to 
have a toothpick and a set of tweezers but they are long gone.

I use the knife for nearly everything, it lives in my pocket 
everyday, except when I go somewhere where it wouldnt' be a good 
idea to be found with a knife, like an airport. I use it for 
chopping food, carving wood, general tasks that require something 
sharp. It's been with me to 4 continents and survived a cumulative 
total of 10 months of fieldwork.

The knife has evolved a lot over the time I've had it. I was 
comparing it to a friend's knife today and noticed that the 
repeated sharpening of the blade on my knife has completely changed 
its profile. Instead of having a deep belly, it's been ground 
almost flat, which I find much better for carving wood. I've also 
added a more distinct point to the end of the blade by grinding off 
some of the top of the tip, this makes it more effective for 
etching designs and kolrossing. The profile of the blade has also 
changed, going from a normal compound bevel to a flat scandi edge, 
which is better for carving and much easier to keep sharp.

  [kolrossing]: https://pinewoodforge.com/basics-of-kolrosing/

  ![Comparison of 
knife](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/knife/knife_overview.jpg)

  ![Comparison of 
blades](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/knife/knife_blade.jpg)

A couple of years back, while in Brazil, the glue on one of the 
scales of the knife came loose and fell off. For a long time I left 
it like that, as the knife was more compact. But as I started to do 
more carving I found it was quite uncomfortable. I shaped a new 
scale out of a piece of scrap hazel which I had been using for a 
different project. I used a power drill to make little indents 
where the rivets fit into the scale and clamped it overnight with 
come wood glue. I later engraved it using a friend's soldering iron 
with a herringbone pattern and my initials. It's much more 
comfortable to carve with now.

  ![Scale 
blank](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/knife/knife_scale_make.jpg)

  ![Scale 
polished](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/knife/knife_scale_orig.jpg
)

  ![Scale 
engraved](https://johngodlee.xyz/img_full/knife/knife_scale.jpg)