Here’s my baby! This is my personal dagger. I made this about 7 years ago and this poor sucker has been through the wringer, but it still begs for more. The blade is 1/4 thick D2 tool steel and it is 1 1/4 inches wide and 7 1/4 inches long. You wanna talk about a tough blade? This is it. Hundreds of feet of cardboard; literally cutting scores of steel banding for lumber packs; hacking and chopping seasoned hardwoods; cutting heavy 1 1/2 inch sisal and jute rope; field-dressing and butchering deer including the nasty pelvic bone; impromptu steak knife on one occasion; chipping ice; pommel used as a hammer numerous times; this one has been tested! Sorry I won’t sell this one but I’m posting it to show you what these knives are capable of. The guard and pommel are both bronze and the grip is a beautiful piece of black walnut that was aged in a barn for 25 years. Weight is a light 10 ounces. If you wanted one I could sure make one for you, but it would cost about $370.00. D2 is hard to work and very expensive as a blade steel. But something like this is worth every penny. Balance is nice and in the hilt. D2 is stain-resistant but not rust-proof. In all actuality, no steel is ever entirely rust-proof. A high chromium content will delay rusting longer but iron with carbon in it oxidizes and there’s no way around it unless you add a special coating. Too much chromium and you have a steel no longer suitable for a blade. D2 is a very nice combination of rust-resistance, toughness and edge-holding ability. It is certainly one of my favourites!
