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We Need to Talk About Proud Tips and Blade Rap on Traditional Slipjoints

I’ve had enough of it, and it’s time someone said it; proud tips and blade rap are manufacturing defects that are far too prevalent on traditional slipjoint knives. Proud tips and blade rap are issues that plague slipjoints across the spectrums of price, quality, and manufacturer. So, what are they, why are they a problem, and what can be done about them?

What is a proud tip?

A proud tip, simply put, is when the tip of the blade sits above the blade well when closed. What is considered a proud tip can vary depending on the shape of the blade and handle, and the personal preference of the observer. That said, if you can catch a fingernail under the tip of the blade when its closed that is a definite indicator of a proud tip.

What is blade rap?

Blade rap is when the edge hits against the spring when the blade is closed. Many people assume when they hear it said that it is “blade wrap” because of the edge damage that it causes. However, I have always known it to be “rap” meaning to rap against the spring, like “rapping at the window”. This happens because the momentum of the blade closing due to the spring pressure of the backspring causes the blade to overtravel and hit against the inside of the backspring (usually at the backspring pin hump). This causes edge deformation, usually in the form of rolling but sometimes pure flattening or occasionally even chipping.

What makes them legitimate issues?

Both proud tips and blade rap are legitimate manufacturing defects because they cause practical issues.

A proud tip, though unlikely, could catch on clothing fabric and inadvertently partially open the blade risking injury or even directly catch on skin when you reach in a pocket and potentially cause injury. Now, some people will say “well you can just file the kick, so it’s not a real issue” (my video on filing a kick). While it is true you can usually fix a proud tip by filing the kick, there’s two reasons that doesn’t excuse a proud tip. First, filing a kick involves an extremely fine balance between filing enough that the tip falls below the handle without filing too much and causing blade rap. Second, and more importantly, the consumer should not have to modify a product for it to function correctly.

Blade rap is more straight forward; an edge with damage doesn’t cut as well. Sure, the damage is usually only on a very small portion of the blade, but that doesn’t change the fact that that area will catch and not cut like the rest of the edge. Now, some people will say “well blade rap just means that the company fit as much blade into the blade well as possible”. The argument there is that the more blade is fit into the handle the more sharpenings a blade can take and therefore the longer working life the knife will have. While that is technically true, it doesn’t make up for the downside of blade rap for two reasons. First, either you have a knife that doesn’t cut as well as it could or you sharpen out the blade rap and take away that extra blade height. Second, and more importantly, the consumer should not have the modify a product for it to function correctly.

Now, being the astute and attentive reader you are, I’m sure you noticed that both second reasons and final sentences in the previous two paragraphs are the same. Therein lies the real crux of the issue; no matter the upsides or how easily the issues are rectified by the owner, knives should not come with practical issues from the manufacturer and consumers shouldn’t be expected to accept those issues.

What can be done about them?

So, what could be done to mitigate the issues of proud tips and blade rap?

Well, as mentioned above the consumer can often fix these issues themselves if they have the tools and will to do so. But, as I mentioned above, I don’t think consumers should have to do those things on a new knife. Aside from fixing them themselves, I think the only thing for a consumer to do is let the manufacturer know that they are unhappy with their knife coming with these issues. You could also return knives to the dealer that come with these issues. I personally have reached a point (after getting an Albers Cutlery Company knife with blade rap and being frustrated by trying to fix it myself) that I intend to commit to not keeping any knife that comes with either of these issues. This can actually be more difficult than it might seem. If you fight through the drops and finally secure a highly sought after Great Eastern Cutlery knife, it can seem like a small issue like a proud tip or blade rap isn’t worth sending the knife back… and maybe it’s not!

Better yet, there are things the manufacturer can do to mitigate these issues. One thing that some brands, like A.G. Russell and LionSteel, have implemented is a stop pin. Using more accurate methods of cutting out blanks, like laser cutting or EDM rather than punching with dies, could help to get more consistent interfacing between the kick and the backspring and therefore making proud tips less likely. A stop pin stops the momentum of the blade closing and doesn’t allow for the overtravel that the backspring does, which makes blade rap much less likely.

Of course, I’m not an engineer or involved in knife manufacturing in any way, so it’s not my place to make suggestions or assumptions about the process. I just love traditional slipjoints and want to see them be as good as they can be. I hope that these issues become less common and help slipjoints continue their rise back to quality and popularity.

My wife’s observations of my experiences with blade rap;

A Guide to getting rid of your blade rap:

  1. buy some fancy sharpening stuff
  2. find a tiny miniscule little nick on the blade to nit pick for several days at a time
  3. set up in the most annoying location possible, so the most people can hear the horrible noise of the knife sharpening.
  4. sharpen the knife
  5. feel the blade
  6. swear
  7. Repeat 4-6 5-7x before you become disgusted and swear that you’ll never buy this type of knife again.
  8. buy that type of knife again.

I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook!

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Don’t miss one of the best values ever on a hard use EDC knife!

To make a long and still developing story short, Cold Steel was sold to GSM Outdoors recently and since then several knife models have gone on deep sales. I was recently able to get a Voyager XL Drop Point for the incredible price of ~$48 from Midway USA, and you can watch my unboxing video below. These price cuts are in contrast to price increases across the knife market, including some significant hikes in the Cold Steel catalog.

So, even though this isn’t the usual type of article for Knife Thoughts, I wanted to post about the incredible deal right now on the Cold Steel 4 Max Scout (Amazon affiliate link).

I bought a 4 Max Scout for ~$100 from White Mountain Knives in 2020, and I feel that it was a good value for the knife. By the way, White Mountain Knives has the knife for ~$85 right now so you can get it for ~$77 with my discount code “KnifeThoughts”. I think that’s an amazing value for this knife if you’d rather not patronize Amazon.

I have used my 4 Max Scout a lot for everything from breaking down cardboard to splitting tinder in the almost 2 years I’ve had it. I have never had any issues, never had to adjust the pivot, it has incredibly smooth action, rock solid lock up, and have sharpened it several times with no real difficulty. To put it frankly, I think this is the best budget hard use type folding knife available right now. Sure, some might scoff at the nylon handles and AUS-10A steel but I doubt anyone who’s really used the knife will have any concerns over the materials. They’re not high end or fancy, but there’s no question they work. Plus, there’s essentially no difference between the design of this budget version and the multi-hundred dollar version. It still has the insanely strong Demko Triad lock and great design reminiscent of Demko’s customs. It’s just a super solid knife that can handle anything that any folding knife could with a great design that makes it easier to carry and use than you’d expect of such a big knife.

Now, the 4 Max Scout isn’t for everyone. It’s a VERY big knife. It isn’t ground ultra thin for slicing performance like a kitchen knife or something like the Paramilitary 2. You also might want to sand under the clip a bit so that it doesn’t wear down your pants pocket too much. But it’s a big burly budget friendly blade at a steal of a price. I highly recommend it even at the normal price, let alone about 50% off. I actually bought a backup, and I don’t hesitate to suggest that you get one at this price… who knows how long the sale will last!

I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook!


As an aside, I realize I haven’t posted an article in a long time. I have started and almost finished several, but just haven’t been able to complete them to my satisfaction. It’s been a hectic several months. But I will be finishing and posting them soon, so make sure you’re subscribed via email and to my other media outlets!

Some links in this article are affiliate links. That means that if you click them and purchase the product you won’t pay any more than you normally would, but I get a commission from the sale. This is just a way for you to support Knife Thoughts. Be sure to try my discount codes “KnifeThoughts” or “KT10”!

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5 Unusual but Important Reasons to Sharpen Your Own Knives

So, you’ve found your perfect knife (or, if you’re like me, your latest in a string of perfect knives) and you’ve put it to good use. The edge just doesn’t have that lightsaber sharpness anymore, and it’s in need of a thorough sharpening. Now you’re faced with a decision; should you have it professionally sharpened, or should you do it yourself?

There are a multitude of reasons to sharpen your own knives. However, there are a few ‘pros’ of sharpening your own knives that you might never have thought of before. Read on for 5 obscure but important reasons that sharpening is a great skill to practice, and for what I use to sharpen my knives!

It’s Good for your Knives

When you’ve resolved to sharpen your own knives you’re less likely to abuse them. Things like prying, hacking, scraping, and other abusive tasks often don’t only dull a knife’s edge, but also actually damage it with chips, rolls, and broken tips. These types of damage take much more time to correct than a normal dulled edge. So, since we all value our limited time, having to sharpen the damage out from abusive use of your knife makes you less willing to undertake those types of use. That said, you can use your knife appropriately to your hearts content without worry; almost every well heat treated steel can be brought from dull to sharp with ease using the right tools (read on for what I use).

It’s Good for the Environment

Sharpening your own knives reduces waste and pollution. If you send your knives out to be sharpened you’ll use a box, packing tape, etc. that could have been saved. Then it’ll have to be shipped (or driven by you, in rare cases where you have a professional sharpening service nearby) likely hundreds of miles by truck, contributing harmful emissions to the ecosystem. Then all that will have to be done again for the knife to get back to you. Doesn’t learning how to sharpen your own knives sound worth the slight trouble, and great eventual satisfaction, if it can help keep our planet and its inhabitants healthy?

It’s Good for your Mental Health

Sharpening knives can act as a form of mindful meditation. Mindful meditation is a practice of focusing on a particular phenomenon, often the breath, and allowing thoughts to go by without attaching to them. While meditation might seem hokey or overly trendy to some, it’s been shown to have real benefits for things like productivity, mental health, and cognitive function. Knife sharpening lends itself extremely well to mindfulness practice because it requires repetitive focused action (the passing of the edge on the stone at a maintained angle) with tactile feedback that provides a very fitting phenomenon on which to rest the mind.

It’s Good for Travel

Sharpening your own knives, or at least knowing how to sharpen the knife you’re using, makes travel more convenient. The last thing you want, if you’re able to bring your EDC with you on your travels, is to be half way through a trip and your knife already dulled. Also, I (and I think many others) prefer to go the AirBnB route when traveling so that I can experience the area more fully… and cook for myself, rather than having to go out for every meal. The problem is, most places you stay have knives that just don’t live up to the sharpness we enthusiasts have come to expect. While you often can’t bring your knives with you when you travel, you can almost always bring sharpening gear (especially something like the minimalist setup I use, described below). That way with just a few minutes of work you can have sharp and usable tools, whether it be your knife or your home away from home’s knife.

It’s Good for your Relationships

Everybody loves to have a sharp knife. Being able to sharpen your friends’ and family’s knives can be a gift that you can give over and over. The great thing is, it’s not something that only knife enthusiasts appreciate! The vast majority of people use a kitchen knife regularly, and most struggle to keep them sharp. With a portable setup you can always be ready to make someone’s day by sharpening their carry knife or kitchen knife.

My Sharpening Setup

So what do I use to sharpen? I prefer to use a minimalist setup for the majority of my sharpening. For a long time I used a DMT Diafold, a Spyderco Double Stuff, and the Stropping Young Lad Pocket Strop. However, I’ve now pared it down to an even more minimal setup that works just as well for me: the WESN Pocket Sharpener and a Sunshine Cloth. I’ve been extremely impressed with the versatility of both these items. The WESN stone has an aggressive 400 grit diamond plate on one side, which I find can be used both to cut a new apex if the edge is damaged and also to bring an existing apex together. The other side of the WESN stone is a fine ceramic plate that is great for touching up an edge from working sharp to shaving sharp. It’s literally pocket sized and comes in a nice leather slip, so you can take it pretty much anywhere. I have really been enjoying this stone, and it has effectively filled the roles of both the DMT and Spyderco stones I previously used. While I still love and use the Stropping Young Lad Pocket Strop, it’s no longer in stock and the maker isn’t sure when or if more will be available. I have used Sunshine Cloths for years and they work surprisingly effectively as a strop, as well as their normal use for polishing and cleaning. I wrap a Sunshine Cloth around my WESN Pocket Sharpener and slap a rubber band around it and I’m pretty much covered for most sharpening jobs, and the whole setup fits easily in a pocket. I highly recommend these tools for a simple sharpening setup!

Here’s a great article from WESN on how to use their Pocket sharpener

Conclusion

While these are all great reasons to learn to sharpen knives and to sharpen your own knives, sharpening is also just plain fulfilling. Maintaining your own knives and helping others maintain theirs provides a feeling of small but useful accomplishment and self sufficiency, and we all deserve to feel that way sometimes. I often say “the world feels right when your knives are sharp”, and I think if you decide to sharpen your own knives you’ll understand what I mean!

I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook!

Some links in this article are affiliate links. That means that if you click them and purchase the product you won’t pay any more than you normally would, but I get a commission from the sale. This is just a way for you to support Knife Thoughts. Be sure to try my discount codes “KnifeThoughts” or “KT10”!

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Waynorth Cutlery “OIL THE JOINTS” Hats Available Now!

Waynorth Cutlery "OIL THE JOINTS" Hat

Waynorth Cutlery “OIL THE JOINTS” Hat

Show your support for Waynorth Cutlery with this “OIL THE JOINTS” hat. It’s 100% cotton with a low profile, an adjustable strap, and curved visor.

$21.00
Shop now

Show your support for Waynorth Cutlery with this minimalist “OIL THE JOINTS” baseball hat! As with the shirts, a portion of the sales of these will go directly to Charlie Campagna AKA Waynorth. Another huge thanks to Steve for creating the design files to match the tang stamps. The framed “OIL THE JOINTS” design looks really clean in embroidery. As for the hat, it’s the classic cotton unstructured baseball hat with a curved bill and adjustable buckle strap. I think you’ll like it!

I think these turned out great!

I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook!

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Knife Thoughts 2021 GEC Rendezvous Retrospect

This past weekend Great Eastern Cutlery held their yearly open house gathering for enthusiasts, which they call the Rendezvous. I always look forward to the Rendezvous with great excitement, and was sorely disappointed that it had to be cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. I was able to attend this year, and I want to share my experience here; there was a lot of what makes me love the Rendezvous that was the same, but there were also some new aspects to this year’s event.

What is the Great Eastern Cutlery Rendezvous?

The Rendezvous has always been the best time for Great Eastern Cutlery enthusiasts to gather and discuss the knives they love, and also an opportunity to obtain some of the more rare and unusual knives by GEC. I have gone to the Rendezvous each year since 2014, and you can read about why you should go to the Rendezvous at this link. I love the Rendezvous because it brings together a wide range of people all with one thing in common – a love and appreciation of the best production traditional knives being made currently, at the place of their manufacture. Everyone is willing and ready to show off their collections, discuss past and future knives, and everything else GEC and traditional knife related. You also get the opportunity to “see behind the curtain”. Bill, William, Joan Mae, and other employees are welcoming and magnanimous with their time. You get the feeling they are proud of the products they make and happy to discuss them with their most loyal customers. Finally, there’s the opportunity to meet and talk with GEC’s dealers. Aside from the people, which are the true draw of the Rendezvous, attendance also gives access to purchase the Rendezvous Special and SFA knives. The Rendezvous Special is a knife made in limited numbers and released in part on each day of the event to commemorate the gathering. I’ve collected them since 2014, and they’re usually rather unique with special cover materials or shield and always an etch signifying the year. SFA stands for Special Factory Assembly, which are knives made from parts from previous runs of knives in unique configurations (formerly called parts knives, which you can read about at this link). These SFAs are some of the lowest production number knives, often falling between 2 and 20 made of each configuration, and therefore highly sought after and honestly just really cool. Both the Rendezvous Special and SFAs are only available during the Rendezvous at the factory store. So there’s a lot to love about the Rendezvous as it’s always been that draws regulars back, and new people out, every year!

  • The ticket system was a great call by GEC
  • Bill showing off the Rendezvous Special

What made the 2021 Rendezvous different?

Being that the last was 2 years ago due to the pandemic, I expected some changes for the 2021 Rendezvous. The first change was in the date of the event. It had always been the first full weekend in August. I believe that was chosen because it coincided both with the Titusville Oil Festival and, more importantly, the Queen Knife Show. However, with Queen out of business since 2018 and the Oil Festival cancelled both in 2020 and 2021, there’s no longer any particular reason to have it then. They moved it to June, the weekend after Blade Show. When I asked why that date was chosen they indicated it was for the nicer weather, which is a pretty solid reason being that much of the event happens outdoors. This year did end up having beautiful weather throughout both days of the event. Another difference was in the line for the event. As crazy as it sounds, people line up outside the factory overnight to get in line early enough to get the Rendezvous Special and best picks of the SFAs. 2014-2016 I didn’t line up, just rolled in and was lucky to get the Rendezvous Specials. However, 2017-2019 I lined up about 2am, 12am, and 10pm respectively and was always well under 10th in line. I drove up after work the day before this year, and on the way saw online that there were over 10 in line already. I expected it to be much busier this year, but not so much earlier than normal. To be honest, I was shocked and concerned I wouldn’t be able to get a Rendezvous Special. Thankfully, not many came after that post before I made it there and I ended up under 20th in line (which gave me a good shot at the Rendezvous Special). As the night progressed more and more came, especially around 4am. The discussion between those waiting overnight is always enjoyable and interesting, but it’s still a long wait. At about 6am, an hour before the store opened, Bill Howard (GEC owner / president) came out and showed the Rendezvous Special knife and described their new system for purchases at the event. For 2019 they had indicated they would use a ticket system to order the factory sales during the Rendezvous, but didn’t end up implementing any system. Although no major issues arose, there was some definite jostling and even I think some position pilfering. So I was happy to hear that they were using a ticket system this year. Each person in line was given a ticket, like those used for lotteries and 50/50s, denoting their place in line. 5 people were allowed in the store at a time, and each time someone left the person with the next sequential ticket was allowed in. As you left the store you were able to take another ticket so that you could go in again, but only after everyone who was there had a chance to go in once (special thanks to Rosie for handling the ticket system all day both days). I think this ticket system worked brilliantly; it allowed attendees to be able to mill around and talk and see the displays rather than holding their place in line, it made the experience in the store less stressful because it wasn’t so crowded that you could barely move (like recent previous years), and it made for a fair system for those who came later to still get a chance to go into the store while allowing those who arrived early to go back in if they desired. Speaking of going back into the store a second time, like in 2019, they enforced a limit of 2 knives per purchase. So if you wanted to buy more than two knives you’d take a second ticket on your way out and then were allowed back into the store once that ticket was called.One other big change for this year was the time of the picnic on Saturday. Previous years the picnic, which is the last portion of the event, was always at lunch time. This year they moved it to 4pm, with the factory store closing at 1pm. I am not sure whether this was a positive or negative change, as it does give some rest time for attendees and preparation time for GEC staff between the show and the picnic, but it also makes for a longer day and some down time. I think this year’s Rendezvous kept much or all of what I’ve always loved about it, but with some changes that made for an overall even better event.

What did I take away from this year’s Rendezvous?

I took away a treasure trove of experiences and lessons from the 2021 GEC Rendezvous, not to mention some incredible knives! I really just thoroughly enjoyed seeing and talking with the Rendezvous regulars. The density of Great Eastern Cutlery and traditional knife knowledge gathered at the Rendezvous can’t be found many places, and certainly isn’t something I have gotten to experience with such a community vibe in any other setting. I also felt that there were a lot more people going around to the table displays at this year’s Rendezvous, and I got to meet a lot of new GEC enthusiasts. I’ll be honest and admit that I greatly appreciated the comments from several people who said that they enjoy Knife Thoughts, and even heard a really touching story about how reading my blog and watching my videos helped a fellow enthusiast through some tough days. A lesson I’m taking from this year’s Rendezvous (that I also took from 2019’s but didn’t implement) is that I need to prepare my Knife Thoughts display better. I should plan, for sure, what knives I want to sell and how much I want to charge for them. I had a box of knives I was considering selling, but ended up deciding not to sell some of them (one of which was after someone had decided to buy it). I also only had a general idea of what I would charge for them, when I should have had a price sheet made ahead of time to reference. I ran out of stickers to give out towards the end of the first day, which I use in place of business cards. In the future I’ll order extra ahead of time, and I also want to get other Knife Thoughts swag to give out. I also meant to have Waynorth Cutlery shirts (available here) for sale, but didn’t order them in time. Having a second person to tag team watching the table would be really helpful, so that each of us could go in the store or walk around and talk without the table being unattended. By the way, huge thanks to Dan and Ben for watching my table some. Finally, I’d like to get a banner to better show that the table is “Knife Thoughts”. I ended up not going to the picnic this year, but next year I’d like to plan my time better so that I can be rested and ready to attend and enjoy the picnic.

I had a great time at the Great Eastern Cutlery 2021 Rendezvous. If you enjoy these knives and it’s feasible for you to come to Titusville, I think you’d be happy you did. I have started a (completely unofficial and unaffiliated with GEC) Facebook group for those who plan to attend the 2022 Rendezvous, which you can find at this link. Make sure to check out the video below where I show and discuss the knives I got at this year’s Rendezvous. I hope to see lots of new faces mingled among the regulars at the next GEC Rendezvous!

I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook!