Wombat Knives camp knife

[jindydiver]

I bought a knife a while ago out of interest in what other people are doing, and I was pretty disappointed at the quality. I thought I might put up a review of the knife so others can see what they think.

The knife is the “Camp knife” from Wombat knives. They advertise in some of the hunting magazines and the story goes that a half dozen AKG members got together to make a line of knives to sell under a common banner. This particular knife is advertised for A$265.

The knife with sheath
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v243/jindydiver/2007/wombatreview1.jpg

The first thing I found odd was the fact the knife was hollow ground. A “camp knife” is different things to different people (maybe), but as a general rule it is something that can be used for a number of chores and these include some heavy duty use. The hollow grind on this model is very deep and the thin edge (less than 1/16 of an inch) stays that thin for at least 10mm from the cutting edge. My first thought was that this is awfully thin for a knife that is to be used for perhaps battoning wood or removing animals heads, even if it is one of my fav’ steels D2.

I have heard it said that the measure of a good knife maker is his ability to cover up mistakes, I don’t happen to agree with this and either way the maker of this knife wasn’t very good at it.

The blade is satin finished and it doesn’t take a good eye to see that if it wasn’t then the grind would make it a second. The plunge cut obviously gave the maker some trouble and you can see and feel quite easily that the grind at the plunge is deeper than on the rest of the blade (like the maker angled the handle end into the wheel to neaten the plunge). The cutting edge of the blade is zero ground for about 1mm before it widens and then an edge has to be cut in.
You can see it very clearly in this pic
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v243/jindydiver/2007/wombatreview3.jpg

Also you can see where the spine of the blade was hit with a hammer as it was forced into the guard and the edge of the spine mushroomed a little.

The guard has some flat spots in the radiusing, not bad, but again not what I would expect from a custom knife of this price.

The handle scale doesn’t mate flush with the guard. When the handle was shaped the guard left some rough metal chips imbedded in the join. Again you can see this easily in this photo.

Anyway
I took the knife out on a hunt to see how it would perform.
The size and shape make it look like a camp knife and it performed as I thought it would on the chores I used it for while butchering 2 deer out in the paddock. It was sharp and stayed sharp (as I expect D2 to be able to do) and it finished the job although it was messier and slower than it would have been had I been using a knife better designed for the job. I resigned myself to the chance of damage and used the knife to cut the spine on one of the deer (and to split two pelvises. Just as well I wasn’t worried about damage LOL, the edge didn’t like it at all and I now have some ripples (you can see these in the pics also).

The sheath is a fairly robust bit of gear and it would probably last a few years, the problem with the one on my knife is that it doesn’t fit properly. The welt is too deep at the throat and the knife has to cut it to be able to enter the sheath.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v243/jindydiver/2007/wombatreview2.jpg

With this profile and grind this knife might have made a great fighter, if it had a double guard, but as a camp knife it just doesn’t cut it. All in all I think that anybody buying this knife as advertised (a “camp knife”) would be unhappy at the price of their mistake. I know that if I had bought this knife new I would have been.

[Waldganger]

it looks alright but upon closer inspection I agree.

A 250 plus folder can have minor flaws but a fixed blade in that range really shouldn't. The only flaw it should have is that it can't do everything.

[mayall]

It is hard to cut that edge in . at the start of the blade . but i try to get it even. but a big knife like that .I hollow grind it but leave about .5 to 1 thick edge so it can do the jobs like chop . Just check out the jaw breaker on my site. the customer even used it to chop thought some vines and open a tin of peas.
but I no what you are saying jindy

[crazimofo]

i'm no knife maker ,but it looks tidy to me,being a slaughterman for ten years my knives are that thin you can see the blade flex(for want of a better word)when i run them over a steel(with a bit of pressure)and as long as you know where your joints are,you don't gap the blade,and if your hunting you should have a bit more time.but in saying that i would find it hard to justify paying that much for any knife(victorinox all the way)but that's just my opinion....greg.

[Stewart Townsend]

Regarding hollow grinds. I have seen photos of old Sheffield makers using big wheels to hollow grind big knives. Depending on the size of the wheel and the width of the steel you can make a servicable heavy use knife using a hollow grind with a thick edge as Paul intimated. I would like to get a 14 inch contact wheel but the price .......well $375 USD, it won't happen anytime soon.

[mayall]

Hi stewart
there is a place in melbourne you can buy contact wheels or are they dear then that. so when are you and myself going to catch up. I live in cairns
Cheers Paul

[Stewart Townsend]

Yes it would be good to go to Cairns, (I am at Burpengary) but I think the next trip I will doing is in May 2008 to Melbourne.

There is a guy in laventrix.com who has made a wheel out of ply. I have seen other sites as well. Just need to get into it. IMO it should work.

[mayall]

I am hoping to make it down there as well . so mit see you there

[jamie]

Hi Jindy,

The knife you bought was made by Adam Parker (AP) who is a Guild member. (As you probably all ready knew)

Did you get it at the Canberra knife show?

Wombat contacted a lot of knife makers to make knives for them, myself included. And they have or had some very skilled makers making knives for them.

The thing is that the price you paid for your knife is not the price that the maker got paid.

Wombat is trying to do all of the advertising and leg work to get a makers name out to the masses but if your not in the know how would you know which maker made the knife unless you ask.

I am certain that if you were to buy one of Adam's knives off his table at a knife show that it would be of a better quality than the one you bought from Wombat.

[RazorX]

Jindy...

I reckon you take such pride in your knife making that it is easy to find mistakes in other knifes! IMO if I wanted a good blade, I would see you before getting anything else.

When you there are production lines in knives, or anything for that matter, quality seems to be skimped here and there. To get something good, you need to get it hand made by someone who takes pride in their work.

Hey Jindy, can you post some pics of your blades in this thread? They are awesome.

[Hefty]

The thing is that the price you paid for your knife is not the price that the maker got paid.

Wombat is trying to do all of the advertising and leg work to get a makers name out to the masses but if your not in the know how would you know which maker made the knife unless you ask.

I am certain that if you were to buy one of Adam's knives off his table at a knife show that it would be of a better quality than the one you bought from Wombat.
Don't these 2 ideas contradict each other? I don't have much experience with knives but it seems advertising products is the same all over. If Wombat want to help makers get their name out there (which is great and good on them) then wouldn't they want to make sure the products they release are of the same standard as the maker would put out for themselves?
I'm not meaning to have a go at them, just trying to clarify (Mabye I've interpreted your post wrong)

Jono.

[Stewart Townsend]

I reckon you take such pride in your knife making that it is easy to find mistakes in other knifes!

RazorX, I think you are correct there. I have made a few knives and IMO you have to be critical of your work so that you can improve.

[jamie]

Okay so I was trying to be nice with my first post.

Wombat is the middle man and with all middle men they want to make a buck or two, why else would you do it.

As for the workmanship side of things well if you bought the knife over the net or though a magazine add and found the knife not up to the workmanship standard you would expect from a custom made knife, personally I would try to return It and get a refund.
I can't speak for the maker on why the knife he made is not up to his full standard.

I will say that if you go to a knife show you can see for yourself the quality of a knife before you buy or the quality of the makers skills so you can place an order.

At my first and only show I exhibited at so far one long time maker was looking over some of the knives on my table and commented that most of them had "hooks" in the satin finish. I said that I knew that they were there and the reply was that "they should not be on your table if you knew they have flaws in them."

So go to a knife show to buy your custom made knife, study it at the makers table ask questions about the heat treat, materials, what was the knifes intended uses and the makers warranty.
Most reputable makers will offer a 30 day money back guarantee.

[jindydiver]

RazorX, I think you are correct there. I have made a few knives and IMO you have to be critical of your work so that you can improve.


Which is the reason I bought this knife in the first place. I see many mistakes in my work and feel embarrassed sometimes asking money for them, buying this knife was to further my understanding of what the standard is for custom knives in Australia.
I had a look at some knives at the Canberra knife show and I saw some amazing work, but for all the talk about how the guild is something to aspire to I was amazed at some of the less than stellar work I saw there too. I saw many knives with gaps filled with epoxy where the tang wasn't flattened properly, and I saw one knife, a nice damascus piece (selling for over $300) that has an inclusion in the steel as big as a match head and file marks all over the face of the guard where the maker had been cleaning up his solder joint. My experience there certainly helped me feel better about the knives I sell. At the same show I saw some of the cleanest work I have ever seen (and in the style I like to make myself) in John Foxwell's work. His knives were selling for $150 and less and FWIW I think people should have a good look at his work before he comes to his senses and puts his prices up :D I am sure you know John's work Stewart, and are aware of it's similarity to Mike Snody's, both in it's style and in it's workmanship, and Mikes knives work out the door as quick as they are made and sell for twice what John is charging.

[Waldganger]

I've seen Johns work on Laventrix and they are very nice. I plan on buying a knife of three of him in the following years.

Stewart has some pretty good stuff out there too, in fact I'm hoping to get him to make me some work knives.

I've seen less than perfect knives out there and they ask more money than what they're worth. but in other cases like Jindy said you can get something dirt cheap from some other guys

[Stewart Townsend]

jindydiver
and are aware of it's similarity to Mike Snody's
No I wasn't, but a quick Google search of Mike Snody and now I am. There are a lot of knifemakers in the world, I have looked at Loveless a bit.
I like John's work.

Waldganger
Stewart has some pretty good stuff out there too
Thankyou