There's a chill in the air...
There's a chill in the air...
It must be time for a fire... and the Bark River Knives Boone II
Time to throw on the LL Bean Chamois shirt, tie on the Red Wing Iron Rangers and belt up the Bark River Knives Boone II… that’s right, Autumn is here!
We have had perfect weather here in Northern Virginia for the past few weeks as summer took it’s bow and school year started back up.
This is my favorite time of year and is much beloved in our household.
Even though my ladies are “indoor cats”, we love to hang out together at night on our back patio under our huge Tulip Poplar, stare at the fire and catch up.
While the ladies sit mummified in their hoodies and blankets, I tend to the fire, stolid, pensive, manly… and with an amazing old school outdoors knife on my belt.
The Bark River Knives Boone II is a 6-inch clip point, stacked leather affair of the sort that once offered inspiration for the Kabar fighting/utility knife.
G.I.s showed up in theater with clip point hunting knives in numbers until this style of knife became ubiquitous before the Kabar became the standard. The 3V blade has a razor sharp yet robust convex ground edge with a fuller and an unsharpened swedge to make it a lighter and more effective penetrator.
I use the Boone II mostly to make feather sticks and to cut the net webbing that bundles the firewood, so essentially, I could be using any knife (like the Trailmaster I baton kindling with).
The Boone II makes me nostalgic for the vague notion of a simpler time, one that I never experienced, but Idealize.
I’ve heard it said that nostalgia is history after a few drinks, and I fully recognize that I am too used to the modern way of life to flourish in a more primitive setting, unless forced.
But carrying the Boone II reminds me that things don’t have to be so complicated and though I love my High-Speed-Low-Drag combat/fighting/tactical knives (the more dramatic, the better) if I can’t make it work with a simple leather handled clip point, I’ve lost the plot.
So, this Autumn, strap on a knife that makes you sentimental or drop a nostalgia-inducing folder in your pocket and remember things can be pretty simple if you let them be.
Knife Junkie Out.
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James Rodebaugh, ABS Master Bladesmith and ABS Instructor: The Knife Junkie Podcast (Episode 534)
James Rodebaugh, ABS Master Bladesmith and ABS Instructor, is featured this week on Episode 534 of The Knife Junkie Podcast (theknifejunkie.com/534).
Rodebaugh believes that it is high levels of fit-and-finish that push knives from functional tools to functional art.
Find ABS Master Bladesmith and ABS Instructor James Rodebaugh on Instagram at www.instagram.com/jamesrodebaughbladesmith and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/james.rodebaugh.7/.
Buy Jim a Coffee
Why not buy Jim a coffee (or other beverage of his choice) for his production work on The Knife Junkie Podcast, Thursday Night Knives, and The Knife Junkie Website.
