Blue Russian

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ILikeStilettos
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Blue Russian

Post by ILikeStilettos »

Next up is another knife from the Russian Prison guy, Mikael. I don't recall the exact story but this one was from a regular builder who didn't create many of them. I've been in contact with another new collector and forum member who described this very knife, so when I saw the offer I snapped it up. I want to send it to Duke so he can look it over, after than I am selling to the guy who wanted it in the first place.

The knife is ultra slim and weighs a bit under 3 oz. It's a BOBC, very fast, and the overall length is 9-1/4" with a 4-1/4" radically upswept blade. The pommel end of the knife is bent down about 15° so that the tip stows nicely and doesn't peek. The Russians all seem to have a propensity for working within one metal thickness and then splitting it to allow the blade to sit in between. It's a good approach, and it works very well, it's just a real bastard to build that way. The blade measures right at .010" and the frame at the spine side is .0270 and flares to .295" at the blade well. This is the very definition of thin. (The last shot in this post attempts to show that aspect.)

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This particular knife has a stain on the mirror polished blade, almost like an etchant was allowed to remain in place for a long period of time. It can, no doubt, be buffed out, but since I'm not keeping it, I will leave that to the next owner.

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Another thing the Russians do is to use clear scale material, like Lucite and apply the color underneath. This gives the color a reall glossy look, but when viewed edge-on (as in the next shot) it just disappears.

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The curvature you see in this picture is just photographic distortion by using macro focus close in. The knife is actually quite straight. It's interesting that the button tension spring is on the outside. The blade is flat ground on both sides and centered in the well, but the false edge is one-sided (chisel grind) so that looks a bit odd.

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I'd love to know how this knife was manufactured. A single piece of steel is either formed into a U-shaped channel, or a thicker piece is milled out to create the blade well. That seems unlikely because it's a massive amount of milling, and difficult to do accurately. However, since the bottom is so rough, this seems to be the case. At the front top of the knife (not shown) the channel is cut all the way through and the shoulder of the blade hits against it to come to a full stop and allow the BOBC mechanism time to engage. Again, it's an elegantly simple solution - but how the hell did they build it?

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Thanks for listening.
Dave Sause
oldandfat@cox.net
(405) 694-3690

"And you're telling me this because, somehow, I look like I give a shit?"

"Let a smile be your umbrella and you're gonna get your dumb ass wet."
Michaelz
Posts: 143
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2015 7:22 pm

Re: Blue Russian

Post by Michaelz »

Who in the World can do more detailed reviews than Dave? Hell yeah!

Thank You, Sir!
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daddyloko
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Re: Blue Russian

Post by daddyloko »

Fantastic looking knife Dave.
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ILikeStilettos
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Re: Blue Russian

Post by ILikeStilettos »

daddyloko wrote:Fantastic looking knife Dave.
Thanks, man.
Dave Sause
oldandfat@cox.net
(405) 694-3690

"And you're telling me this because, somehow, I look like I give a shit?"

"Let a smile be your umbrella and you're gonna get your dumb ass wet."
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HDC
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Joined: Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:46 am

Re: Blue Russian

Post by HDC »

Stunning
stay thirsty my friend
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