Jay Fisher - Fine Custom Knives

"Vulpecula"

• Size: Knife: Length overall: 8.6" (21.9 cm), Blade Length: 4.0" (10.2 cm), Thickness: .159" (4.0 mm)
• Weight: Knife: 7.0 oz. (198 grams) Sheath: 3.5 oz. (99 grams)
• Blade: O-1 high carbon tungsten-vanadium alloy tool steel, hardened and tempered to 58HRC, mirror polished, hot-blued
• Bolsters, Fittings: 304 Austenitic Stainless Steel, mirror polished, hand-engraved
• Handle: Silver Leaf Serpentine Gemstone
• Sheath: Hand-carved, hand-dyed leather shoulder inlaid with Frog skin
• Knife: The name Vulpecula comes from a constellation in the Northern sky known as the Little Fox. This is a nice-sized drop point knife, clean and well-executed with good strength in a compact and beautiful package. I made the blade in a high tungsten-vanadium version of O1, an oil-hardening tool steel made for tough work with good wear resistance superior to all plain carbon steels, and superior to typical O1. This alloy results in a blade that has a high concentration of tungsten carbides and vanadium carbides, both very hard particles that are resistant to wear. I mirror polished the blade to a bright finish and then hot blued the blade with a sodium bluing passivation process. This is not a coating; this is the bare blade, with black oxidation that helps inhibit rust and corrosion. This is the same bluing process found on fine firearms, and on the knife blades I extend the process by doubling the time, resulting in a passive surface that is very deep. The blade is beautifully hollow ground for a thin, uniform and regular cutting edge that will remain thin throughout the life of the knife, generations with simple care. The blade is honed to a razor sharp single bevel edge. The knife blade is fully fileworked and hand-engraved for a delicate and graceful full pattern completely around the fully tapered tang. The Vulpecula is bolstered with zero care high nickel, high chromium 304 stainless steel bolsters, into which I've hand-engraved a pattern that matches the flowing lines of the gemstone handle. The handle is Silver Leaf Serpentine, a gemstone that gets its name for the green, snakelike appearance and is a hydrous magnesium iron phyllosilicate This serpentine has interesting silvery lines that exhibit a metallic, glassy luster in bright light, one of the few types of serpentine to exhibit this interesting sheen, that's why it's also sometimes called silver sheen serpentine. All parts of the handle are rounded, contoured, smoothed, radiused, and polished for a smooth, comfortable feel. The knife has a light blade feel, with the balance point between the first two fingers on the handle.
• Sheath: This knife needed a special sheath so I constructed a high-backed design that displays a good portion of the striking handle while being easy to unsheathe. The high back protects the wearer from the blade and handle when sheathing and unsheathing, and places the belt loop high in the back. The sheath is made from heavy 9-10 oz. leather shoulder, hand-carved and hand-dyed, inlaid with very nice exotic Frog skin in grays with fascinating patterns. The tough, durable frog skin is inlaid full in the front, full in the back, and even in the belt loop. The sheath is hand-stitched with waterproof black polyester, sealed with an acrylic gloss finish for protection and longevity, waxed and buffed to a high gloss.
• A classical form of knife, simple, clean, yet elegant with full embellishment and premium materials and finish, unlike no other.

Thanks, J. S.!