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"And I feel like a knife, these days are calling
I feel like a knife, sharpened like steel
Touched by the hand of the gods on these golden mornings
I feel like a knife for you."
"KNIFE" Justin Sullivan 1991
Why ? Because it’s take a razor sharp edge and keeps it, it’s a tougher than stainless steel super steel and its edge stability is better: no chipping or warping in my uses. Of course it will get stained but that is the part of his multiple charms. This is a steel used in blade competitions and Gayle Bradley is a fan of it.
The Yojimbo2 design asked for a very thin point and a stronger, tougher steel. M4 is a must if you want to use it (like myself) in everyday chores… hard !!
Because such great ergos ask for hard working.
Compared to my previous YO2, the closing sound “TICK” got a much higher pitch than my S90V version. I had noticed that kind of higher pitch on another super tool steel: Maxamet.
Does it mean the steel is harder ? Will see.
So stay tuned!
I have changed the OEM clip for this one.
It’s a shortest deep carry clip.
The Para 3 in Maxamet got the same high pitch TICK.
Dirty blade ready for some chores.
Both knives are excellent EDC. The Yo2 offers really powerful cuts on wood.
A word which comes back a lot with my Yo2 review is “power”. The heft of the saber ground hollow blade and the confortable thick spine is a call for pushcuts and “very light” chopping. You will see what I mean in a few photographies…
Deshouldering and starting to get a thinner edge. The factory edge is excellent though.
“Ghost” and “Jade” together: same materials.
The handle lengths are different just because one is standing on its clip.
Push cuts are easy.
This is the kind of “very light” chopping cuts which are made in blink of an eye.
The Yo2 is a great trimmer. The edge bites deep and the straight edge won’t let go.
It’s very efficient !
M4 steel erases any fear of breaking the thin tip easily but I do respect too much my knife to try any lateral forcing. At least I’m no afraid to use that blade tip hard !
Rinsing and cleaning the blade in a spring stream. No real patina so far but soon it will come. M4 get darker in a slow way on my experience: no hurry !
But that Jade handle goes so well with natural environments…
There is a lot of charm in the Yo2: the heavy blade smooth action, the straight edge power and the great ergos ! Nobody seems to notice it while used in a restaurant, the Jade helps a lot to make it less a weapon and more a tool.
My first experience with Massdrop exclusive design was one year ago. The Falcon has been a surprise in its quality and design and since has been my Spyderco Techno replacement. The Gent is even a better deal !! We are in presence of a real masterpiece in modern cutlery and, pardon my French but I weight my words.
First thing I have noticed is the blade to handle ratio: in a folder, the blade will be most of the time shorther than the handle but with some designers tricks you can give the illusion… It was already the case with the Falcon: we got a real elegant knife despite being short, the blade is perfectly centered, the blade evenly ground, the action is smooth as butter and the edge cut my hairs… WOW !!
The large choil seems to be a Ferrum Forge signature and it is handy for precision cutting. Also when not using it I can hold the handle with 4 fingers. It is much more ergonomic and fonctionnal that my Izulas in that matter.
The lock is similar to the Spyderco PPT. It is a thick pride liner lock made of bead blasted grey titanium. The slabs are G10 with a very nice texture. Attention to details is stunning: quality is at the rendez vous. The lock feels strong and any way your hand is protected by the flipper used a guard and by the choil if you choose to use it. This is a very solid folder.
The blade is exquisitely ground and the edge is thin, razor sharp our of the box.
The opening construction is ultra minimalist and VERY EASY to keep clean !!
I love ultra minimalists design as found on the Spyderco K2 for example.
The spine is gently chanferred for an excellent confort in thumb pushing cuttings.
Something I won’t have to do myself.
Immediatly you want to play with and put the high saber flat ground S35VN blade in its pace. A steel first introduced to me through the Spyderco Native 5.
As a Lady/Gent knife it is small like a jewel.
Non threatening is a must in that kind of EDC knife. But don’t get fooled by its size; this is a real workhorse !
The detent is a little harder than the one of my Falcon or my ZT0562CF but it works and fires every time. It is really smooth and no side play so far. I was not able easily to open the blade without using the flipper.
The deep carry clip is well thought and it makes the knife disappearing in the pocket. EDC is often better in low profile configuration.
So let’s put a little convexing on that baby: Stuff 2, Fallkniven DC4 and leather…
Diamonds are in play for the first round. The thin edge makes it easy to scratch and of course I have scratched it. You can notice the very nice belly on the blade.
But nothing some use and future stropping won’t erase in a “beautility” attempt. The idea is just to bring convex in the middle of the belly.
Leather stropping, razor sharp let try it on my favorite test in ergos and edge: the Bottle Butt !!
As you can see it was an easy cut for that little knife. There is power in this one. The blade is just thick enough to provide a comfortable spine to strongly push through.
The Belly always help for push cutting in hard material.
So far what do we got:
an elegant, non threatening short folder with premium materials (Titanium and S35VN).
It can be deployed and close with one hand. Great balance with its sweet spot just behind the pivot. Great ergos, thin edge and easy to clean ?
This is almost the perfect EDC, worst it the best EDC you can buy for 80 dollars !!
This kind of high quality knife could be the only folder to bring with you anywhere. A great little big knife ready for anything ! Thank you to my friend Dan Sharpe for having introduced me to that little wonder !
SPECS
Produced by Drop
Designed by Ferrum Forge
Manufactured by WE Knife (in Guangdong, China)
Blade: CPM-S35VN stainless steel
HRC: 58–61
Blade type: Drop-point
Grind: Flat saber
Finish: Stonewashed
Handle: 6AL4V titanium with rosewood or carbon fiber scales
Lock: Liner lock
Open: Flipper tab
Ceramic detent ball
Caged pivot bearings, hardened steel washers
Choil for easy sharpening
Reversible, deep-carry steel pocket clip
Blade thickness: 0.13 in (3.2 mm)
Handle thickness: 0.4 in (1.1 cm)
Blade length: 3 in (7.8 cm)
Closed length: 3.6 in (9.7 cm)
Overall length: 6.6 in (17.5 cm)
Weight: 2.4 oz (68 g)
Founded in 2009, Ferrum Forge started from humble beginnings in Elliot Williamson’s garage in Southern California. Using found pieces of steel like old files and leaf springs, Elliot gradually taught himself the art of knifemaking and metallurgy. As his skills and passion grew, so too did the demand for his work. Luckily, Elliot’s brother Chris joined the team in 2012 to help expand Ferrum Forge to what it is today: a small operation dedicated to designing and producing custom knives through a rigorous process of development, machining, iteration, and quality control.
The story of the Gent starts back in 2016 when Elliot and Chris Williamson from Ferrum Forge teamed up with Drop (formerly MassDrop) for a cross brand collaboration. Ferrum Forge designed a series of unique Drop x Ferrum Forge knives that they produced, but none would compare to the Gent. After the success of the first few models, Drop asked for a less aggressive design better suited for carrying in an office environment. It was time for Elliot from Ferrum Forge to break away from aggressive, “tactical” style and give the world his take on a modern, gentlemen’s folding knife. Not only did he accomplish his goal, he created the most popular, best selling knife that Drop ever sold.
Ironically, Elliot didn’t like the Gent after he rendered it in 3D. His artistic side screamed it was boring and too simple. Meanwhile, Chris, lacking that artistic side, saw the elegance in the simplicity and loved it. Drop cast the tie breaking vote and the Gent came to life.
The Gent started their evolution toward slimmer, lighter, more pocket friendly, and less expensive knives. It was the first ever Ferrum Forge liner lock design and would eventually lead them to creating liner locks like the Stinger, Mini Archbishop, and Prolix.
Unfortunately their collaboration with Drop ran its course and they discontinued the Gent.
Back to trying to get a patina on cruwear after my first attempt.
Because lemon juice is not smelly and we use it a lot in the house, I have tried to let the blade all night in a tissue imbibed.
Tissue seems to be some kind of catalyst as it help to keep a contact between the citric acid and the surface of the blade.
In the morning the tissue was dark!
And you can notice rust starting to form in between strokes of the patina.
Rust is removed with some polishing which keeps the patina.
So here we are now with a kind of camouflage results.
It looks forced but should “mild” with uses but yes you can get a Patina from Cruwear with lemon juice and a night…
Which means if you forget your knife in the sink after making some salad, you can get rust on your Cruwear blade and a very swaggy patina.
Forcing a Patina on Cruwear!
Why?
Because I’m going to the sea and I just need to be certain it won’t pit.
Now Cruwear seems tricky compared to 52100 or Maxamet.
Let see how it will get…
45 minutes later… No patina yet some stains…
“It’s not as rusty as 1095 usually, so it’s easy to get complacent. It can go 3-4 days easier than O-1 or 1095 but 3-4 months is a different story. It’s easy to get fooled by steels with this level of chrome ( 8%) as to corrosion resistance. It will appear as a tiny spot of rust. Easy to overlook as it does not make it apparent that spot is deepening, not getting wider. The surface layer of rust covers up the hole. ”
The Mastiff
And he was right…
Trying to mix oxygen and vinegar using tissues and apple vinegar ?… Nope.
Apple vinegar and apple sugar under the sun….. Nope.
Aceto di Modena…. nope.
Even in the wind…
Naaah forget it. This steel won’t stain beautifully… Just a bit but not enough in my taste.
It will perhaps pit if let unclean some weeks but in my daily uses it should not.
Putting the blade back in the handle the tolerances on that knife are so great you can tight the screws with locktite and pur a drop of nano oil… the pivot is smooth as butter.
Also ten passes on white ceramic and it is back to jumping hairs harvest again.
So cruwear seems to be a very “friendly” steel which doesn’t smell anything when confronted to apple, apple vinegar, various vinegar including aceto … nothing seems to harm it surface.
It is like CPM 3V and will be kept oiled and shiny. My Ed Schempp’s Tuff never needed or develop a patina as my grey Military in Cruwear.
At least I got less worry. 🙂
This time I have decided since the blade of this Paramillie is thin, to protect it with some gaffer tape.
Same process as usual: diamonds, then ceramic and stropping on leather.
The DC4 of Fallkniven and the Spyderco Double Stuff 2 were used.
I got also an old barber leather I use with some polish.
I use the diamonds to remove the shoulder of the edge to round it a little, this is where you can scratch the blade as the angle used is very shallow.
Once you see the edge is widen, you can switch to tsone and ceramics mainly to smooth the scratches made by the diamonds.
It is very simple and just ask for time and patience.
Cruwear is stropping friendly much less than 52100 though.
I really do love that short stubby folder which are turned to be my Spyderco Techno replacement.
In term of ergonomy first, the rounded hand, large choil, smooth thick blade spine, all concours to make your hand “at home” when holding it.
This large choil gives a lot of control and force on precise cut need at the start of the edge. It is the exact opposite of an Izula for example when the index finger is blocked behind the guard, here you can whittle with index finger near the piece of wood giving you a lot of accuracy.
This handle also scales the blade up in term of proportions making it a beautiful short knife. Also in the elegance department, the edge feels like the tip of a lance with it spear’s point. Mine has aged beautifully with a gentle sanding on the titanium.
The clip has hold perfectly and is not hurting my palm when holding the knife tight.
The edge has been gently convexed and did not show any chipping or bending after a year of rotation.
So far I am very happy with my #734 and I highy recommend it.
Massdrop is not always offering bargain, especially regarding some famous 1095 steel made American Blades like TOPS, but for their US/China connection they are often great purchase. My friend Dan Sharpe (thanks to Loremicus a young Mangaka from Hong Kong) highly recommends their FF CRUX which turn to be two of his favorite folder.
I will certainly follow his advice at one moment, those folders are a bargain of high quality.
CUSTOM-KNIFE FEEL, PRODUCTION KNIFE PRICE: That’s the idea behind the Massdrop x Ferrum Forge Falcon. This folder is small enough to take anywhere, yet rugged enough to open boxes, cut rope, slice food, and more.
BEST STEEL ON THE MARKET: Developed by Crucible Industries (a leading manufacturer of specialty steel), S35VN is perhaps the most balanced blade steel ever in terms of all-around performance.
SMOOTH DEPLOYMENT: The Falcon has a grippy flipper tab and a ceramic ball-bearing opening system for buttery-smooth deployment with little effort.
SOLID TITANIUM HANDLE: The 6AL4V titanium handle is both lightweight and strong. Bead-blasted to a smooth gray finish, it perfectly complements the satin blade. The matching titanium clip is reversible for righties and lefties.
ABOUT FERRUM FORGE: Founded in 2009, Ferrum Forge is a dynamic duo of brothers Chris and Elliot Williamson. Known for their innovative designs and precise craftsmanship, the pair operates out of a small Southern California workshop.
KEY MEASUREMENTS: Blade length: 2. 9 in (7. 4 cm), closed length: 3. 9 in (9. 9 cm), overall length: 6. 8 in (17. 1 cm), Weight: 3. 6 oz (102 g)
This one will be my 5th Paramillie 2, so it is a well known plateforme but the offer was to great to pass: a CPM Cruwear blade and a smooth black G10 handle: another exclusive run from the Knifecenter which is synonym of of a great attention to detail. This sprint run is absolutely flawless and its operation is smooth like butter. You really feel in your hand one of the greatest all-terrain EDC version ever made by Spyderco, no more no less. You can also check my previous review of the Knifecenter Smooth S90V Native 5.
Perfectly centered and the grind lines just great. Golden is getting better and better through the years, it is like a real jewel of a “tactical knife”. Sal and Aric can be proud of that one !
This sprint run got smooth black G10 handles but pardon my French, I do love my edges even smoother than that. It’s really a matter of personal choice but the relation with my tools goes through the finger and the palm of my hands.
So OK It was really a matter of minutes just to round a bit the G10, as I was not obliged to sand all the slabs. So it was an minor adjustment.
The edge is already thin, So I cannot really improve it.
CPM Cruwear is great for stropping: a mirror edge is done very easily.
It is just the first try at deshouldering, the factory edge is still there and I want to test it that way.
This is not my first CPM Cruwear blade as my Grey Millie “Gandalf” was my first.
The knife operates so smoothly I have decided to carry it tip up and have installed a short deep carry clip which disappears under my ring finger once deployed. My intention is also to use the version of the Paramillie 2 hard so I want to hold it by the pivot without a clip coming in the way.
More to come soon.
En this black smooth handle reminds me that knife of my childhood: Le Couteau d’Office Nogent Carbon (Nogent carbon steel paring knife) which was the sharpest knife in the kitchen.
I always believe in personalizing your own tools. I also love how titanium can turn sweet under the fingers. So here I am on this afternoon testing different sandpapers on handles.
Eventually I have found that 800 grid is more than enough to make the frame and edges standing out. This is what I was looking for, this feel of old denim.
Of course I can always go back to it and by using scotchbrit refining the finish but I wanted something rough.
The Spydiechef was the first to be sanded. The idea is to keep always the same direction.
On the Spyderco Tuff the effect can be more dramatic for a much more steampunk look.
I’m quite happy with final results.
So let’s try that on the Falcon !
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