Cruwear micarta Bushcraft/Proficient

[Fireman]

I like making ferro rod handles out of fatwood. I have thought of something like Old Hickory mod with a fatwood handle, it wood look and smell amazing.

Regrinding the cleaver to a Nesmuk style blade shape and fatwood handles could be a fun project. Just need the slotted screw hardware. Rename it to the “Old Fatwood” :D

[GaryArt1]

I know this thread is not really a review of the Proficient as it is today but more what is should be. Being this thread is what sparked my interest in the knife resulting in me purchasing it, I will give my initial impression and what "needs" to be changed. First the knife design is as close to perfect in my opinion for a fixed blade. It is the right size and weight. It feels in the hand better than any knife I have owned (including non Spydies). The handle is fantastic. I wish it wasn't so shiney and would prefer it a little more matte for a working knife but the way it sits and feels in the hand is nothing less than perfect. The flat grind of the blade looks fantastic. I haven't used it hard yet being camping and hiking season is over here but I can tell for the little use I did, it is a slicer and work knife. I know this will become my go to woods knife which is saying something considering the selection I own. My hat goes off to Spyderco for the knife design. Now the bad. The sheath is a okay leather sheath. Nothing really fancy, I have seen better on expensive knives. Where is really fails is when you try to insert the knife into it. There is a plastic insert about 1/2 down the sheath to protect it from the blade. Well if the knife is not perfectly lined up it will not slide in. You have to play with it to get it in. This could lead to a unsafe situation. Even worse the knife could slide between the inset and leather which is not good. When you finally line it up the knife only fits partly into the inset having it stick out of the sheath a ludicrous amount. See picture. So reading on up on it it seems the answer is to pull out the insert which is not hard to do. This brings 2 problems. First the blade and leather is not protected so every time you slide the knife in blade edge meets leather. The second is if you really push the knife in, it goes so far down in sheath that it is hard to remove. You have to insert knife in until it just grabs good and stop. This way the sheath is a acceptable. It seems this sheath was designed for a different knife and Spyderco said it fits good enough and used it. That should not be the way a sheath for a $400 knife is designed. I am sorry to go so long on the sheath for such a great knife but it is not like a pistol where if you don't like the holster, you go out and purchase another because there are so many makes/types to fit. You are pretty much stuck with the sheath that came with knife unless you get one custom made or lucky enough to find one that fits better. So my final verdict is I will keep the knife due to the knife design is as close to perfect for me as I have found over the years. i will deal with the sheath and hope in the future to find one that fits better. If Spyderco ever comes out with the Proficient 2, please do a better job on the sheath. It is not up to the quality of a $400 knife or the quality we expect from Spyderco.

[sal]

Hi GaryArt,

Thanx for your input. At this time, my first recommendation would be to pull the plastic insert, as you did, and I did. Earlier in the thread, someone asked about a Kydex sheath.. I spoke with Christina yesterday about it and told her she could use my knife as a sample for making a sheath. Anyone interested in a Kydex sheath should contact SheathPro.com.

Should we more forward on a newer Claycomb model, we'll pay more attention to the sheath.

sal

[GaryArt1]

Hi GaryArt,

Thanx for your input. At this time, my first recommendation would be to pull the plastic insert, as you did, and I did. Earlier in the thread, someone asked about a Kydex sheath.. I spoke with Christina yesterday about it and told her she could use my knife as a sample for making a sheath. Anyone interested in a Kydex sheath should contact SheathPro.com.

Should we more forward on a newer Claycomb model, we'll pay more attention to the sheath.

sal

That is great Sal. Thanks. I will definitely contact them on the sheath. Keep doing what you are doing making great knives and I look forward to future models.

[Woodpuppy]

Just another outlook/datapoint here. I don’t use “off the shelf” holsters for pistols either. There are a small number of makers who build by hand and their wares work. A couple of them do sheaths too. A great knife needs a great sheath. I wish there was an option for knife + no sheath so the buyer could arrange for their own sheath.

[sal]

Hey Woodpuppy,

What are they made out of?

sal

[Pancake]

Should we more forward on a newer Claycomb model, we'll pay more attention to the sheath.

sal

I hope that one day we'll see another model from Mr. Claycomb

[C_Claycomb]

I PMed this to GaryArt, then thought it might be useful here.

I designed the sheath for deep carry of the BushcraftUK knife, its meant to go down a long way, and is based on the very widely used bushcraft knife pouch sheaths. Usually with veg-tan leather, these sheaths start out tight but loosen up with use. This sheath was meant to allow rigging with cord for various carry positions, some of which cannot rely so much on gravity to hold the knife.

Something that can help the sheath is thoroughly soaking it in hand hot water (takes a few minutes since the coating is pretty water resistant) and then leaving it to dry with the knife pushed down to where you want it. I protect the knife Renaissance wax then wrap with cling-film and tap, up the blade and handle. I have it down with 1.5 - 1.75" of handle sticking out. I also use the lanyard hole to mount a short fob/lanyard with a stopper knot that helps with withdrawal. The only other thing I use the lanyard hole for is blowing through when getting embers back to flames, a nice trick but not a great sacrifice. My Proficient lanyard is reflective orange paracord so I can find it easily day or night.

All the best

Chris

[sal]

Thanx Chris.

sal

[Woodpuppy]

Hey Woodpuppy,

What are they made out of?

sal

Leather! I have had a couple of horsehide over the years, the rest have been cowhide. I’ve only recently tried kydex and while functional, are kind of... meh. Synthetics help with reactive steels though, where leather could promote worse corrosion.

[sal]

Hi Woodpuppy,

Could you recommend a holster maker for pistols and revolvers (leather)?

sal

[Woodpuppy]

Hi Woodpuppy,

Could you recommend a holster maker for pistols and revolvers (leather)?

sal

Happy to! There are more than a few very very good makers; some I’ve never been able to try like Lou Alessi and Matt del Fatti. Some I’ve tried their more budget friendly lines, like Mitch Rosen. I have worn Milt Sparks and Kramer. Both are excellent. I tend to favor OWB now that I have dad-waistline. My current go-to maker has been Ryan Grizzle; he has a model called the “War Pig” after the forum name of the customer who requested it. It is a convertible; the IWB loops can be removed and it becomes a pancake style OWB. I also like his GS2.

For big revolvers, I like Simply Rugged. I also have a really cool model from Ted Blocker, the “CC1” developed by Bill Grover. You can actually carry a 6.5” Blackhawk concealed. This holster carries the cylinder above the belt so it’s a little slimmer. It also means you can sit with it on. It can be worn cross draw or strong side.

For pocket carry, I’m a big fan of Recluse Holsters. I prefer them to any soft synthetic holster I’ve tried, and I really don’t like hard molded leather or kydex in my pocket.

I am sure there are newer makers out there too; now that I’ve got a couple favorites, I haven’t looked into anything new. Recluse is the newest company in that list and they started in 2006. About the time I got married and started building a family. Coincidence? Probably not :D

[sal]

Thanx Woodpuppy,

I'll check them out.

sal

[curlyhairedboy]

Hi GaryArt,

Thanx for your input. At this time, my first recommendation would be to pull the plastic insert, as you did, and I did. Earlier in the thread, someone asked about a Kydex sheath.. I spoke with Christina yesterday about it and told her she could use my knife as a sample for making a sheath. Anyone interested in a Kydex sheath should contact SheathPro.com.

Should we more forward on a newer Claycomb model, we'll pay more attention to the sheath.

sal

Fantastic to hear, thank you!

[cycleguy]

Thanx Woodpuppy,

I'll check them out.

sal

Hi Sal,

I'd check this guy out too! He is local. Ran into him at the tanner show at the merch mart during the recession. I was impressed with his goods (belts and holsters) and the conversation we had. I don't think his web page "shop" is a very good representation of what he can do. Look at the "colors and tooling option" link at the bottom of his page and you can get a feel for what he is capable of.

https://westernimagesleather.com/

https://westernimagesleather.com/color- ... ng-options

Best,

CG

[sal]

Thanx CG.

sal

[Theldraskien]

Quick question, Sal, about removing the insert from the proficient sheath. is it glued in? I gently went at mine with some needle nose pliers and it feels like it’s secured quite firmly. I didn’t want to damage anything in the process.

[sal]

Hi Theldraskien,

Yes, they are secured somehow. I used needle-nose to get mine out. You won't hurt the sheath, but you may have to pull hard, maybe from different points. We put the insert in to void possibly pushing the very sharp knife through the side of the sheath, but I think, in my opinion, that the sheath works better without the insert.

sal

[Theldraskien]

Thanks Sal, I’ll give it another shot.

[C_Claycomb]

The liner in mine was bonded in with something like contact cement on the first 1" or nearest the mouth. I think it was Sal who some time ago recommended using something thin and metal to poke down either side of the liner to separate this adhesive. I used a 12" hacksaw blade, teeth were not needed, but the thickness, width and length all helped. Just pushed it down and waggled it around once it was through the band of adhesive. Didn't take too much force, no problem just holding the saw blade in my bare hand. Before doing that to break the adhesive my needle nose pliers broke away a piece of the liner without the rest budging.

Regarding the lanyard I mentioned for helping pull the knife out of the sheath, Asemery just posted a tutorial for the very one I used. The loop is through the lanyard tube and I cut and melt the tails close.
https://www.instructables.com/Knife-Lan ... the-Table/


Chris