Phillip is going to do a handle in Thuya Burl with a black liner, 2 tone corby bolts with a tubed lanyard hole and the sheath will be kydex with a tek lock for lefty carry. I'm sure drove him crazy asking questions before I decided. He was very patient and this is what we came up with.
I am super excited. It was pretty hard to nail it down because I'm so used to seeing a knife already finished and buying it cause I like it. This is a real leap of faith. I'm sure he'll do an awesome job though. Can't wait!
Sometimes you gotta kick at the darkness until it bleeds daylight.
AKA: Liveitloud on Blade Forums, USN, EDC, Benchmade forums and basically everywhere but here.
liveit_loud on Ebay.
Comparing mine with a couple of others (BD-1 and S35VN), the Super Blue has a bit more belly and feels like it is ground a little thinner behind the edge. It was also the sharpest out of the box Mule I've seen yet. I've already put it to work on a bathroom renovation project, and it handled sheetrock and PVC shower wall material quite well. I like it. I like it a lot.
I don't believe in safe queens, only in pre-need replacements.
Nonprophet wrote:Anyone suggest a sheathmaker? I'm going to put the scales on my mule myself but I'm going to need a sheath.
I'm sure there are plenty out there but I own a couple of JRE sheaths and have a custom job on order with them now. Their quality is top notch and they can make whatever you want.
I kinda forced myself out of my comfort zone on this one and went with Kydex. I have never owned anything made out of Kydex so I thought I would give it a try. If I don't like it, JRE will be getting another order.
Sometimes you gotta kick at the darkness until it bleeds daylight.
AKA: Liveitloud on Blade Forums, USN, EDC, Benchmade forums and basically everywhere but here.
liveit_loud on Ebay.
Nonprophet wrote:Anyone suggest a sheathmaker? I'm going to put the scales on my mule myself but I'm going to need a sheath.
I know this isn't an answer to your question, per se, but I have been trying to make my own leather sheaths, and have found it easier and more enjoyable than I had thought it would be. Here is a tutorial I put up for those people in my position (never having worked with leather before), on making a sheath for a Mule.
Really, if you can do scales, you can do sheaths. You'll probably have a lot of fun doing it too!
I thought I would post some pic of my blue steel mule to see if the attractive grind marks on mine are what everyone is whining about :p . I found it a little hard to catch the light just right, so here's a few pics ...
I Like Sharp Things
Current Favorite: Caly 3.5, Super Blue. We're done here. It doesn't get better than the Caly 3.5
Not quite what I was referring to when I made the statement that mine had the same issues as reported by others. Your comment about whining was lighthearted, right? On one of mine there were two spots that had not been touched by a grinder whatsoever. Pure scale and oxidation from the oven. In other areas there were grind marks that were not ground out before going up to the next grit, causing it to look almost like scratches going against the grain of the buffing.
The common theme was these were in an area that would have been, and eventually did get covered by the grips. The blade looked pretty good.
Perhaps the knifemakers were under the impression that the batch was leaving their shop to go get handles fitted elsewhere.
In any event it was no problem to me. Not even a small one. I felt I was fortunate to have the opportunity to have a chance to purchase these mules. I wished I could buy more, and did when the limit was lifted. If there are some next payday I'll grab another.These knives are exceeding expectations performance wise and won't ever be back again like this.
Man I love this mule team program! :) Joe/raleigh
"A Mastiff is to a dog what a Lion is to a housecat. He stands alone and all others sink before him. His courage does not exceed temper and generosity, and in attachment he equals the kindest of his race" Cynographia Britannic 1800
"Unless you're the lead dog the view is pretty much gonna stay the same!"
The Mastiff wrote:
Man I love this mule team program! :) Joe/raleigh
Me too. :) At the end of the day, especially for the Mule blades, it's all about the edge. Metal finish is what it is. These are T&E, not DIY "custom" projects. :spyder:
The Mastiff wrote:In any event it was no problem to me. Not even a small one. I felt I was fortunate to have the opportunity to have a chance to purchase these mules. I wished I could buy more, and did when the limit was lifted. If there are some next payday I'll grab another.These knives are exceeding expectations performance wise and won't ever be back again like this.
When you say they are exceeding expectations, what are you referring to? I've only seen a couple reports, but they both seem to focus on edge retention, rather than general durability. I'm nervous to put mine through the paces, worried that it will chip. Should I not be so concerned?
The Mastiff wrote:Your comment about whining was lighthearted, right?
Yep, I'm being a snot :)
Though if folks are complaining about mules they have received that are like mine, I think they are being silly. The tang portion of the knives are not meant to be highly finished. If people see some cosmetic issues with the area of the blade that gets covered by the handle scales, I believe the issues may be baseless. No manufacturer is going polish an area such as this. I think the mule team members may have gotten too used to the media blasted mules coming out of Golden :rolleyes:
As for the blade of the blue steel mule, you can see the grind marks on the blade; you can see this in some of the photos above. I find this look rather appealing and is the case for many of my other knives. The finish of the blade is very smooth; like Joe mentioned, it’s as if a grinding grit step was skipped to give a finish with the attractive grinding pattern, but a highly polished finish.
Jim
I Like Sharp Things
Current Favorite: Caly 3.5, Super Blue. We're done here. It doesn't get better than the Caly 3.5
Nice work Thor1, you picked two nice pin positions! The Ebony could be a little shinier
My super blue is almost there. I guess it arrives before New Year. Here is what I did with my damascus mule.
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I am very impressed with the handle work I see on the Mule Teams. Beautiful stuff.
BTW, the maker o the Super Blue Mule Team was new to Mule Teams....a virgin and Super Blue is difficult to work with. Not too many makers using the steel in production, especially on folders. But he's the maker that would make the Caly3 in Super blue and I wanted to break him into the steel.
