Knife Reviews & Articles

Moore Maker
Spineback Whittler

You know, after all the build up of how good these were, I was really looking forwards to receiving this knife, which I bought direct from the "manufacturer".

It is billed as a really excellent user's knife, with a reputation for satisfying the demanding needs of the Texas cowboys.

In fact, I wanted it so much that I phoned up from England to order it, because the on-line shopping cart said phone to make sure of availability.

$88.88 plus postage. Not what you would call a cheap knife.

It duly arrived, and frankly, I couldn't have been more (pun itended) disappointed with it.

A Moore Maker Spineback Whittler, Yellow Bone handles.

Brand new... straight out of the box. (Nice classy box).

This photo hides a multitude of sins.

This is going to be real "into the lion's den" stuff.

Some people are going to hate me for saying this, because these Moore Maker knives have ardent followers... BUT!

Blade rub... as in serious blade rub

Both sides of the master blade, and on both the smaller blades.

That's a brand new knife... straight out of the box.

Next... workmanship of the blades...

1. Grinding striations, heavily polished.

Guys! When you make a knife, you just can't polish off grind marks like these!

2. Dings and pits in the tangs.

3. This is the (centre) master clip blade.

It is supposed to be ground unevenly each side like this?

No way.

4. The top grind on the master blade.

Hey! Who needs to carry a nail file?


And then there's the handle.

I was really looking forwards to this smooth bone, and at first glance it does look gorgeous... but...

Poor and uneven fit between the bone and the bolsters. At some places the bone is high, at other places the bolster stands proud, and there's a noticeable gap between bone and bolster. A gap large enought to slide in a sheet of thick paper.

Note also, (clearly visible in the lower picture), that the handle is short of the brass liners. An even amount on both sides.

Then there's the finish of the bone... hmmm... I'll let the photo speak for itself.

And finally, with the blades closed, the back corners of the tangs where they stand proud of the bolster... they are damned sharp!! Almost dangerously sharp, and they'll for sure rip a hole in the bottom of your pocket.

Is it a cheap knife from China? No, it is an $88.88 knife from Moore Maker in Texas, plus postage, (and as insult to injury, another $26.00 in duty and tax as it entered England from the US).

Folks... after all the good stories about these knives and their quality, and looking so much to having this one, I just could not be more disappointed.

If I had been in the USA, then I would have returned this knife to Moore Maker.

They possibly would want to help, but it may not be too practical, as I am in England. Sending it back would have a cost, and even if they replaced it, then I'd probably get hit for another $25 duty and tax when it arrived here.
Perhaps Moore Maker would like to comment? (I have emailed them expressing my disappointement, but as yet haven't had a reply). Perhaps I just got a rogue one?

Postcript

3 April 2005

I decided to do a bit of work on this knife:

  1. The "nail file" top grind on the blades was smoothed down using an Arkansas stone
  2. The blades were "ground" on an Arkansas stone to remove those ugly grind marks, and then the blades hand rubbed to leave a satin finish. Interestingly, on the master blade, there was found to be a distinct "hollow" in its centre when it was ground flat on the stone. But that has now been evened out.
  3. The dings and pits on the bolsters were stoned smooth
  4. The yellow bone scales were sanded smooth with 320 grit garnet paper (very fine) to get rid of the scratch marks. That also took care of the places where the bone was higher than the bolsters.
  5. I soaked the knife in vegetable oil for a day, and after two weeks, the bone has expanded slightly to make the gaps between the scales and bolsters almost imperceptible, except on one joint. That one is still large enough to slip a piece of paper between the bone and the bolster. (It appears that the bone had just "dried out").
  6. The back corners of the tangs have been smoothed a little with a stone, and they are no longer sharp.
  7. Finally, I took quite some time with various grades of stone to get the edge angle back, and to sharpen the knife, finishing off with a translucent Arkansas stone. This steel takes a great edge.

Above: the knife in its present state, with satin finish to the blades. Notice how the gaps between the bone and bolsters is much better.

You know something? I now quite like this knife! Perhaps it is because I am showing signs of my age, but to me, this is how a pocket knife should look and feel. It has a real "old fashioned" look to it.

Any gripes remaining? Well, just one. The master blade still feels dangerous to open. It is quite stiff and strong against the spring, and the nail nick, being well back on the blade, doesn't give much leverage. From its half way open position, you have to grasp the blade quite firmly between thumb and forefinger to open it the rest of the way, and you get the feeling that you are going to cut your thumb on the narrow blade with the amount of pressure needed to grip it. Perhaps it will ease up with use.

Now.... I am going to give it some use, and see how it performs.

Update 12 May 2005

Well..... it has had some general light use over the past month, (and cutting a few apples with the master blade has given it a nice pale grey patina), and I have also used it for cutting boxes and whittling a few roosters. Last week I re-sharpened the blades to a much shallower angle, (not far from flat against the stone), and it performs even better than with the 20+ degree angle. A small knife can take this shallower angle quite happily - it isn't going to be used for hard chopping work!

One of the positive things that I have noticed whilst whittling, is that the smaller blades are quite a bit stiffer than other whittlers that I use, and yet still slightly flexible to give some "feel" to working with them. I'm finding it a bit strange to be using a small clip point rather than a small pen blade for most of the whittling, but I'm starting to get used to it.

The master blade is still a little on the "strong" side to open. If anything, those two springs that it bears against is perhaps a little too strong for my liking. The blade closes with one helluva snap for a small knife. The gaps between the bone and the bolsters are still closing up, and now I can't get a piece of 120g paper in the gaps, just an 80g paper into one of them.

I still like the "retro" look of this knife.

 

Rod Neep
March 2005

Copyright ©2005 Rod Neep All Rights Reserved
Photographs by Rod Neep