A day in the life of my Pacific Salt

[Surfingringo]

Days like today remind me how much I love my Pacific Salt. I have prettier folders. I have folders with super steel and fancy handles of titanium, wood and micarta. I have folders with better fit and finish. But none of them get loved on like the Pacific Salt. Partly because they are too nice to subject to what I put my salts through. More importantly though, because most of them just couldn't handle the torture...even though many of them are perceived to be higher quality knives made of "better" materials. Nope, as far as I'm concerned, when it comes to real world hard use of a folding knife, the Salts rule.

I had a pretty good day fishing today but I forgot my pliers so the Pacific Salt had to handle all hook extractions. Sometimes I will use the spyder hole on the closed knife to push the hook free and sometimes I use the blade to wedge or cut it out. Pliers are much preferred, but I'm forgetful and the Salt has helped remove many a hook.

Near the end of my morning I had a Jack hit my lure and just swallowed the thing whole. It was too deep to extract so I just cut the line and threw him in the hole with the lure still in his mouth. Shortly after that I got into some small snapper and the Salt became hook extractor and gill cutter.


So once I got back to the house, I parked my kayak over by my cleaning station. Now when I get in I have usually been on the water for 4-6 hours and I've probably done 10-12 miles. I'm tired! So I want to get the fish and kayak cleaned up as quick as possible and find a seat and some AC. If I come in with just a couple of small fish that I only need to gut and scale, I don't bother going into the house and collecting cutting boards, fillet knives and scalers etc. I just lay them on the tailgate of my truck and dress them with the Pacific Salt which handles that work just fine. I use the spine of the closed knife to scale them and because of the simple washerless design I have never had an issue with the pivot getting gummed up with scales or fish gunk. (At least not to the point that I couldn't blow it out with a water hose).

As I was wrapping up, I remembered that I still had that big jack with one of my lures stuck in his gullet. By this time his mouth was stiff and shut (like full on lockjaw) so to open it I inserted the blade and twisted it to lever his mouth open. Once I got enough space I used the knife in the closed position to put more force and lever it wide open so I could get to the lure. Once I had enough room I cut the lure out and took care of the Jack.

I finished up at the cleaning table at about 10:30 this morning. (I usually hit the water at 4:30) Came inside, showered up and sank into the couch for a nice nap. The Pacific Salt is still laying in the kitchen, unwashed and covered in salt and fish. It is none the worse for wear after today's adventures and it will probably just sit there dirty all night until I stick it back in waistband tomorrow for another go. :)

[wrdwrght]

Another well-told story, Lance.

[DougC-3]

Nice morning's "work" Lance :) That's a lot more excitement than my P Salt ever gets.

[npad69]

thanks for the excellent writeup and photos mate. well-told indeed!

[PayneTrain]

Haha well done! Yours definitely saw a lot more action than mine. One fish, and I had to throw it back. Despite getting to cut up some bait, my Pacific Salt is pretty jealous of yours!

[swigert]

Can we just have all of lances threads on copy and paste so when peoe post drama we can bombard their threads with threads like this that actually show the true character of the forum.

[MichaelScott]

Nicely told, and the photos give your tale real meat (pun intended). It's good to remind us that knives are at bottom, tools. And that some tools are just better thought out and made than others.

Lovely fish. If I land a 3 lb brown on a #20 fly I'm happy too. Fishing is living.

[Doc Dan]

How do you find the serrated H-! holds up to fish scales? How often do you have to sharpen it?

[elena86]

Awesome ! I love my Pac Salts and the one moded by Lance gets even more love. :cool:

[Surfingringo]

Thanks guys. Sometimes I am hesitant about posting stuff like this. I know it is kind of "fluff" compared to discussions about edge angles and grinds and carbide content. The truth is though its days and moments like these that make me a knife lover. I looked at my tool so fondly by the end of that day. I know that sounds silly, but that affinity for our tools and how we use them is why many of us are here. Just wanted to share. :)

[CyberKlown28]

Nice catches as well. :)

[JD Spydo]

Well I'll be darned!! A take-off from an old Beatles song :D Instead of "He Blew His Mind Out In a Car" >> "He Got Carried Away Cutting Up Fish" :rolleyes: Great post and a great thread as usual >> but SURF there is one question I've been meaning ask you>> Have you used that other Nitrogen based steel that they used on the TUSK model aka LC200N? I'm very curious as to whether it will hold up in salt water like H-1 does?

I would get that TUSK in a heartbeat if it were avaiable in Spyderedge. But I was just curious if you have gotten to test drive that other nitrogen based steel because I'm sensing that it's going to be another steel selection for harsh environments. And you can send me some Red Snapper fillets anytime now :D

[Surfingringo]

Well I'll be darned!! A take-off from an old Beatles song :D Instead of "He Blew His Mind Out In a Car" >> "He Got Carried Away Cutting Up Fish" :rolleyes: Great post and a great thread as usual >> but SURF there is one question I've been meaning ask you>> Have you used that other Nitrogen based steel that they used on the TUSK model aka LC200N? I'm very curious as to whether it will hold up in salt water like H-1 does?

I would get that TUSK in a heartbeat if it were avaiable in Spyderedge. But I was just curious if you have gotten to test drive that other nitrogen based steel because I'm sensing that it's going to be another steel selection for harsh environments. And you can send me some Red Snapper fillets anytime now :D

Yes JD, I have a tusk and have used it extensively on the water. It doesn't get the same level of daily use that my salts do though but thats mainly just because i'm scared of losing it. :o

I have had it out on the water a lot and have left it exposed overnight and multiple days. I have never seen a spot of rust on it or gotten it to stain at all. I would have to do some more hardcore testing to see if its in the same category as H1 but after what I've put it through I can confidently say that it should handle what 99.9% of users will do without exhibiting any corrosion. I'm pretty confident we will see more of this steel in upcoming salt models.

[Razzle]

Lance, please keep posting "fluff" (if that is what you choose to call it), it makes me smile.

[PayneTrain]

The truth is though its days and moments like these that make me a knife lover. I looked at my tool so fondly by the end of that day.

I hear ya.There's something very satisfying about a salty, fishy smelling knife. Like a good dull edge, sore shoulders, greasy hands, and ruined shirts, it's like a merit badge for a good day's work. Whether or not you take home a fish, finish prepping lunches for the week, fix that hole in the house, or get that transmission back in one piece, it's the journey that makes the day and I for one can't help but look at my dirty and worn tools and give them a wink and a nod for a job well done.

Post on brother!

[Surfingringo]

How do you find the serrated H-! holds up to fish scales? How often do you have to sharpen it?

Hey Doc, sorry, I just saw your question. The SE holds up just fine. As far as edge retention, I would say it scores very high. I could go months without sharpening it and the serrations would still work. I like to sharpen mine every three or four session though. I find that if I keep my serrated knives at a very high level of sharpness then they perform very much like a good sharp pe. (instead of having to "saw" with dull serrations).

I also find that it is MUCH easier to maintain serrations than it is to get them sharp again once they have become very dull. All I do when I resharpen is 20-30 quick passes on the fine (sometimes just the ultra fine) SM rods. Takes about 30 seconds and thats usually enough to get them "tree topping" sharp again. I have been maintaining this knife on the SM for the last two years and the factory bevel on the teeth is still perfect. At this rate it will take at least 20 years to do any appreciable damage to the teeth by sharpening on the SM.

JD will probably step in now and tell you that you really need to get the 701 profile stones to sharpen serrations but thats just because he wants you to work 3 times as hard for the same result. hehehe :p

[JD Spydo]

How do you find the serrated H-! holds up to fish scales? How often do you have to sharpen it?

Hey Doc, sorry, I just saw your question. The SE holds up just fine. As far as edge retention, I would say it scores very high. I could go months without sharpening it and the serrations would still work. I like to sharpen mine every three or four session though.

JD will probably step in now and tell you that you really need to get the 701 profile stones to sharpen serrations but thats just because he wants you to work 3 times as hard for the same result. hehehe :p

No!! No!! No!! Hey dude you get yourself a good jeweler's loupe like a Zeiss, Bausch & Lomb or an S.P. I. and take a good close look at results you can get on the Sharpmaker versus the results you can get with a little patience using the 701 Profile kit and then and only then will you guys see what I'm talking about. Two of my good Dutch friends who are sold on Spyderco's SE blades will attest to what I'm talking about concerning sharpening Spyderedged blades with the 701 Profiles as well as a half a dozen other guys I've converted to the 701 Profiles. Now I will admit that my jury is still out deliberating over the GOLDENSTONE and the results you can obtain from it. But it's really not fair because it's only available in FINE grit. I wish Sal would give us more info on the GOLDENSTONE soon.

But do try it sometime with the 701 Profiles versus the Sharpmaker>> but you must have a jeweler's or watchmaker's loupe higher than 10X and you'll see what I'm talking about. I will admit that you can do a great touch up with the Sharpmaker but to do all the spikes and scallops individually with the 701 Profile kit does pay off; without deforming any of the spikes like the Sharpmaker does.

AS far as H-1 being good in Spyderedge I remember a couple of years go that Spyderco even claimed they got the best results from H-1 over any other steel they have used in Spyderedges. But again you have a great thought provoking thread as usual and I've learned a lot from your fishing articles in BLADE and here on the Forum. Keep posting my friend :)

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Very excellent posting and pics, thank you!

Man those Pacific Salts rock!

[OldSarSwmr]

Thanks guys. Sometimes I am hesitant about posting stuff like this. I know it is kind of "fluff" compared to discussions about edge angles and grinds and carbide content. The truth is though its days and moments like these that make me a knife lover. I looked at my tool so fondly by the end of that day. I know that sounds silly, but that affinity for our tools and how we use them is why many of us are here. Just wanted to share. :)

Please keep posting this "fluff", it's actually enjoyable to read. I don't have a problem with the technical posts but they're above my paygrade and I just don't find the topic interesting. I used my Manix2 pretty much exclusively while rebuilding the engine of my son's '86 Chevy C10 and had grand plans to write about it but didn't. I didn't want to sound silly answering questions about things like inclusive degrees, rolling versus chipping and things like that. :confused: Heck, my answers would be like "it cut real good through hoses" and "I sharpened it on my Sharpmaker". :o

I really enjoyed this post, you always present the use and results in a way that I just find a joy to read (the pictures of fish help too). I hope that you get more opportunities to write for Blade, maybe a knives in the wild column?



Dan

[Surfingringo]

Thanks guys. Sometimes I am hesitant about posting stuff like this. I know it is kind of "fluff" compared to discussions about edge angles and grinds and carbide content. The truth is though its days and moments like these that make me a knife lover. I looked at my tool so fondly by the end of that day. I know that sounds silly, but that affinity for our tools and how we use them is why many of us are here. Just wanted to share. :)

Please keep posting this "fluff", it's actually enjoyable to read. I don't have a problem with the technical posts but they're above my paygrade and I just don't find the topic interesting. I used my Manix2 pretty much exclusively while rebuilding the engine of my son's '86 Chevy C10 and had grand plans to write about it but didn't. I didn't want to sound silly answering questions about things like inclusive degrees, rolling versus chipping and things like that. :confused: Heck, my answers would be like "it cut real good through hoses" and "I sharpened it on my Sharpmaker". :o

I really enjoyed this post, you always present the use and results in a way that I just find a joy to read (the pictures of fish help too). I hope that you get more opportunities to write for Blade, maybe a knives in the wild column?



Dan

Thanks for the words Dan. Man, I for one would have loved to see a thread (especially with some greasy pics) detailing the role your Manix played in that rebuild. "It cut real good through hoses" works for me! :)