Stretch 2 in Black Palm

[The Deacon]

I'm going to preface this by saying that, ever since I first saw a photo in an AG Russell catalog of a Fox Cutlery Anso Flipper with wood scales textured like the G-10 on Spyderco's Anso Zulu, I've wanted a Stretch done up like that. The peel-ply G-10 on Stretch 2 gave me the perfect excuse to have it done, and Steve Ketchen of SKETCHENSCALES was willing to take on the project. I thought a bold but fairly straight grain would be the best for this and had seen a couple other knives he'd done in black palm, so I asked him to use it for this project. I had high expectations, and the result exceeded them on all counts. Steve's workmanship is impeccable, the black palm is a joy to the eye and the texture is "fondleable" to the point of being almost erotic to the touch.

[Evil D]

I definitely like it more than flat scales, but that's way more tactical than I thought you'd like. It's sort of a clash of two worlds.

[farnorthdan]

Oh my...that is a thing of beauty, good choice, thanks for posting up some pics and hope you enjoy your new treasure.

[3rdGenRigger]

That is truly exquisite! Best gentleman carry knife I've seen to date for sure.

[SpyderNut]

That is simply beautiful. Love the grain texture of that wood. I'll bet it does have a very nice feel to it.

[demoncase]

That is lovely indeed- understated and classy

[LC Kid]

Awesome work indeed. :)

I've always thought it'd be amazing to get some Ansøed Snakewood scales in a Spyderco UKPK. :D

[The Deacon]

Thanks, everyone. I'm really enjoying this knife. :)

I definitely like it more than flat scales, but that's way more tactical than I thought you'd like. It's sort of a clash of two worlds.

Interesting, David. I guess our ideas of what makes a knife look "tactical" are different, but I'd be curious to hear yours.

As for me, I'd be somewhat tempted to say that about the Fox Anso Flipper, since a flipper is something I'd associate with the "rapid deployment" mindset that seems to be common among tactical knife enthusiasts. The blade shape also strikes me as somewhat "impractical tactical". So yes, the wood scaled version is, to some extent, a "clash of two worlds", at least compared to the more purely tactical titanium and black bladed G-10 versions that employ the same texture. Be that as it may, it was the idea of using that style of texture on wood that appealed to me, not the knife itself.

As for the Stretch, as from some of Spyderco's choices of scale material, I don't see it as ticking any of my checkboxes for classification as a "tactical knife" and I don't see textured wood scales as making it look the least bit more tactical. So, for me, no worlds are in collision. Truth is, compared to my other two "woodies", the texture doesn't add much in the way of traction. It definitely provides less traction than the peel-ply G-10 it replaced, less than the bi-directional texture of the FRN versions, and certainly less than either the original SS/Kraton Stretch or the peel-ply CF version. In fact, the only factory version of the Stretch that offered less traction was the Nishijin Glass Sprint.

Awesome work indeed. :)

I've always thought it'd be amazing to get some Ansøed Snakewood scales in a Spyderco UKPK. :D

The fact that the UKPK doesn't have liners might complicate things, but I bet it would look great. :)

[Archimedes]

Wow, he certainly has some wood working skills. It really looks great.

[OldSarSwmr]

Just an absolutely stunning example of craftsmanship! I think I have stared at the pictures a dozen times.


dan

[Evil D]

I definitely like it more than flat scales, but that's way more tactical than I thought you'd like. It's sort of a clash of two worlds.

Interesting, David. I guess our ideas of what makes a knife look "tactical" are different, but I'd be curious to hear yours.

I guess I just associate that kind of texturing with other tactical knives, and it isn't something I (or any of us obviously) expect to see on wood scales. It would be sort of like putting scroll engraved bolsters on a Strider lol. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, just for me it's an unusual...albeit awesome...mix of styles.

[phillipsted]

Steve did a really nice job with that Palm. That stuff is darned tough to work with - it splinters and chips with abandon. And heaven help you if you get a splinter from the Palm... its like getting stabbed with a kabob skewer.

Looks great - but after a couple of nasty accidents, I don't allow it in my shop any more. Steve seems to have "tamed the beast!"

TedP

[The Deacon]

Steve did a really nice job with that Palm. That stuff is darned tough to work with - it splinters and chips with abandon. And heaven help you if you get a splinter from the Palm... its like getting stabbed with a kabob skewer.

Looks great - but after a couple of nasty accidents, I don't allow it in my shop any more. Steve seems to have "tamed the beast!"

TedP

Ted, I'm pretty sure the black palm Steve Ketchn uses is stabilized, which should eliminate the splintering issue.


Couple more pics...

[TheFactor]

Wow that looks sweet !!!!
Has me thinking about my new Super Blue Stretch .

[HarleyXJGuy]

Ok Deacon I suppose my first offer of 50 dollars was a little low. Lets say 75 dollars cash money?

Seriously though love what you did with the place, never thought to do anso with wood.

[Johnnie1801]

Congrat's Deacon, that's great design vision from you and execution from Steve Ketchen. The more I see of Steve's work, the more impressed I am. I hope RadioactiveSpyder gets a thread up soon of all his knives modded by Steve.

[phillipsted]

Steve did a really nice job with that Palm. That stuff is darned tough to work with - it splinters and chips with abandon. And heaven help you if you get a splinter from the Palm... its like getting stabbed with a kabob skewer.

Looks great - but after a couple of nasty accidents, I don't allow it in my shop any more. Steve seems to have "tamed the beast!"

TedP

Ted, I'm pretty sure the black palm Steve Ketchn uses is stabilized, which should eliminate the splintering issue.

Paul - the stabilized black palm is better, but it is still a bear to work with. Sort of like a bunch of kabob skewers soaked in epoxy. :rolleyes:

Beautiful stuff when finished!

TedP

[Donut]

I love the feel of my Zulu.

That texture looks sort of shallow, it is probably just enough to give some grip.

It looks a little tactical in pictures, but in life and in hand it's just a way to give some grip to a flat surface. It kind of reminds me of the Chaparral 2.

I think it looks good, but in my head I was hoping for a little more contrast in the wood grain.