James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Ginsu Damascus Folding Knife | Clip Point VG-1 Locking Blade w/ Bamboo Presentation Case
1 min read
When Ginsu entered the outdoor knife market in 2008, the company put its best foot forward. The Ginsu Damascus Clip Point Folding Knife introduces high-end Japanese cutlery steel to the folding hunter design. It’s a bold move you may really like.
The kitchen cutlery ancestry of the Ginsu Clip Point Knife is obvious. Behind that familiar prep knife look is a well-made lockback folder. The 3-3/4 inch blade swings to the locked position with a push on the quarter-moon shaped thumb stud. Press on the lock lever at the base of the handle and the blade swings free again for easy closure.
Damascus steel has been around for long enough now that the price goes steadily down. Some types of single-layer steel exceed the quality of some types of Damascus, so that alone doesn’t make this knife special. Ginsu really has done something different here, following the top-of-the-line methods of companies like Shun by including a core layer of hard VG-1 stainless steel to form the actual cutting edge. Thirty-two supporting layers — alternating between high carbon 420 and low carbon 430 — give the blade maximum tensile strength.
The riskiest and potentially best feature is the ten-degree bevel of the VG-1 core steel. Most European or American knives exit the factory with a bevel of about 25 degrees. As soon as we buy them, we sharpen them steeper to make them cut. You won’t have to do that with this folding hunter, already honed as keen as it will ever get. Be careful with the edge, because as with other fine Asian knives, the hard thin core steel in the Ginsu could chip.
The Ginsu Folding Clip knife comes with a leather belt pouch and a bamboo presentation case with glass front.
See the Boker Damascus Pearl knife for a gentleman’s folding knife in the European version of Damascus steel.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Designed by Doug Ritter of “Equipped to Survive,” the Adventure Medical Kits Pocket Survival Pak earned positive reviews from survival instructor Cody Lundin and...
Multi-purpose gear for hikers, backpackers, and other outdoorsmen gets better every year. If you make the Buck 731 X-Tract LED Multi-Tool part of your...
Leatherman’s back with an even stronger version of the original Leatherman Super Tool. The Super Tool 300 Multi-tool offers the strongest pair of multi-tool...
When Ginsu entered the outdoor knife market in 2008, the company put its best foot forward. The Ginsu Damascus Clip Point Folding Knife introduces high-end Japanese cutlery steel to the folding hunter design. It’s a bold move you may really like.
