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.
Buck 103 Skinner Fixed Blade Hollow Ground Knife | Comes with Black Leather Sheath
54 sec read
The Buck 103 Skinner’s “turned-down” point blade resembles several famous Puma styles of hunting knives. With a forward-weighted blade that puts more cutting edge up front and more steel behind the point, it’s a sensible design but very different from American bowie patterns. For more efficient piercing, you may want to sharpen the short false edge at the blade tip.
Polished aluminum bolsters enclose a phenolic resin handle injection-molded around the knife’s rat tail tang. That choice of modern materials saves weight, cutting this knife down to a very light 4.3 ounces. The fixed blade and sheath design gives hunters, fishermen, and hikers the convenience of a full-sized grip and a four-inch high carbon stainless steel blade, without the weight of a heavy hunter/skinner. Buck’s black leather sheath includes a snap closure to lock the knife securely while on the belt. Worn on the right hip, even crawling through heavy brush won’t knock it loose.
The deep hollow grind makes the edge easy to hone to razor sharpness, but also leaves the knife a little vulnerable to heavy work. For big game where cutting through bone might be a frequent chore, you’ll need something with more steel behind the edge — but for skinning and butchering meat, the Buck 103 is well designed. Surprising strong for a knife of this size and weight, the Buck 103 is a good size for light camp chores, too. Be careful not to abuse the aluminum fittings.
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.
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The Buck 103 Skinner’s “turned-down” point blade resembles several famous Puma styles of hunting knives. With a forward-weighted blade that puts more cutting edge up front and more steel behind the point, it’s a sensible design but very different from American bowie patterns. For more efficient piercing, you may want to sharpen the short false edge at the blade tip.
