Planet Pocket Tool

Rainbow Longslides

2012-01-23T19:45:00.004-05:00

Happy Monday Evening Folks! I thought maybe a little sale might be fun...

I have just a few of these rainbow anodized titanium Longslides. Now, to be fair, these are small so some of them kind of missed the blue range and are more "Tequila Sunrise" than "Rainbow" but they still have a nice fade. These run $25 each plus the shipping. Thanks for stopping in!

Sold out, thank you!

Like the one on the far right:

Blue Lanslides

2012-01-23T13:14:00.004-05:00

Hey Everyone,

Today I have some more of the full sized 3 rib Lanslides ready. These are anodized a rich blue color and have a nice satin finish, actually slightly shinier than the one pictured below. Anyway, they are $15 each plus shipping and the link is below:

Blue ones are gone, some plain satin ones on the way soon though and also bronze. Thank you!

International Shipping Rates

2012-01-23T11:31:00.002-05:00

Hi Folks,

Well I have some unwelcome news for my international customers...the US Postal Service has raised their Priority and Express Mail rates quite a bit recently. It now will cost $17 for Priority International and $35 for Express Mail. I'm sorry but these costs are out of my control and will be the new rates going forward. Thank you for your business and I hope that this will not deter anyone from purchasing but I understand it is getting expensive, especially on low ticket items. I'll have to look into the restrictions but maybe I can offer first class or something like that as an alternative to Priority International.

Business Cards

2012-01-22T09:10:00.008-05:00

Hi Folks,

Some of you may remember the Atwood Business Cards that I made a few years ago. These were designed to be credit card sized tools for the wallet and they had all the common wrench sizes on them including SAE and both the odd and even number metric scales. So pretty much all the wrench sizes from 1/4-9/16 and 5-16mm. Plus 1/4 and 5/16 driver openings and a bottle opener. They are made of hardened 420 stainless steel.

In addition, the cards had laser engraved rulers across the top on both sides. Well, the laser engravers were a bunch of idiots who couldn't follow simple instructions and they totally screwed up the rulers. So I sold a few that were reasonably accurate and the rest of them went into a box and I pretty much forgot about them. But I just couldn't bear to throw the rest of them away...

So, anyway, recently I was going through my junk pile and I spied the box of old card tools. I decided I could save some of them if I got them surface ground to remove the bad rulers. Some of them ended up getting ground down so far that they either lost the name stamp or partially removed it but others are in remarkably nice shape. The surface ground finish was quite nice so instead of my usual tumble or bead blast I thought I would spend a bit more time on them and do a hand brushed finish with scotchbrite wheel on a die grinder. These ended up being a bunch of work and I don't have too many but they do look very nice.

The Business Cards will run $60 each plus shipping and due to the small number will be a one per customer sale. Thanks for stopping by this morning and one more thing...GO PATS! :D

Business Cards are sold out for now. Thank you and have a great Sunday!

BigShots!

2012-01-10T11:09:00.007-05:00

Hi Folks,

Well it's shaping up to be a great 2012 with many projects underway already. I'll be cutting more G5 Roid Prybabies soon for a late winter/early spring timeframe. The G2 Roid Keytons will be coming along in a month or so once I get off my lazy butt and resume working on them again. G2 titanium Keytons are being cut this week so those will be coming in a few weeks as well. And some of my older customers might remember a slender and hefty pry bar tool called the Wedgie...the Wedgies will be returning very soon but this time in super thick titanium. There may be a few other suprises in store too that I am not yet ready to reveal. ;)

The big news right now though is the return of that bodacious drinking tool, the BigShot. I revisited the design and gave it a facelift so that it now shares the same DNA as my Tippler shot cups. The new BigShots are the same size as the older BigShots with a 3 fluid ounce capacity but they now closely resemble the Tipplers in outward appearance. These gorgeous cups are made of passivated 303 stainless steel and they weigh in at a whopping 7.3 ounces, so nearly 1/2 lb each! They are truly awesome vessels.

The way the production cycle for the BigShots is going to work, I will be able to get about a week of machine time per month for much of the year. So approximately every month or so I'll be able to get a batch of these going. In this way I should be able to have multiple sales throughout the year for BigShots and so will be able to keep them coming. In addition, I'll also be making some in aluminum with hardcoat anodizing and perhaps some design variations may come along in time as well, we'll see how it goes. No titanium ones will be made.

So, today I have the first wave of stainless steel BigShots ready. Material costs have increased since the earlier batches two years ago so these are going to be $75 each plus shipping. Due to weight and value, international shipping will be via Express Mail only. This first wave is not huge and since many many more are coming very soon I'm going to limit these to two pieces per customer for now. As always, thank you for stopping by, I always appreciate it.

First wave is gone, thank you so much! Next ones will be up probably end of next week or early the following week.

Next to the Tippler!

Happy 2012!

2011-12-31T17:27:00.000-05:00

Wow, as I look back on 2011 it's really been one heck of a ride. I've had a lot of fun and played with quite a few ideas, revisited others. It's been pretty darned cool and I'm incredibly fortunate to have had all of you along for the trip. So I'd just like to say to all of you, THANK YOU! May you all have a safe and fun New Year's and here's a toast to a fabulous year ahead! It's going to be a good one, I can tell you already. ;) :D

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T17:46:00.002-05:00

Thank you so very much for all the interest and enthusiasm you all have shown for my little creations this past year. It means so much to me and I am deeply grateful.

I hope everyone has a terrific Christmas! Stay safe and warm and may all your holiday wishes come true for you and your families. ;)

Stainless LongSlides

2011-12-22T20:24:00.003-05:00

Hey Folks,

How about a little evening action? :)

So, tonight I have some more of the Five Rib Longslides but this time in 303 stainless steel. They have a satin finish and are very substantial in the hand. These are the usual $25 plus shipping...thanks for stopping in!

Stainless Ones Are Sold Out. Thanks again everyone and have a great holiday season!

More Flatbabies

2011-12-21T11:52:00.004-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Well we're getting down to the wire now...I think the mail is moving pretty well this year though so hopefully everyone will be getting these in time for the holidays, at least folks in the US at any rate.

I have more of the Flatbabies done today. There are still a couple dozen more probably that need to be sorted through so even after this sale there will be some left. Once again, these are 420 stainless steel, .070 thick, 3 inches long, with a laser engraved name stamp and they have been heavily tumbled. A nice back up piece for the wallet and in fact G5b stands for "backup". They run $45 plus shipping.

Second Wave is gone, thank you very much!

Black LongSlides

2011-12-19T09:54:00.004-05:00

Hi Folks,

I'm recovering today from a ton of family oriented events and visits from the past few days. It's always good to see everyone and it was a little early this year which is fine by me. It will make for a relaxing Christmas.

I will have more Flat G5 Prybabies coming up but I need to figure out what finishes I want to do on them so it won't be for another day or two. In the meantime I do have these lovely aluminum Longslides available. These are anodized with type III black Hardcoat and they are tied on gorgeous leopard pattern cord from Supply Captain. They are $25 each plus shipping. Thanks for stopping by!

All gone, thank you again!

G5b FlatBabies

2011-12-15T11:57:00.005-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Cold, rainy and gray today, a good day for a sale!

The G5b Flatbabies are up today...b stands for "backup" in this case. The minimalist folks will love these ultralight .070" thin Prybabies(R) made of hardened 420 stainless steel. They are perfect for backup wallet or keychain carry and they won't weigh you down. The 1/4" hex driver opening makes for a nice little addition to the original G5 design along with the classic 1/4 - 9/16" wrench set, 5/16" wrench and cap lifter. Despite it's low profile the G5b is still strong enough for light duty prying jobs such as opening a paint can. One of the cool features is the new 1/4" hex opening, since it allows you to hang the tool from your keys or tie a lanyard on from either end.

The G5b Flatbabies run $45 each plus shipping. This is the first of several waves coming over the next few days. Thanks for stopping in today!

First wave is gone but I have many more to sort through and get packaged up for tomorrow and the weekend. Thank you!

G5 Roids with Stamps

2011-12-13T12:14:00.004-05:00

Howdy Folks,

Gearing up for a busy week here. I'm working on Flat G5 Prybabies(R) today and hope to do a sale tomorrow. Also coming later this week are some lovely 5 Ribbed Longslides but this time in aluminum with black HAIII hardcoat anodizing. And we're getting a new BigShot design dialed in this week which will hopefully be ready just before or just after Christmas, we'll see how it goes.

Anyway, today I have the rest of the G5 Roids done, this time with antique diemaker stamps. They are mostly different and the batch is quite small so it's a one per customer sale on them please...they are $80 plus shipping.

One note on the CPM 3v Roids...CPM 3v is a TOOL STEEL. That means that is NOT stain resistant and it will be subject to light rusting. I don't find this a problem because 3v is a bad ass steel with superior lateral strength (prying) and extreme toughness and that is the tradeoff that you make for corrosion resistance. Personally I happen to like the patina of surface rust that will develop over time, just like all the antique tools in my collection, many of which I use on a regular basis and are 100+ years old. But just be aware on the cosmetic front that 3v steel may rust more easily than other steels. ;)

All gone, thank you!

UV Swingers

2011-12-09T17:17:00.004-05:00

Hi All,

Yup, I'm going full steam ahead this week. Up tonight are the Swingers in UV finish. These are just a beautiful color...they run $45 plus the shipping and the link is below. Thanks once again for your support and I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.

UV are all gone, thank you again folks!

Blue Swingers!

2011-12-09T08:51:00.003-05:00

Happy Friday Everyone!

This morning I have some titanium Swinger Golf Tools done. If you're looking for a stocking stuff for your favorite Uncle Bob (you know the one, the avid golfer!) this tool is perfect. Featuring a divot repair tool, cap lifter and light pry tip, he'll be walking the links in style. These are anodized a rich blue. The Swingers run $45 plus shipping and the link is below, thanks!

Blue ones are gone, thank you!

5 Flute Olive G10

2011-12-08T17:46:00.004-05:00

Hey folks, I'm on a roll today!

These olive G10 Lanslides have been sitting around for months waiting for me to tie them up and package them. They are $15 plus shipping and the link is below...thanks for stopping in tonight. ;)

All gone, thank you again!

More Bronze Lanslides

2011-12-08T09:01:00.003-05:00

Howdy All,

Whew, no snow this morning, just a layer of black ice so we dodged another bullet last night. I'm not looking forward to the next few months though...they say the New England winter gives you character but I assure you, I already have plenty of that!

I'm not quite ready to face the bead blast cabinet again this morning so the rest of the Roids will have to wait another day. Today I have more of the large 5 ribbed Bronze Lanslides done. These chunky little beauties look great on zippers, knife lanyards and bags. They are $25 plus the shipping. Thanks for stopping by today!

Sold out, thank you!

G5 Roids

2011-12-07T18:01:00.003-05:00

Hey Folks,

Well, my computer is back up and I think I'm oriented enough on the new operating system to attempt a sale this evening. We'll see how I'm able to keep up.

I have a few of the G5 Roid Prybabies(R) done today. These are massive, and at .285" the thickest ones I've ever done. The thick tool steel is a bit gnarly so expect a few stray machine marks here and there. I had some difficulties with the tumbling so I decided to bead blast this batch to even them out cosmetically. There are still more to go so there will be another sale later this week as well.

The G5 Roids are $75 plus shipping....the batch is small so these will be one per customer please. Thanks for your patience everyone!

Sold Out for now, thank you so much!

One Thing After Another

2011-12-05T10:33:00.002-05:00

This has been just a ridiculously annoying period lately!

My computer developed problems last week and so I bought a new one. The last few days have been filled with switching over data and setting up the new system. This morning I actually got things mostly in order so that's all good to go.

However, I went to jump in the shower and get my day going only to discover that our well pump seems to be on the fritz. So now I'm sitting around waiting for the well guy to call me back. All this PITA stuff on top of the other disruptions this year...it continues to be very frustrating!

Anyway, I will have some sales going later this week (G5 Roid Prybabies, G5 Flat Prybabies and more Longslides) so please bear with me for a few more days. Hopefully things will settle down and I can get some work done instead of chasing after all this other crap. Thanks!

Blue Longslides

2011-11-28T12:17:00.004-05:00

Howdy All,

Great day here in the northeast, a little cloudy and gloomy but it's very warm, almost t-shirt weather. A good afternoon for a sale.

Upcoming later this week will be G5 Prybabies in the Roid Edition. I just have a little finish work to do on them still. Also coming in a week or so will be a large batch of some flat G5 Prybabies. I played around with the design a little and came up with a nifty wallet version which will make for a perfect stocking stuffer.

Today I have some satin finish titanium LongSlides, anodized a beautiful blue. These are really lovely and I couldn't resist keeping a few for my own collection. They look great on pocket flashlights for example. Which reminds me, I better keep a plain one for my incoming McGizmo Mule with Nichia 119 Hi CRI. :D

Anyway, these are $25 plus shipping and the link is below:

Blue ones are gone, thank you! I will have more bronze ones coming in a week or so as well as some in stainless steel and a few aluminum.

More Pests!

2011-11-26T08:09:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Today I have the second round of steel Pests done. Once again, these are stonewashed S30v steel in my normal thickness, 5/32. A simple, handy and elegant little tool that feels great in the hand and rides easily on a keychain. They are $50 plus shipping. Thanks for stopping by on this fine Saturday!

Second wave is all gone, thank you so much folks!

Steel Pests

2011-11-25T09:36:00.007-05:00

Happy Black Friday Folks!

I'm gearing up for a busy couple of weeks with many batches of items in the queue for finishing. Today I have a wave of Pests ready to go. These are made of substantial 5/32" thick S30v steel with a smooth stonewashed finish and are my simple and elegant nod to the classic pocket screwdrivers of the past. The Pests run $50 plus shipping. Thank you for stopping in and hope everyone has a relaxing and stress free weekend ahead!

First Wave of Steel Pests Sold Out for now! Thank you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T14:02:00.003-05:00

Thanks so much for all your support this year, I am deeply grateful! Hope everyone is having a great day out there. Let the feasting and the footballing prevail! :D

The Largeness Continues...

2011-11-22T09:57:00.004-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Turkey Day is almost here! I'm looking forward to much feasting followed by some interesting football games.

Today I have a batch of the plain titanium Five Ribbed LongSlides done. These unanodized machine satin finished monsters definitely will make a substantial addition to any zipper pull or knife lanyard application. The giant Lanslides run $25 plus shipping. Thank you for stopping in folks, and for the continued support, it is very much appreciated!

Plain satin ones are gone, thank you! I will have more coming up soon, some more in titanium and then also some stainless steel ones, some bronze ones and maybe some others.

More Bookies!

2011-11-18T13:36:00.004-05:00

Hi Folks,

The past few days have been rather gloomy but the sun is out today which always lifts my spirits even though it's a little chilly outside...I think I know what is coming soon and it's going to be cold, white and unpleasant. :D

Projects updates: Steel Pests are coming along and should be done in a couple of days. Same with the G5 Roid Prybabies. Also, a couple of other goodies should be on the way for next weekend. There will be lots of stocking stuffer type items for the next few weeks. Roid Keytons are probably not going to happen until January, same with ti Keytons, I just can't get to everything this year.

Today I have more of the steel Bookies done. These are $60 plus shipping and the purchase link is below...hope everyone is heading for a relaxing weekend!

All gone for now, thank you so much! :)

Steel Bookies

2011-11-14T14:03:00.006-05:00

Howdy Folks,

Well, things are getting more interesting by the minute around here. Sooooo many projects going on that it will be a miracle if I can even get half of it all done before the end of the year.

So, you wanted more sharps? Sharp Week continues... :D

Today I have the first wave of Bookie desk tools done. These are the 420 stainless steel version of the Bookie tools and they have been hardened to 56-58 Rockwell and then CNC ground on one side. They are razor sharp and will open an envelope or perform other small chores with ease.

I chose 420 for these over something more exotic like S30v because it is a well known and reliable cutlery steel and it is readily available in the very thin thickness that I needed for the bookmark/letter opener project. At .040 in thickness you really don't need anything fancy as the geometry will allow nearly any material to cut like crazy.

The Bookies have been tumbled and then retumbled and then retumbled some more to a gorgeous stonewashed finish. The cutting edge was buffed to a high polish for a nice drag free cutting action and the Atwood logo is etched to distinquish this mid tech tool from my custom projects. They come with a simple plastic slip sheath like the EDK knives and also a lanyard. You can keep the tool in the slip or do what I like to do which is tuck it into an address book or checkbook so that it's handy on your desk.

Since the Bookie is shaving sharp be VERY CAREFUL if you want to use the bottle opener!! I would leave it in the plastic slip sleeve or in the spine of the book if you want to open a beer. Or consider it a design feature and use it as a knife only. ;)

As I said, this is just the first of several waves of these steel Bookies. They are $60 each plus shipping. Thanks as always for stopping by and I hope everyone is having a terrific week.

First Wave is Sold Out but I have more coming mid week. Thank you!

LongSlides

2011-11-08T11:35:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Things are back to normal around here finally and I've been getting back to work in the shop. There is just a TON of stuff happening all at once and this month will be getting busier and busier as the days go on.

SuperSlides, LongSlides....I have had a number of folks ask for a larger Lanslide bead so I decided to make some giant ones. These are the same diameter as the full sized Lanslides but are nearly twice as long. So they measure 1/2" wide by 5/8" long. I decided to stick with the ribbed pattern but added a couple more ribs on to the end. The effect is big and beautiful, especially on these bronze ones which have some heft to them. I'll be making some in titanium pretty soon as well but for now just have the bronze ones ready.

These big guys run $25 each plus shipping. As always, thanks so much for stopping by, it's very much appreciated.

Bronze ones are sold out, thank you!

power is back

2011-11-02T09:33:00.002-04:00

We have power finally but no cable. So no internet, no email and no sales until it is restored...

Stonewashed G2 Keytons

2011-10-28T14:38:00.007-04:00

Happy Weekend Folks! ;)

We had a dusting of snow last night (which did not thrill me in the least) and they're forecasting 2-5" more of heavy wet white stuff on Saturday night. Way too early IMO...absolutely rotten weather in the Northeast this year.

Lots of goodies coming up. I will have giant ribbed Lanslides shortly. I have steel Pests and G5 Prybaby Roids at heat treat right now so those will be here in a week or two. The hardened steel Bookies are coming in a week or so as well. It's going to be crazy busy here for the next few weeks.

Well today I have the stonewashed G2 Keytons done. These are $60 each.. Thanks for stopping by as always!

Sold Out! Thank you!

P.S. How about that World Series game last night? Wow! I'm dragging my butt today but it was worth staying up for. ;)

Raw Bar Keytons

2011-10-25T11:06:00.004-04:00

Hey Everyone,

So, at long last the G2 Keytons are back from heat treat. Unfortunately the stonewashed ones need a bit more clean up and tumbling before they will be ready but the raw bar ones look great so they will go up first. This update to the original Keyton is made of CPM S30v steel, they measure 3 inches long and are milled from my usual hefty 5/32 thick stock. Of course the raw bar ones are slightly chunkier because they haven't had the mill scale removed.

There aren't a lot of them so these will be one per customer please and they will run $65 plus shipping. I'll give international customers the option of Priority or Express Mail...thanks as always! PURCHASE LINK IS BELOW:

Sold Out!!

And the Numbers Are...

2011-10-13T19:12:00.001-04:00

Thank you once again folks! Wow, great turn out. :)

Here are the numbers, will send emails right now:

20 Figurado
26 Tad
41 fc3
48 SteK
65 godlovesugly
115 TDOGG
140 SamMcGee
146 Morton
196 mp101
247 Cobra4246
332 raz184
393 ralphdrocketman
408 rugerfanuk

Ti Ghost SUSale

2011-10-13T10:21:00.007-04:00

Hi Folks,

Rainy day here so a good day to work in the shop and also to put up a SUSale.

Today I have 13 titanium Ghosts that were remaining from a batch I did last year. I finally got around to finishing these off...they are all anodized differently and each one comes with a length of bead chain.

These will be $60 each plus shipping and the Sign Up period will end at 7PM Eastern Time this evening, Thursday 13. One entry per customer on the list please!

Sign Up is over, numbers announced shortly, thank you!

List of Entrants

Sign Up Sale Rules

Blue Bookies!

2011-10-12T15:47:00.005-04:00

Howdy folks,

It's been a little slow recently but that's because I've been scrambling to get various projects underway and on the road to being finished. Some big batches of stuff will be going out to heat treat later this week...speaking of heat treat, those G2 Keytons are still in there but should be coming back next week I believe. I'll have those and lots of other tools coming on in the next couple of weeks so stay tuned!

Today I finally have the titanium Bookies finished up. This is an interesting concept I think, a titanium bookmark tool...or as I like to call it, a Page Blade. They are made of thin (.040") titanium and feature a bottle opener and light pry tip/screwdriver. OAL is 4 1/2 inches and the blade portion is 2 1/2 inches. Really neat little item. I only did a small batch of these so I decided to mostly finish them off in one color, blue. And yes, a hardened 420 steel version of the same thickness but with full flat grind will be coming next month and that piece will have an additional function as a letter opener/desk tool. ;) Still trying to decide if the steel ones will get sharpened or not...

Anyway, these titanium Bookies are $55 plus shipping. As always, thank you for stopping by. :)

Blue Bookies are gone, thank you!

Last of the Black

2011-10-10T13:05:00.005-04:00

Hi Everyone,

It's a warm day here, probably the last of the 80's that we shall see this year. The leaves are a total dud this year probably on account of the incredible amount of rain, otherwise I'd be out taking pictures today...

Progress Reports: I'm not positive but I think the G2 Keytons will be back from heat treat by the end of the week. I also have the titanium Bookies coming along in the next day or two. I need to spend some hours in the shop on each of several projects but there is much that is partially completed and almost ready to send out for heat treat and those include S30v Steel Pests, 3V Steel Roid Renches and more G2 Keytons but this time in a Roid Edition. I have some other projects planned for late fall such as titanium G2 Keytons and a reprise of an older tool design so there are many more goodies to look forward to as well. ;)

Anyway, this afternoon I have the rest of the black handled S30v EDKs finished. They are $110 plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks!

Black are Sold Out, thank you so much!

More Wood Handled EDKs

2011-10-02T10:14:00.005-04:00

Hi Everyone,

I have the last of the wood handled EDKs done. Steel is on special order and I will be making more of these in a few months and perhaps another blade shape as well. Although I like these handles I may also be trying some other handle materials and finishes, we shall see...speaking of handles, the wood ones should get oiled regularly and/or waxed. I found a nice product for this over on Amazon, Howard Butcher Block Conditioner...highly recommended!

Wood ones are gone, thank you!

EDK with Hardwood

2011-09-27T14:00:00.007-04:00

Hello Folks,

Today I have some more EDK knives done. These have beautiful hardwood handles made of Morado, sometimes called Bolivian Rosewood. Not a true rosewood but lovely nevertheless, it is dense and heavy. I am told it is sustainably harvested which is always a plus and hopefully that is true. The grain and figure vary widely on these and don't expect bookmatched handles or anything that fancy...however, ALL these knives are gorgeous and it's just about killing me to actually have to part with any of them. Sigh, I do love nice wood! :D

These wood handles have been lightly oiled with food grade mineral oil and I recommend you do so periodically to keep them nice. There are a number of other food grade products available for maintaining fine wood and I will be testing some as time goes on. At any rate, as with the black handled EDKs, hand wash only and towel dry.

These are slightly more than the synthetic handled EDKs, $125 each plus shipping. As before, insured shipping is $10 and International will ship via Express Mail for $26. Thanks for stopping by!

First wave is sold out, thank you! I will have more very soon. ;)

Sharp Week!

2011-09-24T09:08:00.008-04:00

Howdy Folks,

Well, I'm proud to announce that not only is this the first week of fall but it's also another week that I think just may be of great interest to Atwood Fans...that's right, it's Sharp Week! Hehe, sorry could not resist the obvious pun... :D

OK, so this is a project that I have been working on for over two years, the EDK or Every Day Kitchen knife...

I started out with a simple idea. I noticed that even though I have a nice variety of knives in a block on the counter, most of the time I find myself reaching for a small utility blade for nearly every chore that I encounter. Whether it's slicing an onion, coring a tomato or opening a plastic package, 9 times out of 10 I don't end up using a big chef's knife. In fact, I have to admit, I've never really been a big fan of those honking 8 or 10 inch chef knives and I'm not good at the rapid cutting skills that you see the TV chefs doing. Maybe I'm just unsophisticated, but unless the task before me is slicing a turkey or something like that a smaller knife usually will suffice. So with that in mind I started thinking about smaller knife shapes.

Now it just so happened that one day I called my steel supplier looking for slightly thinner stock than my usual 5/32" tool steel and they jokingly told me they had some REALLY thin S30v sheets available. I immediately bought some of it. Then I contacted my local friends who run a kitchen knife factory and asked them about producing a small mid tech kitchen knife. The project didn't happen and things dragged on for some time. Finally I got them to make a sample knife for me but it wasn't quite what I was looking for. Nevertheless I took the sample home and I have used it for nearly two years. I have to say, even with a so-so heat treat on the blade I was surprised at how well it performed. I took that knife home and sharpened it once, and I have literally not sharpened it since. It really needs sharpening right now but amazingly it does still cut pretty well and that knife has been used and used and used. S30v is some remarkable steel, especially when ground thin. I have to say, I'm impressed.

So anyhow, this past June I made another trip over to the factory and brought up the kitchen knife project again. This time they said they would finally get going on it. And so they did. The blades were cut and then sent out for a premium heat treat this time including vacuum oven, cryo freezing and double temper. They returned with a high rockwell, I believe it was 59-60. Then the blades were carefully ground so as not to lose the fine temper. The grinds are full flat grinds that extend to the top of the spine. The broad blade shape with generous belly results in a wonderful geometry for slicing. They are very light and quick in the hand. These knives may be ground thin but they are still fairly stiff with only minimal flex so you can use them on hard cheeses or sausages with no fear of bending the tips.

Next, handle materials were selected. For this first round I chose a black recycled paper material very similar to paper Micarta. The rivets are solid nickel-silver and the handles are both epoxied and riveted in place for maximum durability. Because the blades were ground after hardening it was not possible use my normal steel marking stamp on them so we went with an old style logo etch which is larger than my current stamp size. This also differentiates the blades as being a mid tech item rather than from my own shop.

I really wanted these to be done right and I'm so happy to report that the end results are even better than I had hoped for. I can see a few very minor things that I'd like to tweak in the next batches but considering they are a factory produced item, I'm quite satisfied with what I see as truly STELLAR user blades. And yes, a special order has already been put in to Crucible for more thin stock S30v so you can expect a second and much larger run of these in the early winter. ;)

Specs: 4 inch blade, .85 inch wide, .064 spine, .012 cutting edge, 3.75 inch handle. For best cosmetic results: hand wash only, towel dry, do not put into dishwasher.

So since this is a relatively small exploratory run I ask that we keep this a one per customer sale. The mid tech EDK knives with basic black handles will be $110 plus $10 for insured Priority mail shipping. International orders will ship via Express Mail only for $26 and please pay attention to any country restrictions that could exist about knives. I will not be responsible for confiscated blades at customs. I would think that kitchen knives should be OK to import but I really don't know what some countries with restrictive knife laws like Australia or the UK might do so you are on your own.

So there you go...I'm happy to finally be able to tell the story of these little knives. It's been a rather long and frustrating process and at times I really wasn't sure if they would ever happen especially since the recent floods closed down the factory for the past three weeks. But they are a great way to kick off Sharp Week. :D

Folks, first wave is gone....HOWEVER, they are not done with the black handles so the bulk of them are coming late next week. In the meantime, there will be another much larger round of OTHER ones coming early next week so stay tuned. Remember, I did say Sharp WEEK! :D

I hear they are delicious fried up with some onions so this cat better watch himself! :p :D

G2 Keyton Sneak Peak

2011-09-21T17:02:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

I didn't fall off the face of the earth or anything, just been busy grinding tools! I wanted to share a quick pic of the upcoming G2 Keyton. These are pretty slick I think. They kind of combine the old school Keyton design with my older Nibble design. It always bothered me that the Keyton lacked a bottle opener so I managed to get one in there on this version. These fit the hand very well and they are about the size of a full sized old school Keyton.

Anyhow, I just got done grinding these and they are in the tumbler now getting a thorough deburring. They head out for heat treat in a day or two and then it will be at least a week or two before they come back. So we're looking at early October on those.

In other news, I am grinding some steel Pests right now. I hope to get those out to heat treat next week so they will follow the Keyton batch in October.

I can't say what just yet but there are other items of great interest on the way in the interim so please stay tuned! :D

G2 Keyton hot off the grinder:

The List

2011-09-15T19:13:00.001-04:00

Another amazing turnout! Thanks so much everyone. :)

OK, I was surprised to see some of these numbers come up in a row but they did...I will send out emails right now.

3 smack2000
36 JonnyThunder
67 anewby
81 BSR
99 Hellooo Snakebite!!
133 Zazenist
136 SteK
146 ClassicDerek
162 Pick Me! Pick Me! Pick Me!
165 RMARVING
176 brmin
177 DB
178 Bloodline
196 Fred
256 raincoast
272 Konigsberg13
349 thartley
350 Taz Devil NYS

SnakeBite SUSale

2011-09-15T14:17:00.005-04:00

So, how about a SUSale? I have some SnakeBites done. These are S30v knives (that's right people, KNIVES!) with captive bits and bottle openers. They come with a kydex sheath and bead chain. This is the end of the SnakeBite batch that I made a couple of years ago and I'm just now getting around to finishing them.

So here's the deal, I have 18 of these. They are going to be $175 each plus shipping. International orders will ship via Express mail only. PLEASE DON'T SIGN UP UNLESS YOU INTEND TO BUY. I don't want to have to chase after people and remind them that they are one of the winning numbers. Also, ONE ENTRY PER CUSTOMER please. There's been a few sneaky folks trying to sign up with their wife's name or just plain signing up with multiple names. I will delete all duplicates including the original so I'd appreciate it if you all would keep my work load to a minimum and keep it honest, OK? Lastly, RELAX! I have more sharp stuff coming this fall so just chill out will ya? ;) :D

SUSale will end tonight at 7PM eastern time.

One more thing................thank you! :)

Sign Up is over, will post the list shortly, thanks again everyone!

List of Entrants

SUSale Rules

Multi Stamp Pests Mini Sale

2011-09-15T12:11:00.004-04:00

Howdy folks,

It's been very chaotic here the past week or so but things are settling down and maybe I might even be able to get some work done going forward. :)

Today I have a tray of multi stamped Pests done. These have all different stamps and are anodized different colors. I could have done a SUSale but there's too many of them to deal with the hassle so I decided to do a straight up sale on them. I will have another wave of ti ones later this fall btw so no worries, more will be coming. Also a batch of steel ones will be coming sometime in October or November.

At any rate, these are $75 plus shipping and it's a one per customer sale due to the small number of them. Thank you so much as always my friends!

Sold Out thank you!

Jenny's New Book!

2011-09-06T20:24:00.003-04:00

Hi Folks,

No tool sales tonight but I wanted to mention another matter...

As many of you know, my wife Jenny is a romance novelist. I'm proud to announce that her second novel in a series of three with astrological twist was just released this week and it is a terrific read. I read it in a couple of evenings and really enjoyed it. The story is as much historic spy novel as it is romance, a very entertaining page turner that will keep you on the edge of your seat. If you're looking for a gift for the romance reader in your household I would highly recommend it and it might just add a few sparks to your love life (hint hint). :D

Star Crossed Seduction is available in some Barnes and Noble stores, at the larger WalMarts and of course through online stores such as Amazon in both paper and E-book formats. You can learn more about it and find links where you can buy it at online stores including those that ship overseas postage free here: Jenny's New Book

Jenny is running a spotting contest like she did on the last one. Anyone who spots Star Crossed Seduction in a store and can snap a pic and submit it will be put into a drawing for a $25 gift certificate to their favorite online bookstore. She had a nice turnout last time for this: Spotting Contest

Whistle List

2011-09-04T19:16:00.002-04:00

Wow, so another terrific turnout. Thank you to everyone who signed up! I guess maybe another batch of whistles should be in the offing at some point...

Anyway, here is the list. I'll send out emails right now, thank you again!

9 Dale
45 SchexMixx
67 Ryan Kat
75 kii
89 Janette Luttrell
92 Epoch
109 katsiin
134 Do Not Have One
138 Bob Ross
192 GMoney
195 MJN
196 ixbrian
197 Seven Out
199 saltydog
218 melman8r
238 Porterspop
240 Jacob
244 wadams
248 onyxhawk
251 skull92

Ti Whistles SUSale

2011-09-04T13:15:00.004-04:00

Happy Sunday Folks! It's gray and gloomy here, good day for another sign up sale...

Today I have a small batch of titanium whistles done. There are 20 of these in rainbow anodized satin finish. They vary in color a little, some are lighter and some are darker but all are really gorgeous. They will run $95 each plus shipping and the link is below. Sign Up Sale will end at 7PM Eastern time this evening. Thanks for stopping by!

Sign up is over, I will publish the list and send out emails shortly, thank you!

List of Entrants

SUSale Rules

The List

2011-09-03T20:22:00.002-04:00

Once again, thank you everyone for such a big turnout! Here are the randomly picked numbers...emails going out to them right now. Thanks again and hope everyone has a great weekend ahead.

1 rasi
35 CW
36 thanny
56 L0mein
80 arem
109 Munkey6901
169 Lila Bean
206 NeverWin
236 Bigfatporkchop
243 pk
249 nbmaine
256 colindn
296 rg
338 tique
365 Bloodline
385 robho

Tropical Storm SUSale

2011-09-03T10:09:00.007-04:00

Howdy Folks!

So, in light of the tropical storm that we had here in the northeast last weekend that left such damage (thankfully not to our house) I thought maybe a Tropical Pest SUSale would be in order. I have just sixteen of these available and they will cost $75 each plus shipping. The Sign Up Sale will end at 8PM Eastern Time today, September 3rd. Thanks for stopping in folks, I deeply appreciate it and never take your continued support and generosity for granted! ;)

Sign up is over, list will be posted shortly and emails sent. Thank you!

List Of Entrants

Sign Up Sale Rules

So Far So Good

2011-08-28T14:23:00.004-04:00

10:30PM It's back up! :)

We haven't lost power here and the storm seems to be moving beyond us which is a good thing and a big relief. We got about 6 inches of rain I think, never saw winds more than 35 mph. Some massive flooding going on locally on some of the smaller creeks and rivers. I'm dying to see what the Ct River looks like but probably I will play it safe and won't go out until tomorrow.

My email and site is down because the server is hosted in CT and they are without power evidentally.

Mini Ribbed Lanslides Blue

2011-08-25T10:34:00.004-04:00

Hi Everyone,

Well, they are calling for storms tonight so I figured if I was going to do any kind of sale today it should be now. I have a small batch of Mini Ribbed Lanslides finished and these are anodized blue. Because the number is limited I think I'll make it two per customer limit on them this time. I will be turning more Lanslides this fall so no worries, more will be coming in a month or two.

Gone in a Flash! Thank you folks!

Here They Are:

2011-08-24T20:10:00.002-04:00

Once again I am always amazed at the number of folks who sign up. Thank you so much, I really really appreciate it! :)

OK, so after sorting through the names and picking the numbers at total random here is the list:

95 dkavanagh
102 d.cooper.jr
124 elfan888
128 Pierre32
153 bruin
172 DC
224 Soulriot
252 patches138
262 Byung
267 654248
297 mcu71
320 turtlefarmer
435 Vizzini
452 Mpallett
456 PettyGenius

Thanks folks!

Sign Up Sale: Pests with Multi Stamps

2011-08-24T14:04:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

Well, I haven't done one of these Sign Up Sales in ages but decided to do one today. I have just fifteen of these special titanium Pests available, each with multiple stamps on them. They are all different and I had some fun playing around with the anodizing, trying out various color fades and effects. Anyway, these will be $75 each plus shipping.

The way it works is you click on the link below, fill out the form and you will entered into the pool for a chance to buy one. Everyone has the same chance so whether you get here right after I post these or at 7:59 Eastern time tonight, it doesn't matter, you still will have a chance at them.

The sign up period will end at 8PM Eastern time tonight, August 24th. At that time I will shut down the sale, check the list for duplicates and then choose the 15 numbers at random and send emails with purchase instructions to the winners. Please read the SUSale rules posted below if you haven't entered one of these before. Anyone entering twice will have their entry deleted so please play fair everyone. ;) Thank you for stopping in!

SUSale is closed, I will post the list and send emails shortly. Thank you so much everyone!

List of People Who Are Signed Up

Sign Up Sale Rules

Blue Lanslides

2011-08-23T13:22:00.006-04:00

Hey Folks,

I'm working on a variety of things here, slowly picking away at some tool batches. It's been a really busy month and so I'm going a little easy this week in an effort to catch my breath. Anyway, there will be much to look forward to in the next week or two so please stay tuned. And before anyone asks, NO KEYTONS until October at least and they will only be in steel. :p :D

So, today I have some Large Ribbed Titanium Lanslides with blue anodizing. They are the usual $15 each plus shipping. Thanks for stopping in and have a marvelous week!

Sold Out, thank you!

Stamped UV Pests

2011-08-20T14:14:00.003-04:00

Hi Folks,

The Pests continue to trickle out of the shop...I have some stamped ones today with UV anodizing. These were some of my favorites so far. They run $70 plus shipping and the link is below...thanks very much!

Sold out, thank you again folks!

Blue Pests with Stamps

2011-08-19T18:35:00.003-04:00

Happy Weekend People!

Tonight I have some more ti Pests...these are stamped and are anodized a deep rich blue. The batch is fairly small so one per customer please. They will run $70 each plus shipping and the link is below. Have a great evening everyone and thank you for stopping by.

Blue ones are gone, thank you!

Rainbow Pests

2011-08-17T08:21:00.005-04:00

Howdy Folks and top of the morning to you! It's going to be a warm and muggy day here today.

I have a few Rainbow anodized Pests this morning. Once again, there is a very small number of them so it will be one per customer so everyone gets a chance at them. They are $65 plus shipping and the link is below...

Sold Out, thank you so much!

UV Pests

2011-08-16T18:15:00.004-04:00

Hi Everyone,

Well, today I have a small number of UV Pests available. I only made a couple dozen of them so it will be a one per customer sale please. The UV Pests run $65 plus shipping. Thanks for stopping by this evening!

All gone, thank you!

Green Ti Lanslides

2011-08-12T19:21:00.004-04:00

Howdy folks,

Tonight I have some full sized titanium Lanslide beads with the ribbed pattern and these are anodized green. They are a little brighter than the picture shows but are hard to photograph. Anyway, I only have a few dozen....they are $15 each plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks as always for visiting and keeping up with all my crazy projects, it is always appreciated.

Sold out, thank you!

The Pest!

2011-08-10T15:42:00.003-04:00

Hi Folks,

OK, things are moving right along here...I've been a grinding, stamping and tumbling fool these past few days and I managed to get a good sized batch of these new tools finished. This is The Pest. It's a simple pry tool/screwdriver with bottle opener, similar to the Chiggers that I made last year but larger. These are 3 inches long and made of 5/32" thick titanium with a stonewashed finish. Thanks to the large openings they weigh almost nothing yet are still extremely robust. I love this kind of design, simple and elegant.

Anyway, this first wave is plain stonewashed with no anodizing. I have more to finish up in the coming days and will do some anodized ones next but these are just plain. They are $65 plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks for your patience everyone!

Sold out for now, more on the way very soon, thank you so much!

More Bronze Lanslides

2011-08-07T16:03:00.007-04:00

Howdy Folks,

Hot and muggy here today! I hope everyone is having a terrific weekend. Won't be a whole lot more of these this summer as we are already about to say goodbye to the first week of August...

Anyway, I've been working hard all weekend though and today I have the rest of the bronze Lanslide beads finished. Thanks for stopping in, always appreciated!

OK, these are gone, thanks again.

Bronze Rifle Knurl Lanslides

2011-08-05T18:56:00.005-04:00

Hi Everyone,

Tonight I have some full sized rifle knurl Lanslides in bronze. These are $15 plus shipping and the link is below...thank you!

Sold out for now, thank you! I have more of these to finish still so more on the way.

Ebay

2011-08-02T08:32:00.002-04:00

If I think you are buying a bunch of pieces to turn around on Ebay I reserve the right to cancel the transaction.

Stamped G5 Prybabies

2011-08-01T18:40:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

Looks like the storms have passed and it's safe to turn the computers back on...

Tonight I have some G5 Prybabies with stamps on them. These are the same Summer Weight ones as over the weekend. The color these ended up is slightly darker than the pictures show btw, just the way they came out from heat treat.

Anyway, they are $65 each plus shipping. Thanks everyone and hope you're having a great week.

First Wave is gone, thank you so much!

Titanium Poltergeists

2011-07-30T18:08:00.004-04:00

Nice evening tonight! Good night for a sale... :D

I have these titanium Poltergeists finished today. These are the larger version of the ti Minis that I did a couple of weeks ago...they are all anodized blue. This is a really small batch, just a couple dozen, so I need to make this a one per customer sale. They will be $70 each plus shipping.

I have a brand new titanium tool called the Pest that I'll be doing in a few weeks and those will be much much more plentiful. Also more Swingers are underway and another ti tool as well so there is tons of titanium on the horizon! :)

Blue Poltergeists are gone, thank you!

G5 Prybabies

2011-07-30T11:14:00.004-04:00

Hi Everyone,

Happy Weekend! :) Lovely day today although it's going to be getting pretty hot over the next few days.

I have some S35vn steel G5 Prybabies with stonewashed finish available today. These are less than 5/32" in thickness at .140", just slightly lighter than usual, so I'll call these the Summer Weight Prybabies. They are $60 each plus shipping and the link is below...thanks for stopping in and I hope everyone is having a great summer!

First wave is gone but I have more coming in a day or two...thank you!

Plain Swingers

2011-07-23T17:41:00.004-04:00

Sometimes the shop is a good place to beat the heat. I put in some time earlier today and got some more Swingers done. These are plain, no anodizing, with a fine glass bead finish on them.

Plain ones are gone, thank you everyone!

Swingers!

2011-07-22T17:20:00.006-04:00

Hello Everyone,

It's a warm one today, still 91F degrees here and it reached a high close to 100F. At least it's not too humid or it would be intolerable. Anyway, I hope everyone is staying cool!

I'm working on a new flat tool in titanium and have the first wave ready to go. These are geared toward golfers and they're something that I have been talking about making for years but just never seemed to get around to the project. Recently I had started thinking about making a run of some sort of flat tool but didn't want to revisit my old designs. So I thought, why not revive the divot repair tool idea...and with a nudge from a couple of my customers who are avid golfers I sat down and did some drawings.

The Swinger is made of 6al4v titanium, a little over 3 inches long and about 1 inch wide. The thickness is .060 which is thin but not too thin...the tool still has a little bit of substance to it but is thin enough that it will slip into the dirt easily. The Swinger features a divot repair fork, a bottle opener and a simple light duty pry/scraper tip. You could probably use it as a club rest with a little jockeying. Even non golfers might find this a handy little backup piece for the wallet.

The first wave is anodized blue and I will follow this one with some plain unanodized ones and then maybe some more in different colors.

The Swinger is $45 plus shipping. Thanks as always for stopping by!

Blue One are Gone, Thank you! More on the way in other colors.

More Tipplers

2011-07-18T18:20:00.005-04:00

Hi Folks,

It's getting warmer. By the end of the week it will be in the mid 90's and humid so good time to hunker down in the basement and get some stuff done.

OK, tonight I have the remaining 303 stainless steel Tipplers finished... Thanks as always for stopping by and stay cool!

All gone for now, thank you!

Stainless Steel Tipplers

2011-07-14T12:32:00.005-04:00

Hi Folks,

Well, finally I have something in stock again...today I have the first wave of 303 stainless steel Tipplers ready to go. These are finely made and built to last at least 10 lifetimes. They are truly beautiful objects IMO. They have been passivated (acid washed) to remove surface iron and sulfur and that leaves them fairly neutral smelling and tasting as well as giving them a bright finish. Each Tippler holds one generous sized shot of liquid refreshment, 35ml which is 6 ml more than a standard 1 fluid oz shot.

The cost of material and labor has gone up since I made these last and so they are slightly more than the first batch that I made two years ago, $60 each plus shipping. International orders for one Tippler will ship via Priority Mail and for more than one will ship via Express Mail. As always, thanks so much for stopping by!

First Wave is Sold Out, thank you!

Weekend Update

2011-07-08T18:24:00.002-04:00

Howdy All,

Sorry for the long radio silence. I had to take some days off to enjoy life while we had a spell of really fine weather but now it's rainy, hot and muggy so back to the dungeon for me! For the past week or more I've been scrambling to get a bunch of projects underway. Good things are ahead!

For those who remember my stainless steel shot glasses, I have another round of the Tippler cups coming up for the middle of next week. These hold a generous shot of your favorite refreshment (actually 35ml vs 29ml for a standard shot) and are in 303 stainless steel. I'm doing the same classic pattern as the originals.

Today I sent out some Summer Weight G5 Prybabies to heat treat. These were a little under the usual 5/32" thickness so will not weigh your keychain down so much. They will be back in two weeks and ready to go then.

G2 Keytons are still sitting here waiting for me to start grinding them. Hope to get going on them next week or possibly over the weekend depending on how much energy I have.

More Roid Rench G5 Prybabies have been cut and are waiting for me to start working on them but I want to get into the G2 Keytons first. But at least those are here for when I get time to start them and that's half the battle.

Some other nifty items are in the works too...the Swinger, the Pest and the EDK. More info on those as time goes on... ;)

As soon as I get some more lanyards tied I will do a sale with some full sized bronze rifle knurl Lanslides. And I have other odds and ends such as that small batch of full sized Poltergeists too. So please bear with me a few more days! Good stuff is on the way. :)

More Bronze Mini Ribbed Lanslides

2011-06-22T17:51:00.004-04:00

Alrighty then...I have the rest of these done this evening. Here is the purchase link, thanks again!

Sold out, thanks so much folks!

Bronze Mini Ribbed Lanslides

2011-06-22T07:59:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

We've had great weather here for the past few days so working away in the shop has not been high on my agenda. But it looks like we're in for a spot of rain over the next few days so I guess it's back to the old grindstone for me. Literally. :)

Today I have some Mini Ribbed Lanslides done. These are in bright machine satin bronze and are the usual $15 each plus shipping. Thanks so much and happy first day of summer!

All gone for now but I will have more shortly, thank you!

Mail to Canada

2011-06-21T07:43:00.002-04:00

My post office put up a sign yesterday saying that they will no longer accept any mail to Canada because of the postal strike. Up until recently my understanding was that the mail was still going through but that it was being delivered on a rotation schedule but now I'm not sure what is happening. I'm afraid maybe a lot of mail is being held at the border. So until further notice I'm not going to be able to take any orders from Canada and I just hope they get the situation resolved soon.

Few More Stamped Poltergeists

2011-06-14T20:40:00.003-04:00

Hi Folks,

How about an evening sale? :D

I have a few more of the stamped Mini Poltergeists in S35vn steel left. They are $55 plus shipping..thank you as always!

Sold Out, thank you!

Stamped Mini Poltergeists

2011-06-12T09:49:00.005-04:00

Hey Everyone,

Hope you all are having a good weekend! It's another rainy and gloomy day here so since outside activities are a wash I figured it would be a perfect day for a sale.

Today I have CPM S35vn steel Mini Poltergeists with antique stamps on them. These were in the same run as the recent plain mini Poltergeists so they have been tumbled to a nice buttery smooth finish. Stamps are mostly different so I'll send you what I send you... They are $55 plus shipping...thank you and have a great rest of the weekend!

All gone for now, thanks so much folks!

Mini Poltergeists in Steel

2011-06-10T17:29:00.007-04:00

Hi Everyone,

OK, today I have more Mini Poltergeists done, this time in CPM S35vn steel. These have been tumbled for twice as long as usual and have developed a very nice buttery smooth feel to them. They are $50 plus shipping and the link is below. As always, thanks so much for your interest, patience and support, it is much appreciated!

Sold Out for now! Thank you folks and have a great evening!

Titanium Mini Poltergeists

2011-06-06T14:47:00.006-04:00

Hi Folks,

OK, today I have the first wave of titanium Mini Poltergeists. These have my High Voltage patterning on them and are anodized green. Absolutely gorgeous!

Anyway, the batch is quite small so it's a one per customer sale...they run $70 plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks as always!

Sold Out!

Five Flute Olive G10 Lanslides

2011-06-04T18:52:00.005-04:00

Hope everyone is having a great weekend! It's just perfect weather here and it's
supposed to be this way for a week or so. Nice evening for a little sale...

Today I have the remaining Five Flute Olive G10 Lanslides done. These are $15 each plus the shipping. As always, thanks for checking in!

That's it for now, thank you again and have a great rest of the weekend!

Left Handed G5 Prybabies

2011-06-03T13:59:00.003-04:00

Howdy everyone. It's been a gorgeous day and I've spent a good bit of it outside doing Spring painting. Now it's time for a break and a short sale...

I don't have many of these so it's a one per customer sale. I rarely make left handed tools so it would be great if the righties would let the lefties have a go at these. No worries if you are right handed, I have many many more G5 Prybabies underway both in Roid Edition and normal thicknesses as well.

The Left Handed G5 Prybabies are made of S35vn steel with raw bar finish. They are $65 each plus shipping and link is below. Have a great weekend folks!

Lefties are gone, thank you so much!

Mini Ribbed Lanslides

2011-06-02T10:08:00.008-04:00

Howdy Folks,

It's a beautiful day here today. Sunshine and pleasant temperatures. A big contrast to yesterday in which we had hot muggy weather and violent storms. There were several tornadoes south of here in the city of Springfield and several people were killed. Very rare weather for this area. Luckily for us there was no damage here and no loss of electricity. There were some anxious hours though watching the live footage of the storms and looking out the window at the swirling dark clouds passing by our house. You could really see the distinct layers of air movement going on.

Anyway, getting back on track...originally I was going to do a lot of the ti gear leashes but they take too much time to tie up so I'm taking the "lazy" way out and offering the beads as regular Lanslides. These smaller sized ones are particularly elegant in shape and are the same size as the Mini Rifle Knurl beads I did earlier this year. I think they are my new personal favorite.

The Mini Ribbed Lanslides run $15 each plus shipping as usual and the link is below. As always, thanks for stopping in and fear not, there is tons more stuff in the works as well so stay tuned!

All gone for now, thank you so much!

G5 Prybabies with Stamps

2011-05-26T13:29:00.005-04:00

Hi Folks,

OK, so today I have G5 Prybabies with antique diemaker stamps available. I don't have a lot of them so I'll make it a one per customer sale. These run $65 plus shipping.

Stamped ones are sold out, thank you!

G5 Prybabies

2011-05-25T14:15:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

Hope everyone is having a great week and getting some nice weather! It's gorgeous here and almost too nice to work...

Today I have some G5 Prybabies done. These are the regular 5/32 thickness S35vn steel and they have a nice subdued stonewashed finish on them which will wear very nicely on your keys. They run $60 each plus shipping. As always, thank you so much for dropping in, I really appreciate it.

Sold out, thank you very much! More in a day or so.

G5 Prybabies: Roid Rench Edition

2011-05-19T12:46:00.007-04:00

Q: What do elite sports stars in baseball, football, bicycling and the new G5 Prybaby all have in common?
A: They've all been Juicin'!

I wasn't expecting these back from heat treat this week since I sent in the regular thickness G5s first. But back they are...this special edition of the G5 Prybaby is made of super thick and tough CPM 3V tool steel hardened to 57-59 Rockwell and cryogenically treated. They retain some of the high temperature heat treat colors in the inside corners and surfaces so if you see a reddish tinge it is not rust. Unlike regular cutlery steels CPM 3v requires a very high tempering temperature to bring out it's incredible toughness, hence the color.

Anyway, at nearly 1/4" thick these are the most robust Prybabies I've ever made. They are monsters. I made sure they had an extra long tumbling too so the corners and edges are nicely softened for a comfortable grip.

The G5 Roid Renches will run $70 each plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks so much for your patience during the past few weeks while I got all these batches ground, milled and processed!

Sold Out for now! Thank you!

Good Riddance Sale

2011-05-02T13:19:00.004-04:00

Hey Everyone,

I think you know what I mean today...here's to better days ahead for the whole world.

I'm working on some large batches of G5 Prybabies and so will be doing grinding and prepping them for heat treat for a few days this week.

Anyway, today I have the rest of the S35vn E115 tools done. These have been stonewashed, actually they have my very similar but slightly matte antique satin finish on them. There's only a couple dozen so it's a one per customer sale...they are $60 plus shipping. Thanks very much!

Sold out!

Element 115

2011-04-25T18:51:00.004-04:00

Howdy Folks,

Tonight I have the first wave of E115 tools done. These are made of S35vn steel and this bunch has the raw bar finish. OAL is 3 1/4" and they feature a wrench set ranging from 1/4" to 1/2" plus a 1/4 hex opening and pry tip. These will run $65 plus shipping and the link is below. As always, thank you!

Sold out, thank you!

Poltergeists with Stamps

2011-04-23T10:47:00.004-04:00

Happy Easter Weekend Everyone! It would be happier here except we just got a dusting of disgusting snow on the ground. I thought this was supposed to be Spring! :(

I've been doing some grinding the past two days, getting stuff into the pipeline so I can keep things going...the pace often seems glacial but progress is inevitable.

Anyway, today I have some stamped Poltergeists. This is pretty close to the end of the Poltergeists for now. They are $55 plus shipping and once again, it will be one per customer, mostly different stamps so I'll send what I send. Thanks for stopping in and I hope everybody has a safe and fun weekend.

Sold Out, thank you folks!

Raw Bar Poltergeists

2011-04-20T14:08:00.004-04:00

Howdy Folks,

Today I have the last few S35VN steel Raw Bar Poltergeists done. These are $55 plus shipping and it's a one per customer sale on account of the small quantity. As always, thanks for stopping by!

Sold Out, thank you!

Mini Poltergeists with Stamps

2011-04-18T16:43:00.003-04:00

Hey Everyone,

Tonight I have some Mini Poltergeists done. These S35VN steel tools are the same size and profile as the Ghosts (2.5" OAL) from last year but they have a single 1/2" hex opening. Originally I was going to call these the Cyclops but they look more like a Mini Poltergeist to me now. :)

This small batch has my antique stamps on them and are $55 each plus shipping, link is below. The batch is small so one per customer please and since most of the stamps are different I'll send you what I send you, they're all very cool. Thank you!

First Wave is Sold Out, thank you!

Raw Bar Poltergeists

2011-04-18T09:55:00.003-04:00

Hi Folks,

OK, this morning I have some full sized 3 inch S35VN steel Poltergeists but this time with Raw Bar finish. These are $55 plus shipping. It's a small batch again so these will be one per customer please, thank you!

Raw Bar Poltergeists are Sold Out, thank you!

Poltergeists with Stamps

2011-04-15T08:27:00.005-04:00

Howdy Folks,

Today I have a small batch of Poltergeists with stamps. These are mostly different and since there's only a couple dozen it will be a one per customer sale. They run $55 plus shipping. Thanks for stopping in and I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Sold out, thank you!

How About Some Action?

2011-04-14T06:43:00.004-04:00

Howdy Folks! I'm back. Feeling great, full of energy and the surgeon just gave me the go ahead to get back to my mostly normal life again. I explained to her that my life is far from normal... :D

Anyway, today I have some plain stonewashed Poltergeists done. I'll have a series of small batches of tools over the next few days but we'll start out with these first. They are $50 plus shipping and the link is below. Thanks for bearing with me and for your patience!

Plain ones are gone but I have more tools on the way. Thanks!

Feeling Great

2011-04-11T10:19:00.002-04:00

Yeah, so it's just amazing what one week or lazing about recovering from surgery will do for you. I'm feeling almost back to normal. I have a followup visit to the doc in a couple of days, but I think I'm ready for some light work this week.

The first batch of tools came back from heat treat a few days ago but they are going back for another round of tumbling. These guys had some shakeups over the winter and a bunch of older workers left. The new guys are just not paying enough attention yet and so they let stuff out the door before it's ready. Not enough cycle time on the tumblers so back they go and I gave them a good chewing out. The second batch was due to ship to me on Friday but after our discussion they agreed to just go ahead and retumble those as well as a preemptive step. I should be getting that second batch by mid week and so end of this week I think the sales will finally be starting back up.

Off to do taxes now. :(

Disappointed but Upbeat

2011-04-01T10:30:00.004-04:00

Hey, so I was hoping those Poltergeists would be back from heat treat by now but for some reason these guys are dragging their feet. That means they will not be back to me until Monday at the earliest but more likely later on next week.

Now, next week I am taking some days off, probably the whole week in fact. I'm having my gall bladder out. It's an outpatient laproscopic surgery and really shouldn't be too big of a deal but I'll be sore and doped up for a couple of days at least. Maybe by the weekend I'll be back on my feet and moving forward.

The great news is, I have just a ton of stuff going so the middle and latter part of April is going to be crazy crazy busy. Those who have been wanting G5 Prybabies will not be left out because there are three whole batches in the works. Probably will be May on those but they are certainly on the way. Also, Poltergeists and mini Poltergeists in large quantities and the E115 tool. And the titanium Poltergeists and mini Poltergeists have also been started. I'm contemplating some Gasbabies too.

The Dace knives are on hold indefinitely. I had some production difficulties but I'm still hopeful that the batch can be saved. I'm looking at my options and I think there's a way to get them finished to my satisfaction eventually but don't hold your breath on them.

Aged Bronze Lanslides

2011-03-27T13:03:00.004-04:00

Happy Sunday Everyone!

Today I have some Bronze Lanslide beads with rifle knurling. I have given these a deep patina followed by an aging and antiquing process. The OD green cord goes very well with them I think and they will look great on a jacket or tool. This is it on the bronze Lanslides, at least for the time being...They are the usual $15 each plus shipping and the link is below, thanks!

Bronze are all gone, thank you! :)

Gear Leashes

2011-03-25T18:37:00.004-04:00

Howdy all,

This evening I have a bunch of the black delrin Gear Leashes done. I have plain black cord and I have black reflective cord. I'll send one of those unless I hear in the comments or email that you want a specific color. The black cord is not as thick as the other cords I have and the beads are not quite as snug, just so you know. I also have some of the colored reflective cords left shown a few posts below as well as reflective cord in maroon and OD green. For solid colors I think I have a couple of tan ones left as well as bright yellow, royal blue and hot pink. Link is below, thanks again for stopping in this evening! :)

All gone for tonight, thank you!

Rest of the Croc Wrenches

2011-03-25T14:47:00.004-04:00

Hi Folks,

Thanks for bearing with me this past week. I just finished grinding some more Poltergeist tools and E115s. These will go out to heat treat in the morning and will be back in about two weeks. In the meantime, I expect to see the previous batch of Poltergeists and mini Poltergeists to be back from heat treat sometime next week. I've been trying to get a lot of stuff going this past week or so with the idea of preparing for a fairly steady stream of sales throughout April and into May.

Today I have the rest of the Croc Wrenches done. These are the raw bar ones and there's only a handful of them available. So it will be one per customer sale and they are $70 each plus shipping, link is below. Thanks for stopping by!

Sold Out, thank you! :)

Shown next to a G5 Prybaby for size comparison:

Why No Bends?

2011-03-23T14:53:00.002-04:00

People keep asking me for XL bends and so I thought I better explain it here rather than keep on telling one person after another what the problem is. In my current designs with thumb scallops and hex cutout shapes it is not possible to do XL bends. Oh, I can do it, it's just that I end up having to fix half of them. The problem comes in anytime you have an edge that is not perfectly straight and one that has not been completely deburred and rounded over. What happens is, you get tiny stress cracks forming inside these edge features. They probably aren't a big deal in normal use and would not break but they look unsightly to anyone who is studying the piece and so they undermine confidence in the integrity of the tool. At least, that's my feeling when I look at them.

So, in order to make XL bends in any of my tools, I would have to go back to the original boring straight shapes which, to be honest, I have made tons of them over the years and I'd like to keep moving on with my current designs. Plus, they require an extensive tumbling BEFORE I make the bends because the sharp edge of a freshly sanded bar of steel is also susceptible to these tiny cracks. You need rounded corners to avoid the problem. My currently production flow does not include a pre tumble and so that would add another step and two weeks more time to get it done.

So that's why I haven't been making anything with XL bends in a while. ;) Who knows though, maybe I will get around to it at some point...I am planning to revisit some older designs this year like I did last year with the mini Prybabies and Perfbabies, just haven't decided which tools yet.

Grinding Grinding Grinding...

2011-03-21T12:43:00.003-04:00

Working on Poltergeists and E115 tools this week! :)

Here's a sneak peak at an unfinish raw bar E115 before it goes to heat treat. A neat little tool, it is similar to an Atwrench but more slender and without a bottle opener. I'm still waiting on surface grinding to be finished for the rest of the batch before I send them out but I'm hoping to get these out for heat treat by the weekend.

Short Update

2011-03-16T09:10:00.002-04:00

Hi Folks,

Just wanted to let you know that I'm not resting on my laurels. I just got a big batch of Poltergeists and mini Poltergeists ready to send out to heat treat so those will be back in about two weeks. In the meantime I'm also getting a batch of G5 Prybabies ready for milling and will try to get those out to heat treat in a week or two. Once I get some of this sanding and grinding work out of the way I'll return to the Gear Leashes in both Delrin and titanium. Please stay tuned, there's a ton of stuff on the way!

Colored Cord LifeLines

2011-03-11T14:08:00.005-05:00

Hi Folks,

First of all, my sympathies for our Japanese friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with you!

Alright, I have some more LifeLine Gear Leashes ready to go. These have the non marring black Delrin keeper and slider beads and feature either blue, red or yellow reflective cord or orange/black camo cord. To keep life simple I'd like to say I'll send you whatever I send you as all the colors are really nice...but if you have strong feelings towards any colors you may indicate them in the comments field during checkout or drop me an email. I'll do my best to hook you up with the color you want but supplies are limited in any of these colors. If it gets too confusing I'll just stop the sale and try to catch up. Anyway, thanks as always for stopping by and hope everyone has a great weekend. :)

Sold out for now, but MANY more on the way over the next days and weeks. Thank you!

What's a LifeLine Gear Leash?

2011-03-09T11:41:00.009-05:00

Howdy folks! I've been working on assembling the new LifeLine Gear Leashes over the past few days. I'll be dribbling these out over the next few weeks as time and my fingers permit.

The Gear Leash concept is a simple one. I've wanted a sturdy wrist strap solution for some time and I've been frustrated for years with the garbage straps with the "dental floss" attachments that I so often see. Very few wrist straps are the right size, are user adjustable or have a tension slider on them.

At first I wanted a material for these that was not paracord but the more I looked into it I decided that paracord really was the best solution particularly since I wanted to use round turned beads for the keeper and tension slider. Leather or flat nylon would be hard to thread through the beads and would not perform correctly.

I did quite a few tests using my existing Lanslide beads and various pieces of EDC gear until I worked out the best set up. I wanted to make some all new bead designs for this project and I wanted the design in keeping with my past designs. So I borrowed the ribbed shape from the whistles for the slider bead and then scaled it down with a smaller inside diameter for the keeper bead.

I did consider using Berkeley Point clips on these but decided a simple small keyring would be better. While I do like the BP clips, they have a nasty habit of coming undone if they get twisted in the pocket. I have lost too many flashlights and pocket knives because of this, plus they are quite expensive even buying in bulk. If you want a BP clip then throw one on the keyring of the Leash or retie the Gear Leash with a clip instead of the keyring.

Speaking of tying, the knot on these is the same as the standard Matthew Walker knot that I have been using for years. The difference is, the MW knot calls for bringing the ends through the loops two times. On these, you simply bring the ends around through the loops one more time for a total of three. That's it, very simple to do and it results in a larger knot. In this way if you want a shorter leash it is easy to retie it or if you want to change an old dirty cord for some clean cord or you want a different cord color it is easy to do. Simple instructions for tying the Matthew Walker Two Strand Knot are Here.

For the first batch of these I chose black Delrin as the bead material. The reason for this is that I wanted to make some LifeLines that would be nonmarring. As many of you know, I am an avid photographer and I have many old cameras. I wanted some beads that would not scratch up the finish on those older cameras or other delicate items. Also, the black just looks so nice on the cord! I do have titanium beads running right now though and will offer the LifeLines with both satin finish and anodized titanium beads as time goes on.

Right now I am not selling these beads separately, they are only going to be available on the Gear Leashes for the time being. The first wave is on desert tan cord but some various colored cord ones will follow shortly. The Delrin Gear Leashes are $35 plus shipping and the link is below:

Tan ones are sold out! I have dozens of colored ones that I'm going to tie tonight so many many more on the way. Thank you! :)

Few More CrocoNuts

2011-03-05T11:24:00.005-05:00

Hi Folks,

Sorry for the slow pace of things lately but I've been giving my left hand some time off for my tendonitis and it has helped greatly. I'm taking it a little easy and am really feeling much better. But that doesn't mean that things have stopped here, far from it in fact. I'm pushing forward with numerous projects and making some good headway.

Early next week I will be sending a big batch of tools off to heat treat, Poltergeists and mini Poltergeists. The mini Poltergeist is exactly the same profile and size as the Ghosts that I did last year but it has a single hex opening in the top end. I had made just three proto ones last year that I called the Cyclops but I think mini Poltergeist is a better name since they so closely resemble their big brother. The first wave of those will be steel and a second wave is also cut and ready to start the grinding work. A third wave for middle or end of April timeframe will be in titanium. There will also be some ti Poltergeists around that time.

I'm currently getting underway on the LifeLine Gear Leash project. The first of those will be in non marring black delrin. I will have pictures very very soon as I am tying the first ones of those this weekend. I'm making tons of them so no worries on snagging some. Second wave will be starting end of next week and those will be in titanium. I'll take pics and explain the philosophy behind the design in the next day or so.

Anyway, I have the remaining 20 of the stonewashed CrocoNut wrenches done. There are some bead blasted ones on the way soon as well and I have a handful of raw bar ones that I need to finish up too. But right now it's these plain ones...as always, thanks for stopping by! :)

Stonewashed are sold out, thank you!

CrocoNut Wrenches

2011-02-26T13:10:00.005-05:00

Hi Folks,

It's been a slow week for sales but a busy week for work as I continue to battle the onslaught of winter and work on the next tools to get them into the heat treat pipeline. Poltergeists will be on deck for middle of March. In the meantime I'm also dealing with tendonitis in my left hand so that's slowing me down a bit especially for knot tying.

Anyway, I did manage to get some of the new CrocoNut Wrench tools done. They are stonewashed .160 thick CPM S35VN steel and I did not do any stamped ones or anything else special with this batch, they are just simple and sturdy. Open jaw sizes are 1/4-9/16" and closed hex sizes are 1/4-7/16", overall length of the tool is 4 3/8". These will be $65 plus shipping and the link is below:

First Wave is Sold Out, more are coming though. Thank you! :)