SharkTooth Teaser

Got a sample piece back from the tumbler yesterday. Awesome finish on these and it looks like they will be coming back to me early next week. Then it will be sheath time...so we're getting closer. :) Meanwhile here's a little preview to whet your whistles:

Metric Question!

Hey Metric Heads, we Americans are not as familiar with your system as we probably ought to be. Or at least this American isn't.... :D

Here's my situation: I'm playing with the FunnyBone drawings and looking at common metric wrench sizes. Now, the ideal size progression on my tool is 6,8,10,12,14,16,18mm.

It is my understanding though that 13mm is a very important and common size. It also happens to be very close to our American 1/2" which is an extremely common size here so I can see the attraction. My question is, how critical is 13mm? The reason is, if I include it then it throws off the whole progression of sizes on the tool and they need to be 2mm apart to work out and be stepped correctly.

So I guess I'm wondering, what are the most important metric sizes that the rest of the world needs? I have other configurations worked out if the above mentioned list isn't good enough.

Glimpse in the Notebook

Couple of rough sketches and trying out various names...This is close to what the RingCutter will look like. The other drawing is of a possible future double ended wrench tool that I am calling the FunnyBone. Metric on one end and SAE on the other. :)

I'm always tweaking, doodling and coming up with these while I'm reading or watching movies and during commercials when the football games are on.

Going to be a Good Weekend

Finishing up some small stuff today. :)

OK, here's something new. This is the SharkBite variant that I had mentioned in an earlier post....called the RingLeader. Same specs as a SharkBite basically but it has a nice 3/4" diameter ring opening. This was a small test run of these and I still have a few more in the shop to grind and what not. So there will be this wave of stonewashed ones, a wave of bead blasted ones and then another very small wave in a couple of weeks. I may cut more though if the response is strong and if so will make a few little tweaks. I'd like to see the larger bottle opener of the Nibble and maybe nudge the ring to 1" diameter.

In Progress: SharkTooth

The upcoming SharkTooth...these are a couple of rough "in progress" shots to get an idea what the tool will be. Basically it's a Pop n Chop morphed onto a BugBite with a SharkBite thrown into the mix.

These are super handy little guys. I've been carrying a proto for a few weeks now and I can tell you that I am more than pleased with it's performance. Talk about a great little tool... I was using it to open packages this week, break down boxes in the garage and popped a couple of beers with it too. :) And I'm doing the sheaths so that the bit will be accessible without removing the whole tool from the sheath. Neat little piece.

Still weeks away though from being finished...check out how close to the same I ground all these. Whew! :D

Web and Email Trouble

The Atwoodknives website is just having a heck of a time lately. My web host is having major problems with their server for some reason and for the past week it comes and goes frequently throughout the day. I have to call them every couple of hours it seems to get them to reset the server. This is really starting to tick me off and I'm afraid I've been losing some email lately too as this is also my email server. So please bear with me if you can. If they do not get it fixed soon I may be forced to move the site to another server and that will mean a ton of down time and a bunch of work. So I'm trying to put it off and see if the problems will resolve but it seems to be getting worse every day....

What's Coming?

In the weeks ahead this is what I have planned:

BugBites
Flat Ti Gasbabies
G2 Gasbabies
Crawdaddies
Bermuda Triangles
Triangle+
A51 Keytons (small batch)

Also a few new things are in the works, one is a SharkBite variant and the other a brand new tool with a cutting edge.

I'll be grinding for a few days so there won't be much action on the Available Tools page.

Wow!

OK, that was mighty quick, in fact it was a record. I had just under two dozen Nibbles ready, posted them and they were gone in less than 10 minutes. I swear you guys are going to eat me alive if I'm not careful .... :D Sheesh!

I ran out of Phillips bits this morning and have more ordered for tomorrow. So I was not able to finish the BugBites but will work on them once I get all these packages out. Thanks folks! I certainly do appreciate it. :)

Few More Nibbles and BugBites.....

....will be coming tomorrow if I can get them finished in the morning.

This time of year is always tough to keep to a work schedule because there's endless interruptions. Between the constant snow and ice storms we've had this year which have kept me busy on the driveway and the piles of paperwork from tax season I've been having trouble just staying in the shop for any length of time. Plus I never have gotten my heating situation totally straightened out in the shop and it's in the low to mid 50's for most of the day. Cold! But it looks like a lot of the worst is now past and I should be getting some good stretches of work done over the next few weeks. :)

Alright, this is Geeky :D

I was playing around a couple of weeks ago just looking for something a little different. I do not currently plan to make any of these, just exploring the idea a little. It is possible I may do something for a wrist though at some point or maybe a belt buckle or a titanium slide tool for nylon webbing. This particular piece is 44mm in diameter and uses a 22mm Maratac one piece Zulu strap.

My Apologies

I apologize to anyone who was offended by my last comments on the Ebay post. But the fact of the matter is, I learned as a young boy, if you poke a dog with a stick long enough he's going to bite you. I do have a temper.

I will no longer post comments from anonymous posters. I've had enough of people who would belittle me and others and whose sole purpose seems to be to stir up crap and act like bullies. You guys don't see plenty of comments that I have deleted in the past because of foul language and/or personal attacks but I allowed a few in that last posting so folks could see what comes in. But if you aren't willing to put your name on it I think that I am going to have to stop putting those comments up. Some of the anonymous stuff is downright vicious.

Also, I appreciate that many folks are well meaning in their suggestions on how I could improve my business and the processes related to it but I'm in good shape and have a clear vision. I'm doing the best I can, trying to satisfy the demand and keep everyone happy. So thank you all, I very much appreciate your business and your support and like I said, sorry if I turned anyone off with my responses.

Ebay Policy Spelled Out

OK, here’s how I’m looking at it. For stuff that I sell you this week and next week it shows up on Ebay at an inflated price…

First Time: You buy a tool and decide it’s not for you and so you put it on Ebay. OK, no problem, I understand, you’re moving on to some other Atwood product or something else entirely. I don’t have a big problem with this and I appreciate you checking my stuff out.

Second Time: This is not looking good but hey, shit happens. If I can identify the seller (and I usually can pretty easily) I will try to send a polite warning that they are being watched. That’s if I have time of course, I am very busy and frankly have no time for stupid games.

Third Time: OK, it’s pretty clear what you’re all about. You’re obviously more interested in trying to make a quick buck off my stuff and could care less about collectors who often are unable to get to my site in time to pick up something at a reasonable price for their collections. Part of the reason they couldn’t get the piece was because YOU were there cherry picking for your own selfish ends. Well, you’re now cut off from further purchases. Purchases will be refunded if you try to buy during a sale. And I will be saving names on a do not sell list for circulation to my dealers too.

So far I have barred about 5 or 6 people because of this kind of behavior. I hated to do it, I really did, but this is about fairness and I felt I owed it to my fans to try to rein in this kind of thing. And I should mention I’m not real crazy about the related practice of scanning the BST sections on the forums with the sole intent of turning things around on Ebay.

So please folks, have a heart and think about this. I’m really not trying to be a hard ass, I’m just trying to stand firm and do what’s right. It would be a shame if I started to have to spend all my time babysitting a bunch of jerks rather than making the next batch of cool stuff.

Triangle Plus

Here's a neat little addition to the lineup, the Triangle Plus. These are exactly the same size as a Bermuda Triangle but have the benefit of hex bit storage, something not possible with the original design. I've beefed up the bottle opener opening to 5/16" so it works a little better too. This tool lacks the big center hex hole obviously but it still makes a fun little spin toy on the end of a pen or pencil. Alternatively, the lanyard can be tied through the center hole if desired which is how I've been carrying mine lately.

I just finished a small batch of these in 1/8" thick titanium and will be posting them tomorrow. Most are stonewashed and a few will be bead blasted and anodized solid colors. No Tropicals this time around. Also, a huge batch of Bermuda Triangles will be coming in about two weeks so many more of the originals will be available soon.

What's a Nibble?

These will be coming sometime next week. Little brother to the SharkBite and Bike Tool..

Quick Tool Survey

Thanks for participating, here are the results. Will be doing another one of these soon. :)

More Anodizing Fun

These were a blast to do! The Splash Anodizing is a rather tedious process but the results are really cool. Well worth the extra effort I think. Each piece is totally unique and I tried to make the patterns as crazy as possible. Good stuff. Because it is time consuming there is a very limited number available so I'd like to keep it to one per customer.

Will be putting the batch on the site tomorrow along with some plain Bermuda Triangles with stonewash finish for the less adventurous. :D

Something on the Side

Every once in a while a little project not related to my stuff comes up that is worth doing. Recently such an opportunity presented itself. Those not familiar with the amazing flashlights of Don McLeish should certainly check out candlepowerforums.com and see for yourself what the King of Custom Flashlights is all about.

This is a sneak preview of one of Don's upcoming LunaSols:






This was a one off project, not doing any others. These flashlights will be costing somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 each to begin with, maybe even more. You'd have to contact Don to get one and again, this was a one off piece and I'm not planning to do any others. It was cool though and so I just wanted to do one and see how it came out. The future owner of the light likes it a lot! :D

SharkBite

Here's what the SharkBite tool will look like. A nifty little item with multiple uses. Kind of like the Bike Tool but scaled down to just 3 inches long so it's more pocketable and geared more towards general EDC functions. I also think of it as sort of an enhanced Generation Two Keyton. These are close to 3/16" thick and are made of S30v so they are rather beefy.

This is one that I finished up this afternoon for the picture but it will be going into a heat treat later this week with the rest of the batch:



Speaking of Bike Tools, I should have the rest of the O rings and 5mm bits tomorrow and can then start to do the final finish work and assembly.

Production Update

Here's what on the menu this week:

I have some Bike Tools that I will start the finish work on tomorrow but I am lacking bits for most of them so it will be Monday night at the earliest before the whole batch will be ready. I have to put in the order for bits tomorrow and they will be delivered in the afternoon on Monday.

I just cut more Bermuda Triangles today and so they will be delayed until Tuesday or Wednesday at the earliest. I have a rather large batch of these coming.

I have a couple dozen Crawdaddies going into heat treat tomorrow. Also a few dozen G2 Prybabies. These will be finished and ready about the middle of next week.

I have a very small batch of special G2 Mini Gasbabies that will be ready tomorrow afternoon.

Never Get Enough

I'm going to be trying something new this winter. I've decided to make an enormous batch of maybe two or three items. I'm talking huge. Many hundreds, maybe a thousand if I can stand the monotony. I think this might finally allow me to keep just one or two things on the site.

In the past I've tried to make so many things that batches tended to be small. Lately the hard core collectors snap everything up in a short time and many folks never even see the sale. I've enjoyed this immensely for many reasons not the least of which is because with smaller runs I am constantly coming up with new designs and allowing the ones I have to evolve. This keeps things really exciting for me and is immensely gratifying. I think a lot of collectors love it too.

But I think it's time to pick a couple of things from my now huge collection and try to stick with just them for about three or four solid weeks of production time. Not an easy thing for me partly because I have a short attention span and ideas that never seem to stop coming. :)

I also have a constant barrage of emails from established customers asking me what is next and I often feel like I have to keep them happy and make new stuff. I do appreciate that very much but I am feeling the need to take a little time right now and concentrate on the fundamentals.

So I think for a certain period this winter the collectors will have to sit tight because there isn't going to be a lot that will be new and different. Maybe this strategy might also slow down the scalpers who want to buy several of an item and put them on Ebay a couple of weeks later, something that has really irked me.

So, still thinking about what I want to offer...probably will be Bike Tools, some version of my new Nibble or SharkBite, maybe Mini Gasbabies. Of course I have other things that will keep coming in smaller quantities but I'm serious: I want to have enough of a couple of items on the site that people can finally get their fill and leave a few for others.

One thing though, these will NOT be items with sheaths so please don't even ask. The knives are always going to be fairly limited in number, I'm only talking about a couple of tools here.

I'm thinking February might be the time to buckle down and really try to get it done.