Material Spotlight: Osage Orange

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Osage orange is a name for a certain tree that produces large, nobby, green, orange-like “fruits” and beautiful tight grained wood. The fruits are not of an edible nature, but the wood is superb.

Osage has a lot of history attached to it. It was highly prized among the first peoples of this land and it is still so among the archers of today. The bows made from osage are often pieces of art, having been worked out of a twisty and knotty portion of the tree. Straightly grained sections of wood are especially sought after. Strength, flexibility and durability are all claimed by this wood that is also known as bodock or hedge apple, to name two.

The freshly polished wood is most often bright yellow and as it is exposed to sunlight will mellow and deepen into a rich orange-brown hue.

The wood in the knife above almost has a three dimensional effect and this handle has been “aged” to achieve that grand appearance. The knife that this particular osage handle calls home is a custom one and is made after the “HU” knife on the Past Work page. It’s a versatile hunting knife design with a lot of power.

Hunter Knife, Skinning Knife, Osage Orange, Lucas Forge

The copper-based mosaic pins really flow into the osage to create a simply deluxe piece.

Thank you for visiting the Lucas Forge blog today!

Custom: Jack

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September’s in full swing and so are a whole bunch of knives!

This one is a Jack Pine Special with a very heavily-grained handle of aged oak. Though not as popular as walnut or curly maple, the material is a great choice, and, in this case, is quite the character!

This handle’s grain complements Jack’s style to create a great looking, hard working knife.

Thank you for visiting the Lucas Forge blog! For information about ordering your own custom knife, please browse this site, or send your request to lucas@customhuntingknives.org. Have a grand day!

Guest Post: Salad Greens

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Salad greens add fun and variety to your diet. What better way to use homemade salad dressings than piling it on homegrown greens?

Salad greens may not be as essential for survival as potatoes or corn, but they sure add some interest to meals.

With the right set up and the right climate, an enterprising individual can grow salads year-round. But in this part of the world, the heat makes salad growing in the summer quite the challenge. So we mostly take a break from salad growing in the height of summer.

If all the lettuce you’ve had came from the grocery store, you’re missing out. Lettuces grown in the garden tend to have more flavor than what comes from the store. Garden greens taste almost shockingly sweet, with some varieties or weather conditions also providing a nicely balanced bitter character…perfect with a homemade dressing!

Survival Gardening, Salad Greens, Custom Knives, Lucas Forge

Above: The lettuce plot in May 2015. Vibrant, green, and ready to eat: Romaine, Buttercrunch, Oak Leaf, Red Saladbowl and Ruby Red lettuces, plus a stray beet. Romaine wins overall, but we love a selection.

Earlier this year we ate greens out of a small patch from late March until the middle of June! That meant salads or stir fry once or twice a day, and enough for six people at a time.

A myriad of lettuces aren’t the only greens grown in the garden. We also enjoy pak choy, green onions, kale, colorful swiss chard, carrots, cabbage leaves, spinach and so forth.

We’re salad green fans here and we’re now looking forward to the fall crop that’s coming up.

Bring ’em on!

-Guest post from Al

Thank you for reading the Lucas Forge blog!

Do you have a favorite lettuce or other green?

A Piece of History

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There is a very special knife available on the website today. This knife is patterned after the original Sears Nessmuk found in Mr. George Washington Sears’ book. For more information about that, please feel free to visit the knife’s listing.

Here are some additional views of this classic old-style Nessmuk. Enjoy!

Sears Nessmuk, Nessmuk Knife, Lucas Forge Knives, Custom Hunting Knives, Reproduction Nessmuk Knife, Reproduction Knives, Custom Knives  A stunning traditional woodsman’s knife.

Custom Knives, Traditional Nessmuk Knife, Historical Knife

 Antiqued antler handle with brass hardware.

Sears Nessmuk, Lucas Forge Nessmuk, Nessmuk Knives

Etched inscription: Sear’s Nessmuk By Lucas Forge

Nessmuk Knife

The Nessmuk in its handmade leather sheath.

Thank you for visiting the blog, for your interest, and for your enjoyment of traditional knives. Hope you have a great day!

Details!

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Hello there! Some newly available now knives are added to the website! Here are detail pictures of two of them!

Packer Knife, Belt Knife, Custom Knife, Lucas Forge

First up is this spliced Packer.

From the knife’s description: “…the handle is what steals the show! This unique handle is made up of a black linen micarta liner, black linen micarta bolsters, and ironwood accents. In other words, the handle is mostly micarta, but has been given a partial overlay of ironwood!”

Custom Knives, Lucas Forge

Here’s a close-up, so you can better see how this works. Very unique!

Kephart Knife, Kephart, Custom Kephart Knife, Lucas Forge Knives, Lucas Knives, Lucas Forge, Custom Hunting Knives, Hunting KnivesNext up, is a detail shot from this gorgeous Kephart.

Kephart Knife, Lucas Forge, Custom Knives, Handmade Full Tang KnifeMosaic pins and cross-hatching? Yes!

Thank you for checking in on the Lucas Forge blog! For more information about these and other available knives, please click here!

Guest Post: Leather Waterproofing

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What is the best way to keep leather sheaths waterproof and in good shape?

Let’s look at three ways to waterproof your outdoor “leathers!”

First off, you can choose to paint on (or spray on) an acrylic leather finish, creating a sealant layer. This layer works great, but will eventually break down, as paints do over time.

But an advantage to acrylic is that it does protect without darkening the leather. In some cases maintaining the leather color is a high priority. If this is true for you, go with the acrylic.

A second waterproofing method is a wax finish.

Wax treatment requires some maintenance, but it is a simple and effective method to use. Simply applying beeswax to keep moisture out mostly works best for smooth leather. The rough side of the leather doesn’t like wax so much.

Thirdly, oil finishes not only moisturize, as suggested in an earlier post, but oil-treated leather repels water quite well. Only be careful to just give your sheath a coat of oil and then remove the excess, never soak sheaths in oil. The oil-soaked leather loses any shape it has. Also note…oil-treated leather does darken – but it’s a cool effect.

Of course, many natural materials can be used to “oil” finish leather. Mink oil, lard, tallow and other such substances work well on leather. But so do neetsfoot oil, coconut oil, walnut oil…or bear grease.

Finally, one might use a combination of materials to both moisturize and seal premium leather goods.

Our Windy Ridge product combines hard and soft oils with selected waxes to provide effective sealing and moisturizing of leather. Windy Ridge is formulated here using natural materials. The product is easy to use and cost-effective.

Windy Ridge treatment does more than protect leather too. It protects metals from rust just a well as it works on leather. It works for leather belts, sheaths, wallets and such, and still protects knife blades and guns as well. Try a tin for yourself.

~Guest post by Al

Thank you for reading!

Do you have a favorite product or method when it comes to waterproofing leather? Please feel free to tell about it in a comment!

Custom: Groomsmen Gifts

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When looking for groomsmen gifts for his upcoming wedding, this groom decided to go with matching knives from Lucas Forge!

Here they are: the completed set of nine knives. There are eight Packers and one September Special – all with classic walnut handles!

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Here you can see the difference between the Packer model (lower) and the September Special design!

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Each knife was stamped with the initials of one of the groomsmen for a personal touch.

Congratulations to the happy couple!

If you are interested in ordering a custom knife (or even nine!) of your own, please write to lucas@customhuntingknives.org.

Thank you so much for visiting the blog!

Details…details…

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New knives are posted up on the Available Now page!

Here are some detail pictures of some of the “availables.”

First off, we have a close-up of thumb jimping on the Stubby Kephart and also a picture of it in its sheath below.

Knife in Sheath, Lucas Forge

Custom Knife, Lucas Knives

 Here is another view of the amazing koa handle on one of the available Frontier Trappers! Photos can’t do this wood justice.

Minimalist Knife, Survival Knife, Micarta

Here’s a handle close-up for the Minimalist Micarta knife that’s available. Micarta handle and micarta pins. Cool, huh?

Custom Knives

Another view of the Baby Kephart. What a super osage handle!

 Kephart Knives, Lucas Forge

And last, but certainly not least, is a line up of some of the Kephart variations that are going on around here. Here’s how it goes:

Classic Kephart
SlimLine Kephart
Bitteroot Kephart
SlimLine Stubby Kephart
Stubby Kephart
Baby Kephart

Some of these are available. Watch for upcoming releases!

Thank you so much for visiting the blog! Have a terrific day!

Guest Post: Basic Leather Care

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We prefer leather sheaths and holsters. There’s just nothing else like leather…it’s durable, quiet to use, and lasts well with proper care.

So, what does it take to properly care for leather goods used in the great outdoors?

Two main considerations for leather care are as follows…

1. Leather must be moisturized to prevent drying and cracking.
2. The leather goods must be sealed in some way to prevent moisture from soaking the leather.

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Remember, for most of the Lucas Forge outdoor gear, vegetable tanned leather is used.

Vegetable tanned leather is easily molded to fit the accompanying knife or tool. It also takes many different dye styles with class and it’s tough.

But, under certain circumstances, if unprotected, veg-tanned leather dries, becomes brittle and cracks over long periods of time. This type of leather benefits from added moisture.

There are several commercial leather treatments, such as “Fiebing’s All Purpose Cleaner & Conditioner” or “Lexol Conditioner,” that will do just that.

Or, you can also use a basic oil product to add moisture.

We mostly choose the oil treatment. Neetsfoot oil or a plant oil, like walnut oil, usually gets the nod. Only use plant or animal derived oils for best results, not petroleum based oils.

For moisturizing leather, just rub on a light coat of oil. Allow it to set for a few seconds, then wipe away the excess. Proper treatment is as simple as that. Repeat the process occasionally and your leather remains in top shape. Oiling leather darkens it though, so remember about the color change.

Keeping leather moisturized and conditioned is the first step to success in maintaining leather goods.

We’ll look at the waterproofing in a post to follow.

~Guest post by Al

Thank you for reading the Lucas Forge blog!