Description
Eleven inches of hand-forged knife, and a layer count higher than most of the line, which means finer and tighter banding in the etch rather than the broad waves you get lower down the scale.
| Overall length | 11 inches |
| Steel | 1095 + 15N20 Damascus, 393 layers |
| Handle | Hand carved bone with brass pins |
| Hardness | 58–60 HRC, oil tempered |
| Included | Hand-stitched leather sheath |
Built for: people who butcher what they shoot, and collectors who want the forging to be genuine. Field dressing, camp work, and a knife that looks like what it is the moment it leaves the sheath.
What a higher layer count actually changes
Not the strength. Both 1095 and 15N20 harden the same whether you fold them ten times or twelve, and the hardness figure above is the number that governs edge retention. What the count changes is appearance: more folds means thinner alternating bands, so the pattern reads as fine grain instead of bold ripple. Anyone telling you a higher count cuts better is selling. Hand-forged vs factory made is a straighter account of where forging does and does not help.
How to tell it is genuine
Look at the edge bevel. On a forged billet the pattern continues into the bevel and shifts as the geometry changes, because the layers run through the steel. On a stencilled blade the pattern stops at the bevel or repeats identically along the length. Telling real Damascus from a printed pattern shows both side by side.
Rust, realistically
Care: high-carbon steel with no stainless content anywhere in the billet, so it wants drying and a light oil film, consistently rather than heroically. Two minutes after each use beats an hour of rust removal later. If a spot does appear, deal with it early, since a fine abrasive pad and oil lift surface rust before it pits and the etch can be brought back afterwards. Store it out of the leather, dry, with the blade not touching other steel.
FAQs
Why is no blade length listed? The overall length above is what we measure and publish for this model. If you need the blade figure before ordering, ask and we will measure the one in stock rather than quote an average.
Will my pattern match the photo? Closely, not exactly. Every billet etches differently, and that is rather the point of a forged knife.
Is it a working knife or a display piece? Genuinely both. If you want something built with more emphasis on hard camp use, look at the Damascus tracker knife instead.
Can the etch be brought back if it fades? Yes. A light re-etch by a competent smith restores the contrast, provided the steel underneath has not pitted.
Hammered out and etched in Memphis, Tennessee.
Model: BMK-2232
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