Q: How is this LASER compare to your normal grind?
A: This particular knife was originally meant to be supplied as a finished un-handled full tang western blank but I screwed up the tang grind so I then converted it to hidden tang and in the process had to thin the blade a bit more than I would normally do to make it all blend together nicely. I also decided to hand sand the blade which made it even thinner since I was trying a lot of different techniques. Yet, the blade is only slightly thinner at the spine and middle than I normally supply, but it's still convex ground making for a LASER!
Q: Do you have any choil pictures comparing your laser grind to standard grind?
A: No I don't. I
(generally) dislike choil shots since they don't tell the story accurately for so many knives and also because I suck at taking this type of picture. I seriously doubt that anything meaningful could be garnered from a choil shot photo that I would take.
Q: Can you explain what you mean by "hand sanded"?
A: A hand sanded finish runs lengthwise down the blade from handle to tip. This is a finish often applied to top tier custom made knives, it's considered an upgrade. I normally finish my knives using belts which produce a finish that runs from spine to edge. My normal finish is easier to apply, and more importantly, is easier to re-apply should the blade need re-finishing in the future. I very much like the look of a hand sanded blade but I find the task to be one of the stupidest things a knife maker can do with his time and sanity.
Q: How fine is the finish?
A: How smooth is a rock?
All joking aside, the answer will be misleading, it's 800x. That sounds rough but that's because it only tells 1/2 the story. I've been experimenting with ways to get a hand sanded finish without spending all the time it takes to hand sand hardened steel and to that end I've found ways to get a finer appearing finish without going through a 15 grit level progression. I won't go into details since this isn't a set process I'd like to share at this time but what I will say is that this knife is finished using water stone mud.
This provides a VERY smooth and even appearing pattern on the blade, it's also VERY difficult to capture in photographs.