New Knife - Werner Lengmüller Custom Blade Patriot Dagger

In all sports and activities, there are some names that are more famous and mythical than others. In knife throwing, Werner Lengmüller from Germany is one such name. Who is the best is always a subject for debate but he is one of the most successful sports throwers in modern times.

 

Previously, he also made custom knives and if you were lucky you could get a set. At the moment he does not have time for that but has in return started cooperation with two different manufacturers. Some models are made by Prince Steel in the USA and in addition, he has together with French Throwingzone.fr created the brand Werner Lengmüller Custom Blade.

What can be somewhat confusing for those who search online is that at least one of the models is common to them called "The Pirate" and "Werner's Pirate" by the respective manufacturers.

This model, on the other hand, is a knife that Werner only made in a few copies himself and which is now unique to Throwingzone.fr  As the title reveals, it's about "Werner's Patriot Dagger"  or just Patriot Dagger.

WL Custom Blade Patriot Dagger

What distinguishes this model, even in relation to most others he has designed, is that it is completely symmetrical. It can have its benefits in some situations as it does not matter how you hold them. There is no up or down on the knife. To spin on that theme, no pun intended, it's a "spinner". That is, the knife has a hole in the middle that is mostly there to make the knife more fun to play with. But what I was going to say is that Patriot Dagger has a very similar grip from both handle and blade thanks to the shape.

The proportions are very nice. The balance-point can be found a finger width in front of the guards, which means 16 cm from the tip. The knife measures 32.5 cm in length and is 6 mm thick. It gives a total weight of 365 grams. A sturdy knife without belonging to the heaviest in other words. For example, it is 100 g lower than my heaviest knives. The steel is interesting and comes from Sweden. It is SSAB Hardox. It is a steel developed for applications such as rip hooks for bulldozers and excavator buckets. Thus, it should be excellent also for throwing knives.

Now the question is whether I should make a pair of sheaths for these knives. One for "quick draw" and one to carry them in. And maybe put leather handles on the knives themselves? It would make the grip fuller and look better, but in return, it makes the grip not as symmetrical. So it remains to be seen how I choose to do.

/ J 

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New knife - Biting Metal Bug Osetr TZ

Let me introduce a set of throwing knives from Biting Metal! Rarely have knives been so long-awaited I can tell you. At the moment, I think knife throwing is extremely fun. Then new knives are of course of extra interest. In addition to the waiting time, it gets a little extra frustrating when I actually had these knives for a few days without being able to test them. It has rained heavily in these areas. And when it's not raining, it's pitch black outside. But yesterday and today I got the chance. The first feeling is that they are absolutely perfect for me. They feel completely natural, especially for No spin techniques, but also for rotational throwing from three and four meters. I have not been able to try more than that, but what an added taste they give!

These French knives are interpretations of an "Osetr" knife. A word that by the way means sturgeon in Russian. 

Biting Metal Bug Osetr TZ

Biting Metal is Throwing Zone's own house brand

This model is extra interesting as it was designed by a gentleman named Guillaume Henry. He is also known as "Abeille Mètallique" or the metal bee on Youtube. There he had one of the first French channels focused on instinctive knife-throwing. He does not have much time with it nowadays, I suspect as he, among other things, runs the online store Throwing Zone. In addition to selling knives from well-known brands such as Cold Steel, Pierre Cazoulat, AceJet, and Opus Knives, and more, they have recently launched an expanded collaboration with a couple of the world's best knife throwers, the Germans Werner Lengmüller and Thomas "Tom Tom" Hampich. In addition, Throwing Zone manufactures axes and knives under its very own brand. Among others this model. To be more precise, these knives are from Biting Metal, which is their own house brand. 

Originally, this was a pure custom knife that was actually hand forged. But as demand increased, production technology had to change. Now the knives are made by steel removal, but it is still human hands that are responsible for most of the work. In the world of folding knives, the knives had probably been called "mid-tech" with modern terminology. Simply put, they are made in small series for the most part by hand. It results in outstanding quality.

The name Bug Osetr TZ reflects the double background with French design based on Russian inspiration. Typical of this particular variant is the softly curved handle. Both the bottom and top have carefully calculated curvature to provide the best throwing properties for no-spin throwing. This is mainly what the knives are aimed at, but they also work excellently for most other techniques as well. The basic type itself is very flexible in that respect. The same goes for this knife.

As previously stated, just good first impressions. I will return with a review when the knives have been used properly!

/ J 

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New Knives - Graf Knives T2 Bowie

I have to admit that I have had these knives for a couple of weeks by now and have had time to throw a few thousand throws with them already. It so happened that they were in the mailbox when I came home from the Swedish Championships in Sport Throwing in Arboga some weeks ago. The knives were of course ordered a few weeks earlier. But they take some time to arrive since they are what is often referred to as "semi-custom" or "mid-tech" when talking about folding knives. But when it comes to folders the term is often used to make the knives more expensive, it feels like. Throwing knives on the other hand are mostly manufactured in this way, in small batches. In any case, that means that there are not limitless quantities laying around waiting for an order. 

As far as I know,  Graf Knives is a small (one-man?) Company from Poland run by Michał Prądzyński. If I understood correctly, he is also the man behind the design of the knives. Then they are made by Melon Tools who seems to be a friend of his who runs a mechanical workshop. But I may have misunderstood that so take it with a grain of salt. 

Speaking of design, this model is of course inspired by and in the same tradition as the classic Tru Balance.

Graf Knives T2 Bowie

The model is called the T2 Bowie. It is significantly larger than my first Graf knives, T1XL. T2 measures a full 35cm in length and weighs in at 390 grams / pc. They are thus the second largest model that Graf Knives has in the range.

Otherwise, the material and approach are recognizable. The finish is the same with a layer of zinc that gives a shiny surface that is intended to prevent corrosion. It's also somewhat "self-healing". That is, when there is a notch in the surface, it is so soft that it becomes a dent rather than something sharp. The thickness is also the same, which means 5 mm. The blade material is spring steel, 4140. An extremely durable and rugged material. I have already managed to damage the tip of one of these knives but it was no problem to bend back and resharpen. 

The balance in these knives is completely neutral, which means that the balance point is found exactly in the middle. They are also ingeniously indexed. That's why they have a couple of small holes in the handle, but above all the "double clip" towards the tip. It facilitates throwing when you hold the blade. It is very easy to feel how you have gripped the blade.

Without precedoing the review it can be said that I am very happy with these knives. It is my first set with a little weight and length to them. It gives a different feeling in the air with a calmer flight and predictable rotation. Then they force me to a new and better technique with a shorter and rounder arm movement so that they can make a full spin at three meters. They are therefore very educational for me. I learned that there are disadvantages to learning to throw with smaller and lighter knives.

/ J - aiming at the stars, or at least better and better

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Ny(a) kniv(ar) - Graf Knives T2 Bowie

Jag måste tillstå att jag haft de här knivarna ett par veckor vid det här laget och hunnit kasta några tusen kast med dem redan. Det råkade bli så att de låg i brevlådan när jag kom hem från SM i Sportkastning i Arboga härförleden. Knivarna var naturligtvis beställda några veckor tidigare. Men de tar lite tid då det handlar om tja, vad skall man kalla det, "semi-custom" kanske? Eller "mid-tech" som termen tycks lyda i fällknivskretsar. Men då det handlar om att trissa upp priser när det kommer till fällknivar så är det snarare så att det är på det viset många kastknivar tillverkas. Vid närmare eftertanke är det snarare produktion i mycket små serier det handlar om. Men det innebär i vilket fall som helst att det inte ligger flera tusen på pallar och väntar på min order. 

Såvitt jag vet är Graf Knives en liten (enmans?) firma från Polen som drivs av Michał Prądzyński. Om jag förstått det rätt är han även mannen bakom formgivningen av knivarna. Sedan görs de av Melon Tools som verkar vara en kompis till honom som driver en tillskärningsfirma. Men det förhållandet kan jag ha fått om bakfoten. 

Apropå formgivning så är den här modellen förstås inspirerad av och i samma tradition som klassiska Tru Balance. 

Graf Knives T2 Bowie

Modellen kallas T2 Bowie. Den är väsentligt större än mina första Graf-knivar, T1XL. T2 mäter hela 35cm på längden och väger in på 390 gram/st. De är därmed den näst största modellen som Graf Knives har i sortimentet. 

I övrigt känns material och tillvägagångssätt igen. Finishen är densamma med ett lager zink som ger en glänsande yta som är tänkt att hindra korrosion. Sedan är den något "självläkande". Det vill säga när det blir ett hack i ytan så är den så pass mjuk att det snarare blir en buckla än ett jack. Tjockleken är också densamma vilket innebär 5 mm. Bladmaterialet är fjäderstål, 4140. Ett extremt hållbart samt stryktåligt material. Jag har redan lyckats böja spetsen på en av de här knivarna men det var inga problem att bända tillbaks och slipa upp den igen. 

Balansen i de här knivarna är helt neutral vilket innebär att balanspunkten hittas exakt i mitten. De är också finurligt indexerade. Det är därför de har ett par små hål i handtaget men framförallt det "dubbla clipet" mot spetsen till. Det underlättar kast när du håller i bladet. Det är mycket enkelt att känna hur du greppat bladet. 

Utan att gå en recension i förväg kan sägas att jag är mycket nöjd med de här knivarna. Det är min första uppsättning med lite tyngd och längd i. Det ger en annan känsla i luften med lugnare gång och mer stillsam rotation. Sen tvingar de mig till en ny och bättre teknik med en kortare och rundare armrörelse för att de skall hinna runt på framförallt tre meters distans. De är därför mycket pedagogiska för min del. Det finns nackdelar med att lära sig kasta med mindre och lättare knivar nämligen. 

/ J - siktar högt eller åtminstone bätttre och bättre

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New Knives - AceJet Appache

My first AceJet knives were the "Stinger" model I introduced a few months ago. They made me want more but it must be said that they are specialized for "no spin" throwing, which certainly also makes them excellent for "half-spin" techniques such as "Instinctive and Military half-spin". But what they are not good at is, of course, rotational throwing where you strive for a more centered rotation pattern that is easier to master. To achieve this, a neutral balance is usually sought.

Of course, you can also find such knives in AceJet's product range. An example of this is these knives called Appache*.

AceJet Appache

This model is of course modeled after Russian Osetr models. In this case, it gives knives that are completely neutral in balance. In addition, they are characterized by the fact that the back is completely smooth, there are no details such as symbolic finger guards or the like. This allows you to use whatever grip you prefer on these knives. The slightly wider blade is excellent for "military half-spin" and in the same way, rotational throwing gripping the handle is no problem either. They are not bad at no spin either. It's just not where their main strength is found.

Personally, I aimed to have these as a complement to the Stinger knives when I train rotational throws. How they behave, I intend to go deeper into future posts.

Appache is like all knives in AceJet's range made of 14260 spring steel, which is a really nice material for throwing knives. It is extremely impact resistant and bends rather than chips. The length of the knife is 24 cm and the width is just over three centimeters and the thickness is 6 mm. That gives a total weight of 255 g.

There will also be a review of these eminent knives. I can reveal that they have already been inaugurated and I now have a pretty good idea of how they feel to use. If you are craving a set of handmade throwing knives from the Czech Republic already now or something else from AceJet, I recommend that you use the discount code "JOHN" at check-out as it gives a 5% discount on your purchase.

/ J - happy amateur

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* Yes, they spell it this way!

New Knives - AceJet Stinger

There are throwing knives and there are throwing knives. When I was younger, I systematically tested myself through the cheaper knives that were available in catalogs at that time. You know, Internet wasn't a thing in the 80ies. Those throwing knives were not good then and they are not now either. They are almost with unfailing precision too small and light and not least they break sooner or later. Something I always bitterly experienced.

The step up in the hierarchy is to look for big brands that, after all, offer decent quality at good prices. But there are not many of that product on the market. The positive thing is that the next step up from them to custom knives does not have to be very big. Then you may have to let go of the idea of what a "custom knife" is, at least if you come from the world of traditional hunting knives and think in terms of someone forging a blade. Very few throwing knives benefit from being forged and there is no reason to do the work entirely by hand. On the contrary, machines such as laser cutters and water jets are often used for the basic work. But in addition to design, of course, a lot of concrete craftsmanship is required to complete the knives.

A typical example of some of the finest custom throwing knives available in Europe is made in the Czech Republic and comes from AceJet.

Custom knives from AceJet

AceJet Stinger

Like all knives in the AceJet range, Stinger, is designed by five-time world champion in no-spin throwing Adam Čeladín.* This model is particularly focused on "No spin" throwing and is therefore very handle heavy, which the shape gives a hint of. But that property also means that the knife is very well adapted to half-rotation techniques such as "Military halfspin" and "Instinctive halfspin". 

The material is spring steel in the form of 14260 and from it you get 242g per knife distributed on 240 mm in length and a full 8 mm (!) thickness. Nothing that will easily break, in other words. Should they now for some unfathomable reason do so in any case, they come with a lifetime guarantee. Something you dare to offer when the knives are handmade in Bohemia. A part of the Czech Republic that has always been known for precision mechanics.

As soon as I have thrown enough, I will of course come back with a review of these knives! But already now I can reveal that for those who feel compelled to get among the finest throwing knives available, there is money to be saved! All you have to do to get a 5% discount on the purchase of these or other AceJet products is to enter the code "JOHN" at check-out!

/ J

*The inspiration for this model is a knife called Arrow designed by the German knife thrower "Tom Tom".

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