{"product_id":"damascus-skinner-knife-black-micarta","title":"Damascus Skinner Knife, Black Micarta Handle","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe belly runs in one long curve to a rounded tip, and that curve is the point of the knife. A curved edge keeps contact through a pulling stroke where a straight one runs out early. This is 3.5 inches of Damascus over a high carbon core on a black canvas micarta handle. Not what most people picture on a skinner. That is deliberate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eSpecification\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ctable\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBlade length\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e3.5 inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eOverall length\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e8 inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHandle length\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e4.5 inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBlade steel\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eDamascus, high carbon core\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBlade finish\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eEtched ladder pattern\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBlade shape\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eSkinner, wide sweeping belly to a rounded tip\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eTang\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFull tang\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHandle\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBlack canvas micarta, three brass pins, lanyard hole\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eSheath\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eStamped basket weave leather belt sheath\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eEngraving\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e20 dollars per blade\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMade in\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eForged and finished by hand in High Point, North Carolina.\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWarranty\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eLifetime warranty against defects, free sharpening for life.\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe blade\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnder the pattern is high carbon steel, and that is what takes the edge. The Damascus around it is layer on layer, forge welded then etched so the light and dark bands separate out. This billet is a ladder, straight rungs across the flat. The grind drops into a wide belly that sweeps up to a rounded tip, so no fine point sits out front to catch during a long pull. Carbon steel goes grey with use. That is patina, not damage. Water left standing on it leaves dark spots instead.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe handle\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCanvas micarta is cloth soaked in resin and pressed hard, then ground to shape. It will not swell in a downpour or shrink in a dry garage, and the ground surface keeps a slight tooth for a wet palm to hold. The tang is full, the whole length between the scales, with three brass pins through it and a lanyard hole at the back. The handle is 4.5 inches, enough that a cold hand gets a full grip rather than three fingers and some optimism.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe leather sheath\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVegetable tanned leather, stitched by hand, with a welt between the two faces so the thread never rides against the edge. The pocket is cut to this blade's own outline, because a wide bellied skinner will not settle into a pattern drawn for a straight blade. The face is stamped basket weave, worked square by square into damp hide. A belt loop on the back takes an ordinary belt and carries the knife high.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho it suits\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor the buyer who wants a grip that behaves in bad weather rather than one that photographs well dry.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePeople who work in the wet and expect the handle to keep up\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBuyers who want the Damascus without natural scales\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnyone tired of wood moving with the weather\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOwners who like a short blade and a long curve\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat comes in the box\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Damascus skinner on black canvas micarta\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe stamped basket weave belt sheath\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA care leaflet\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFree sharpening for as long as you own it\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eEvery piece is different\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery billet etches its own way, so the ladder rungs sit tight on one blade and open on the next. Micarta is layered cloth, and where the grinder cut it the layers surface as faint lines that never land twice. You get the shape in the photograph. The markings are their own business.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eLooking after it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDry it. That is most of the job. A wet blade shut in a sheath overnight is how carbon steel gets spotted, because leather holds damp. Put a light film of oil over the flat before it goes in a drawer. Micarta needs nothing beyond soap and warm water. Sharpen on a stone, following the curve rather than fighting it, then strop. More sits on our \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/knife-care-sharpening\"\u003ecare and sharpening page\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003ePut a name on it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe laser a name or a date into the blade for 20 dollars, and about 30 characters fits before the letters shrink past reading. On an etched pattern short wording reads best. Nothing is cut until you approve a proof image, which adds 3 to 5 business days. Ten blades or more and it is free. The \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/engraving\"\u003eengraving page\u003c\/a\u003e covers the rest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eQuestions buyers ask\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhy micarta on a hunting knife?\u003c\/strong\u003e Because it ignores rain and a hot truck cab. Looks are taste. Grip in the wet is not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDoes micarta go slippery when it is wet?\u003c\/strong\u003e Not that we have found. It holds some texture and will not polish itself glassy the way horn does.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIs Damascus stronger than plain steel?\u003c\/strong\u003e No. It is high carbon steel folded and welded so the layers show once etched. The pattern is decoration and the core does the cutting.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWill it rust?\u003c\/strong\u003e It can, left wet. Dry it, keep oil on it, and the grey it picks up is doing you a favour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhy is the tip rounded?\u003c\/strong\u003e A skinner works along the curve, not off the point, so nothing sharp sits out front.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHow fast does it ship?\u003c\/strong\u003e Most US orders arrive in 5 to 7 business days.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor this outline in a longer lasting steel, take the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/d2-tool-steel-skinner-knife-green-micarta\"\u003eD2 skinner on green micarta\u003c\/a\u003e. If you want the pattern but a natural handle, there is the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/damascus-skinner-knife-black-ebony\"\u003eebony skinner with a brass bolster\u003c\/a\u003e. The other curved blades sit in \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/skinner-knives\"\u003eskinner knives\u003c\/a\u003e, the patterned billets in \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/damascus-steel\"\u003eDamascus steel\u003c\/a\u003e, and the field range in \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/hunting-knives\"\u003ehunting knives\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Viper Edge USA","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44146173476982,"sku":"VEF-SKN-DAM-2301","price":169.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0710\/2427\/9670\/files\/skinner-14-damascus-black-micarta_afd0f92b-73f8-483e-a25a-77dc861824b3.jpg?v=1788861128","url":"https:\/\/viperedgeforge.com\/products\/damascus-skinner-knife-black-micarta","provider":"Viper Edge USA","version":"1.0","type":"link"}