Bruce, I would think that if SRKW bothered to differentially harden the M6 and Chopweiler, they would surely see it desirable to do so with an even longer blade. The hamon is often very hard to see in photos.

I wonder what the width of the blade is.
Will this knife be a good "chopper"?
Eric says one difference from the proto was
a "more aggressive" point... that has me wondering...

Yes it will be fine chopper. Look at the CG prototype closely. The clip point is not as pointy as the LE. The clip starts further to the rear on the LE.

I think the LE version shown does incorporate those changes. If you look at the butt, it's more rounded than the CG prototype shown above, and the guard is longer. The point is also a little different.

I like the M9 alright, however if I could change on thing that's what I'd do, change it to the Ratweiler type handle. Although I'm sure it's still gunna be great! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />



With the exception of the above mentioned... That's kinda what I was thinkin too. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />




Sounds good, what color? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />





Will do! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />





<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> Here I go again! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />



I really like the sound of that myself! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />




LOL!!!



<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

bruce what the hell does that mean? through hardened??? forgive my ignorance???

my order is in....i like the looks of the handle and i really like the look of everything....this blade IS stoke!<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Man, that looks SWEET!!! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> I think I'll order one - NOW! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Through hardened means that the edge, spine, handle, etc is all the same hardness.

Differentially hardeneted means that only the general edge area is hardened. The spine is softer, and that allows it to absorb shocks of impacts, and allows for large amounts of bending without the brittleness being present in the ENTIRE knife.

Supposedly, the great thing about INFI is that it can be through hardened, and still keep those impact absorbing and flexible properties and looks to have been proven in testing.

In general, what has been coming out of the swamp (old stuff aside) is that 6 inches and under is through hardened. Over that and it is differential. I sure hope the M9 is differentially hardened. That makes perfect sense with the intended use of the knife.

For one that freely gives their opinions on the comparision between S77, SR101 and INFI, I would expect you to already know all of this <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Through hardened means that the entire blade is tempered homogeneously -- that the most common way that knives are manufactured. However, the best cutting performance is often achieved by hardening the edge to a degree that, if applied to the entire blade, would make it brittle. One approach to deal with this is laminated steel; a very hard layer of steel is sandwiched between two softer layers. The inner layer provides a very hard edge, while the outer layers keep the blade from breaking under stress. Another approach is to differentially tempered blades (as you see in traditional katanas). The steel along the edge is harder than the steel closer to the spine. The area of transition between hard and softer steel has a different appearance, called a hamon line. Cheap monosteel blades sometimes use an acid etch to simulate a hamon.

My understanding from reading about different Swamp Rat releases is that the through hardened models are cheaper to produce and hold up just as well as the differentially tempered ones, so I don't know if this blade will be differentially hardened or not.

Rain.... umm [censored] good question, Ill opt for black, unless you have a good suggestion I'm always open to that