Skyblade Knives Bozeman-Knife Sharpening

[JohnDeereGreen]

Last year I bought a nice handmade knife that is very sharp and very hard steel. It's held its edge quite well through last fall and now '12 antelope season, however, I wanted to touch up the edge before the general season opened, but didn't trust my own sharpening skills with such a project. A quick search online led me to Todd Orr, at Skyblade Knives here in Bozeman. I called Todd to see if he sharpened knives as well as building custom ones. He said yes. I dropped the knife off and the next day, on picking it up, found it to be as sharp as the day I bought it, with a great edge on it. I was so impressed that I went through the house and found a bunch of other knives that needed sharpening. I dropped them off yesterday and picked them up today, and they are all in great shape.

So, if you have a knife that, for whatever reason, you don't want to tackle sharpening yourself, or just want a really good edge put on one you use all the time, I don't think you could do much better.

Todd was great to work with and very quick on the turn around. I just wanted to put in a good word for a local guy who is doing great work at a good price.

Here's a link:

http://skybladeknives.com/index.htm

 

[The Hedgehog]

Yep! I've got 2 of them, have had them since the 98 I think. Todd's a great dude, makes great knives, and is quite the elk assassin with a revolver.

 

[Hem]

Wow,thanks for the promo and link.If there is ANYTHING I $uck at it is sharpening my knives,try as I may.

 

[WT_in_MT]

What does Todd charge for sharpening? I have one of his first knives, made in the late eighties before, as his web site says, Todd became Skyblade Knives. I had him make the handle from a spike bull I shot a bit south of Bridger Bowl.

 

[sbhooper]

The website says free for his knives and $3 for any others. I had never heard of him before and it appears to me that he would be a good choice if a person wanted a custom knife.

I have owned one custom knife made by Cody Wescott of Las Cruces, New Mexico. It has been a great knife. I need another knife like a hole in the head, but Todd's knives are tempting.

 

[WT_in_MT]

Thanks sb. I should have looked at more than just the pics. And I was in the Bozone the last two days and could have had a nice sharp knife!

 

[sbhooper]

I have always sharpened my own knives, but it always amazed me when I was visiting with Cody how easy he made it look compared to the fight that I usually had. I have since learned to sharpen a bit better. It only took me about 30 years, though!

 

[WT_in_MT]

I have always sharpened my own knives

I do too and all my other blades I can get shaving sharp using a Lansky. This blade though has always been a struggle. I think it's because of the size of this blade, both in length and thickness, that I cannot get it set up the same way twice in my Lansky. That of course changes the sharpening angle, which basically means starting all over each time. I'll take the easy route and get it back to Todd!

 

[WyOpitz]

I like those knives a lot, these are pretty reasonably priced and even something you could take into the field. I think I just might order one of those! I golf with a guy here in the small town of Hot Springs,SD by the name of Rod Watts. He was voted the #1 new custom knife maker of the year in 2011 at the largest knife show in Atlanta,GA. I have one of his knives and they are beautiful! The filing he does is quite amazing! He told me that Axel Rose has bought several of his knives! I don't think I would take any of these into the field with me though. Too expensive and too collectible! He uses a lot of mammoth ivory and giraffe bone, big horn sheep, etc for the handles!

http://www.wattscustomknives.com/

 

[JohnDeereGreen]

I paid three bucks for all my knives, which I think is pretty cheap. I would really like to buy one of his knives, too.

 

[sbhooper]

I do too and all my other blades I can get shaving sharp using a Lansky. This blade though has always been a struggle. I think it's because of the size of this blade, both in length and thickness, that I cannot get it set up the same way twice in my Lansky. That of course changes the sharpening angle, which basically means starting all over each time. I'll take the easy route and get it back to Todd!

That is the problem that I always had with my Lansky on the custom knife. I could never get it set exactly the same. I just use diamond stones now.

 

[drahthaar]

Went to college and had many a class with Todd. Great guy, great hunter. I have two of his knives myself. Yep, he loves to whack em with a pistol!! Unreal.

 

[AustinL]

I have around a half a dozen various Custom Knives by Cody Wescott as well. A quality custom knife is hard to beat. I only wish a had a good local knife sharpener such as this, I would gladly pay $3 a knife to get my good custom blades sharpened.

Like everyone else I can get them shaving sharp with my Lansky but man it takes me an hour plus per knife.

 

[DreaminofMT6X6s]

Now that's a knife I could hand down to my boy when he starts hunting. Thanks for sharing. Pretty cool.

 

[sbhooper]

I have around a half a dozen various Custom Knives by Cody Wescott as well. A quality custom knife is hard to beat. I only wish a had a good local knife sharpener such as this, I would gladly pay $3 a knife to get my good custom blades sharpened.

Like everyone else I can get them shaving sharp with my Lansky but man it takes me an hour plus per knife.

Have you heard if he is still alive? He got cancer in his sinuses and was trying to recuperate the last that I talked to him several years ago. He actually still owed me two knives that he was going to make for my boys. He took forever to make them and then came the cancer.

I would bet that he is no longer alive. Man, that guy knew his knives and only paid himself $10 an hour to make them. That was all he wanted. I stopped many times and chatted with him when I went to Las Cruces for federal court hearings. He was always fun to talk to about hunting, knives and whatever he happened to be into at the time.

 

[AustinL]

I have not I also had a knife on order from him and the last we talked he was battling the cancer and said he did not know if he would get them done. He used to travel to a show in sweetwater and we would visit for quite a while I stopped in his shop once when we headed to silver city he was a one of a kind guy never would take a deposit.

I have a friend that has a knife made by his dad as well

 

[sbhooper]

I guess that I did not realize his dad also made knives. It was frustrating waiting on a knife from him, as he did it whenever he felt like it. He had my knives on order for two years before we left New Mexico and I talked to him a couple years after I got here only to find out that he had been battling cancer.

I originally met him while muzzle loader hunting deer above Alamogordo in the early nineties.

Too bad if he is gone. One of a kind.

 

[[email protected]]

Hey everyone. Thanks for all the interest and positive comments on my knives and sharpening! As mentioned in this thread, $3 per knife for sharpening and returned to you the next day in most cases.

I'm still quite busy with the custom knifemaking.
I just upgraded to the new Crucible CPM S35VN stainless steel. It's the best out there. Lifetime warranty on my knives as well. Check out my website when you get time.

www.skybladeknives.com

Thanks again to all my customers.

Still finding some time to chase the elk too. Will be out this weekend looking for my 26th bull with the pistol. Too much fun!

 

[Hem]

Todd,

Thanks again for sharpening my knives, I think they have better edges than when first purchased.Looking forward to purchasing one of your customs.
How about some pics of pistol whipped elk? Nate