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Posts Tagged ‘Darrel Ralph’

Darrel Ralph’s Stellite Gunhammer Folder – Finished

Friday, November 18th, 2011

As we described yesterday, Darrel Ralph was wrapping up the prototype for a 4” Gunhammer and we showed some images of it “under construction”. Well, here is the finished product. Darrel says the frame took about 40 hours of back and forth machining time plus a little over 150 hours of development. “The blade grinding was very intense,” Darrel said. “We have six process that had to be followed just to grind the blade.”

As for the ‘unobtainium’ tungsten steel we mentioned before, Darrel said, “Chad had to build a vacuum chamber in a twenty-two hundred degree forging furnace to weld the materials in the blade and frame together so that the atmosphere is oxygen free. That’s why this steel is so hard to get hold of.”

As for the cost of this one-off Stellite 6K core, 4” Gunhammer with 3D carved lightning strike carbon fiber and copper inlay frame? It was more than your average E6 makes in a month, for obvious reasons. As much as we like it, we’ll be waiting for the more mundane version to come out. Check out the knives made for us normal mortals on his website. They’re quality work and worth the investment, whether you’re carrying one or admiring it in a case.

-David Reeder

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Posted in Knives | 1 Comment »

Darrel Ralph’s New 4” Gunhammer

Thursday, November 17th, 2011

Darrel Ralph, a man who has been described as the “Wizard of Edge” is finishing up a new knife design. This is the prototype for a new HTM, a brand new style of 4” Gunhammer. Chad Nichols provided the blade steel and handle material which is a unique amalgam made by welding two different kinds of titanium together. Naturally, it’s almost impossible to work and has to be done just perfectly and consequently, Darrel refers to it as “unobtainium”. Anyway, this is titanium with a stainless steel Damascus carved frame with the Stellite 6K core. Here’s a series of pictures showing the progression of the knife (when you look at the first one, the wave at the edge is the Stellite peeking out). Later pictures show the knife as the grinding is completed. You’ll also see the lightning strike carbon fiber inlay, though it may be hard to see the copper rod running through it because the pictures were taken with his phone camera (just yesterday, actually).

The new knife style is a 3D carved frame with a bowie blade. It will probably be called the Gunhammer 4 3D Alpha, though that’s not for sure. The one you see here is one of a kind, but it’ll shortly be followed by a limited run of titanium frames and after that a more standard run of aluminum frames with hard coating.

Good stuff, eh?

We’ll follow up shortly with a picture or three of the finished product, or you can mosey over to his Facebook page and watch it progress yourself. If you do, make sure to tell him Soldier Systems sent ya.

-David Reeder

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Posted in Knives | 1 Comment »

18XRAY Combat/Rescue Knife

Friday, September 16th, 2011

We recently found out that is a third variant of the popular 18XRAY automatic knife. The Combat/Rescue Knife was designed specifically for medics as well as first responders. Notice the 3-5/8” blade’s blunt tip combined with ultra-fine serrated teeth. The blade is manufactured from 154CM steel with DLC finish paired with T6-6061 aircraft grade aluminum handles that are Type 3 hard coat anodized in Red for high visibility. Once again, it features the limited forever warranty. Finally, like the entire line of 18XRAYs, the Combat/Rescue Knife features Darrel Ralph’s SAS (Slide Auto Safety) system.

NSN: 1095-01-588-6781

www.meyercousa.com

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Posted in Knives, Medical, SERE | 2 Comments »

Darrel Ralph Knives

Monday, August 29th, 2011

Both the 18Xray NSN and Gun Hammer NSN knives are becoming extremely popular down range and sellers can’t keep them in stock. Designed by renown knifemaker Darrel Ralph, they are intended for everyday use.

18Xray NSNs

1095-01-568-8897 Tanto


1095-01-533-9377 Bowie

The 18Xray measures 8-7/8” Open, with a 3-13/16” 154cm Blade with a DLC Non-Glare Finish. The handle is crafted from Mil-Spec Type III hard coated aircraft aluminum.

Gun Hammer

NSN 1095-01-597-2670
The Gun Hammer gets its name from its 1911-style looks. As you can see from the photo, the 3D Machined ETAC grip pattern scales are designed to maintain purchase, even when wet. It is available in two blade styles, the radically different Radian Re-Curve blade style (not pictured) boasts an extremely aggressive, modern style, while the more traditional style blade (shown below) draws inspiration from a classic Bowie knife blade shape. Both blades are 3.5″ and made from CPM S30V Blade Steel.

Slide Auto Safety
Both models feature Darrel Ralph’s SAS (Slide Auto Safety) system. This is an AUTOMATIC safety system. The system is always in the safe mode either in the open or closed position. The button works much like a GLOCK Trigger system safety. To open the knife you have to push forward and down simultaneously. The blade fires and the button returns to the safe position automatically. It’s very natural but eliminates accidental openings of automatic knives in pockets or other equally embarrassing places. I’ve tried it and it works like a charm. No hang up. You just have to remember to give it a nudge forward while you are mashing the button.

Made in the USA, both knives feature a Limited Forever Warranty.

SSD readers will enjoy a discount of 20% for Military and LE through September. When ordering use coupon code SS18. This offer is only valid at www.hmtknives.com.

*These are Automatic opening knives (assisted opening available) www.htmknives.com
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Posted in Deal of the Week, Knives | 1 Comment »