Rough Ryder No. 12 Wood & Horn Damascus Tanto

Impulse buys are sometimes good – sometimes meh – this impulse buy is great! – Saw this on one of Smoky Mountains “promo” videos and thought it looked good, so why not?

Came all wrapped up in the box . . .

And started unwrapping . . .

And unwrapping . . .

I will say I have never bought a knife or firearm with this much oil on it . . .

After much wiping I found the knife . . .

Good patterning on the blade – and real sharp right out of the box . . .

The wood to horn transitions / rivets / medallion – all real nice . . .

Rough Ryder did a decent job polishing the tang ( full length ) and getting the alignment right on the brass spacers on the handles . . .

You can see some layering of the metal when you get to the back end of the tang – didn’t quite get it all polished out – but there is no doubt it’s “real” Damascus – more on that later . . .

The sheath is a nice touch . . .

Downsides to it – no choils – no guards – but a real good looker and sharp right out of the box – good balance – it’s pretty much neutral – not front or back heavy . . .

For $30 bucks it’s a real nice knife – and a good looker that is put together decent – Working knife?? – Not so much – no guards or finger choils . . .

This is one that is a pleasant surprise – for the price – C’mon $30 Bucks – I was real impressed with the build quality and honestly not every knife I purchase is a “working” knife or a “tactical” knife or one that’s going to pay it’s way in the kitchen – sometimes I pick them up simply for the aesthetics – and this cute little darling sure pushes THAT button! – to pick your own up from Smoky Mountain? <<<CLICK HERE>>> and get yours on the way . . .

And don’t you forget to check the daily “Flash Sale” at Smoky Mountain – it refreshes every day @ 9 A.M. Eastern – you just never know what’s going to be there . . .

Some thoughts on real vs fake damascus steel from Frontierblades.com . . .

What’s in YOUR pocket??

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

From the Czech Republic :Acta Non Verba Knives

Now most of you folks know I like CZ pistols – and then I ran across this . . .

( For you fainthearted folks out here – WARNING : KNIFE PORN AHEAD!!! )

Oh My My – Oh Hell Yes – really nice stuff from the Czech Republic – to see what BladeHq has available <<< CLICK HERE >>> – me personally? I am somewhat of a whore for stiletto pattern knives – so let me ask – what do you think of this one??

I can resist anything but temptation . . . Sure would ride nice with my CZ 2075 RAMI – just saying . . .

What’s in YOUR pocket??

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Oops – No Post . . . Juggling This / That / and Vacation . . .

Here’s some Johnny Dollar “Stuff” and a collection of episodes . . .

And something different . . .

60 plus hours of work – yea I know – a 4 letter word – in less than 5 nights to get to vacation time – then I realized I was behind on my “draft post” pile when I went to schedule stuff – it will be a little spotty for a day or three . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Mass – Hole Legislature : Making Us All FEEL Safer by Taking a Revenue Dump . . .

If uncontrollable giggling and laughter might injure you – proceed with caution . . .

The Mass – Hole legislature is going to try to make it against the law to manufacture semi-automatic firearms in the shithole state. Smith and Wesson is packing up all the equipment for their semiautomatic long gun and pistol production AND 500 plus jobs and their headquarters and heading to Tennessee – and taking the tax revenue with them.

And I would bet within 3 years after the initial move they will move the rest to Tennessee – GOOD FOR THEM!!

For you tax slaves left in the state of Mass – Hole – will your state reduce their budget expenditures by the amount of revenue loss – or simply screw the rest of you – deeper – harder – faster?? You really don’t have to answer that – it was a rhetorical question. But the important part is everyone will “feel” so much safer as you starve to death . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Something Different for you Folks . . .

From 1939-1944 fans tuned in to hear the adventures of the A1 Detective Agency. Jack Packard, Doc Long, and Reggie York found new adventures in every episode with their motto, “No job too tough, no adventure too baffling.”

Feet up – relax – and enjoy the theater of YOUR mind . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Which Knife do You USE the Most?

Most folks carry a “pocket” knife / tactical knife – I know a lot of people who carry the latest and greatest “Tacticool” knife – BUT – which one – or two – do you use the MOST?

One of my favorite kitchen knives? – Gil Hibben Ulu – this particular one in fact . . .

A search for “Ulu” at Smoky Mountain gets you to these . . .

Pick one up up – the Ulu pattern is a little bit different feel – but once you get used to them – it’s like “Why haven’t I been using one of these all along?”

But Bruce – I already got a set of XXXX brand kitchen knives! – The question I have for YOU – Would you use a flat blade screwdriver to remove a Phillips head screw? – No – of course not – kitchen knives are the same – each blade shape/length are somewhat task specific – the more exact of a match you achieve between the kitchen knife and the task you are doing with it makes the task easier – and more enjoyable – and Ulu knives are GREAT for chopping tasks . . .

Everyone should own one – or two – or three – GOOD kitchen knives – food prep should be enjoyable – not a drudgery thing you have to get through to eat . . .

What’s in YOUR pocket kitchen??

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

2 Marbles Stag Bone “Safety Folders”

I couldn’t decide between the two – so I took my own advice and got both of them – the black stag came in a bag and a box and the brown stag came in it’s own little carry case – which is cool . . .

After that post on Marble’s Madness the other day I hope all y’all are ready to O.D. on some way cool stuff . . .

I know YOUR ready – and for the rest of you folks – Here We Go . . .

A pair of Marbles Safety Folders – original patent issued 1902 . . .

Now you see why I couldn’t decide – both are good lookers!

Good positive half stops – love the swing guards . . .

Bruce – what’s with the weird silver things – they just stick out the back end of the knife? – Yes – they do stick out the back end of the knife and cover the end of the blade so you can “pocket” the knife safely – and . . .

They pivot around and lock the blade open – so now you have a good sized ( 5 1/2 inch ) clip point fixed blade – a decent skinning / camping / hunting knife that folds up and slips in your pocket – I told y’all this was cool stuff . . .

A look “inside” on these – brass liners / excellent fit and finish on the stag scales . . .

And the next pic shows you a close up of the “lock” and a look at the only “spot” I could find on either knife . . .

The next two give you a decent look at the stag bone scales from both sides now . . . and don’t tell me YOU weren’t expecting that . . .

Really a neat pair of knives – good balance – good lookers – of course I make them look better – if you do any knife “pattern” collecting at all – you should pick one ( or both! ) up – as they are a neat piece of knife history . . .

From Smoky Mountain Knife Works :

“All of the knives in the Marbles Brown Stag Bone Series feature 440A stainless steel blades with a polished finish, half stop, and match strike pulls. The handles are brown stag bone with brass pins and liners, and nickel silver bolsters, as well as a nickel silver shield. This Marbles Brown Stag Bone Safety Folder features a clip point blade with a nickel silver swing guard. It’s 6.375″ closed and weighs 7.84oz.”

Go here for the “Black Stag” – or here for the “Brown Stag” – YOU have yet to order your Marbles Stag Bone Safety Folder because . . .?

Collecting different knife patterns does not have to be expensive – I’ve got like 46 bucks in both of these – there are so many really “neat” knives out there it’s hard to pick – so please remember my sincere advice – if you simply can’t decide which knife ( or pistol for that matter ) to buy – Buy Them Both! – See – that was easy, wasn’t it? And YOU can tell your chief financial officer that I said it was alright – Heh Heh . . .

I haven’t talked to my Blushing Bride for 3 days now – eventually she’s going to take a breath and I will get my opportunity to say something . . .

What’s in YOUR pocket??

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Ya Gotta Eat – Right? Well I Made This for Dinner . . .

I don’t know if you want to call it “Dirty Rice” / “Loaded Rice” – or rice with a bunch of “stuff” in it – I call it GOOD! – LOL . . .

This is gonna be fun – my recipes are sometimes hard to follow – here we go . . .

The Stuff – – –

1 1/2 to 2 lbs of ground beef – 73/27 is best for flavor – 80/20 will work ok

large yellow onion – chopped / or 2 -3 small ones chopped

3 or 4 jalapenos – scoop out seeds and membranes – chopped

at least a tablespoon of cajun seasoning

at least a teaspoon of black pepper

1 to 3 tablespoons of minced garlic

1 can rotel – drained

package of dirty rice mix – my favorite is Oak Grove Smokehouse – if your store doesn’t carry it you can get it through Amazon – or any brand will work as long as it is not one of the instant rice types – the cooking time will clue you in – if the package directions talk about cover and simmer for 20 plus minutes – then it’s real rice . . .

2 1/2 cups of water – or whatever amount your dirty rice mix calls for . . .

The dirty rice mix –

And the cajun seasoning –

Are YOU ready?? – Here We Go!!

Chunk the first five things in a fairly deep pan – need to use one that has a lid – that’s the hamburger / onion / jalapenos / cajun seasoning / black pepper – med heat – keep poking it around – get it all mixed good – you are cooking the hamburger – not frying it

Drain the grease when hamburger is cooked and return to pan

Add the rotel / garlic / and water and bring to boil – then . . .

add your dirty rice mix – stir it in – reduce to simmer – cover and cook per the dirty rice package directions . . .

And you can add to this to your hearts content – mushrooms /celery / throw chicken livers in with the ground beef / use ground pork instead of ground beef / use those twisted imaginations to the fullest!!

This is a fun one – similar to the one from yesterday because you can make it to YOUR tastes very easily – want HEAT? – don’t clean out the jalapenos – just chop them whole! / different or deeper flavor? use beef stock or chicken stock or bone stock instead of water – this simple recipe gives you a basic starting point that is good as is – or you can really run with it – whatever you feel like doing . . .

If you noticed there was no salt added – the cajun seasoning stuff usually has a fairly high salt content – it’s real easy to get this way too salty in a hurry – try it a couple of times before you add much additional salt . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!