North Edge Tools Raven 3" Fixed Blade, MagnaCut Recurve, Blue Canyon Richlite Scales, Bead Blast, Blade Show Debut, Made in USA (NET-RAVEN-BLUECANYON-BB)

North Edge Tools Raven. Brand new model. Dustin's blade show debut.

The Raven is Dustin North's newest design and he launched it at the show. It is the most involved blade he has ground, and he built a new sheath to go with it.

3" of recurve MagnaCut at 6.75" overall, on Blue Canyon Richlite scales with a bead blast finish. Dustin released the Raven in two colorways and this is the cooler of the pair.

Specifications

• Brand: North Edge Tools
• Model: Raven
• Blade Length: 3", measured hilt to tip
• Overall Length: 6.75"
• Blade Steel: CPM MagnaCut
• Blade Style: Recurve with swedge
• Blade Grind: Hollow ground, compound with a flat grind at the tip
• Blade Finish: Bead blast
• Handle: Blue Canyon Richlite, fine jimping
• Sheath: Deep pocket carry Kydex, ambidextrous
• Maker: Dustin North, Colorado
• Country of Origin: Made in USA

The Geometry Is the Whole Point

There are three things happening on this blade at once.

It is a recurve, so the edge curves inward before it sweeps out to the tip. A recurve pulls material into the cut rather than pushing it away, which is why rope and cord part on a draw instead of needing pressure.

It is hollow ground, meaning the bevels are concave rather than flat. That leaves less steel behind the edge than any other grind, and it is the reason this knife slices the way it does.

And it is a compound grind, which means the hollow grind does not run the whole blade. Dustin switches to a flat grind at the tip, so you get a visible swoop where the two meet and a point with more steel behind it than a hollow grind alone would leave. That is the hard part to execute and it is the detail you notice first.

Then there is a swedge along the spine, for good measure.

Blue Canyon Richlite and Bead Blast

Richlite is paper and resin compressed under heat until it behaves like a dense hardwood. It machines cleanly, shrugs off water, and does not move with humidity. Blue Canyon runs cool and layered, and the bead blast on the blade is the right companion to it.

Bead blasting leaves an even matte surface with no direction to it, so the blade does not throw light. Against the acid washed version of this same knife it reads much quieter, which is the whole reason Dustin offered both.

The New Jimping

Dustin changed his jimping for this model. It is finer than what he runs on his other knives, because the Raven is a sleeker and more refined shape than the rest of the lineup and coarse jimping would have fought that.

You still get real grip out of it. It just does not shout.

The Sheath He Likes Best

This is a new design and Dustin says it is his favorite thing he has made. It is a deep pocket carry Kydex sheath, ambidextrous, so the knife goes in whichever way you want it.

It sits in the back corner of your pocket with a little of the knife exposed, which means a fixed blade that carries like a folder and comes out just as fast.

MagnaCut

MagnaCut gives you edge retention, toughness, and corrosion resistance without trading any of the three away. On a hollow ground edge this thin, the toughness is the part that matters.

About North Edge Tools

North Edge Tools is one person. Dustin North works out of Colorado and makes every knife himself from grinding through handle work.

Why This One Stands Out

Recurve, hollow ground, compound ground, swedged, with new jimping and a new sheath. This is a one man shop showing you what it can do.

Proudly carrying American