A Selection of Spanish Knives ("Carraca")
Apr 14, 2011 19:53:39 GMT
Post by randomnobody on Apr 14, 2011 19:53:39 GMT
Okay, so I said I'd do a mini-review-thingy for these three knives if I could convince myself to not be lazy for long enough, and I think I've undone the laze by virtue of acquiring necessary materials.
Took a ride out earlier to find a good digital scale, with ounces and decimals, and hoped to find a good digital caliper. Got the scale, but could only find a sliding ruler caliper thing, which isn't even zeroed accurately, it's off by about 1 millimeter. Close enough, I guess, as long as I remember to compensate the measurements accordingly.
The idea behind my acquiring these knives is primarily in response to an inquiry by another member in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=44&t=3268 however I was also quite intrigued by them, myself; particularly with regard to the specific locking mechanism for which they are dubbed, "carraca". As easy as it was to find Spanish navaja and similarly styled folding knives, finding "carraca" knives proved difficult; if you've read the thread, you've seen the fun I've had, if you haven't, well, it's all laid out there, so I'll spare it here.
These are the three I ordered from Filofiel Cuchilleria ( www.filofiel.com ) which offered excellent communications and service all throughout, despite some hiccups with my emails being rejected by a spam blocker at first.
Right, then, starting with the J.J. Martinez.
This one weighs in at 2.6 ounces, or 73.7 of your silly metric grams, with a blade length of just a hair or two over 10 centimeters, just about to 4 inches. It's just under 2 millimeters thick at the base of the blade, and doesn't taper much over its length, though is very reminiscent of a kanmuri-otoshi zukuri blade, if you're familiar with Japanese sword styles. If you aren't, well, it's about the same thickness for the bottom half-ish of the blade, then the spine suddenly tapers into a sloping false edge out to the very tip, which is just a step above a needle point. Blade is about 5/8 inch, or somewhere between 16 and 17 millimeters wide at the peak of the spine
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees (second click):
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
Every part of this knife is tight and polished, but absolutely none of it overly so. The level is about where I would label "perfect" but some might want shinier or more satin. The only part with any play at all is the lever that lifts the locking bar from the gears on the blade to release it, and there is only very little, and even the "play" is stiff. Opening and closing the knife is almost effortless, despite the awkward locking system. Opening is facilitated greatly by the fingernail slot cut into the forward portion of the blade; makes me wish the other two had one.
The knife feels very at-home in my hand, the grip allows for a variety of holds pertaining to just about every level of task I could think to use such a knife for. It rides very comfortably in my pocket, where it shall henceforth reside as my primary folder. I am very taken with this knife, and will be buying more from J.J. Martinez via Filofiel in the future. This one cost me 42 Euro, but I feel it worth every last bit.
Next is the Celaya, weighing in at only 1.7 ounces, or 48.2 grams, 9centimeters long (a hair over 3.5 inches) and right at 2millimeters thick. Blade has very little taper to the point, which is a scary thing in itself. 13/16 of an inch and/or 21 millimeters wide at the peak of the spine.
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees:
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
My initial impressions of the Celaya were not so great; the lever of the lock was very loose, and had quite a bit of play, while the rest of the blade was overly stiff and rigid. Parts were rubbing so hard they were actually damaging each other. The first I noticed of this were the deep gouges dug into the back of the collar where the far-end of the lever contacts, creating the lifting action necessary to release the lock. Beyond this there are marks on the blade from rubbing the metal parts of the collar when opening and closing.
The lock itself was initially VERY stiff, and tough to operate. Combined with the tightness of the blade to the rest of the knife, opening and closing this thing was no pleasure. It's since loosened up a bit, there's a definite wear-in period; I guess I'm still in it, but I'm afraid of how the knife will look once it's done.
Overall polish is lacking, majorly, in my opinion, though many have already said they prefer this level. The metal, blade included, is a very rough, even coarse to the touch, satin finish, but everything is snugged up tight and all edges are either flush or smooth, so there is very little issue with rubbing in-hand. The wood is unfinished olive, which is nice to look at, if a bit plain, and it's definitely smoothly finished, it's still rather...well, it's wood. Holding it feels like holding a stick. A smooth stick, but a stick.
Due to its light weight, it's rather odd in-hand; the extreme curve imparted to the tail allows for an almost pistol grip if one chose, but the rest of the grip is sufficient to more multi-purpose holds for other tasks, though some angles have the tail in the way. The knife is very easy to handle, being as light as it is, and the stiffness of it all imparts a level of sturdiness to counteract the fragility felt by the lack of weight.
Overall, a good knife, but at 25 Euro, maybe a tad high?
Finally, we have the Albacete. Weighing 2.5 ounces, 70.8-ish grams, with a blade right at 9 centimeters long, 2 millimeters thick, and the same 21 millimeters / 13/16 inch at peak as the Celaya. In fact, the two knives are nearly identical, save materials, polish, and weight.
On that note, I'm not really sure what the handle is on this knife. I don't think it's wood, but I'd hesitate again to call it plastic. Oh right, pictures.
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees:
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
Parts are all quite snug, without being too tight. The polish level is very high, well, everything is very shiny, at least. The actual metal parts are quite roughly finished, with harsh edges and points. A file will fix it up just fine, but nevertheless.
The lock is the most difficult of the three, probably another case of the tight-but-rough finish of the involved parts; it seems to take a lot of effort for the second and third gear to clear the lock when opening, but with the lock already open the blade moves fairly smoothly. Once open, the lock is very secure, but there is significant play in the top portion. Just a case of a wee bit too much space between the gears, I think, as they still hold very firm on either end, there's no accidentally closing it and it won't go backwards, either, but it does wiggle just a bit.
Caution is to be exercised in closing the blade, though, as the point comes down to be just a hair longer than where the rounded end of the tail comes to, and they will contact each other very slightly before the blade seats. There is a small gouge in the tail where the point has already worn a trail in, but I'd rather there be a gouge in the handle than have the tip break off, even just a few micrometers as it would be.
Handling is very much like the Celaya, though the knife is a bit heavier, and the metal parts a bit rougher on the hand. Opening the knife is a fight, as mentioned above, but closing is very easy, save for the tail issue.
Overall, not a bad folder for 15 Euro. It's not the finest you'll find, but it's probably the least expensive that is still a proper representation of the "carraca" style. That is, numerous knives are available in the same shape, many for less money than this one, but none of those have the multi-level locking structure these knives are known for. This one does, thus, it wins out in my eyes.
I had attempted to record a video of myself opening and closing these knives, but I have no proper support for my better camera, and my cell phone takes only very poor quality video, despite claiming high-definition. Add to that my inability to hold the knives within the viewfinder while operating them, particularly the difficult Albacete, and, well, I gave up.
Naturally, there will be no cutting tests etc. for the same reasons. However, if anybody wants more pictures, just ask, and I'll see what I can do.
I hope to be able to add the two knives I'd ordered from Aceros de Hispania (www.aceros-de-hispania.com ) prior to ordering these three from Filofiel to this review in the near future; we shall see.
Edit: Video.
Took a ride out earlier to find a good digital scale, with ounces and decimals, and hoped to find a good digital caliper. Got the scale, but could only find a sliding ruler caliper thing, which isn't even zeroed accurately, it's off by about 1 millimeter. Close enough, I guess, as long as I remember to compensate the measurements accordingly.
The idea behind my acquiring these knives is primarily in response to an inquiry by another member in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=44&t=3268 however I was also quite intrigued by them, myself; particularly with regard to the specific locking mechanism for which they are dubbed, "carraca". As easy as it was to find Spanish navaja and similarly styled folding knives, finding "carraca" knives proved difficult; if you've read the thread, you've seen the fun I've had, if you haven't, well, it's all laid out there, so I'll spare it here.
These are the three I ordered from Filofiel Cuchilleria ( www.filofiel.com ) which offered excellent communications and service all throughout, despite some hiccups with my emails being rejected by a spam blocker at first.
Right, then, starting with the J.J. Martinez.
This one weighs in at 2.6 ounces, or 73.7 of your silly metric grams, with a blade length of just a hair or two over 10 centimeters, just about to 4 inches. It's just under 2 millimeters thick at the base of the blade, and doesn't taper much over its length, though is very reminiscent of a kanmuri-otoshi zukuri blade, if you're familiar with Japanese sword styles. If you aren't, well, it's about the same thickness for the bottom half-ish of the blade, then the spine suddenly tapers into a sloping false edge out to the very tip, which is just a step above a needle point. Blade is about 5/8 inch, or somewhere between 16 and 17 millimeters wide at the peak of the spine
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees (second click):
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
Every part of this knife is tight and polished, but absolutely none of it overly so. The level is about where I would label "perfect" but some might want shinier or more satin. The only part with any play at all is the lever that lifts the locking bar from the gears on the blade to release it, and there is only very little, and even the "play" is stiff. Opening and closing the knife is almost effortless, despite the awkward locking system. Opening is facilitated greatly by the fingernail slot cut into the forward portion of the blade; makes me wish the other two had one.
The knife feels very at-home in my hand, the grip allows for a variety of holds pertaining to just about every level of task I could think to use such a knife for. It rides very comfortably in my pocket, where it shall henceforth reside as my primary folder. I am very taken with this knife, and will be buying more from J.J. Martinez via Filofiel in the future. This one cost me 42 Euro, but I feel it worth every last bit.
Next is the Celaya, weighing in at only 1.7 ounces, or 48.2 grams, 9centimeters long (a hair over 3.5 inches) and right at 2millimeters thick. Blade has very little taper to the point, which is a scary thing in itself. 13/16 of an inch and/or 21 millimeters wide at the peak of the spine.
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees:
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
My initial impressions of the Celaya were not so great; the lever of the lock was very loose, and had quite a bit of play, while the rest of the blade was overly stiff and rigid. Parts were rubbing so hard they were actually damaging each other. The first I noticed of this were the deep gouges dug into the back of the collar where the far-end of the lever contacts, creating the lifting action necessary to release the lock. Beyond this there are marks on the blade from rubbing the metal parts of the collar when opening and closing.
The lock itself was initially VERY stiff, and tough to operate. Combined with the tightness of the blade to the rest of the knife, opening and closing this thing was no pleasure. It's since loosened up a bit, there's a definite wear-in period; I guess I'm still in it, but I'm afraid of how the knife will look once it's done.
Overall polish is lacking, majorly, in my opinion, though many have already said they prefer this level. The metal, blade included, is a very rough, even coarse to the touch, satin finish, but everything is snugged up tight and all edges are either flush or smooth, so there is very little issue with rubbing in-hand. The wood is unfinished olive, which is nice to look at, if a bit plain, and it's definitely smoothly finished, it's still rather...well, it's wood. Holding it feels like holding a stick. A smooth stick, but a stick.
Due to its light weight, it's rather odd in-hand; the extreme curve imparted to the tail allows for an almost pistol grip if one chose, but the rest of the grip is sufficient to more multi-purpose holds for other tasks, though some angles have the tail in the way. The knife is very easy to handle, being as light as it is, and the stiffness of it all imparts a level of sturdiness to counteract the fragility felt by the lack of weight.
Overall, a good knife, but at 25 Euro, maybe a tad high?
Finally, we have the Albacete. Weighing 2.5 ounces, 70.8-ish grams, with a blade right at 9 centimeters long, 2 millimeters thick, and the same 21 millimeters / 13/16 inch at peak as the Celaya. In fact, the two knives are nearly identical, save materials, polish, and weight.
On that note, I'm not really sure what the handle is on this knife. I don't think it's wood, but I'd hesitate again to call it plastic. Oh right, pictures.
Closed:
Open to 90 degrees:
Fully open:
Tail when closed:
Parts are all quite snug, without being too tight. The polish level is very high, well, everything is very shiny, at least. The actual metal parts are quite roughly finished, with harsh edges and points. A file will fix it up just fine, but nevertheless.
The lock is the most difficult of the three, probably another case of the tight-but-rough finish of the involved parts; it seems to take a lot of effort for the second and third gear to clear the lock when opening, but with the lock already open the blade moves fairly smoothly. Once open, the lock is very secure, but there is significant play in the top portion. Just a case of a wee bit too much space between the gears, I think, as they still hold very firm on either end, there's no accidentally closing it and it won't go backwards, either, but it does wiggle just a bit.
Caution is to be exercised in closing the blade, though, as the point comes down to be just a hair longer than where the rounded end of the tail comes to, and they will contact each other very slightly before the blade seats. There is a small gouge in the tail where the point has already worn a trail in, but I'd rather there be a gouge in the handle than have the tip break off, even just a few micrometers as it would be.
Handling is very much like the Celaya, though the knife is a bit heavier, and the metal parts a bit rougher on the hand. Opening the knife is a fight, as mentioned above, but closing is very easy, save for the tail issue.
Overall, not a bad folder for 15 Euro. It's not the finest you'll find, but it's probably the least expensive that is still a proper representation of the "carraca" style. That is, numerous knives are available in the same shape, many for less money than this one, but none of those have the multi-level locking structure these knives are known for. This one does, thus, it wins out in my eyes.
I had attempted to record a video of myself opening and closing these knives, but I have no proper support for my better camera, and my cell phone takes only very poor quality video, despite claiming high-definition. Add to that my inability to hold the knives within the viewfinder while operating them, particularly the difficult Albacete, and, well, I gave up.
Naturally, there will be no cutting tests etc. for the same reasons. However, if anybody wants more pictures, just ask, and I'll see what I can do.
I hope to be able to add the two knives I'd ordered from Aceros de Hispania (www.aceros-de-hispania.com ) prior to ordering these three from Filofiel to this review in the near future; we shall see.
Edit: Video.