Atwood Knives "Fixer" out this week

dustinmeyer

#1 – 10:44 AM May 11, 2009

I'm not sure what they intend it for, but I doubt it is for bicycles. It is getting tough to find a bike with hex nuts on it these days.

echolocate chocolate

#2 – 10:51 AM May 11, 2009

Looks like a weapon for really tiny Klingons.

Stefan Jones

#3 – 11:11 AM May 11, 2009

Hmm. "The Fixer." Maybe it's a veterinary tool.

Anonymous Anonymous

#4 – 11:14 AM May 11, 2009

It's for mohels. Tool of the trade.

Anonymous Anonymous

#5 – 11:19 AM May 11, 2009

Considering that to get any leverage for using the stairstep hex wrench in handle you'd have to GRIP THE SHARP END OF THE KNIFE, this seems like a monumentally dumb exercise in design. Plus, the "stairsteps" are narrow enough that it's nearly useless in that role. Bad designer, no biscuit.

Tommy

#6 – 11:26 AM May 11, 2009

So cool.

So out of my price range for something with which I'm more likely to maim myself than do anything constructive.

Blackhat

#7 – 11:31 AM May 11, 2009

Oh, good; a nice sharp blade to hang onto while using the wrench function...

retrojoe

#8 – 11:31 AM May 11, 2009

The big loop in the handle is the wrench (each step is a different size), the hex bit seems too small to fit necessary nuts on a bike.

Anonymous Anonymous

#9 – 11:59 AM May 11, 2009

I have a rule - I will not spend over 50$ for a tool small enough to lose.

feedingfashionistas

#10 – 12:24 PM May 11, 2009

Atwood has a cadre of folks so dedicated to buying everything he makes, it's become darned-near impossible to snag one. Whenever a run of tools becomes available (typically 5-12 pieces), there's a lottery you throw your name into, and the winners are chosen at random. You have to keep a close watch on his blog to know when this is happening, and there's always a few hundred people gunning for each piece.

There was a time that I really wanted a piece of the action, but I just don't have the bandwidth to keep up with it these days. The stuff is quite beautifully hand made and some of them really are singular, way cool designs. He did a run of dedicated bike tools once, and I'm kicking myself for not having clawed my way into getting one.

Anonymous Anonymous

#11 – 1:38 PM May 11, 2009

It comes with a kydex sheath that remains on the blade while using the wrench or hex bit driver opening. Anyone trying to use the wrench while the blade is exposed deserves to be nominated for a Darwin Award.

Anonymous Anonymous

#12 – 1:41 PM May 11, 2009

I appreciate the comments but let me clear a couple of points up.

The idea is to use the wrench functions with the kydex sheath in place. (duh!) The sheath provides more than enough protection for the hand and fingers. The hex hole is not supposed to be as functional and is intended primarily as a retention point for the form fitted kydex plastic sheath.

My batches are typically much larger than 5-20 pieces. For larger releases I do a general release sale which is announced on the blog. For smaller releases usually of rarer or one of a kind items I sometimes do it by a lottery system, also announced on the blog. Releases are sporadic and come about as the batches are completed. So it can be any time and any day of the week.

Thanks,

Peter Atwood

Anonymous Anonymous

#13 – 1:41 PM May 11, 2009

The Fixer comes with a kydex sheath. The sharp blade is covered with it while using the wrench function, of course.

Anonymous Anonymous

#14 – 2:14 PM May 11, 2009

There's a sheath not pictured here that protects digits when using the tool as a wrench. It's also getting very rare to have a nut or bolt head with enough room around it to use a tool like this or like the loggerhead bionic wrench effectively.

toxonix

#15 – 3:45 PM May 11, 2009

Peter,
Are most of your tools water jet cut and ground to finish? What type of tool steel do you prefer?
Ever do any big integral blades, or are you keeping away from that market ('tacticals') for some reason?
Good stuff.

RedShirt77

#16 – 4:04 PM May 11, 2009

Sheath for handle = not ergonomic.

Looks cool but you should get a sheath made of hard plastic and shaped like a handle. For not only the grip while wrenching but also so folks don't end up driving the blade into 3 grommets. I nice second piece of metal hinged in the middle that becomes sheath and wrench handle in one direction and knife handle in the other might be interesting too.

Also, in terms of photography. the fact that the end of the lanyard is cut off of every photo left me thinking, what the heck is the other end tied to that I am not allowed to see.

Anonymous Anonymous

#17 – 6:07 PM May 11, 2009

If you don't own an Atwood then you don't understand.

Anonymous Anonymous

#18 – 7:01 PM May 11, 2009

Redshirt77:

Um...the other end of the lanyard, maybe?

BastardNamban

#19 – 7:43 PM May 11, 2009

I'm a knife nut that reads BLADE Magazine whenever I can get my hands on one. I knew of Atwood, his Prybaby has been in Blade before. Honestly, I never got into the idea of these minitools.

Until I followed this link to his site. I think his model is perfect- selling in batches of limited editions, by auction, lets him constantly change designs for his work. It's really hard to make a living as a full-time custom knifemaker, but this model keeps him in money, and things stay interesting with such limited runs.

I had no idea he did so many little tools- the idea is really cool, now that I think about it. Makes me want to design a small multi-knife thing just for myself, for everyday carry. I would never copy his designs, though. I see his style as a new type of knife catagory, special skill set mini-tools for all trades. It could be fun to see how many useful tools you could fit into a small, discrete piece of steel, for everyday use or defense.

BB gets major cool points for pointing this out.

Jake0748

#20 – 8:12 PM May 11, 2009

I know I should just google for the answer, and I will in a second. But what the hell is "kydex", and why have I never seen the word before?

Jake0748

#21 – 8:19 PM May 11, 2009

I just found this - "KYDEX® is an acrylic-polyvinyl chloride alloy produced by KYDEX, LLC.

Now I have a new question. Alloy? Alloy?

Are mixtures of different types of plastics called alloys? I thought I knew about all this kind of stuff since I was a chemistry major. But, alas I sometimes realize how long ago that was. I thought I would go to my grave knowing that alloys are mixtures of different metals.

sigh...

BastardNamban

#22 – 10:37 PM May 11, 2009

An alloy IS only a mix of metals. The word doesn't apply to plastics. Whoever wrote their wiki doesn't know jack about chemistry. Alloy is a term for any combination of metals with other substances in them, or any substance held in a metallic matrix. Kydex has nothing metal in its chemical formula, nor any metallic compounds.

Kydex, for the uninitiated, is a proprietary polymer that looks like rough black PVC material, but is exceptionally durable stuff. Its the stuff they use for form-fitting tactical holsters of guns/knives, as it's easily formed with heat and joined, but waterproof and tough as nails. Some people make armour with the stuff. Think of it like a high-impact plastic.

According to a video on Atwood's site, he shows you how he makes sheaths with it- stick it in a microwave till it's gummy, then press it around the knife. It hardens solid, and gives you a perfect sheath around the knife. Good stuff. It's lighter than leather, so altogether it makes a tough, lightweight, near-perfect sealing sheath material. It's very popular stuff for tactical & fighting knife sheaths. Very simple stuff to work with for any knifemaker, gives a nice result when cut and finished properly.

That help?

strider_mt2k

#23 – 3:27 AM May 12, 2009

They are attractive pieces, each and every one.

Toolcraft is extremely hip.

andygates

#24 – 5:13 AM May 12, 2009

Unless I'm mistaken, the large size hex is 15mm, which is exactly right for track bike wheelnuts.

It shore is purdy, but out of my league. One for the knifecraft hipster fans (hey Charlotte, are you reading this?).

I still haven't worn out the 1980s Campag track spanner I've been carrying all these years. The original cool and sexy fixie tool was Surly's Jethro Tule, by the way, which is a lovely lump of polished stainless steel that's half spanner, half bottle opener.

Anonymous Anonymous

#25 – 6:32 AM May 12, 2009

Yes Peter's tool are very cool - they are also extremely well made. I do own a few of his earlier knives etc. and they are excellent.

Sometimes I doubt the new stuff - 'here is a spanner version 605 in another guise from the earlier spanner that was a revision of the spanner design before that'.

Peter's pricing is very fair! The secondhand market often doubles or even trebles the value yet he has kept his integrity and not increased his price to cash in.

The biggest problem is his groupie sycophants who croon and gush on his blog about anything that comes along. No constructive words, just 'ooh I love tool xyz' and 'Peter, you are so wonderfully marvelous please make a tool that I can scrape your boots with'.

Peter Atwood - talented, very nice chap, serious quality items.
Peter's merry band of blind followers...please do not feel you have to join them!

bardfinn

#26 – 6:55 AM May 12, 2009

*strangledscream*

Every time I think it might be possible to finally get an Atwood, they get more attention!

Matt

#27 – 3:02 PM May 12, 2009

Peter makes nice tools and some are works of art, I have sent him many constructive ideas and he does take them into consideration. He does have some blind followers and some even buy 20 different versions of one tool. If you want to learn more about the genre look up EDC, it includes clips, knives, flashlights, prybars and more. Fun stuff to buy and trade. I will be buying one of these if I can get my hands on one...

Anonymous Anonymous

#28 – 8:09 PM May 12, 2009

Yeah, ummm before you guys keep dissing this design this is a COMBINATION TOOL, most people use a knife more often the a small wrench. I see the wrench side as more of a backup thing. If Peter had filled in the handle it would have just been a waste of space. Throwing in the wrench side is like a bonus to the knife.