So I was thinking of things that could be improved or additions to an already fantastic tool.
A couple things for the next batch...
improved finish on the slider rods
More base type choices.
A second set of vise screws that allows for thicker blades (there may be a design reason this is not offered now)
longer rods to allow for longer blades (I'm sure these would need more thought as longer blades need more support)
maybe brass rods for bling factor.
custom engraving on the base
Gold plated spinners....wait...now I'm just hallucinating....

You see where I'm going with this.
maybe we can brainstorm and ensure Clays world domination....

how about a base that holds multiple risers and arms so I can do my 19" saw back bayonet without constantly moving it, and hoping the base doesn't tip over? and how about an attachment that lets the saw back edge of it be sharpened? It seems it shouldn't be much more then twice as hard as sharpening a serrated knife.

How about properly made storage boxes.
- Individual plastic boxes for each stone set
- Box that would hold 10 stones or so
- Box that would hold WEPS with base attached.
I have seen a lot of tackle boxes to hold the stones, some look good, but none are perfect. Individual boxes for each set of stones would be nice. I would be willing to pay for stone boxes as an accessory.

Oh, and on the stone box idea,
One of the forumites had an idea for plastic or rubber stone covers, to ensure you're not cross contaminating your strops. I thought that was genius. Although individual stone boxes might be even better.

What about a vise that both sides expand and contract at the same time, such as a screw or worm gear design. The angle guides would move independently with the left and right jaws, That way the left and right angle degrees would be identical based on the spine thickness of the knife as opposed to the right being approx. 1 degree off. Hope this makes sense.

I'm thinking a worm drive is a great idea. It might significantly increase price. Also it would need to be cleanable and have a dust guard. Imagine the wear when it's full of diamond dust.
Just a thought. Not insurmountable though.

Hey guys, sorry for my absense on the forum yesterday. I'm out of town at a soccer tournament for my little girl and didn't bring a computer.

These are great suggestions and I'm slowly working on them. I've played around a lot with free floating jaws and different clamping mechanisms. Wait til you guys see what I've got cooking!

I will continue to work on storage options for both the stones and the strops.

Love the other ideas about customizing the units. I'll have to ponder that one... Maybe we can get a number of the bases in without anodizing and then offer color choices and engraving.

Clay,

Everything I would like to see is plastic and would cost a lot to buy molds, then nothing to make. The plastic storage boxes, and also a proper guard for the pivots (instead of plastic washers or fingers cut off gloves).

You could do different colors for the vice bases. WE = blue, WE PP = Red or gold, etc. Custom order colors also sound neat.

One of the things I like about Benchmade is that they have a lot of different knife designers working for them. You see the names on all their knives. I don't care for every designer, but I can see their influence and style. Have you thought about having a knife designer making designs for BM? They could design knives or even an entire series (Like Harley Davidson or HK)? I don't know your business strategy, but I think it would be neat to see the Wicked Edge logo on BM knives. At the least you can have the logo custom laser marked on a popular knife like the Griptilian or 940.

I would like to see a WE designed/adapted angle guage that is incorporated into a blank paddle.

Which allows an option for setting up without a stone.
You could dial in a known setting depending on the stone thickness you are using.
Like mineral stones (choseras) which are not magnetic and thicker.

Billabong wrote:


This is in the works. I've been collaborating with the people at iGaging to make it happen and they're working up some prototypes.