Recommendations and Guidelines
Here are a few recommendations when it comers to Pre-Ordering.
We get many requests. Sticking to this terminology, will help make it easier to get exactly what you are looking for in a Bark River Knife.
All Pre-Orders are to be placed through our Distributors:
DLTTrading – Knivesshipfree
Follow the Link for Material Availability.
This is a Great representation of what we can and cannot get for Pre-Orders
Thicker handles – We can attempt to do a thicker handle on most knives, but since we hand-finish all our knives, we can’t guarantee that it will end up thicker. If you ask for a black liner on a black material, We machine our handles after the liners are applied, this doesn’t result in a thicker handle. In this instance, we’ll change the order by removing the liner and putting “Thicker Handle” on the order.
Contoured Handles – The handle on full-tang knives has a specific contour at the palm swell area. In some knife models, this can be changed. When the knife uses a bone or horn handle, there will be no contouring added due to the cosmetic nature of the material. Any contouring that occurs is due to the natural surface texture of the bone or horn.
Matte – Most handles can be made matte. Woods and natural materials cannot. When the knife has a guard/bolster/pommel, the hardware will match the finish on the handle unless otherwise specified by the customer. SureTouch material is ALWAYS matte.
Bolsters and Guards – Bolsters have become a standard on the knives that have them. If there is a bolster, Mike S. will dictate the material. Sometimes, like with the Essentials, there are 3 different options for material. Frequently, there is only 1 type of material. If the knife model has a bolster or guard, it requires the bolster or guard and the material is not negotiable. We are not putting bolsters or guards on knives that do not have the holes put into the blades already.
Spacer Stacks – Any knife that has a spacer stack (hidden tang) is required to have that spacer stack. If a customer wants a special stack, it will be in addition to the required stack. If the knife has a guard and/or pommel, the standard for added spacers is at the hardware after the required stack unless the customer specifically states that they want it in the center. The only time that a spacer is standard at the center is when it is a full-tang knife.
Spacer Materials – When a customer is requesting a spacer, please clarify if you want a stone spacer or a spacer made out of liner material. If it is just a color, we will put in 3 pieces of that color liner. If the customer wants a different amount from that, please specify on the order.
Center Spacers on Hidden Tang Knives – The standard orientation for this type of spacer is straight. If a customer wants otherwise, please specify.
Spacers on Full-Tang Knives – The standard orientation for this type of spacer is slanted. If the customer wants otherwise, please specify. Spacers on full-tang knives are required to have frames. The frames must be made from liner material. The frames allow the slight imperfections that might be there to mush together for a cleaner fit and allows for clarity in the building process.
Pre-Order Materials – There is a spreadsheet that lists all of our material we use and have used. This lists the types of knives the material can be used on. The column that is labeled “No on certain knives” is mostly for large knives that are too large for our standard size of materials or on knives that would cause the material to fail regularly. The list also specifies which materials require liners to help the material survive the processes it goes through.
Customer-Supplied Materials – We used to accept customer-supplied materials, but this has caused many headaches. We have discontinued this practice.
Liners – We can only put 2 liners on a knife per side, and only on full-tang knives. We have limited options of what can be used as a thick liner (.060″), and very limited options for what can be an extra thick liner (.125″). Not all full-tang knives can use multiple liners due to how thick the handle is. We don’t want the material itself to be a thin piece that does not cover the whole profile of the knife and breaks through to the liners.
Multiple Liners – When listing multiple liners that aren’t specified for placement, Black Canvas – Green & Red Liners from the customer = Black Canvas/Green/Red/Tang to us. If a customer puts “Inner”, we read that as next to the tang.
Dark Curly Maple or Dark Birdseye Maple with a White or Yellow Liner – We can’t do this in any combination due to the way we dye the wood. There is no way to prevent the dye for the wood from getting onto the liner, since we dye these in-house once the knife is finished.
Woods and Other Naturals – Woods and natural materials are not guaranteed to be the color that the customer is asking for. We do our best to get the full colors that they ask for, but we can’t tell what the material will look like until we cut into it. Sometimes, it is perfect from the outside but once the knife gets shaped, it can be a different color.
Colored vs Natural Woods – If a pre-order doesn’t say “Natural” or a specific color for wood, we will use whatever matches the characteristics they did list, based on what we have in stock. An example is “Spalted Maple Burl”. Giving us that as a pre-order will mean that it might be dyed or natural. If the customer wants a natural, make sure to specify that in the pre-order.
Mosaic Pins – Sometimes a customer will ask for a specific pattern for a mosaic pin. We try our best to match it, but there is no guarantee that the pin will match. We are attempting to limit how many mosaic patterns we have so there is a better chance we will have the requested pattern.
Standard Pins on Runs – The standard pin for most runs is Aluminum. There are runs that change this, either to Brass to match the bolster/guard or to Hollow. We’ll try to communicate this before any pre-orders are taken. If you see a run with Brass bolsters/guards and there hasn’t been mention of the standard, please ask for clarification.
Grind Height – When specifying the grind height, use fractions in reference to the blade size. If the standard model of a knife has a higher grind line than desired, we cannot lower the grind line. Be aware that we hand-grind these and can’t guarantee that it will be exact. Due to that, keep the fractions at quarters or thirds measurements for normal blades and only use eighths for large blades.