Every story needs a beginning, and this one begins right here.
The Emperor was the first knife I ever designed, and an Emperor was the first real knife I ever made. It's the one that started me down the path on my knife making journey, and I designed with one very specific goal in mind: To be the exact knife I wanted, which at present no one else makes.
As such I have a bit more of a personal connection to each and every Emperor I produce, much more so than any other type of knife I make, and sometimes I'm reluctant to let them go when they're finished. When I hold one it just feels right. In my hand is its home where it fits perfectly, and I remember all the time and effort and prototypes and revisions and everything I did. Everything I learned, everything it took to get here.
I can only hope that your Emperor, should you buy one, brings you that same joy. That same excitement, that very same sense of incredible satisfaction whenever you pick it up.
What is the Emperor? It is my take on the world's most badass bushcraft knife, that's what it is. It's a 1/4" thick slab of solid D2 tool steel, tempered to 60 HRC for maximum toughness. A knife you could use as an axe — 12-1/2" long with a 7-3/4" blade, plus or minus a small amount of variation because every example is hand crafted. It is 20.88 ounces, or if you prefer six tenths of a kilogram.
Named after the largest extant species of penguin, it is without a doubt absolutely massive.
The Emperor encompasses the design aspects of several of my favorite fixed blade knives all smashed together into one. Nobody made exactly the knife I wanted, so I made it myself. It sports an exposed tang handle that's sculpted to fit your hand, and incorporates a forward finger guard as well as a huge coil at the base of the blade which even a gloved index finger can fit into. On the spine, a raised ramp with three jimping cuts provides the perfect rest for your thumb. Combined, these prevent your fingers from sliding up onto the edge.
The scales have a bird's head profile which is rather appropriate, all things considered. Here's what make Flightless Forge knives different from all the other contenders out there: These are 3D printed in impact resistant ABS. They're totally solid, but also easily dismountable. That means you can replace them, customize them, or get under them for cleaning. They're not pinned or peened or glued. They're just held on with bolts, so you can take 'em off whenever you want. No more worrying about fucking up the fancy bespoke Micarta or stabilized wood handles of your favorite outdoor knife. If you destroy these, I'll just sell you a new pair.
The bolts are hollow, too, so if you're one of those lanyard types of people you can slot your cord right through in any of three positions. If you're not a lanyard person you won't be stuck with a vestigial hole on the end of your knife annoying you forever.
All that's combined with what I must admit is probably a slightly excessive thickness, which is an attribute I found tough to source in a production knife that is not now discontinued and thus on its way to being a collector's item. The Emperor is absolutely a knife designed to be used, and you should therefore never be afraid to use it. It's not meant to be pretty.
Each Emperor is provided with a Kydex sheath and included belt loop made of what I guarantee will be the widest chunk of webbing strap you've ever seen in your life. If you're feeling particularly bold today, the rivet holes in this are also spaced to be Tek-Lok compatible. I advise you to wear a very stout belt if you're going to try to dangle an Emperor from it, along with pants with widely spaced belt loops. On the bright side, with an Emperor on your belt your virility and outdoors credibility should be plainly visible from space.
