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I first spoke with Tashi Bharucha about a collaboration at the USN Gathering (G9) in September of 2017. I was excited when he said he was interested - he’s a popular and talented designer who has become well-known for his exquisitely-crafted handmade custom knives.
My excitement only grew when we began talking about what kind of knife would be a good fit. Tashi said that he could not keep up with the demand from collectors for his custom Church model, and offered to let Massdrop produce a version of this popular design. The model’s name and skeletonized handles were inspired by the beautiful and intricate panes of stained glass windows adorning the many cathedrals in and around Paris, where Tashi makes his home. Taking a cue from this idea of light passing through a frame, and noting the angular gaps in the handle, we decided on “Prism” for our EDC-friendly production version.
Tashi also loves to cook, and the shape of this blade is derived from a chef’s knife. Because the blade’s edge sits a bit below the handle, it can be used for food prep when cutting on a board. Whereas Tashi’s $1500 custom knives might not see much daily use for most owners, at under $250 we hope these will see their fair share of picnics and other outdoor adventures!
When I asked Tashi, “It’s already a great knife - what could we do to make it better for our community?” he said that, while knife collectors liked the full-size custom Church, it was a bit large to be pocket-friendly for most people. Then, he said that he’d been working on a new style of joining the two handles together, by shaping the two sides to meet flush on the spine instead of being attached with standoffs and/or backspacers.
With these two improvements for the production version in mind, we focused on what was important to keep the same. Tashi was adamant that we keep the same steel - Damasteel’s ® RWL34 - because of the great finish that it offers, especially when it gets the hand-rubbed satin blade treatment that you see paired with these anodized and tumbled blue and bronze handles. Based on these parameters, we sent Tashi’s drawings to have them prototyped so we could review them ourselves and make necessary adjustments.
Based on feedback from community members who handled the prototypes pictured on the page, we’ve made a slight adjustment to the choil for the final production. The change was made to make sure that none of the blade’s edge was exposed near the open portion of the frame when the knife is closed. We tested this, and the only way that we could make contact was by purposefully jamming a very small finger through the gap in the spine, but we thought it was better to err on the side of caution. Tashi agreed, and was gracious enough to make the change - it’s pretty cool working with world-class designers who are still open to taking feedback from the community, and we’re grateful to both him and the folks who gave their input. As you can see from the photo before showing Old/New profiles, it’s a pretty small change.
Last, a few administrative notes on this drop:
We’ll be closing at 10pm on Wednesday, February 28th and immediately reopening it to run through most of March. If you join in the first week, your card will be charged on February 28th, everyone who joins after will be charged when the drop ends. We hope this will help us to get a jump on production and make sure we hit our Estimated Ship Date.
The introductory price of $234.99 will only be available on this first pre-production launch. Future drops will be priced at $249.99. Thanks to those who are joining the first drop and making this possible!
Carry On - Jonas
Chinese quality is not what it used to be, some of it exceeds it's American counterparts.
else just don't buy it. there are plenty of good knives to choose from. MD isn't your only solution for good knives.
they thought long about the logo and even improved it since its first iteration on the falcon.
but yea maybe a single digit logo or design would be more fitting than the brand spelled out... but its all debatable and you can't and won't please everyone.
First of all, great knife design-- it's been quite a while since I've been this excited about a new knife. A couple quick questions for you though: (1) Since the first round of this drop will close on 2/28 and cards charged then, does that mean that this first group will likely receive their knives before the estimated ship date of July? Or will everything ship together regardless of when you get charged? And (2) Will the price on this go up to $249.99 on 2/28 or remain at $234.99 through the end of the full drop?
Much thanks in advance for the clarifications.
1) No, the group's order will be produced, shipped, and fulfilled all together. 2) The introductory price will be the same for everyone who joins in this first pre-production order (Feb and Mar). The regular price will be in effect for future drops (after everyone who joins the pre-order has received theirs).
Thanks kindly for the quick reply. One more question: I know you can't advertise the manufacturer of this knife but will this information be shown on the warranty when I receive the knife? If not, whom do I contact for warranty issues?
Much thanks again.