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James Brand Sycamore Collection Gives Three Models New Scales

November 16, 2023

James Brand has graced a trio of their folding knife models with a new sycamore wood scale option. Two slipjoints and a locking knife are the lucky knives to receive sycamore-ization.

Did you know there was a website called The Wood Database, a comprehensive compendium of different woods and their properties? We didn’t, until we sat down to research sycamore, but as it turns out The Wood Database proved to be addicting to browse. The enthusiast element is what resonated with us: as is the case with metallurgy, woodworking has its deep lore and knowledgeable partisans, with all sorts of considerations presenting themselves to anybody working with any wood for any reason.

We needed to research sycamore wood in the first place because it is not a common sight on production knives; there, the most common woods are probably rosewood, ebony, the occasional snakewood or ironwood here and there. The sycamore on these James Brand knives has a striking, blonde hue, with a swirling grain pattern in dark tones. James Brand has always emphasized the aesthetic elements in knife design, and the three models they chose for the Sycamore Collection really benefit from the new handle scale option.

Those models are: the Pike, Wayland, and Duval. All three of these make perfect sense for wood scales, as they are the three James Brand knives most in tune with traditional knife design tropes; wood was/is a common handle scale material on traditional knives. The slipjoint Pike and Wayland, in particular, look like natural evolutions of single blade jack knives of yore with these scales in place. Furthermore, from a collector/appreciator’s perspective, each piece of sycamore will have a completely unique grain to it, which adds an inherent personalized feel to each one.

The Sycamore Collection is available now.

Knife in Featured Image: [left to right] James Brand Pike, Wayland, Duval

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