DALTON OF THE WEEK - TITANIUM SPIKE

For the third installment of the Dalton of the Week, we'll cover the model that is commonly called the Titanium Spike. I have always thought that this model had a very classy shape. You might consider that the Ti Spike actually encompasses two different models as there were two different sizes made. The large version is 8" OAL with a 3 - 1/4" blade and the small version is 6 - 3/8" OAL with a 2 - 5/8" blade. This model was not named by the Daltons as was the case with many of the older models, so the "Titanium Spike" name probably came from a dealer. These knives were made in 1995 and there were a total of only about 36. Most appear to have been made with ATS-34 blades, marked with the etched Dalton logo and "TITANIUM" etched into the blade. There were some of each size made with damascus blades. These were marked with the "D" stamp on the tang.

Here are the pics. The large damascus variant is not mine. I acquired the picture from the previous owner. That particular knife is now owned by one of our very lucky forum members.

Small Versions:






Large Versions:






The titanium handles for these were all handmade on a manual milling machine. The blades, like all pre-99 Daltons were hand ground. There were not any other of what we would normally call variations - no serrated blades, no pocket clips, no satin or two-tone blades, and no polished or rainbow anodized handles. I have noticed some minor variations in construction between the three I have. My small plain bladed one has what I would call a "normal" pivot pin and screw, except that the screw is dome-headed instead of being a flat-head. The small damascus has dome-headed Allen screws on both sides of the pivot. The large/plain has a more or less pan headed Allen pivot screw on the side opposite the button and a dome-headed Allen screw on the button side.