Prophet River Firearms

The cobalt-alloyed N690 by Böhler (not to be confused with the lower-grade N695!) is a very reliable upper middle-grade steel we use at our Solingen manufacture for a wide variety of projects. The fine-grained N690, which ranks above 440C, offers convincing performance data in all areas. It is often sold as N690Co – the "Co" stands for cobalt and describes the exact same steel.

Desert Ironwood

Desert ironwood (Olneya tesota) is a type of fine wood used to make handle scales.

Desert ironwood is indigenous to the southwestern United States and the very northwest of Mexico, especially in the Sonora desert. It belongs to the Olneya genus, a member of the papilionaceae family. Desert ironwood grows as a shrub or tree. The plant can grow up to ten meters tall with a trunk diameter of approximately 60 centimeters. The gray bark of younger trees is smooth and develops cracks as the tree ages. Desert ironwood is an evergreen plant that can still cast off its leaves in sustained cold temperatures below 2°C or during a dry spell in order to reduce its water consumption.

Desert ironwood is very sensitive to frost and dies in cold temperatures of less than -9°C. The sapwood of desert ironwood is yellow and unsuitable for the production of handle scales. The heartwood presents a range of colors from delicate grayish brown to a rich dark brown hue. Sometimes, it is almost pure black. The wood has a striking pattern with a mottled or marbled look. Desert ironwood is relatively heavy, very hard and rather tough. Due to these properties is difficult to process but makes up for it by being rather resilient and weatherproof. Therefore, it is the perfect material for handle scales.

The wood can be finished with various wood oils, though it is not very absorbent. Desert ironwood is extremely rare and expensive. To protect the small tree population, only deadwood, i.e. the wood of fallen trees, can be processed legally. Apart from handles scales for knives, desert ironwood is also used for artisanal work such as carvings and inlays.

Backlock

Backlock (or: Lockback or Back-Lock) is the mechanism in certain lockable pocketknives.

The handle of a Lockback knife contains a mechanism that allows the blade to be locked in place and then unlocked again. The blade of a Lockback knife also has a small notch on the end of the tang. The mechanism hidden in the handle of a Lockback knife consists of a rocker and a spring. The rocker is a long and slim piece of metal running from the front end of the handle almost all the way to the back end. The front end of the rocker close to the blade ends in a hook.

When the blade is open, the hook is lodged in the notch on the tang and locks it. The back end of the rocker is not fully covered by the handle. A small part of it on the back of the handle is left open to allow operation. A small spring, usually not visible from the outside, is located underneath the rocker. When it is triggered, it pushes the rocker back into its original position. The Lockback mechanism works as follows: When the blade is open, the hook slides into the notch on the blade tang and locks it.

When the exposed part of the rocker at the end of the handle is pressed, the hook is lifted out of the notch, releasing the lock so that the blade can be closed. When the knife is opened again, the rocker hook locks it automatically until it is released.