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The Barnes

The Barnes

Simplicity Is The Ultimate Sophistication

Regular price  $679.00
Regular price  Sale price  $679.00
Shipping calculated at checkout.
Color

Color Black Micarta + Stainless

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The Exponentially Better Integral.

At The James Brand we're dedicated to making the very best knives and tools and to always pushing the boundaries of what is possible. In that spirit, we are proud to introduce the Barnes. The Barnes is a titanium framelock, and it's our very first integral design. The Barnes is CNC-machined from one solid billet of 6AL4V titanium, which means fewer parts, less maintenance and the ability to do things with the form that you cannot do in standard knife construction. The Barnes is built around a 3.5 inch Bohler M390 stainless steel blade; this is our first knife with M390 which is widely regarded as the singular best blade steel. The blade runs on a stainless steel pivot and ceramic bearings, and the clip is CNC-machined titanium as well. The Barnes comes with our very first coin design, as it's bad luck to give a knife as a gift without exchanging the coin, and comes with a paracord lanyard. It's the finest and most technically advanced knife we've ever made.

Product details

Integral Design
Our very first integral design, machined out of a solid titanium billet.
Removable Lanyard
Comes with an integrated removable lanyard.
Ceramic Bearings
The main pivot uses sealed ceramic bearings for an incredibly smooth action.

Technical specifications

Blade Steel
Böhler m390 stainless steel
SCALE MATERIAL
Micarta
Lock Style
Integral frame-lock with hardened steel lockface insert
Bearings
Ceramic bearings
Pocket Clip
Machined 6AL-4V titanium with paint-filled Clovis detail
Lanyard
Paracord lanyard included
Opening Style
Dual-sided thumb stud
Blade Length
3.5" / 8.9 cm
Overall Length
7.8" / 19.8 cm
Weight
4.6 oz / 132 g
Blade Shape
Drop point
Carry ORIENTATION
Right-handed
Carry Syle
Tip-up carry
Designed In
Portland, Oregon
Made In
Yangjiang, China
  • Regular price  $679.00
    Regular price  Sale price  $679.00
  • Buy Now
barnes showcase

The Barnes

At The James Brand we’re dedicated to making the very best knives and tools and to always pushing the boundaries of what is possible. In that spirit, we are proud to introduce the Barnes. The Barnes is a titanium framelock, and it's our very first integral design. The Barnes is CNC-machined from one solid billet of 6AL4V titanium, which means fewer parts, less maintenance and the ability to do things with the form that you cannot do in standard knife construction. The Barnes was named after one of the oldest projectile points found in North America, dating back more than 11,000 years. We are here, still trying to perfect the function and the form.

barnes projectile point

EVERY DETAIL CONSIDERED


barnes features sketch

The Exponentially Better Integral

The Barnes is built around a 3.5 inch stainless steel blade. The blade runs on a stainless steel pivot and ceramic bearings, and the clip is CNC-machined titanium as well. The Barnes comes with our very first coin design, as it's bad luck to give a knife as a gift without exchanging the coin, and comes with a paracord lanyard. It's finest and most most technically advanced knife we've ever made.

cnc machined titanium knife

CNC-Machined Ti Clip

barnes details exploded

God Is In The Details

Honoring the point of an integral—simplicity and less moving parts—The Barnes has fewer pieces than a standard folding knife. With an integral design you eliminate the backspacer and the two seams that come with it. You can also eliminate extra hardware, making the integral design as clean as possible.

But fewer parts tell only half of The Barnes's story; the other half of the tale is found in the precision of its 6AL-4V titanium body of the knife. Like hollowing out a canoe from a singular log, machining an integral out of a single billet of titanium is a very difficult task, both from the standpoint of both design and manufacturing. It's taken us years of work to get to this point where we could bring The Barnes to market, but we are not in a hurry to be first. We always strive to be best, and make sure that our designs live up to our values, and that process always takes a long time.

With its overall larger form (with a 3.5" blade) the Barnes is designed to fit full-size hands and the titanium scales' CNC-machined grippy texture lets you have total control of the knife at all times. The machined titanium clip is a deep-carry design, with no visible hardware. The Barnes also comes complete with a paracord lanyard.

damasteel barnes
barnes micarta damasteel
barnes reverse side

Never Tell Us the Odds.

In an attempt to honor tradition and avoid superstitious lousy luck, each Barnes comes with a die cast double-sided TJB coin. This is our first coin design, and it represents the evolution of the Clovis point which we use as our brand mark, and that fact that knives are in fact one of our very first tools, and are still just as useful today. We firmly believe that analog experiences matter, and the coin serves as a reminders to do real things, in real time, to try and properly counter-balance our overly-digitized existences.

History tells us that gifting a knife risked the possibility of "cutting ties between friends." To prevent affable bonds from being severed, real or imagined, the tradition of including a coin when gifting a knife was born. When a knife was given, a coin, typically a penny (for good luck), was attached to the blade. The receiver of the gift would simply return the coin to the giver, thus "paying" for the knife and ensuring that the relationship remained intact (and the knife remained out of anyone's back).

We find value in the critical pieces of culture that tradition represents. Something as simple as gifting a coin with a knife can add meaning, creates a story and leaves a mark in the memory bank. So, when you present The Barnes with a TJB coin as a gift, you turn an exchange into into memory.

barnes coin heads
barnes coin tails
barnes packaging
average rating 4.8 out of 5
Based on 118 reviews
  • 5 Stars
    104 Reviews
  • 4 Stars
    11 Reviews
  • 3 Stars
    1 Review
  • 2 Stars
    2 Reviews
  • 1 Star
    0 Reviews
95% of reviewers would recommend this product to a friend
Customer photos and videos
118 Reviews
Reviewed by Mike P.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5
Review posted

Perfection

Excellent knife. Superb design, detent/action, fit and finish and ergonomics. Ignore the (jaded) naysayers and just buy one if you're on the fence. You will NOT be disappointed. Better than many custom knives I own costing more, and worth every penny of the price. Could easily be a one-and-done. I'm not a lanyard guy, but this one has stayed on. Watch Jim Skelton's review for an honest and accurate assessment. Two thumbs WAY up.

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Reviewed by Josh
I recommend this product
Rated 4 out of 5
Review posted

4 Stars

Love this knife except when trying to open. cannot open with one hand. Didn’t expect that.

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Reviewed by Brian M.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5
Review posted

Animal

Gotta say very nice knife little expensive

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Reviewed by Robert S.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5
Review posted

Worth what you paid for

Nice and well put together

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Reviewed by Alexander P.
Verified Buyer
I recommend this product
Rated 5 out of 5
Review posted

Great knife, extremely sharp, engineered well

I purchased the “diamond” version of this knife. Damascus, titanium single piece machined, carbon snake skin patterned inlay. The knife is sharp enough to dry shave with and should be used with caution. The steel is absolutely amazing. The handle is gorgeous, but a bit “blocky” when it comes to aesthetics. The action is smooth, and very reliable. I’d buy again one day, but I would hope to see some “sleeker” design improvements.

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