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The Barnes

The Barnes

Simplicity Is The Ultimate Sophistication

Regular price  $979.00
Regular price  Sale price  $979.00
Tax included.
Color

Color Titanium + 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.
German super steel
Böhler M390 stainless steel
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
Titanium
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  $979.00
    Regular price  Sale price  $979.00
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barnes showcase

Bohler M390 stainless steel

7.8" overall length

Titanium Integral Design

3.5" blade length

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 clovis detail

EVERY DETAIL CONSIDERED


barnes sketch

The Exponentially Better Integral

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 overall 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 finest and most most technically advanced knife we've ever made.

barnes carabiner detail

CNC-Machined Ti Clip

barnes exploded view

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.

barnes in hand hero

Bohler M390

A True Super Steel.

The backbone of The Barnes might be its titanium integral design, but its heart is the Bohler M390 stainless steel blade. Revered as the best all-around knife steel, Bohler M390 is known for its excellent edge retention, corrosion resistance, and superior toughness. Together, the 6AL-4V titanium body and premium Bohler M390 mean that we have spared no expense to make The Barnes exceptional in both performance and aesthetics.

barnes laydown
barnes joint detail
barnes carabiner detail

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 clovis coin
barnes clovis coin
barnes open package
4.9
Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars
Based on 109 reviews
Total 5 star reviews: 97 Total 4 star reviews: 10 Total 3 star reviews: 1 Total 2 star reviews: 1 Total 1 star reviews: 0
98%would recommend this product
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109 reviews
  • CS Profile picture for Craig S.google logo
    Craig S.
    Verified Reviewer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    5 months ago
    The Barns = Excellence!

    Okay so first the price. Have you held this knife before you commented on the price because if you have then the price is not an issue. This is a Reate built knife with a high tolerance spec which is well thought out. The many small details that make this knife great are... it looks awesome, it feels awesome, it functions exceptionally. The diamond milling pattern is one of the best feeling grips I have experienced plus it has a different eye pleasing experience when held at different angels to the light source. Dual thumb studs are great with easy positive grip. This blad is very sharp out of the box with perfectly matching bevels. The detent on mine and the other two at the location I purchased were all excellent. Blade centering is money! There is no blade or lock play in any direction. Lock disenguagement is ergonomically excellent. There is little to no double clutching as the detent releases early in the closure however a detent ramp is missing and should be added. Thick blade stock with high flat grind for robust yet slicey cutting. Overall ergos are stellar. The pocket clip is simply one of the best with smooth window under the clip for excellent catch and release plus it lays flat on a surface for excellent viewing. The lanyard hole is very well done and very eye pleasing. The rounded back of the frame and no hot spots at the blade insertion side of the frame makes for an exceptionally great hand feel

    I have the black titanium with silver blade and have several…

  • CG Profile picture for Cody G.facebook logo
    Cody G.
    Verified Reviewer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    6 months ago
    Outstanding design and quality

    Solid feel. Refined. Understated, Inspired execution. Subtle details. Exceptional tool.

  • PS
    Paul S.
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    6 months ago
    Phenomenal EDC

    The Barnes is an absolute work of art! It’s way better in hand than I thought it was going to be.

  • JB
    Joseph B.
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    8 months ago
    Unbelievable (Heron edition)

    I got The Barnes limited Heron edition today. It is just an unbelievable knife. The attention to detail just blows me away. It is a work of art. And the action is so smooth. Almost drop shut out of the box (it will be within a couple weeks). This knife will forever remain in my collection.

  • JM
    James M.
    Verified Buyer
    I recommend this product
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    9 months ago
    Best knife

    By far my favorite knife! I can’t leave it at home. Feels perfect in my hand, blade is super sharp and a light knife as well. Loving The Barnes!

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