I've had a few knives but want to get a cracker as the wife wants to treat me for my birthday.
I want to buy a good all purpose knife
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I've had a few knives but want to get a cracker as the wife wants to treat me for my birthday.
rancid badger
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Leuku; www.samekniv.no
You don't need any other knife after this. Get the 8" version, anything less is for women and children, anything more is just macho. I have the nine inch version.
You don't need any other knife after this. Get the 8" version, anything less is for women and children, anything more is just macho. I have the nine inch version.
Whadya mean..... Unusual ?
That's the sort of thing I do/did, a lot
R.B.
I mean that shape of blade but with something extra added not there. An unusual sheath - perhaps carved or summink.
Leuku; www.samekniv.no
You don't need any other knife after this. Get the 8" version, anything less is for women and children, anything more is just macho. I have the nine inch version.
Like god til jakt og fiske som når man slår leir i skogen eller på fjellet.
Exactly!
(rough translation: Just as good for hunting and fishing as when you camp in the woods or in the mountains.)
There is an UK flag to the right, click for the english version.
Give Bushblade a shout, he's on your doorstep and makes some lovely knives.
Bernie and Hillbills are definitely worth a look too, and I'm not on commission.
I have one of Driftwoodwalkers' Light Bushcrafters which is my knife of choice at the moment though.
So many to mention really but if you search the Makers Market you'll get an idea of what's available to you. Always good to support the local community though if you can.
Bernie and Hillbills are definitely worth a look too, and I'm not on commission.
I have one of Driftwoodwalkers' Light Bushcrafters which is my knife of choice at the moment though.
So many to mention really but if you search the Makers Market you'll get an idea of what's available to you. Always good to support the local community though if you can.
Be warned, this knife thing is addictive I started looking for one to use and now have way too many according to some Ahh, the lure of the sharp shinies
Anyway, Stuart Mitchell and Guy Stainthorp have been mentioned. I have knives by them both and they are both outstanding.
I recently got this one from Stuart Mitchell. I am always utterly impressed with the quality of his work. The fit and finish are amazing.
And of course, Guy Stainthorp makes a great knife, I especially like the wood and the way the tang is done on this one I got from him about 18 months ago. The edge on this blade was truly amazing when it arrived.
You can't go wrong with either of these makers and I think some of their knives would be in your price range for sure.
Chris
I started looking for one to use and now have way too many according to some Ahh, the lure of the sharp shinies Anyway, Stuart Mitchell and Guy Stainthorp have been mentioned. I have knives by them both and they are both outstanding.
I recently got this one from Stuart Mitchell. I am always utterly impressed with the quality of his work. The fit and finish are amazing.
And of course, Guy Stainthorp makes a great knife, I especially like the wood and the way the tang is done on this one I got from him about 18 months ago. The edge on this blade was truly amazing when it arrived.
You can't go wrong with either of these makers and I think some of their knives would be in your price range for sure.
Chris
And of course, Guy Stainthorp makes a great knife, I especially like the wood and the way the tang is done on this one I got from him about 18 months ago. The edge on this blade was truly amazing when it arrived.
You can't go wrong with either of these makers and I think some of their knives would be in your price range for sure.
Chris
That's a cracker Chris, anymore details ?
Sure. I ordered this from Guy as one of his standard 3mm 01 bushcrafters and specified tapered tang, wooden handle with complimentary liners and mosaic pins. IIRC, he proposed the two-tone Amboyna burl and then I left it with him. The knife arrived several months later. Overall length is 240mm, blade 120mm. I just checked and it was delivered to me in December 2007, longer ago than I thought. The grind, in true Guy fashion, is "a combination of a flat bevel right from the spine and a secondary convex bevel from about 1/4 inch up the blade, zero ground all the way to form the edge". And believe me this thing was scary, scary sharp when it arrived. Probably the sharpest knife I have ever had on delivery. An edge like this does take a bit of skill to maintain tip-top, I usually need help
Though this particular one to be honest is a drawer queen. But my point in citing it here, is that I have seen these (less dressed-up) sell for well under the budget indicated and based on what I know at least, I really can't think of a much better "hunting, camping, batoning" knife for the money. Guy delivers these with a quality sheath.Chris
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I would also vouch for Guy Stanthorp or Stuart Mitchell. Both make superb knives and are true gents to deal with. The knives are expensive but you get what you pay for and both retain their value if you decide you want to sell them on.
I am just going to interject something here.
You say you are after something for hunting, camping and battoning? Well, take a good hard look at folk who offer flat ground or convex groud blades, not just the ubiquitous Scandi grind on everything. The way I look at it, Scandis are nice for wood carving, but they aren't so good for hunting, battoning or food prep (camp chores) as something with a higher flat grind.
The two primary functions of a Scandi grind are the self-guiding effect you get when carving, and the self guiding effect you get when sharpening. The flip side is that for sharpening, you have to take off more metal in order to maintain the angle, and if you don't maintain that angle and keep a zero edge you lose the easy self-guided cutting ability.
I like Stu Mitchell's stuff, and Guy's, but with your budget you might also look over at some of the US makers. Bryan Goode springs to mind.
http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81882
Then there is Charles May
http://charlesmayknives.blademakers.com/
Thing is, there are a lot of good makers around who offer stuff that is refreshingly different from variations on the full tang Scandi theme. More so from the US, but here too. Spend some time going through the Makers sales on British Blades. You may not find that the knife you want is there for sale, but you might find a maker you hadn't thought of.
You say you are after something for hunting, camping and battoning? Well, take a good hard look at folk who offer flat ground or convex groud blades, not just the ubiquitous Scandi grind on everything. The way I look at it, Scandis are nice for wood carving, but they aren't so good for hunting, battoning or food prep (camp chores) as something with a higher flat grind.
The two primary functions of a Scandi grind are the self-guiding effect you get when carving, and the self guiding effect you get when sharpening. The flip side is that for sharpening, you have to take off more metal in order to maintain the angle, and if you don't maintain that angle and keep a zero edge you lose the easy self-guided cutting ability.
I like Stu Mitchell's stuff, and Guy's, but with your budget you might also look over at some of the US makers. Bryan Goode springs to mind.
http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81882
Then there is Charles May
http://charlesmayknives.blademakers.com/
Thing is, there are a lot of good makers around who offer stuff that is refreshingly different from variations on the full tang Scandi theme. More so from the US, but here too. Spend some time going through the Makers sales on British Blades. You may not find that the knife you want is there for sale, but you might find a maker you hadn't thought of.
Not forgetting some good hobbyist makers! Top of the list is Mr Claycomb. He'll be too modest to say so himself but his knives have a reputation for exellence amoungst serious knife users and his handles are reputed to be THE most comfortable to use.
That's true, obviously assuming the geometry is right.
Here, you lose me. The myth that you have to sharpen the scandi to zero every time it can't shave arm hair is a load of rubbish! Stropping a scandi is easy to do and creates a tiny microbevel that not makes the edge a lot tougher while still excelling at woodwork, especially when compared to a convex grind or similar.
...in my very humble opinion
Stu Mitchell is great to deal with and keeps you updated every step of the way. There are some great threads on here that show his work.
http://www.stuartmitchellknives.com/
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26423
Also check out British Reds thread about his PFK (precision Filed knife)
http://www.stuartmitchellknives.com/
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26423
Also check out British Reds thread about his PFK (precision Filed knife)
For an all-round blade, I tend to agree with Chris. I generally prefer a thin blade with a flat grind, small bevel, flat grind, convex bevel, or convex grind. If it can't clean a bluegill, or slice bread, cheese and beefstick with ease, I don't really consider it an all-rounder.
If it's a scandi, I prefer a thin blade, 3/32" thick or less.
It's not a bad idea, sometimes, to think outside the Woodlore box. okenest:
If you think you need a scandi to make fuzz sticks or do other bushcrafty stuff, I'd say notnesseceleryso...
If it's a scandi, I prefer a thin blade, 3/32" thick or less.
It's not a bad idea, sometimes, to think outside the Woodlore box.
okenest:If you think you need a scandi to make fuzz sticks or do other bushcrafty stuff, I'd say notnesseceleryso...
...
Here, you lose me. The myth that you have to sharpen the scandi to zero every time it can't shave arm hair is a load of rubbish! Stropping a scandi is easy to do and creates a tiny microbevel that not makes the edge a lot tougher while still excelling at woodwork, especially when compared to a convex grind or similar.
...in my very humble opinion
I didn't say that you couldn't get a scandi sharp unless it was a zero edge, or if that's how it was read, I didn't mean it that way. I have tried my own scandis with and without stone ground micro bevels and the ones without such secondary bevels out-cut those that did. Both could still shave and slice paper and all those other tests for sharpenss. They just didn't cut wood the same way. I strop everything.
What I really meant though was that I have seen a heck of a lot of scandis which were sharpened badly because keeping the bevel flat was difficult and what you end up with is a short, thick, secondary bevel, or convex which is a long way removed from the micro bevels that we were just talking about.
I am with Hoohoo on the food prep. When I have been on canoe trips in Sweden and Norway, prime "bushcraft" country, knives get used most for food prep, whith fire wood prep being the number two function. If a Scandi is used, it works best if it is very thin, like the Mora, but given same stock thickness, a flat grind will still cut food better.
