Bears knife.

[FerlasDave]

i noticed the other night that bear grylls had a knife with his name on it and thought he must have made his own. i had a poke around and found out the details....

http://www.bayleyknife.com/bear.htm

what does everyone think?

 

[Ahjno]

My custom Alan Wood is prettier (and cheaper)

 

[Wayland]

I wouldn't use anything endorsed by Edward Grylls if you paid me.

He's a son of a politician and that's all I'm allowed to say.........

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

I do like the nosquito shirts meself, just a shame about his name on it, but a patch will hide that

 

[NatG]

they're definitely going to be good knives- if they're your style, if you like it and can afford it, get it!

 

[Jus_like_that]

I do quite like the raven one on his site! anyone used/owned one of these?

 

[bob_the_bomb]

Here's a question. Like everyone else on here I've bought a few knives in my time, and there some obvious limitations to some of them. For example, its good to have a SAK as a general tool but you wouldnt expect it to do much serious cutting, and as a soldier many years ago we had a running SAK/Leatherman debate (answer: Leatherman for work, SAK on the car keys in case a bottle of wine hove onto the scene). But, just how much better does a knife have to be to justify 350 quid? What does it do that my Swedish Army Frosts Mora and/or my 4" Gerber wont? What does it do that the other competition wont? What else could you do with the 250 quid or so that you can save by simply buying the "next best" knife?

 

[ArkAngel]

OK if' it's your cup of columbian...

Personally i think its a good knife ruined by the 4 year old that has written "Bear" in felt tip on the blade.

 

[rigger_john]

What does it do that my Swedish Army Frosts Mora and/or my 4" Gerber wont? What does it do that the other competition wont?

I would say nothing

What else could you do with the 250 quid or so that you can save by simply buying the "next best" knife?

Buy lots of wine also I would argue that you could say a lot more than 250 just buy a frost and save 340

 

[mortalmerlin]

Ignoring the logo.

Not keen on the finish, I prefer shiney things.
The sheath doesn't look like it belongs to a 350 quid knife.
I don't like the serrated version.
Not sure what "RWL Powder Metallurgy Steel " is, sounds like an expensive way of saying stainless.

"action sheath featuring horizontal carry with double knife detainment" - Oh come on.

 

[pdcawley]

Ye gods and little fishies, but that's an ugly knife.

 

[Dougster]

Not sure what "RWL Powder Metallurgy Steel " is, sounds like an expensive way of saying stainless.

There are a few of us with RWL34 knives. They are to stainless as Ducatti are to Bikes, it's not just stainless, it's PROPER stainless. I have a few knives and the RWL in terms of steel performance is just awesome, which is why I have another on order.

I quite like the knife, RWL is expensive to buy and to work but if you need something that will out perform all other steels this is it.

Say what you like about Bear, he went to a good knife maker.

 

[jungle_re]

echoing what Rich said really.

RWL is also difficult to work and the heat treating process is quite complex ( i believe it is normally cyogenically vacume heat treated but someone like Stu M could tell you the details) so is going to cost more than a similar knife in say O1.

I like Rob Bayley knives but wounldnt want anything which is endorsed on the product.

 

[mortalmerlin]

They are to stainless as Ducatti are to Bikes

What expensive and unreliable? Haha

But seriously, what is the difference? I haven't come across RWL before and I just looked at the metals it says it consists of which is more or less the same as stainless. When I have tried stainless knives in the past they are much more difficult to sharpen.

 

[Dougster]

I have a convex RWL knife that I took on the Mors course.

I used it to chop down 2 inch saplings, then baton them, then featherstick later.

I put it away after a quick wipe on my trousers then used it for food prep.

Stu said something about the process fof making it that made it superior to ATS34 and it's edge retention and propensity for absorbing and thriving on abuse is staggering.

 

[JonathanD]

I've never found a significant amount of difference in sharpening on RWL compared to 01. RWL holds it's edge for longer and is maintenance free. All in all I find it a far superior steel for bushcraft. That said though, Stu M also made me a version of my RWL knife in 01 as I just love the way it reacts to nature AND the fact that you have to care for it. Makes it less of an inanimate object.

 

[sandsnakes]

Is what works well in one persons hand will not work in another. What is sharp to one person at a certain angle of use is not to another. The problem is, is it worth £350 for a knife which may not work for you?

I had a Dave Budd made for £200 that is custom fitted and moulded/shaped to my hand, some people love it others cant hold it. Spend less and get something made that works to perfection.

Sandsnakes

 

[FerlasDave]

i never heard of RWL. but a quick look on google says it would be a great steel to use.

and to be fair i quite like the way bear puts his name on things, shows he cares.

 

[Dave Budd]

i never heard of RWL. but a quick look on google says it would be a great steel to use.

and to be fair i quite like the way bear puts his name on things, shows he cares.

that's called marketing, it's a way of getting more cash for the product!

sorry

 

[SMARTY]

I realy cant get my head around prices like that. We have sourced hand made knife and sheath, lifetime warrenty, all made by a Cornish knifemaker for under £100. (Mods this is not an attempt to advertise) How can they justify £350 for it? I've tried one and in my opinion its c##p. Too hard to field sharpen (how many times have you seen Mr Grylls put the edge back on his knife in the field?). The grip is thin and made my hand tired quickly. I didn't hit it with any rocks! and found the 4mm blade a bit thick for feathering and fine carving.