my knife

[jasons]

I have had my knife for years and it cost me a tener so why would i fork out 100 plus for the shiney new knife that will do the same job .ok it its a frosts with green plastic handel but it sharp I do not see the need for all this knife geekery. In fact all my kit must of cost me hundred pounds .I am not saying that i would not like a wood lore or a heenasy but in my eyes theres more to life and bushcraft than this. the best bit of kit is your mind

 

[bushwacker bob]

I have had my knife for years and it cost me a tener so why would i fork out 100 plus for the shiney new knife that will do the same job .ok it its a frosts with green plastic handel but it sharp I do not see the need for all this knife geekery. In fact all my kit must of cost me hundred pounds .I am not saying that i would not like a wood lore or a heenasy but in my eyes theres more to life and bushcraft than this. the best bit of kit is your mind

Totally agree with you mate,BUT I'd rather drive a Ferrari than a Vauxall nova.

 

[sxmolloy]

I also have a frosts, but decided to invest in a fallkniven f1. ok, it costs 6 times more but i can honestly say IMO it was worth it. the frost is a good knife for the money, but the f1 has a much thicker spine and is a lot better for batoning, and i find it works with a fire steel better than the frosts.

i find the f1 easy to sharpen and comfortable to use. it has a "no job too big for it" feel and thats what i like. with the frosts i am always a little more cautious, but i give both all the love and attention they deserve.

my f1 is my 1st choice, and i use the frosts as a back up. i can't justify spending more than £100 on any one knife when i have a family to support, althought i have been tempted and would really like the RM/AW or one of the hand made stunners from the makers here. so the f1 was in my budget. there are many, many really nice knives for sale these days but as i said i cant justify spending that much.

there is always a rule i follow when purchasing "stuff": you get what you pay for.

there is a lot of "stuff" that i have bought "cheap" that i could have spent more on but as mentioned why if it does the same job...as long as its not cheap tat then its fine with me.

just my 2 pence worth....cheers....stu

 

[Doc]

Is the Ferrari/Vauxhall a fair comparison? A Ferrari looks nicer but also performs better, at least in terms of speed.

The Mora performs just as well as more expensive knives. It does not look as nice, but that's about the only disadvantage. Jason is spot on.

 

[Alchemist]

Well said.

I spent ages trying to look for knives that were just right, but I couldnt afford to have a custom. That was a bit of luck because it would have been a waste of money for me to buy a custom.

I have a mora also and it is my favourite knife. I have started to do a bit of whittling and finer woodwork when out walking the dogs. The finger guard on the mora is a little too big IMHO. That doesnt mean I need to spend much money though. The classic mora doesnt have the finger guard and is still very cheap.
So are SAKs.

I have an f1 which is my most expensive knife. I do like the knife but for the use I really give it, I wish I could return it and buy myself a one day bushcraft course. It is a very robust knife but if I really found myself in a situation that relied on this feature I would have the presence of mind to treat a mora or a folder with the correct respect.

I know that there are people here who can really tell the difference between the more subtle differences but I am not one of them. That is not to say that I have no idea about usig the knives correctly though. I think there are many others like me who also get a bit confused with some of the more detailed discussions. But who knows, maybe in 10 years time after more carved spoons and experience I might be bothered. Not yet though.

 

[jasons]

my bq axe is good at battoning one of my most used bits of kit is my mors kochanski book

 

[mark a.]

I haven't really tried any other knives, so I just have my Mora Clipper. Certainly more expensive knives feel heftier and definitely look great, but for what I use it for at the moment tt's doing a grand job.

I could do with a more comfortable grip, which is why I'm making my own knife at the moment (Brisa kit). It will be interesting to see the differences.

Another point is that there's a huge difference between "want" and "need". Moras are fine for 99% of the time, but I certainly won't begrudge anyone who fancies spending lots of money on a beautiful knife. I'm sure a lot of us are gear-junkies at heart.

 

[C_Claycomb]

I better say I am biased here. I am a bit of a knife geek, if you must call it that. As an engineer and craftsman I really do appreciate having the right high quality tools. I have served my time using second hand kit, and cheaper items and when I have had the chance to upgrade, I have done so, and always found it to be an improvement.

I also better say that I am not a fan of the green Frost. It is good value, but it is a poor knife when compared with many similar knives, even with other Mora type knives. I saw 10 people on a course sustain more damage to their hands using those knives than resulted from all the other activities on the course. I can with great certainty say that the knives that I make are more efficient tools, and more comfortable, than the basic green handled Frost. That isn't because I am a great maker, just that it isn't hard to do better than those frosts if you put the time in.

The global environmental aspects aside, I think it a generally good thing that the human animal is always striving to improve the quality of their tools. I feel it would be a very dull world indeed if as a group we found the first thing that worked adequately, and stopped there.

I do agree though that many people mistake the aquisition of kit as a substitute for knowledge, particularly in bushcraft. If you are able to use basic tools and suceed, kudos to you. At the same time, I see no reason to deride anyone for enjoying the aquisition of kit, or for enjoying having premium tools rather than those that would be merely adequate. To each his own.

 

[Marts]

the best bit of kit is your mind

Spot on. Unfortunately I traded mine for a nice shiny knife ages ago

 

[sxmolloy]

Spot on. Unfortunately I traded mine for a nice shiny knife ages ago

 

[Hoodoo]

I better say I am biased here. I am a bit of a knife geek, if you must call it that. As an engineer and craftsman I really do appreciate having the right high quality tools. I have served my time using second hand kit, and cheaper items and when I have had the chance to upgrade, I have done so, and always found it to be an improvement.

I also better say that I am not a fan of the green Frost. It is good value, but it is a poor knife when compared with many similar knives, even with other Mora type knives. I saw 10 people on a course sustain more damage to their hands using those knives than resulted from all the other activities on the course. I can with great certainty say that the knives that I make are more efficient tools, and more comfortable, than the basic green handled Frost. That isn't because I am a great maker, just that it isn't hard to do better than those frosts if you put the time in.

The global environmental aspects aside, I think it a generally good thing that the human animal is always striving to improve the quality of their tools. I feel it would be a very dull world indeed if as a group we found the first thing that worked adequately, and stopped there.

I do agree though that many people mistake the aquisition of kit as a substitute for knowledge, particularly in bushcraft. If you are able to use basic tools and suceed, kudos to you. At the same time, I see no reason to deride anyone for enjoying the aquisition of kit, or for enjoying having premium tools rather than those that would be merely adequate. To each his own.

Totally agree Chris.

 

[jasons]

sorry about the geek thing .we all are geeks in one way or another

 

[nickg]

My first knife was a kit from brisa with a Kay Vikstrom blade. It came out really good and im proud of it. My missis bought me a Micarta Woodlore and its beautiful, its so nice that i never had the courage to use it in case I spoiled it. My third knife was a clipper that was given to me on the woodlore fundamental bushcraft course - its fabulous - I absolutely love it. It went through hell on that course splitting 3 inch logs etc and never felt like it was giving up even for a second. A really great tool. My fourth knife will be a woodlore copy that I am making from scratch with some 01 tool steel, just to see if i can do it. I really dont know if it will take over from the clipper no matter how nice it turns out.

My 2ds worth

 

[Lord Farquhar]

Why not come on down and we can make you a new one. The materials will cost you less then a £10

A bit of O1 costs about £5-7. Wood for the handle can be free, pins can be salvaged from anything.

 

[leon-b]

clippers are great arent they i have split quite few thick logs and it has held up fine.
leon

 

[bushwacker bob]

What I meant is what Chris said but in less words.
The knife I use is a 'custom' bushcrafter. The blade was made to measure to my spec and BARTERED for some scrap metal.I put my own Oak handle from reclaimed floorboards.
Total cost about £5 for a custom knife. Half the cost of a Mora and far more comfortable to use.The greatest pleasure is useing something I made myself.
My 1st knife was a cheap one but I still use it occasionally just to remind me how good my 'custom' is.

 

[Doc]

Nice one. Hand made is good, but hand made by your own hands is better.

There may also be an argument for having several knives. Backpacking with 18 mile days - a nice light stick tang/wood handle scandi. Canoeing on a sea loch- stainless steel and a synthetic handle. A bushcraft meet with lots of show and tell- maybe a Woodlore, or a homebrew knife.

 

[addyb]

Honestly, even if I had more money and I had the notion to spend big bucks on a "nice" fixed blade, I probably still would not fork out the cash and stop using a Mora. I don't know what it is with Mora blades, but there is something about them that's so....simply utilitarian and yet genius at the same time. For the life of me I cannot think of another knife that gives you all that the Mora does for the price.

And yes, I do have some complaints about them. They're not quite thick enough for heavy duty work like batoning because the last time I did that I chipped the blade a fair bit. And yeah, Mora blades could probably be a little bit heavier but hey, they are what they are.

And that's why we keep coming back to them year after year. A great knife, and I wouldn't trade mine for the world.

Adam

 

[leon-b]

i love my clipper but there is one thing that i dont like about them and that is the fact that the tip of the blade is really weak and has snapped on mine already, its only a tiny bit off the end which you cant really notice but i still think that the tip should be a bit more stronger
leon