Intro:
Ive had a Helle Harding fot over 8 years. A few months ago there was a little gap between the bolster and the wood. I contacted Helle and they sent a brand new Harding to me. Great customer service!
There are a few differences between this knife, and my old one. The new one has helle harding stamped on the blade. It also had a plastic liner in the sheath and it double stitched. All great improvement in my opinion.
Blade:
The blade is a droppoint laminated blade. Its got a typical scandi grind. The edge was bit hollow ground. Thats because its ground on a large wheel. After a few minutes on some waterstones (300, 1000, 6000 grit) and a loaded leather strop, the knife had a zero edge bevel which was razor sharp.
I tested the knife on rope, cardboard, wood, vegetables and meat. It split the harder vegetables because of its grind. Its no problem as it wasnt designed for food preparation.
The blade performed great and I had no problems cutting everything. After the tests I stropped the edge and it was shaving sharp again.
Handle:
The handle is made out of Birch, Rosewood and leather. I gave it a soak in linseed oil which brought out the grain of the wood. It fits my hand perfectly and I had no hot spots after the tests.
Sheath:
The best I have encountered on a scandi! Its a dangler sheath which is very secure. The blade sits tightly in the sheath and the brass nut at the end of the handle makes sure the knife stays put.
Conclusion:
This by far my favourite scandi. Perhaps because it was my first, perhaps because of the lovely handle? I dont know.
If you dont have one, pick one up!
Ive had a Helle Harding fot over 8 years. A few months ago there was a little gap between the bolster and the wood. I contacted Helle and they sent a brand new Harding to me. Great customer service!
There are a few differences between this knife, and my old one. The new one has helle harding stamped on the blade. It also had a plastic liner in the sheath and it double stitched. All great improvement in my opinion.
Blade:
The blade is a droppoint laminated blade. Its got a typical scandi grind. The edge was bit hollow ground. Thats because its ground on a large wheel. After a few minutes on some waterstones (300, 1000, 6000 grit) and a loaded leather strop, the knife had a zero edge bevel which was razor sharp.
I tested the knife on rope, cardboard, wood, vegetables and meat. It split the harder vegetables because of its grind. Its no problem as it wasnt designed for food preparation.
The blade performed great and I had no problems cutting everything. After the tests I stropped the edge and it was shaving sharp again.
Handle:
The handle is made out of Birch, Rosewood and leather. I gave it a soak in linseed oil which brought out the grain of the wood. It fits my hand perfectly and I had no hot spots after the tests.
Sheath:
The best I have encountered on a scandi! Its a dangler sheath which is very secure. The blade sits tightly in the sheath and the brass nut at the end of the handle makes sure the knife stays put.
Conclusion:
This by far my favourite scandi. Perhaps because it was my first, perhaps because of the lovely handle? I dont know.
If you dont have one, pick one up!
