Which knife to take from the classifieds???

[Moosemap]

Hi there,

I have a problem, not really, but there are at the moment three different knives in the classifieds:

An Enzo Trapper D2, customized handle and sheath by Luckylee

An Bernie Garland Bushcrafter, both offered by Johnnyboy

and a customized, rehandled F1, offered by Cowboy

All of these go for 100,- and I am rather clueless what to do, what are the advantages of these sharps.

As I already have one or two knifes but no "real" bushcraft knife I would like you two cents (or pennies) on the offered knifes. I use them for canoeing and want to get started with a little bushcraft, no hunting, no fishing, perhaps carving, making firewood, kindling, feathersticks and so on...

Thank you for you input

Heinz from Austria

 

[mountainm]

I'd get a mora - see how you use it, learn how to sharpen it, then upgrade when you know if you're happy with a scandi grind, or would prefer full flat etc.

 

[Johnnyboy1971]

Both the enzo and the Bernie Garland are scandi grinds and the F1 from cowboy is convex grind (this was mine too at one point).
All three are nice knives and would serve you well.

 

[Expat]

I'd get a mora - see how you use it, learn how to sharpen it, then upgrade when you know if you're happy with a scandi grind, or would prefer full flat etc.

Was that one an "autoreply"..???

 

[mountainm]

Was that one an "autoreply"..???

Someone states they don't know much about the knives in question but they're thinking about spending a hundred quid on one. A knife for doing carving isn't really suitable for doing fireprep and vice versa. Paying not much for a cheap good quality knife (mora, hultafors etc.) would enable the OP to see if it suited there purpose before spending serious cash on something. The reason it sounds like an auto reply is its oft proffered good advice.

 

[Prawnster]

I suppose you're asking us 'Which one would you buy?'

My personal choice would be the Bernie Garland. They're all good knives and would serve you well but the BG is a lot of handmade knife for that money. A Scandi grind is better suited to the carving you want to do also.


Sent from my phone.

 

[Andy BB]

I may be biased, but I'd go for the Bernie Garland. Hand-made by one of the top knife-makers going. Apparently he isn't everyone's cup of tea in a personality contest (funnily enough, a bit like Wiggy in the US), and some people's view of his kit tends to be a bit coloured by his "enthusiastic" defense of his products - again just like Wiggy! But they both make top kit.

 

[mountainm]

the BG would probably hold it's price better than the others if resale value is a concern.

 

[Shewie]

I had a BG Bushrafter for a while, nice knife, I've no experience of the others though.

They'll all do the same job so it just comes down to personal preference, the handle on the BG is really comfy but I don't know about the others.

 

[Johnnyboy1971]

As I already have one or two knifes but no "real" bushcraft knife I would like you two cents (or pennies) on the offered knifes. I use them for canoeing and want to get started with a little bushcraft, no hunting, no fishing, perhaps carving, making firewood, kindling, feathersticks and so on...

Thank you for you input

Heinz from Austria

In his defense he doesnt actually say he has little experience of knives just 'no real bushcraft knife'

 

[mountainm]

In his defense he doesnt actually say he has little experience of knives just 'no real bushcraft knife'

True - but there's no such thing as a bushcraft knife really... general all purpose knife? Maybe? Survival knife (shudders) possibly.

 

[Baggy]

My 2p worth is that if you are using it for canoeing I would suggest a stainless steel blade like a Mora because of the probable contact with water, stainless should not rust. Also if you drop it in a river it will be cheap to replace.

Having said that I am no expert but I do canoe.

 

[Moosemap]

Thank you for your input so far, perhaps I did not express my question as clear as I wanted to, as my English is not so perfect...

Prawnster got it right, I meant which one you take if you had the choice? And there have been some answers...

I did not mean a survival knife, or I would not have looked at these knifes, as there are no hollow handles, no black blades with aggressive serations on the blade or on the back...

And the term Bushcraft knife is often used in books on that theme, most of the time meaning knifes like the woodlore and similar looking ones...

I do not really understand the unfriendliness in Mountainm's answers, did I hurt your feelings or something else? If so, I have to apologize and keep my mouth shut in the future

Regards
Heinz

 

[mountainm]

Thank you for your input so far, perhaps I did not express my question as clear as I wanted to, as my English is not so perfect...

Prawnster got it right, I meant which one you take if you had the choice? And there have been some answers...

I did not mean a survival knife, or I would not have looked at these knifes, as there are no hollow handles, no black blades with aggressive serations on the blade or on the back...

And the term Bushcraft knife is often used in books on that theme, most of the time meaning knifes like the woodlore and similar looking ones...

I do not really understand the unfriendliness in Mountainm's answers, did I hurt your feelings or something else? If so, I have to apologize and keep my mouth shut in the future

Regards
Heinz

Sorry fella if I came across as unfriendly. Expat got my back up a little - but certainly didn't mean to direct it at you. Knives come in all shapes and sizes and (as you said) the term bushcraft knife generally refers to a scandi ground woodlore clone - my point was it may not be what suits you. I find a full flat grind better for most tasks and use a dedicated knife for carving, but it's a personal thing. Just meant you may be better trying off a cheaper version first before spending your hard earned cash.

 

[Moosemap]

Thanks for that input, Baggy, I always keep a Mora in the back pocket of my PFD, together with some firesteel, firestarter, some paracord, and some signaling device.

And I guess I got a little addicted to knives lately (ähem, for the last 30 years...), so I always keep my eyes open for them, but have, as Mountainm perhaps got right, not so much experience with them (but they see some light and air from time to time...)

Regards,
Heinz

 

[ged]

My choice would be the Enzo, simply because I already have examples of the others.

If you want to know which I'd use most, it would probably depend on what I was doing and where I was doing it. I'm not fond of the shape of the back end of the BG handle, it has sharpish corners.

If you want to know which I'd use least, it would probably be the F1 - because of the very convex edge. The F1 that I have has the original handle. It's very light, and in the Kydex sheath (I have both Kydex and leather) it would be fine for extended periods in a damp climate. A lot finer, for example, than I would be.

The Enzo is in D2 which is a tool steel with some corrosion resistance. Should be bullet-proof.

The BG is in O1, so no corrosion resistance but bombproof. For some people it's the only blade steel they'll ever want or need.

The Fallkniven blade is a highly technical sandwich of stainless steels. Will take a little abuse and a lot of neglect but I've seen them broken, sometimes surprisingly.


Incidentally I didn't think mountainm's replies were unfriendly. Perhaps just a little terse. He might be in a hurry.

 

[Moosemap]

No real damage done, everyone has some bad day sometimes and I was after some advice and that I got

As I stated in my opening post, I do not really need a new knife as I have some that I like and some that I do not like so much, but I nearly can not resist when I see a nice one (got that nice rehandled Ontario 3 from Raikey) I get the feeling that my other knives need company very badly...

I really appreciate some personal input on that matter, e.g. I read that the D2 steel used in the Enzo should not be as good as the O1 in the Garland and reverse, so it is rather confusing for someone who doesn't spend his time reading on this subject (at least not all the time).

Kind regards,

Heinz

BTW, Mark, which canoe are you paddling on the pic?

 

[Moosemap]

My choice would be the Enzo, simply because I already have examples of the others.

If you want to know which I'd use most, it would probably depend on what I was doing and where I was doing it. I'm not fond of the shape of the back end of the BG handle, it has sharpish corners.

If you want to know which I'd use least, it would probably be the F1 - because of the very convex edge. The F1 that I have has the original handle. It's very light, and in the Kydex sheath (I have both Kydex and leather) it would be fine for extended periods in a damp climate. A lot finer, for example, than I would be.

The Enzo is in D2 which is a tool steel with some corrosion resistance. Should be bullet-proof.

The BG is in O1, so no corrosion resistance but bombproof. For some people it's the only blade steel they'll ever want or need.

The Fallkniven blade is a highly technical sandwich of stainless steels. Will take a little abuse and a lot of neglect but I've seen them broken, sometimes surprisingly.


Incidentally I didn't think mountainm's replies were unfriendly. Perhaps just a little terse. He might be in a hurry.

Thank you Ged,

I just revised my impression on Mountainm's replies, perhaps I am also not so firm with those fine tunes in your language, but learning...

I like your input on the subject, I like the look of the Enzo too, but I was told that the handle tends to be a bit short, so if you got bigger hands, it will be better to look up and take the Enzo Camper (thanks Cowboy!)

The corrosion resistance would be rather welcomed, as sometimes I am a little bit lazy with refreshing the oiling on my knives.

So, the F1 would be best for me, except for the convex grind that I already have on my H1, hmmmm, think, think, think...

Would be best if somebody would get them rather fast...

Kind regards,
Heinz

 

[Baggy]

Hi Heinz

The canoe is a 15ft Apache
http://www.apache-canoes.co.uk/

 

[ged]

...I was told that the handle tends to be a bit short, so if you got bigger hands, it will be better to look up and take the Enzo Camper ...

Those of us with larger hands will often find that's a problem with 'production' knives. The handles of most knives that I have (excluding things like folders of course) could usefully be 15mm to 20mm longer.

The corrosion resistance would be rather welcomed, as sometimes I am a little bit lazy with refreshing the oiling on my knives.

An alternative is to work on a patina, but that's almost more work than cleaning and oiling the blade.

So, the F1 would be best for me, except for the convex grind that I already have on my H1,

Don't be tempted to re-profile the grind on this kind of knife into something like a Scandi. The outer (softer, more flexible) layers of the sandwich construction might not give adequate support to the inner (harder, more brittle) layer if you did that and it might chip or crack.

hmmmm, think, think, think...