Are 3 fingers enough for a bushcraft knife handle?

I think Something with around a 4" handle and 2.5" blade would be perfect for me. The Morakniv Wood Carving 120 looks about the right size except I would like something with micarta and a little higher quality like bark river. Would feel weird pairing a wooden handle mora with a gso 4.1. The issue I'm having is almost all the smaller ones have a longer blade and shorter handle whereas I would prefer a slightly longer handle and shorter blade.
 
Old Biker said:
Five actually, but only three on the handle. :) letsurf said he wanted a smaller knife for detail work and carving. I don't see why a shorter handle would be a problem for that kind of work. Provided the end of the handle doesn't have corners sharp enough to dig in and wear on the palm of the hand.

O.B.
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Agreed . But I meant 4 fingers and a thumb ! ;)
 
ScooterG said:
2.7
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Ah nm I misread that and thought 3.5 was the model. Ya the 2.7 would be perfect for me if they took about 1/2 from blade and put it on handle. I might pick one up just to feel it though there's one on ebay I'm watching.
 
AntDog said:
A knife dedicated to serious woods use should have a full 4 finger grip. At least. IMO, of course.
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I guess I should back this up by explaining that I've tried knives with shorter handles in this role, and they just didn't work for me. It felt very uncomfortable. Like something was missing (like an inch of handle!)

With a full grip on the handle, even knives with short blades worked fine for me. When I started experimenting with the handle being shorter, everything started to suffer. Lack of leverage, I suppose? Call it what you will.

If you're looking for a knife that will work well in the woods for carving tasks and has a comfy handle, check out the GEC fixed blades.
 
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As a stand alone knife it would be better to have something with 4 fingers for such tasks as batonning. However three finger knives should be plenty for most things and there are even techniques for stuff like feathersticks and other tasks where no hands on the knife are necessary and even better.

If you ask the average bushcrafter they are probably going to tell you overwhelmingly that they use a 4 finger knife for bushcraft or other types of outdoor activities. That obviously doesn't mean thats the only option by any means.

I love the handiness of "Patch" knives for EDC and in the outdoors as a companion blade but could work fine as a stand alone.. They are the perfect size for a general user, utility, skinning, and even food and fire prep.
 
Boxer .45 said:
As a stand alone knife it would be better to have something with 4 fingers for such tasks as batonning. However three finger knives should be plenty for most things and there are even techniques for stuff like feathersticks and other tasks where no hands on the knife are necessary and even better.

If you ask the average bushcrafter they are probably going to tell you overwhelmingly that they use a 4 finger knife for bushcraft or other types of outdoor activities. That obviously doesn't mean thats the only option by any means.

I love the handiness of "Patch" knives for EDC and in the outdoors as a companion blade but could work fine as a stand alone.. They are the perfect size for a general user, utility, skinning, and even food and fire prep.
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Good point. I'm also considering just skipping the 2nd fixed blade altogether and instead going for a bushcraft style folder instead. That might give me a good option for smaller detailed work instead of having to worry about size and location of a 2nd fixed blade.
 
Something I like about the wood handled moras, besides being cheap, is that they're cheap enough that I don't mind customizing them. I'm sanding in some very light contouring to mine so it's more comfortable for using chest lever since it seems like I'm using that method a lot more lately for rough shaping.

The esee cr2.5 is a pretty neat blade though I think it's a bit high priced for a small knife with 1095. You can often get customs for that price. The candiru might be better, not sure if there are handle options for that like there is for the izulas but you might be able to match up something nice there with a little searching. BM hidden canyon could be close, looks like it comes with a nice sheath if you like horizontal carry sheaths.

Looking through a few small blades on BHQ that are close, here are some more I found with a search since I was there anyway this AM:
real steel receptor
BRK mini canadian (very intriguing model if you don't mind the look)
BRK mini bushcrafter (short on handle and pricey in 3V version at least)
Condor neonecker
Condor bushnecker
condor classic carver wharncliffe (short handle and wharncliffe, many people like a little belly)
condor pigmy (short handle)
condor mayflower (long blade)
condor mini bushcrafter basic (short handle)

It looks like a lot of those with the 2.5" blade are going to have a 3.5" handle but there should be some out there. Seems like there will be more with 3" blades with the 4" handle.
 
I think there was mention of a fiddleback in here before, they might have something nice but the blue AA forge in the link seems like it should be a close design. Maybe not get this one but see if you could figure out the model and if there is something similar from AA or fiddleback that would work.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/fiddleback-forge-aa-forge.1614047/

Thinking of one of the smaller makers again, LT has a few options that are close
great plainsman
JX3
Bushbaby
next gen (overall bigger blade and handle, just a nice, small knife)
skeleton
 
bikerector said:
I think there was mention of a fiddleback in here before, they might have something nice but the blue AA forge in the link seems like it should be a close design. Maybe not get this one but see if you could figure out the model and if there is something similar from AA or fiddleback that would work.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/fiddleback-forge-aa-forge.1614047/

Thinking of one of the smaller makers again, LT has a few options that are close
great plainsman
JX3
Bushbaby
next gen (overall bigger blade and handle, just a nice, small knife)
skeleton
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Yes LT Wright stands out a lot for multiple knives in this category.
 
McFeeli said:
I generally prefer a four finger grip on most fixed blades. If you expect it to be in hand for extended periods comfort is key. If you're expecting to only use it for a dozen or so minutes at any given time I think you'd be fine. I'm by no means a serious bushcrafter I can't carve worth a damn, unless baby spears are considered, but I am lucky in the sense where most three finger knives fit four of mine. That said, there are plenty of knives out there that have a full grip with a blade around 3-3.5".
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This ^^^ mostly for me as I seldom carve anything with a knife any more. I don't like to sound like a broken record on small woods knives, but take a look at the White River Backpacker Pro which is a three finger knife with a choil which makes it a four finger knife in use. The blade is plenty strong and in S35VN steel. I would not be afraid to baton this knife on small stuff. Comes with a nice functional sheath.

Personal opinion.... this knife is enough for 90% of whatever you might do in the woods short of batoning big wood or chopping. You might find that this is the ONLY knife you need along with a folder which you can use for small stuff too.

I asked KSF if they might consider carrying the White River line and they said that White River is having trouble supplying the dealers they already have or in other words meeting demand for their knives.
 
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If you can accept 0.25" extra blade length and the price.

https://fiddlebackforge.com/collect...s/fiddleback-forge-ed-karda-charcoal-burlatex
Fiddleback_Forge_-_ED_Karda_-_Charcoal_Burlatex00_800x.jpg


Looks like there are a few other options in the handmade section of their website. If nothing else it's a lot of eye candy to enjoy with your morning coffee or lunch, depending on time zone.
https://fiddlebackforge.com/collections/handmade/products/fiddleback-forge-babyboot-philellow-burlap
https://fiddlebackforge.com/collect...leback-forge-bushcraft-karda-dyed-curly-maple
https://fiddlebackforge.com/collect...s/fiddleback-forge-ed-karda-charcoal-burlatex
https://fiddlebackforge.com/collections/handmade/products/fiddleback-forge-ed-karda-natural-canvas
 
bikerector said:
I think there was mention of a fiddleback in here before, they might have something nice but the blue AA forge in the link seems like it should be a close design.
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Funny you mention that I was looking at that exact knife yesterday. It looks perfect except I think it is about 8" long so bigger than I am looking for. Thanks for all the mentions and write up I need to look through all of those and do some research. The Fiddleback Forge ED Karda is almost exactly what I'm looking for. Need to explore all alternatives before I spend that much.

22-rimfire said:
This ^^^ mostly for me as I seldom carve anything with a knife any more. I don't like to sound like a broken record on small woods knives, but take a look at the White River Backpacker Pro which is a three finger knife with a choil which makes it a four finger knife in use.
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Looks like a really cool knife but reminds me a lot of my Esee Izula that I'm selling. The blade thickness and design just don't speak to me.
 
To each their own. I don't have an Izula, but I do have a BK-14 and BK-24 not to mention a Blackjack 155 and would take the White River over all of them. I absolutely do not like knives with no handles which is why I never really considered an Izula. I have handles on all of them.

I do own a couple Doziers that fit your requirements, but I didn't mention them. Good stuff.
 
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22-rimfire said:
To each their own. I don't have an Izula, but I do have a BK-14 and BK-24 not to mention a Blackjack 155 and would take the White River over all of them. I absolutely do not like knives with no handles which is why I never really considered an Izula. I have handles on all of them.

I do own a couple Doziers that fit your requirements, but I didn't mention them. Good stuff.
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I meant it looks like an Izula that has handles =) Do you have a model for the Doziers? Looks like they have nice knives.
 
Tops MSK ( mini scandi knife). Ive been messing around with this little guy. Great for fine detailed work.
 
letsurf said:
Do you have a model for the Doziers? Looks like they have nice knives.
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They make a nice knife. Generally D2 is used. I have a Personal (sheepsfoot blade desgin) in CPM154. Look at the Canoe model and the Personals. The Canoe model is the smallest of the Dozier models I believe but I don't really look at the "urban" defense oriented models. I have a couple Personals. Generally speaking they have about a 4" handle and 2.5-3" blade. They vary of course and they make an excellent EDC type fixed blade that you don't want to broadcast "knife" but remain highly functional. They come with a very well made kydex belt sheath that clips versus running your belt through the loop type. Great for cross draw carry and easy to slip onto the belt.
 
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