AUS8 for bushcraft?

HardTripper said:
I keep coming back to the F1, when I first got into knives about 2 years ago I was dying for it, now 20 knives later I'm back and ready to pull the trigger
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If I would of gotten an F1 50 knives ago , I would have saved a lot of money on others I tried.;)
 
The F1 has way too many good reviews and supporters to ignore.

The convex grind is where it is at for me (on other knives).

I don't own a Falkniven, but would not hesitate to do so.

The laminated steel is great stuff as well.

I love Resiprine C, it is my favorite handle material. Scrapyard make a great product, and the elamax releases are very exciting. They have one of the best warranties and customer service in the industry, and the resale value is great. But, the current releases may be a bit thin for what you are thinking. One of the current elemax releases is .08 if I remmember correctly? I would not hesitate to make fuzz sticks, but I would not try batoning with it. (if it breaks they will replace it, but it is not a chopper or batonning knife).

I also feel that the choil's on that size knife are not necessary (some love them).

The choils on the elemax knives do seem like a great spot for a fire striker though.

I am a Busse/Swamprat/Scrapyard fan for sure. But won't force them on anyone. Some of their offerings are too thick for "bushcraft" uses. But I have a handful that are great (thinner convex grinds). Infi is great for stain resistance, but out of that budget, and you would have to jump to get a good deal on aftermarket.

Get the F1 and use it it in good health. I bet you will love it (as most do).



As to your original question, I have a few knives in Aus8 and have been fine with the steel. It resists stains great (rafting, and swimming with mine have yielded no rust). It sharpens very easy, and if given a quality heat treat is a pretty tough steel. Not the best edge retention (the F1 will have better edge retention for most chores). As others have said, the $150 price range will give you more options and better steel than the Aus8.
 
Should be fine. You don't need a high wear steel for bushcraft style tasks.

Check out Virtuovice's videos on YouTube for reviews of an AUS8 Trapper. He does some wood cutting tests and dresses some deer with it.

It does roll on the edge a bit during his videos, but keep in mind the edge angle on the Trapper compared to most of the knives mentioned in this thread. I have an O1 Trapper and it will also take edge damage if not used with some care. It's the same with my Moras. These comments are for the scandi grind version. You can also get it with a full flat grind, and I'm not familiar with the edge angles on those.
 
HardTripper said:
I do tend to baton my firewood, obviously keeping the limitations of my tools in mind. Ive seen that one and only video of a Helle snapping off at the tang but otherwise am confident in their strength
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Helle Temagami is a full tang knife that should not break easily. I've snapped one of their stick tangs but was abusing it by cross battoning hard wood. (My Mora survived the same treatment) The tang did not have a tight fit and I think this movement caused leverage at the point of failure. Good luck with your choice. F1 gets my vote.
 
Like so many here wrote, $150 will buy you better steel than AUS8. Still, if you want a good AUS8 knife at around $55 to $60, look at the SOG NW Ranger. The blade is a little longer than what you are looking for. At double that price, the F1 is really nice. If I was dishing out a full $150, I'd go with a Bark River.

Joe
 
hiwa said:
Thermorun is harder than kraton , but still grippy. I experienced no hotspots from heavy use from any of my Fallknivens ( A1, 2-S1's , 2-F1's...all thermorun.) I really like it.
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The bigger Fällknivens A1 and A2 have kraton instead of thermorun.

I believe many years ago the H1 also had kraton.
 
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