- Joined
- Feb 5, 2013
- Messages
- 22
I recently bought a Bark River Trail Buddy with green canvas micarta scales, and I'll start by saying, I love it.
I bought this knife to be paired with a hatchet, to be used for light woodwork/whittling, skinning, and food prep. (general woods purposes)
So far it has worked phenomenally. The first thing I did was shave with the factory edge, (which was extremely fun in a man moment type way haha) then begin to whittle a spoon form a relatively dense piece of wood. It worked very well in both tasks, and is my favorite whittling knife to date. It was comfortable in my hand, and the thickness/up-sweep of the spine gave me great control, and comfort for the first hour and a half-ish, then it began to get sore. Also the handle was extremely comfortable for draw cuts. I love the balance of the knife as well. it balances at the first pin from the blade, so when I hold it, the balance is just behind my index finger, so it feels very stable. After that (which wasn't, it was still hair poppin' sharp. This is my first Bark River knife, I truly enjoy using it, and I would recommend this model, to anyone who is looking for a general purpose knife that looks great and is a joy to use. I still have to see how it throws a spark. I wear a medium to large glove, and the handle fits my hand perfectly.
As for the sheath: It is extremely high quality, and is the best made sheath that I have owned to date. Also it is ambidextrous and can be worn cross for cross draw, as well as normal, (because of a slot in the middle of the belt loop) and carries low on the waist (doesn't stick into your side, even when sitting). When I bought this knife and was watching reviews, I heard that if you push the knife to far into the sheath, it will stab into the bottom, and damage it. Knowing this, I tried to solve it, and what I did worked surprisingly well. (surprised the heck out of me actually) All I did was put the knife in the sheath to a depth that was just behind the point touching the end, and worked my thumbs around the edge of the scales. I simply rubbed my thumbs, and applied increasing pressure as the leather warmed up, and it worked like a charm. The only advise I would give, is to make sure your finger nails are cut as short as possible without pain. I say this because I put some scratches in the leather while I was doing it.
All in all, I love this knife, and it will probably be the only fixed blade that I will ever need. Thank you to everyone at Bark River, as well as Sharpshooter Sheath Systems, for a beautiful, functional, quality, and made in USA/Michigan (I'm a Michigander myself, Hoosier born though) product, that is very well priced, and valued for it's fantastic quality.
-Josh
I bought this knife to be paired with a hatchet, to be used for light woodwork/whittling, skinning, and food prep. (general woods purposes)
So far it has worked phenomenally. The first thing I did was shave with the factory edge, (which was extremely fun in a man moment type way haha) then begin to whittle a spoon form a relatively dense piece of wood. It worked very well in both tasks, and is my favorite whittling knife to date. It was comfortable in my hand, and the thickness/up-sweep of the spine gave me great control, and comfort for the first hour and a half-ish, then it began to get sore. Also the handle was extremely comfortable for draw cuts. I love the balance of the knife as well. it balances at the first pin from the blade, so when I hold it, the balance is just behind my index finger, so it feels very stable. After that (which wasn't, it was still hair poppin' sharp. This is my first Bark River knife, I truly enjoy using it, and I would recommend this model, to anyone who is looking for a general purpose knife that looks great and is a joy to use. I still have to see how it throws a spark. I wear a medium to large glove, and the handle fits my hand perfectly.
As for the sheath: It is extremely high quality, and is the best made sheath that I have owned to date. Also it is ambidextrous and can be worn cross for cross draw, as well as normal, (because of a slot in the middle of the belt loop) and carries low on the waist (doesn't stick into your side, even when sitting). When I bought this knife and was watching reviews, I heard that if you push the knife to far into the sheath, it will stab into the bottom, and damage it. Knowing this, I tried to solve it, and what I did worked surprisingly well. (surprised the heck out of me actually) All I did was put the knife in the sheath to a depth that was just behind the point touching the end, and worked my thumbs around the edge of the scales. I simply rubbed my thumbs, and applied increasing pressure as the leather warmed up, and it worked like a charm. The only advise I would give, is to make sure your finger nails are cut as short as possible without pain. I say this because I put some scratches in the leather while I was doing it.
All in all, I love this knife, and it will probably be the only fixed blade that I will ever need. Thank you to everyone at Bark River, as well as Sharpshooter Sheath Systems, for a beautiful, functional, quality, and made in USA/Michigan (I'm a Michigander myself, Hoosier born though) product, that is very well priced, and valued for it's fantastic quality.
-Josh
