Boker Arbolito "gaucho" knives

[silenthunterstudios]

I usually keep a crappy Tomahawk brand knife in my truck, it looks like a Tops knife, the sheath is already falling apart, but for a $15 knife (bought before I became a born again knife nut), it works surprisingly well. I also have a CRKT Falcon fixed in my center console for light work and the beginnings of a BOB. I bought a Boker Arbolito with the intention of it being a shelf knife, but I've used it several times and it performs pretty well. I'd like to have a larger "truck knife", and, mainly because of its size, I take this Arbolito with me all over the place. My question is this. Has anyone put this knife through the paces, anyone utilized it as a hard use knife? Through my own use of this knife, I really like it, but have not "hard used" it.

 

[MG_Saldivar]

I've never used the Boker gaucho (are you referring to the models sold by, say, AG Russell?), but I have a Boker fixed blade skinner that I bought for less than $40 from an eBay seller and it's great; easily one of my favorite knives ever.

The fit and finish are great; the blade is a beefy 3/8" thick (a little over, actually), and the wood scale grip has great ergonomics.

I've used a couple of Arbolito fixed blades over the years, and have handled a few different Boker models, and all have struck me as good deals for their price range. Needless to say, however, I wouldn't pay MSRP for a Boker.

 

[silenthunterstudios]

Well, for the light tasks I put mine through, it works great, but can it take hard abuse? Before I ruin mine and possibly void the warranty, I would like to hear from others in the forum. Thanks.

 

[Franciscomv]

I've used lots of Arbolito "Gaucho" knives over the years. They are a modern version of puñales and verijeros, used by gauchos.
Old Arbolito (Böker) blades were of excelent quality, they are very coveted by Argentinian knifemakers and rural workers, they have an almost legendary fame. All throughout our literature, whenever there is a knife fight between two gauchos, you'll find a mention of an Arbolito blade.

The modern blades are not half as good as the old ones, but they are still quite good. Unlickily, modern Argentinians use them as barbecue knives, instead of the tough work knives they are supossed to be, so the manufacturer started to make blades thinner and weaker.

The knives can be bought in stainless or carbon steel. I usually favour stainless, because of the lower maintenance, but Böker only offers the traditional "thick spine" in carbon steel. The tangs on all the blades are quite strong, although I mostly use the small blades (4 to 6 inches) so I can't really say how tough the bigger ones are. I guess I would choose another design if I wanted a blade over 6 inches to use as a camp knife, puñales aren't supossed to be much longer than that.

The small and medium models make great users and take quite a beating, although the tips are sometimes a bit fragile. They are easy to sharpen and really take a keen edge. You can get the blades and make your own handles, which I like a lot (it's really easy to get a nice looking stag or wood handle).

Another great source for "gaucho" blades is Herder of Solingen. I've been using one of their criollo blades for years.