Byrd CaraCara use in jungle review and some tips

He had five other Cara Caras in his other bag!

I would have preferred a Ka-Bar fixed knife and a couple of rugged folders. I don't know what the knife laws were in that neck of the jungle.
 
I was in Venezuela backpacking in january-one month.
in the jungle our guide used a cheap kitchen-type knife about 9inch long.
I was upset that my becker-necker(s) did not arrived before our departure...
but I had my BM710 an a Leatherman Charge with me.
on the whole trip I used the Charge most.
incredible country. beautiful land.
 
Great question by Sal, and I look forward to the answer.

I also have one of my own. As someone who has the Delica 4 and the Endura 4, I'm wondering why you seem to prefer the Byrd Meadowlark in FRN to the Delica 4? They would seem pretty similar except for the unquestionably superior VG-10 steel in the Delica. I'm not disputing you, just interested in your answer.

Thanks!
 
Sal Glesser said:
Hi Pietje010,

Thanx much for the review and great pics.

I have a question for you.

The tasks of your knife, especially for the location of your experience are potentially dangerous if the knife failed.

Given your experience and skill, I don't think the Cara Cara was selected because of its low price. Why did you select this model for such an important job in such a remote location?

sal
Click to expand...

hi Sal,

Thanks for giving me that credit about my experience and skill. Not calling myself a Ray Mears of any other of the great outdoor-specialists..its just what I know from much smaller other trips and outdoor-activities in my young past. I just learn quick from my mistakes and make them helpful for the ones how are interested in this

Before answering your double question it has to been said that during my stay in Venezuela I never was in the position of depending my life on my knife. If this was the case wile planning the trip I would have chosen a solid 4-5 inch fixed knife as my main knife, to carry next to a folding knife (probably a Byrd), SAK and (if needed) a machete.

Second part of the question...‘’Why did you select this model for such an important job in such a remote location?’’ Wile packing my bag at home I had to make THE big chose of taking only one knife and a SAK in my PSK. I made a small selection from my knifes witch came down to my Victorinox OHT, fixed Mora, CaraCara and a Ontario TAK. It still is South-America so a easy-to-replace(good price)-to-good-quality-ratio was a very important issue. I chose the Cara-Cara because of its easy carrying, clip, stainlessness and low profile when around urban areas.

The lock is solid and I already had some experience with the knife, the knife just works good for me and I trust it. So why use a more expensive and/or higher quality knife like a Endura of even a Military?!?! Not that I have one of them but theoretically speaking. The only dangerous part of using the knife was by a ‘operator error’ (read: getting insured from doing something stupid like/or accidentally cutting myself). Some days we were only a maximum of 12 till 18 hours away from professional health-care considering getting back to civilisation, the tide and traffic.

greetings Pietje010
 
Confederate said:
He had five other Cara Caras in his other bag!

I would have preferred a Ka-Bar fixed knife and a couple of rugged folders. I don't know what the knife laws were in that neck of the jungle.
Click to expand...

Hi Confederate,

Didn’t get the joke till you told us…but okay;)

Just to be clear...only one good folder like the Cara-Cara and a SAK was enough for this type or tour. More ‘knife-dependable’ would been me bringing a fixedblade or two.

gr Pietje010
 
longbeachguy said:
Great question by Sal, and I look forward to the answer.

I also have one of my own. As someone who has the Delica 4 and the Endura 4, I'm wondering why you seem to prefer the Byrd Meadowlark in FRN to the Delica 4? They would seem pretty similar except for the unquestionably superior VG-10 steel in the Delica. I'm not disputing you, just interested in your answer.

Thanks!
Click to expand...


hey longbeachguy,

I do have a Meadowlark and Delica 4, both black FRN PE. Both are about the same and have the same type of use as urban EDC. The D4 has much better looks, super steel and better blade geometry. But I like the Meadowlark more for its grip and has just a sharp edge. Considering the retail price of a D4 in he store is about 95euro and a Meadowlark about 32euro...so replaceablement comes in mind to!

bye Pietje010
 
Hey, just the kind of review I was browsing for. I'm looking for something bigger than my Ladybug, and more comfy to hold than my Michael Walker(impulse buy). Basically want an everyday hassle, fishing, hiking type knife. Was a little shy about the Byrd line but this review makes me more confident.
 
neitron said:
Hey, just the kind of review I was browsing for. I'm looking for something bigger than my Ladybug, and more comfy to hold than my Michael Walker(impulse buy). Basically want an everyday hassle, fishing, hiking type knife. Was a little shy about the Byrd line but this review makes me more confident.
Click to expand...

I've got three Byrd knives (Cara Cara FRN PE, Robin G10 PE, and Crossbill PE). I've been VERY impressed with these knives, especially at their ridiculously low price. While my Manix is guaranteed to be my daily companion, my Cara Cara and Robin usually ride along, too.

The Cara Cara is a very solid, well laid out knife, with good geometry and an excellent tip. The Robin, while quite small, fits my hand very well, and is a good knife to use when people are around who are squeamish about knives. The Crossbill, while a bit hard to sharpen, is an excellent utility knife. The Cara Cara and Robin take an edge from my Sharpmaker that is amazing. I don't think I've been able to get an edge quite as crisp and clean from any other knife (Native VG10, Manix S30V, RAT7 D2), or that shaves so effortlessly.

The big problem I see with this steel is corrosion. A friend bought a Cara Cara for use while fishing and crabbing on the Puget Sound, and quickly noticed rust spots forming. I have small spots of rust on my Cara Cara, and I only use it occasionally around the house.

Does anyone have experience with these knives rusting? They're a form of stainless steel, though from Cliff Stamp's site (http://www.cutleryscience.com/reviews/blade_materials.html#S_8C13CrMoV) at 13% Chromium, it appears to be just barely stainless.

I like the knives, think they're a great deal at the price. I just don't like the rust.
 
Pietje010 said:
Hi Confederate,
Didn’t get the joke till you told us…but okay;)
Click to expand...
It's kind of like the Maxwell Smart thing. Max is on a dock looking for a Kaos agent when he comes across a crate with ticking. Sure it's a bomb, he blows it up and all these Timex watches falling all over the place. Max subsequently asks the shipper about the watches, and the shipper says, "You know all those commercials that show us throwing a watch off of Niagra Falls and then shows it's still working?"

"Yes," says Max. "But why do you need five thousand watches for that?"

"Because," the Timex rep says, "it doesn't always work the first time!"

Well, it wasn't Timex, but it was a spoof. Anyway, the reference to the other five Cara Caras in answer to the person who asked why the guy only relied on one knife was along the same lines.

Anyway, I won't quit my day job!

maxwell-smart.jpg
 
The only thing I don't like about the Cara Cara is that mine's all stainless.
I'd like to get some sort of adhesive tape made from the same sandpaper-like
material that Kershaw puts on the side of its Storm folders. (BTW, those,
too, are great knives.) That would make the Cara Caras much easier to
hold on to!

K1470.jpg

The black strips on this Kershaw Storm not only
make it easy to hold on to, it can remove callus from
the feet in no time. It also keeps people from borrowing
it! It would be great for use on the Cara Cara.
 
Mountainman38 said:
...The big problem I see with this steel is corrosion. A friend bought a Cara Cara for use while fishing and crabbing on the Puget Sound, and quickly noticed rust spots forming. I have small spots of rust on my Cara Cara, and I only use it occasionally around the house.

Does anyone have experience with these knives rusting? They're a form of stainless steel, though from Cliff Stamp's site (http://www.cutleryscience.com/reviews/blade_materials.html#S_8C13CrMoV) at 13% Chromium, it appears to be just barely stainless.

I like the knives, think they're a great deal at the price. I just don't like the rust.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean. The rust/corrosion started not long after using mine in sea water. Only on the hollow-grind part formed small spots (see picture) that was easy to remove. But It didn’t effect the cutting ability IMO.

Using it around fresh water, cutting fruits with high acids levels (like lemons and pinaples) and a high humidity didn’t effect the steel directly. It’s strange that your knife has small spots of rust from using it around the house. But like I said in my thread starting post, it is expected from a stainless steel to forms rust in time..it isnt stain-free;)


copy from http://www.cutleryscience.com/reviews/blade_materials.html#S_8C13CrMoV: ''8C13CrMoV high carbon stainless steel with a a relatively low alloy content. There is a small amount of vanadium for grain refinement and molybdenum for corrosion resistance. With a small amount of vanadium and molybdenum carbides, 8C13CrMoV would have a carbon chromium ratio of 0.75-0.80:13 which puts it very close to the critical tie line for C/Cr stainless steels.''
 
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