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Hello everybody.
Some time ago I received the Candiru knife from Randall's Adventure & Training / ESEE Knives. After three weeks of daily use as an EDC tool, in several different environments, I would like to share with you my thoughts about this knife
About myself
I’m a biologist, a knife designer, an avid outdoorsman, I write on regular basis articles about knives and bushcraft skills for the Italian magazine Lame d’autore http://www.lamedautore.com/ That said, I’m not exceptional anyhow, I’m not an adventurer, I’m not a soldier. My review bears on the activities of an average person, just as I am.
ESEE Knives
From the company internet site http://eseeknives.com/index.html: “For more than 17 years, Randall's Adventure Training / ESEE Knives has provided the necessary gear and training to survive some of the most remote locales on earth …
We train law enforcement officers, SAR personnel, NGOs, agents, and outdoorsmen in critical skillsets, including land navigation, wilderness survival, improvised wilderness medical techniques, man tracking and other life-saving skills ...
Real survival can be extremely hard work, both mentally and physically, and rarely resembles the entertainment value shown on 'survival' TV. We distill our training and tools down to the ground truth of what works based on years of experience. " says Jeff Randall, President of Randall's Adventure Training (sister company to ESEE Knives).
In few words, the knives made by ESEE are, according to the Company, the results of a real, though and extensive field experience. We will see in our test how the Candiru knife will perform.
The knife itself
The Candiru it’s a small and compact knife. With the exception of the AH-1 Arrowhead, the Candiru it’s the smallest cutting tool in the ESEE catalogue. The blade of the well knowed ESEE Izula is 0.63” longer than the Candiru blade. Other neck knives, as the Fox Compso or the Extrema Ratio NK1 are a bit longer, or at least not shorter than the Candiru. The Candiru it’s shorter than a 91mm SAK, also.
From the ESEE site, here below the specs of the Candiru:
Overall Length: 5.13"
Cutting Edge Length: 2.0"
Weight: 1.7 Ounces
Drop Point Blade Style
Maximum Thickness: .125"
1095 Carbon Steel - 55-57 Rc.
Textured Powder Coat Finish
Skeletonized Handle
Molded Sheath
The Candiru knife it’s available in six different colors:
CAN-B (Black With Black Sheath)
CAN-OD (OD With Black Sheath)
CAN-DT(Desert Tan With Black Sheath)
CAN-DE (Dark Earth With Black Sheath)
CAN-PURP (Purple With Clear/White Sheath)
CAN-PINK (Pink With Clear/White Sheath)
Again, optional handles in two colors are available:
CAN-HDL-CNV (Canvas Micarta Handles)
CAN-HDL-OR (Orange G10 Handles)
The name Candiru comes from a species of parasitic freshwater catfish in the family Trichomycteridae, native to the Amazon Basin where it is found in the countries of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. These smaller species are known for an alleged tendency to invade and parasitize the human urethra. To be short: it is a small, nasty fish, better to not to meet.
FIRST FEELINGS (score 7,0/10), FIT AND FINISH (6,0/10)
When the Candiru landed here, my first feeling was not a clear “wow!”, as I thought i.e. the first time I handled the Izula. In fact the Candiru hasn’t the same elegant and still powerful shape of the Izula, IMHO. Therefore, my first thought was something like “uhm, nice but not a beauty”. Anyway, when I started to handle the knife and to take contact with him, my feeling was gradually better: I was fascinating by a so small but comfortable knife. Fit and finish levels of the Candiru are good enough, even if non top notch; I mean we are not speaking about a piece of art in terms of fit and finish, clearly the Candiru it’s a rough, robust cutting tool in the very true “ESEE style”, and I like it to be honest
When I started to apply the orange handles, my feeling was even better: first, because the orange it’s a favorite color of mine, second because the Candiru handles are smooth and well rounded, just comfortable and…wait a moment! I realized that the screws furnished with the handles were a bit too long to fix firmly the handles to the knife, let’s say a couple millimeters too long. Uhm…well, no panic. A sort of plastic credit card with survival instructions was with the knife. The thickness was just right, so I cutted down two liners shaped like the Candiru handles, using the scissors of my SAK, and in few minutes all was perfectly fixed… I like the handles even more this way! BTW, I needed a Torx T9 key to act the screws
THE BLADE (score 7,5/10) AND THE HANDLE (score 6,5/10)
The Candiru blade has a drop-point shape, and has a sort of false high-scandi grind with a micro-bevel. No false-edge at all. On the spine blade there is a knurling, placed in the right place for the thumb.
The naked Candiru handle it’s well shaped and rounded, but I like it far more with the optional handles: they add comfortability and make the use of the knife safer. In addition, they make the knife far more visible. We are speaking about a very short handle, of course you may not ask for the best handle in the world in terms of comfort, anyway being a neck knife it’s fairly good. No lanyard hole when the handles are fixed to the tang, this is a lack in my opinion, I’d like a lanyard to secure better the knife to my wrist for hard uses.
Candiru comes from the factory sharp enough to cut paper, it’s not a razor but I was not waiting for it being the Candiru more in the “survival” side, so not a problem for me
The steel used for the Candiru it’s the 1095. 1095 high carbon steel is a very good choice for knives designed for hard use, anyway it will rust and stain if not properly cared for, according to ESEE especially on the cutting edge and around the laser engraving. ESEE said “It is the user's responsibility to keep the blades properly lubricated and cleaned. We suggest using a dry film rust inhibitor such as TUF-GLIDE or TUF-CLOTH.”
Some time ago I received the Candiru knife from Randall's Adventure & Training / ESEE Knives. After three weeks of daily use as an EDC tool, in several different environments, I would like to share with you my thoughts about this knife
About myself
I’m a biologist, a knife designer, an avid outdoorsman, I write on regular basis articles about knives and bushcraft skills for the Italian magazine Lame d’autore http://www.lamedautore.com/ That said, I’m not exceptional anyhow, I’m not an adventurer, I’m not a soldier. My review bears on the activities of an average person, just as I am.
ESEE Knives
From the company internet site http://eseeknives.com/index.html: “For more than 17 years, Randall's Adventure Training / ESEE Knives has provided the necessary gear and training to survive some of the most remote locales on earth …
We train law enforcement officers, SAR personnel, NGOs, agents, and outdoorsmen in critical skillsets, including land navigation, wilderness survival, improvised wilderness medical techniques, man tracking and other life-saving skills ...
Real survival can be extremely hard work, both mentally and physically, and rarely resembles the entertainment value shown on 'survival' TV. We distill our training and tools down to the ground truth of what works based on years of experience. " says Jeff Randall, President of Randall's Adventure Training (sister company to ESEE Knives).
In few words, the knives made by ESEE are, according to the Company, the results of a real, though and extensive field experience. We will see in our test how the Candiru knife will perform.
The knife itself
The Candiru it’s a small and compact knife. With the exception of the AH-1 Arrowhead, the Candiru it’s the smallest cutting tool in the ESEE catalogue. The blade of the well knowed ESEE Izula is 0.63” longer than the Candiru blade. Other neck knives, as the Fox Compso or the Extrema Ratio NK1 are a bit longer, or at least not shorter than the Candiru. The Candiru it’s shorter than a 91mm SAK, also.
From the ESEE site, here below the specs of the Candiru:
Overall Length: 5.13"
Cutting Edge Length: 2.0"
Weight: 1.7 Ounces
Drop Point Blade Style
Maximum Thickness: .125"
1095 Carbon Steel - 55-57 Rc.
Textured Powder Coat Finish
Skeletonized Handle
Molded Sheath
The Candiru knife it’s available in six different colors:
CAN-B (Black With Black Sheath)
CAN-OD (OD With Black Sheath)
CAN-DT(Desert Tan With Black Sheath)
CAN-DE (Dark Earth With Black Sheath)
CAN-PURP (Purple With Clear/White Sheath)
CAN-PINK (Pink With Clear/White Sheath)
Again, optional handles in two colors are available:
CAN-HDL-CNV (Canvas Micarta Handles)
CAN-HDL-OR (Orange G10 Handles)
The name Candiru comes from a species of parasitic freshwater catfish in the family Trichomycteridae, native to the Amazon Basin where it is found in the countries of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. These smaller species are known for an alleged tendency to invade and parasitize the human urethra. To be short: it is a small, nasty fish, better to not to meet.
FIRST FEELINGS (score 7,0/10), FIT AND FINISH (6,0/10)
When the Candiru landed here, my first feeling was not a clear “wow!”, as I thought i.e. the first time I handled the Izula. In fact the Candiru hasn’t the same elegant and still powerful shape of the Izula, IMHO. Therefore, my first thought was something like “uhm, nice but not a beauty”. Anyway, when I started to handle the knife and to take contact with him, my feeling was gradually better: I was fascinating by a so small but comfortable knife. Fit and finish levels of the Candiru are good enough, even if non top notch; I mean we are not speaking about a piece of art in terms of fit and finish, clearly the Candiru it’s a rough, robust cutting tool in the very true “ESEE style”, and I like it to be honest
When I started to apply the orange handles, my feeling was even better: first, because the orange it’s a favorite color of mine, second because the Candiru handles are smooth and well rounded, just comfortable and…wait a moment! I realized that the screws furnished with the handles were a bit too long to fix firmly the handles to the knife, let’s say a couple millimeters too long. Uhm…well, no panic. A sort of plastic credit card with survival instructions was with the knife. The thickness was just right, so I cutted down two liners shaped like the Candiru handles, using the scissors of my SAK, and in few minutes all was perfectly fixed… I like the handles even more this way! BTW, I needed a Torx T9 key to act the screws
THE BLADE (score 7,5/10) AND THE HANDLE (score 6,5/10)
The Candiru blade has a drop-point shape, and has a sort of false high-scandi grind with a micro-bevel. No false-edge at all. On the spine blade there is a knurling, placed in the right place for the thumb.
The naked Candiru handle it’s well shaped and rounded, but I like it far more with the optional handles: they add comfortability and make the use of the knife safer. In addition, they make the knife far more visible. We are speaking about a very short handle, of course you may not ask for the best handle in the world in terms of comfort, anyway being a neck knife it’s fairly good. No lanyard hole when the handles are fixed to the tang, this is a lack in my opinion, I’d like a lanyard to secure better the knife to my wrist for hard uses.
Candiru comes from the factory sharp enough to cut paper, it’s not a razor but I was not waiting for it being the Candiru more in the “survival” side, so not a problem for me
The steel used for the Candiru it’s the 1095. 1095 high carbon steel is a very good choice for knives designed for hard use, anyway it will rust and stain if not properly cared for, according to ESEE especially on the cutting edge and around the laser engraving. ESEE said “It is the user's responsibility to keep the blades properly lubricated and cleaned. We suggest using a dry film rust inhibitor such as TUF-GLIDE or TUF-CLOTH.”
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