I recently went through the whole Busse or Fehrman knife thing. I decided on a Fehrman First Strike kit, the one that comes with the Thru Hiker mounted to the FS kydex case. I figured its the best of both worlds. I can chop when needed with a 7" blade, or use the Thru Hiker for fine cuts if needed. This thread helped make my decision, so thank you all for your input.
Has anyone ever experienced the edge chipping? http://www.cutleryscience.com/reviews/extreme_judgement.html This review suggests the edge is prone to cracking/chipping under hard use. I was wondering if this was a problem that has been fixed or not.
I own 4 Fehrman blades. I have used them all and very hard! I believe their steel and heat treat is some of the best on the market today. I have never had one problem with them. They are top quality tools that are to be used hard. I never put much stock in Cliff Stamps reviews.
I have also put my Fehrmans through the wringer MANY times and have NEVER had an issue with their edges chipping or rolling. As a matter of fact, I've got a First Strike that has been used repeatedly for lots of rough tasks and all I've ever had to do was strop it a bit at the end of the day. B
In reference to the failure noted at -20 degrees F batoning using an axe through hard frozen wood with knots in it would be a pretty tough test of just about any knife. It was extreme enough to cause the coating to fail. The lesson here is stick to axes when chopping wood in extreme cold. I'd bet that some steels would have done much worse in these conditions. 3V is a pretty clean, high grade steel with few impurities and an excellent grain structure that works really well in choppers. Even modern "supersteels" have their limits I guess.
Own a Last Chance and just ordered a First Strike. The LC is my favorite knife and will take serious abuse. I prefer the edge on the Fehrman over my Busse. I had to sharpen my Busse one time in the field and having two different edges on either side of the blade was a bit of a chore. Like them both as they are top of the food chain but I wold grab my Fehrman 1st.
No way. My Last Chance was punished in the afgan desert to an extreme for 1 year and no chips. It was used as a pry bar in rock and battoned rock numerous times. I dug holes with it and even participated in a knife throwing contest using the side of a rock cliff as a backdrop. I saw knifes fail but not the Fehrman. I am also the owner of Mad Dog, Strider, Busse and several hard core master made Japaneese knives and I will take my Fehrman 1st. I have several good 1095.s but they just dont hold an edge long enough for me when under harsh use.
after chopping some hard mesquite several times with the black coating, i would opt for the satin in future. the black finish is real tuff & has shown no wear but black blades are crazy in the field. a black chopper is like a non carbon hunter in the bush. it's a emotional thing with me & probably would'nt make sense to younger people. a hunting knife w/o patina is as weird as neon in the bush. my next ferhman will be satin. dennis
Definitely my favorite. I am just not into black blades. Agree with Dennis Strickland above. I hear so much about rust but my father did 3 tours in Viet Nam with camillus pilots survival knife and abused the hell out of it with it looking very used but no rust. I will deploy soon and that LC satin is again the knife I will take for at least 6-12 months of daily field duty. This will be its second tour with me and I wish I had a video of the harsh duty it has seen. Just my opinion but Fehrman makes the best option out ther for me. Since my first tour, other guys in my unit have ordered and will be carrying Fehrmans. Semper Fi
