First Saturday In The Woods in 2015

Mistwalker

Mistwalker

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Joined
Dec 22, 2007
Messages
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A few crappy phone pics from the hike yesterday. It was foggy and rainy, and the lighting was poor...

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ErichM said:
How did the Monarch do?
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abrasion said:
Do tell...
How does it stack up compared to the Hiking Buddy and the KEBushie?
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Well, this question is a little complex in a way. In my opinion I like the Monarch a little better than the Hiking Buddy for a few reasons. While it isn't much longer than a HB..maybe half an inch or so, the blade is wider and the handle is taller. The taller and thinner handle gives me more control over the blade in carving and whittling and where twisting of the blade is involved. I also like the way the handle feels in in an inverted grip, and I like the amount of "intent" designed into this knife. I think it makes a great edc that is very capable without being overly large. I like that it doesn't have an excessive amount of handle, this helps me with discrete carry, but larger-handed fellows may not like it quite as much as I do. It's almost like there should be models of it...Esquire, Knight, and then a larger one that was the Monarch, but that's just my own thinking...
 
Hey Mist..
I'm just wondering how the Monarch, 2Finger Karda and WAS knives Cuda compare to each other? I'm looking for a good EDC fixed blade and something to compliment a 5-6 inch blade. Thank you.
 
I see some good fishing holes in those pics. The monarch sure doesn't have an excessive handle. If it wasn't for its width, I'd say it was a small handle. The blade on my Monarch is very bushfingerish.

Nice pics Mist!:thumbup:
 
After all the rain last night .. I bet the trail was a sloppy mess.
 
Looks like a tough day for photos but a great knife. I look forward to hearing more about it.
 
VANCE said:
They are all good but the last photo is exceptional.
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Thanks Vance. The phone will likely never satisfy me...being used to my DSLRs...but man it makes hiking much more enjoyable :)


Vayu said:
Thanks for posting. Looks like a gem of a spot.
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One of my favorites for the last forty years :D


Smiddy said:
Nice..! Really appreciate all the posts.
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Thanks man!


CAD said:
Very nice...appreciate all your pics!!

Chris D.:D
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Thanks Chris, I'm glad you like them man!


Smiddy said:
Hey Mist..
I'm just wondering how the Monarch, 2Finger Karda and WAS knives Cuda compare to each other? I'm looking for a good EDC fixed blade and something to compliment a 5-6 inch blade. Thank you.
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I can't speak to the Cuda yet, but the Monarch is much bigger than the 2FK, and a little bigger than the Bushboot I tend to edc.


Joe Duder said:
I see some good fishing holes in those pics. The monarch sure doesn't have an excessive handle. If it wasn't for its width, I'd say it was a small handle. The blade on my Monarch is very bushfingerish.

Nice pics Mist!:thumbup:
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Thanks Josiah! The fish in the streams here are very small. The rains come and produce a lot of white water and wash the larger ones down into the river. Definitely not excessive, but with my fondness of more discrete carry in urbanized environments I am good with that :)


bonafide said:
After all the rain last night .. I bet the trail was a sloppy mess.
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Saturday wasn't so bad, but after the storms saturday night, Sunday hiking with my daughter the trails were much like hiking through streams and waterfalls :)



trestle said:
Looks like a tough day for photos but a great knife. I look forward to hearing more about it.
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The Monarch is a gorgeous knife, and very capable. It was only tough because of the camera being used. It wouldn't have been an issue with one of my real cameras :)
 
mistwalker said:
Thanks Vance. The phone will likely never satisfy me...being used to my DSLRs...but man it makes hiking much more enjoyable :)
...
The Monarch is a gorgeous knife, and very capable. It was only tough because of the camera being used. It wouldn't have been an issue with one of my real cameras :)
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What do you shoot with? I used to always shoot with a D800 and enjoyed it until I bought a Nikon V1 for my fiance. After lugging around my FF, and all the other necessities, for 2 weeks through Cambodia I decided to give a mirrorless a try. A few months into owning my O-MD E-M5 I sold off all my other gear. I'm not printing billboard sized pictures so I never see a serious IQ issue with it. Now my entire system (Body, Lenses, Tripod, Flash, Filters, and extra Batteries) weighs just a little bit more than my D800 and 80-200 f2.8

I found that I carry the Olympus a heck of a lot more often than I did the Nikon and always have room for it in my pack. Was able to drop my pack size by 20 liters and still have room to pack stuff for the fiance and kid when we go camping. New system takes up about 10 Liters of pack space and because of the weight difference I don't need such a large tripod anymore either.
 
When I am out working I use a D90 so I usually shoot a series of photos for play with it too. But packing that extra weight on hikes takes some of the fun out of it so I have been playing with my phone more and looking into a smaller more portable camera that has a fast enough f stop and good enough image processor, and will work in low light well enough to suit me for such trips...but that will fit in my pocket
 
mistwalker said:
When I am out working I use a D90 so I usually shoot a series of photos for play with it too. But packing that extra weight on hikes takes some of the fun out of it so I have been playing with my phone more and looking into a smaller more portable camera that has a fast enough f stop and good enough image processor, and will work in low light well enough to suit me for such trips...but that will fit in my pocket
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I got rid of my Canon 60D and all my gear and purchased a Fuji mirrorless. I've been building that system slowly but surely. However, it to is just too much at times. I picked up a Sony RX100 II and it has been a phenomenal little camera to just have on me at all times. I still grab my phone more often then the Sony, but if I want a nice shot . . . the Sony does the trick. f1.8 - f4.9 and it handles noise well in the higher ISOs
 
I second Condor, that Sony is a sweet little system. If you want something larger you could take a look at the Fuji X100S. In fact, if you are interested in trying out the Fuji I can ship you one to test. Definitely won't be fitting it in any standard size pockets though.

Check into the Micro 4/3 stuff. Some amazing lenses for it from multiple companies. Olympus right now has the Pro line that is kicking butt, a 12-40 and a 40-150 (2x Crop Factor) f2.8 and are scheduled to release a 7-14 f2.8 and a 300 f4. I was worried that I would lose some shots by switching to an "inferior" sensor but I haven't had that issue. I've still managed to sell some to travel magazines in Asia and my customers for product photography are still happy.

When this Oly first arrived the first thing I did was weigh both systems. Fully decked out I dropped around 15 pounds in the switch (while adding my macro to my standard load) and couldn't be happier.

ETA: Here is one that I took in Bacolod, Philippines last year.

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