Hi folks, I promised I would do a review of this knife so here it is.
Bear with me on my first review, I've chucked in a couple of tips too, things I'm sure most of you know, little nuggets passed from father to son.
So, to the knife:
Specs: 1095 steel, full tang, 7 1/4 full length, 3" cutting length. Nickel silver bolsters and end cap's, Mexican Boycote scales. Comes with a full leather sheath.
Pictured alongside a Tidioute #73L for comparison, as you can see the similarities are obvious, the main difference being slightly longer blade length due to a more pronounced choil.
Seen from above you can see that the Hunter has slightly thicker blade stock than the #73, a nice taper, leaving strength at the tip and nicely executed swedges.
Build, Aesthetic's
I've chosen a couple of similar sized fixed blades to picture it alongside, a Svord 320BB and a Roselli Carpenter. Besides blade lengths which are pretty similar these are quite different knives which perform differently so a comparison isn't fair. Rather, I'm using them as a prop to discuss the ethos behind fixed blades as you'll see.
So, build is good, nicely executed and finished, shaping is a touch uneven here and there but no glaring issues like gaps or wobbly bits. The edge grind was even (I have convexed the edge). The knife is weighted nicely and feels like a quality piece. The scales are nicely matched, one has what looks like a growth flaw or shake but won't be an issue. If this was a custom piece then it would bother me.
I've included this pic to show the grade of leather used on the sheath and it's design. I actually quite like this design but it is quite bulky. I like the protection offered by a button down flap, the sheath is well made with heavy, saddle leather and is built to last! If you didn't like the sheath then there are plenty of lighter sheaths on the market (one well known GEC dealer does a very nice one). I can see myself throwing this knife in a pack for camping so the shape wouldn't bother me too much but if you were in and out of vehicles for example it would get in the way.
Usability:
Here's where the comparison with the other two knives becomes relevant. I've been thinking about this and I don't know about you but for me when I pick up a fixed blade I automatically expect a little more from it than a folder.
I chose to cut some green wood and make a simple tent peg with the knife. This is a nice exercise to test cutting ability, control and comfort. To be honest the Hunter does not perform as well as the other two with this task. The above pic shows relative handle thickness to the other two knives, as you can see, the GEC is relatively slim (the same as the #73 folding knife).The Full flat grind is a factor but the handle size and thickness is also of equal importance in my view. When working the knife hard the relatively small, slim handle does not allow you to exert the same pressure as the other knives. There is another issue relating to the depth of the blade in relation to the handle depth. In the image below you can see that the edge of the Hunter's blade sits lower than the lower edge of the handle. The Roselli's blade does the opposite with the handle being deeper than the blade. What that does is offer you greater control when doing detailed carving work for example because with the Roselli you can use the wider handle as a lever against the narrower blade. The Svord knife has a deeper blade too like the Hunter but its thicker handle negates this control issue. I stress,this is only a problem when working hard material in detail.
here's the knife with the finished tent peg, I had to resist the urge to reach for one of the others. having said that the knife performed capably enough and did the task without too much struggle.
So what is the knife good at...? Well, I wouldn't hesitate to throw this my pack for camping, the blade excels at food prep (as long as you're OK with the carbon taste, not a bother for me
), will work wood if needed (you could argue for a finer beveled edge, this would improve its ability with wood but edge rolling could become a problem with 1095). The blade profile looks perfect for dressing small game to me (drop point, nice belly and acute tip), the bunnies in the field next to me are still a touch small but looking forward to trying it out in a few months. I'll update
I didn't have much to food prep but it happily handled my staple apple diet.
So, a couple of tips for if you are pushed to work green wood that is a little larger than the knife you are carrying can handle.
1. Use the properties of the wood in your favour.
By bending the branch before cutting it you put the wood under tension, then use the knife to cut the top of the bend (the area under tension). A word of caution, if you bend too much the wood may split when cut, potentially ruining what you want to use.
2. Crown cut the wood.
If you are worried about the wood splitting or you have a larger piece to cut you can crown cut it. Choose the point where you want to cut and make 45 degree cuts all the way round the stem before gently breaking the piece off above the cut. If it is a larger piece (still less than the length of your blade) you can use a piece of wood to baton against the spine of the blade. Be careful not to let the bolster make contact with the stem whilst doing this as you may damage the bolster.
This shot shows the end of the stem once you have broken off the piece you want.
Conclusion: Sorry if I've digressed slightly but it had some relevance in my mind to getting the most out of a knife like this. Ultimately a small utility camp knife capable of dressing small game. Nicely made (I'd like to see what it would look like with the curved bolsters of the #72 lockback). What would I change? Slightly thicker handle and a convex grind from Bark River
Thanks for looking
Sam
Bear with me on my first review, I've chucked in a couple of tips too, things I'm sure most of you know, little nuggets passed from father to son.
So, to the knife:
Specs: 1095 steel, full tang, 7 1/4 full length, 3" cutting length. Nickel silver bolsters and end cap's, Mexican Boycote scales. Comes with a full leather sheath.
Pictured alongside a Tidioute #73L for comparison, as you can see the similarities are obvious, the main difference being slightly longer blade length due to a more pronounced choil.
Seen from above you can see that the Hunter has slightly thicker blade stock than the #73, a nice taper, leaving strength at the tip and nicely executed swedges.
Build, Aesthetic's
I've chosen a couple of similar sized fixed blades to picture it alongside, a Svord 320BB and a Roselli Carpenter. Besides blade lengths which are pretty similar these are quite different knives which perform differently so a comparison isn't fair. Rather, I'm using them as a prop to discuss the ethos behind fixed blades as you'll see.
So, build is good, nicely executed and finished, shaping is a touch uneven here and there but no glaring issues like gaps or wobbly bits. The edge grind was even (I have convexed the edge). The knife is weighted nicely and feels like a quality piece. The scales are nicely matched, one has what looks like a growth flaw or shake but won't be an issue. If this was a custom piece then it would bother me.
I've included this pic to show the grade of leather used on the sheath and it's design. I actually quite like this design but it is quite bulky. I like the protection offered by a button down flap, the sheath is well made with heavy, saddle leather and is built to last! If you didn't like the sheath then there are plenty of lighter sheaths on the market (one well known GEC dealer does a very nice one). I can see myself throwing this knife in a pack for camping so the shape wouldn't bother me too much but if you were in and out of vehicles for example it would get in the way.
Usability:
Here's where the comparison with the other two knives becomes relevant. I've been thinking about this and I don't know about you but for me when I pick up a fixed blade I automatically expect a little more from it than a folder.
I chose to cut some green wood and make a simple tent peg with the knife. This is a nice exercise to test cutting ability, control and comfort. To be honest the Hunter does not perform as well as the other two with this task. The above pic shows relative handle thickness to the other two knives, as you can see, the GEC is relatively slim (the same as the #73 folding knife).The Full flat grind is a factor but the handle size and thickness is also of equal importance in my view. When working the knife hard the relatively small, slim handle does not allow you to exert the same pressure as the other knives. There is another issue relating to the depth of the blade in relation to the handle depth. In the image below you can see that the edge of the Hunter's blade sits lower than the lower edge of the handle. The Roselli's blade does the opposite with the handle being deeper than the blade. What that does is offer you greater control when doing detailed carving work for example because with the Roselli you can use the wider handle as a lever against the narrower blade. The Svord knife has a deeper blade too like the Hunter but its thicker handle negates this control issue. I stress,this is only a problem when working hard material in detail.
here's the knife with the finished tent peg, I had to resist the urge to reach for one of the others. having said that the knife performed capably enough and did the task without too much struggle.
So what is the knife good at...? Well, I wouldn't hesitate to throw this my pack for camping, the blade excels at food prep (as long as you're OK with the carbon taste, not a bother for me
), will work wood if needed (you could argue for a finer beveled edge, this would improve its ability with wood but edge rolling could become a problem with 1095). The blade profile looks perfect for dressing small game to me (drop point, nice belly and acute tip), the bunnies in the field next to me are still a touch small but looking forward to trying it out in a few months. I'll updateI didn't have much to food prep but it happily handled my staple apple diet.
So, a couple of tips for if you are pushed to work green wood that is a little larger than the knife you are carrying can handle.
1. Use the properties of the wood in your favour.
By bending the branch before cutting it you put the wood under tension, then use the knife to cut the top of the bend (the area under tension). A word of caution, if you bend too much the wood may split when cut, potentially ruining what you want to use.
2. Crown cut the wood.
If you are worried about the wood splitting or you have a larger piece to cut you can crown cut it. Choose the point where you want to cut and make 45 degree cuts all the way round the stem before gently breaking the piece off above the cut. If it is a larger piece (still less than the length of your blade) you can use a piece of wood to baton against the spine of the blade. Be careful not to let the bolster make contact with the stem whilst doing this as you may damage the bolster.
This shot shows the end of the stem once you have broken off the piece you want.
Conclusion: Sorry if I've digressed slightly but it had some relevance in my mind to getting the most out of a knife like this. Ultimately a small utility camp knife capable of dressing small game. Nicely made (I'd like to see what it would look like with the curved bolsters of the #72 lockback). What would I change? Slightly thicker handle and a convex grind from Bark River
Thanks for looking
Sam
