- Joined
- Aug 17, 2011
- Messages
- 105
Definitely a much delayed review and I'm happy to finally share my experience. Had a blast reviewing the Production (mid-tech) Hiking Buddy, so without further ado...
I was pretty excited to see this piece of beautiful steel waiting for me. Prior to this I have only handled the 4 inch Fiddlebacks (+ machete) & I have been very excited to check out a smaller blade. Living in California, I typically carry and use folders and most of the fixed blades I own are either larger knives (8+ inches) or Moras (which typically only come out around the house or during a hike etc).
The Hiking Buddy as it came out of the box.
The Hiking Buddy with my humble collection of Fiddlebacks and WAS Knives (Badger in, Stainless Bushfinger, Bushcrafter, Bush Addler, and Production Hiking Buddy).
An extremely attractive firesteel included by our own Swonut.
Speaking of Suffolk Metal Work, I want to take a second to call out Swonut, he heard that the blade came a little dull and that my freehand sharpening skills were lacking and graciously offered to send me a balsawood strope. Now my freehand sharpening skills are poor at best but Swonut's stop definitely helped to improve the edge. I love the idea of carrying around such a light stope for use in the field.
Now I had waited several weeks for temperatures to cool down as I received the Hiking Buddy back in October around the time that San Diego was experiencing a record setting heat wave which lasted several months. Due to a mixture of 90-100 degree temperatures and a lack of free time I decided I would just have to test it up at home. As a result, I decided to do a little post-Halloween pumpkin carving and a couple stuff drinks.
I foolishly thought that there would still be pumpkins available a couple days after Halloween. For better or worse, this small squash was all that I could find. I knew this thing was going to be tricky to carve due to being harder than a pumpkin + much smaller but I thought the Production Hiking Buddy would be up to the task. I decided I was going to do 100% of the work with the hiking Buddy.
The final product. It was suppose to a Stormtrooper and I fully blade the the pre-pumpkin cocktails for my abstract art. Regardless, I had a hell of a time carving it and most importantly the job required that I use the Hiking Buddy in several different grips with mild to pretty hard pressure. I found the blade comfortable throughout the process. The small blade was easily able to get in close to things and I really appreciated the fine tip for detail work. The production hiking buddy would make a hell of a belt knife. It weights almost nothing and is small enough for detail work and large enough for tasks requiring a bit more oomph. Additionally, as much as I love 1095 and o1 the corrosion resistance of S35vn is hard to beat. Being able to stop midway to make a phone call, grab a bite etc without having to worry about wiping the blade and coming back to rust stops 20 minutes later is just fantastic. Once I learn to properly sharpen, I will definitely be investing in a s35vn woods bumming knife.
Project #2
Old Fashioned. As you can see the Hiking Buddy did admirably and allowed me to get orange peel even after its ordeal with the kombucha squash.
Project #3
Margarita. I love this picture of the lime. A beautifully thin sliver of lime show just how nicely the Hiking Buddy Slices and how easy the blade is to maneuver. The blade shape is just fantastic.
Lastly is the obligatory hand shots. If you cant tell already, I really liked the production Hiking Buddy. Although It doesnt have the same spirit of the handmade Fiddlebacks, its fantastic tool at a solid price. If I could change anything, I would have had it made at 3/32. With s35vn 3/32 is more than enough strength at 3.5 inches and I would love to have something that light for both carry and its incredible slicing ability. Although I wont liking be buying a production hiking buddy, this change to get my hands on a production Fiddleback have sold me on the quality of the Fiddleback production line and if the Production Kephart is indeed in 1/8 (vs 5/32) it will be joining my stable of blades.
A BIG THANKS to Andy and the rest of the Fiddleback Crew for making this pass around a possibility.
I was pretty excited to see this piece of beautiful steel waiting for me. Prior to this I have only handled the 4 inch Fiddlebacks (+ machete) & I have been very excited to check out a smaller blade. Living in California, I typically carry and use folders and most of the fixed blades I own are either larger knives (8+ inches) or Moras (which typically only come out around the house or during a hike etc).
The Hiking Buddy as it came out of the box.
The Hiking Buddy with my humble collection of Fiddlebacks and WAS Knives (Badger in, Stainless Bushfinger, Bushcrafter, Bush Addler, and Production Hiking Buddy).
An extremely attractive firesteel included by our own Swonut.
Speaking of Suffolk Metal Work, I want to take a second to call out Swonut, he heard that the blade came a little dull and that my freehand sharpening skills were lacking and graciously offered to send me a balsawood strope. Now my freehand sharpening skills are poor at best but Swonut's stop definitely helped to improve the edge. I love the idea of carrying around such a light stope for use in the field.
Now I had waited several weeks for temperatures to cool down as I received the Hiking Buddy back in October around the time that San Diego was experiencing a record setting heat wave which lasted several months. Due to a mixture of 90-100 degree temperatures and a lack of free time I decided I would just have to test it up at home. As a result, I decided to do a little post-Halloween pumpkin carving and a couple stuff drinks.
I foolishly thought that there would still be pumpkins available a couple days after Halloween. For better or worse, this small squash was all that I could find. I knew this thing was going to be tricky to carve due to being harder than a pumpkin + much smaller but I thought the Production Hiking Buddy would be up to the task. I decided I was going to do 100% of the work with the hiking Buddy.
The final product. It was suppose to a Stormtrooper and I fully blade the the pre-pumpkin cocktails for my abstract art. Regardless, I had a hell of a time carving it and most importantly the job required that I use the Hiking Buddy in several different grips with mild to pretty hard pressure. I found the blade comfortable throughout the process. The small blade was easily able to get in close to things and I really appreciated the fine tip for detail work. The production hiking buddy would make a hell of a belt knife. It weights almost nothing and is small enough for detail work and large enough for tasks requiring a bit more oomph. Additionally, as much as I love 1095 and o1 the corrosion resistance of S35vn is hard to beat. Being able to stop midway to make a phone call, grab a bite etc without having to worry about wiping the blade and coming back to rust stops 20 minutes later is just fantastic. Once I learn to properly sharpen, I will definitely be investing in a s35vn woods bumming knife.
Project #2
Old Fashioned. As you can see the Hiking Buddy did admirably and allowed me to get orange peel even after its ordeal with the kombucha squash.
Project #3
Margarita. I love this picture of the lime. A beautifully thin sliver of lime show just how nicely the Hiking Buddy Slices and how easy the blade is to maneuver. The blade shape is just fantastic.
Lastly is the obligatory hand shots. If you cant tell already, I really liked the production Hiking Buddy. Although It doesnt have the same spirit of the handmade Fiddlebacks, its fantastic tool at a solid price. If I could change anything, I would have had it made at 3/32. With s35vn 3/32 is more than enough strength at 3.5 inches and I would love to have something that light for both carry and its incredible slicing ability. Although I wont liking be buying a production hiking buddy, this change to get my hands on a production Fiddleback have sold me on the quality of the Fiddleback production line and if the Production Kephart is indeed in 1/8 (vs 5/32) it will be joining my stable of blades.
A BIG THANKS to Andy and the rest of the Fiddleback Crew for making this pass around a possibility.
