Helle Eggen

N

nick.bodnar

Joined
May 2, 2009
Messages
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Hello everyone, being my first post I will introduce myself. My name is Nick and I am from North Carolina. I have been interested in the hobby of bushcraft and am looking for a good all around and reasonably affordable knife.

Through a bit of research and personal preference I seem to like the Helle Eggen. What do you guys think of this knife? As far as blade style, handle, length, and sheath I like everything about it. What I am not sure about is the weight. Is this knife, at about 3.5 ounces (correct me if i'm wrong), too light or am I over analyzing this?

I definitely like heavier knives and am curious to know of other knives like the Eggen that are possibly a bit heavier, or maybe clarification regarding why the Eggen is lighter and if it could be beneficial to me.

Oh, and one more thing, the Eggen is not full tang, or is it? The blade runs to the butt of the handle but not as wide as the handle. Will this affect the knife and is it not considered full tang?

Thanks

Nick
 
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Nick,
Welcome to Bladeforums! I have owned an Eggen before, and here are my thoughts. It is a stick tang, not a full tang, so it will be lighter by nature (not as much steel in the tang). But stick tangs are still plenty tough, fit for most tasks short of outright abuse. The Eggen is a nice slicer, with the relatively thin blade, and makes a nice hunter as well. But you won't be able to beat the crap out of it like you would a full tang knife, like a RAT or a Bark River. It holds a nice edge (the steel, although stainless, is very nice 12c27, I believe). And the scandi grind is very easy to sharpen, especially for the sharpening-impaired:D. My main gripe with the knife was the handle. It just didn't feel right, maybe it was not contoured very well to my hand shape. Nothing a session on the belt sander wouldn't fix, but I was too lazy to take it that far. Helle knives are a good value, and you have a nice variety to choose from. Think of them as premium Moras. For something a little beefier than the Helle, consider the Enzo. You can get them in full or stick tang, in finished knives or kits. Check them out:
https://www.brisa.fi/portal/index.php?option=com_oscommerce&osMod=index&cPath=119_113
 
I have a Helle Eggen and it makes a great woods knife. I've not baton'ed with it as I usually have a axe along, but I believe it could stand up to it. I figure since my Mora 2000 (stick tang also) stood up to it, so should my Helle Eggen. Helle makes a good knife & I like the fact that it is a laminated blade with a carbon steel center layer. As for it's ergonomics, it feels good to me. I previously had a Helle Fjellkniven, that felt to small to me so I got the Eggen and it felt better. The only issue I have is that the wood handle is smooth & feels slick. Don't want to sand it to make it rough & possibly loose in the sheath. Trying to find a good wood stain that would make it feel tacky.

The Enzos that raindog101 mentions are good knives too. I also suggest looking at the RAT Cutlery RC-3.
 
Halfneck said:
I have a Helle Eggen and it makes a great woods knife. I've not baton'ed with it as I usually have a axe along, but I believe it could stand up to it. I figure since my Mora 2000 (stick tang also) stood up to it, so should my Helle Eggen. (Rest of post deleted).
Click to expand...

Just a clarification, I think the Mora 2000 isn't a stick tang, it looks more flat and goes through 3/4ths of the handle. Here's the pic from the threads of x-rays of moras to show their tangs:
med_1216241748-mora_xray.jpg


Not pretending to be an expert, just an observation. Your point about being able to hold up to batoning is still good :D
 
Ultraman - I did not clarify myself well on the tangs, thanks for pointing it out. Mostly just threw it out there for a batoning comparison.
 
I think I am going to go with the Enzo Trapper, a bit more expensive except it is full tang and as raindog put it, "a bit beefier".
 
I think the Trapper is a nice choice. I had one for a while, traded it but it was not because the knife was deficient in any way. I had the O1, seemed to work well, but many swear by D2. It's up to your preferences. I think you'll be happy with the full tang, but I find myself strangely attracted to this one:
https://www.brisa.fi/portal/index.php?option=com_oscommerce&osMod=product_info&cPath=119_138&products_id=1153
index2.php

It has a nice classic look to it. And I think the stick tangs will hold up just fine to most anything you would use a knife for. And, by the by, the D2 IS a tool steel, as is O1. D2 is a bit harder than O1, so it's a bit more difficult to sharpen, but holds an edge longer. You can't go wrong with either, but I'd go with D2 only because it's not that much more expensive than O1 on the knives that Brisa sells. You'll have to post some pics when it gets here, maybe wander over to W&SS and post a mini-review. And congrats on the impending purchase!
 
Great knife. The stick tang goes all the way through. I carried one on a backpacking trip in the San Juan mountains in Colorado, then gave it to a nephew who has a Scout troop in Texas. Great cutter, light, ergonomic. The steel, like most Helle blades, is a triple laminate stainless steel, a sandwich of tough stainless panels with a core of high carbon steel. It is especially made for Helle, and does not correspond to any of the standard types of steel. High carbon steel is tougher than stainless, easier to sharpen and holds a superior edge. The composition of the high carbon steel core is: Carbon -0.67%, Silicon -0.70%, Sulphur -0.002%, Phosphorous -0.19%, Manganese 0.44%, Nickel -0.28%, Chromium -0.28%, Molybdenum -0.52%.
The high carbon steel core is hardened to 58-59 HRC (Rockwell Scale). This is the harder part of the blade that holds the edge. The outside layers are tough 18/8 stainless, 18% chromium and 8% nickel. Together, this makes a blade that can be sharpened to a very fine razor edge, and yet is not brittle. It is also easier to re-sharpen than conventional knives because much of the steel being removed (the outer panels) is softer than standard cutlery steel. This type of blade will bend long before it would break.
 
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I love that gray curly birch. That's a great choice. Definitely post some action pics when you get it out in the woods.
 
I'm anxious, has anyone ordered an Enzo from Brisa? Know how long it will take?

I'm in North Carolina, United States.
 
You guys don;t forget about Bensbackwoods and Thompsonsknives. They've got the EnZo kits and blade blanks.... without having to order from overseas and figure out the dollar equation.
 
Hi there,
I purchased the Helle Eggen knife which handles well, looks good and stays sharp. I had my one for a year, but I spared it from hard work and battoning, saving my nice knife by using a cheap Frosts Mora (which isexcellent for the money).
So I was disappointed when I did use it for hard wood carving that it broke, at the point where the blade meets the tang, which is very narrow.

After reading through the forum I will go for a full Tang Enzo. Thanks for the advise.
 
If you like this kind of knives you might like allso H Roselli's work ,maybe Roselli Long Hunter in his high carbon steel UHC
 
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