Magnum Camp...squirrel knife?

H

Hoodoo

Joined
Aug 18, 1999
Messages
2,355
I took the Magnum Camp on a little squirrel hunting outing tonight. I managed to bag three of the little bushy tails. I cleaned one with a small sebenza and two with the Magnum Camp! Yes, it will clean squirrels. And it lops the head off like nothing (hope nobody is squeamish here
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). Yeah, it's too big for squirrel but...it will do the job, and very nicely, I might add. The knife is biting RAZOR sharp. Yes, my sebenza would slice hair off my arm but it didn't cut through the skin of a squirrel like the Magnum Camp. The MC melted right through the skin. Wow! The upswept tip was great for piercing the skin and opening the abdominal and thoracic cavities. And I did a little defoliating while out too. The MC was not too shabby in that department either. Now I want a small hunting knife or bird and trout knife with the same steel! Please?

One little problemo. The knife is really too big for small game (but will function well in a survival situation). A little lack of control gave me a nice little nick just below my thumbnail. I don't know who was bleeding more, me or the squirrel. And I barely touched the skin. But with the momentum of the big knife, the blade bit right in. For those of you who have never cleaned squirrel, they are right partial to their hide (unlike rabbits which you can easily pull the hide right off) so cleaning a squirrel can be a hand full and if you have a large knife to boot, it can get a little awkward.

Anyway, I'm really impressed with this knife and the cutting ability of the blade!



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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
I wish Camillus would produce a smaller version in the same steel, too. Something puukko-ish. James Mattis would have approved. It might even bear his name. Over to you, Will...
 
Sounds good AE. Only give me a bit of a finger guard. I'm fond of the push cut. That Camillus steel would make a heck of a nice puukko! And they can leave the black coating off the smaller knife. How about it Will? Tired of making Big Knives yet?
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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
I brought this up one time, and got a reply that seemed to indicate that they were thinking of it.

I like the idea a great deal, but until then, I have been playing with options including a japanese construction utilty with a western profile. I think this will go most of the way to creating the perfect 'personal' or 'city' knife for me. And of course, since it will be on my all the time, it will be the perfect survival knife......

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Thank you,
Marion David Poff aka Eye, Cd'A ID, USA mdpoff@hotmail.com

Review of the World Survival Institute, Chris Janowsky survival knife, the Ranger.

Talonite Resource Page, nearly exhaustive!!

Fire Page, metal match sources and index of information.

"Many are blinded by name and reputation, few see the truth" Lao Tzu
 
Sebenzas usually have nice acute edge geometries, I am surprised that its cutting performance was significantly behind the Magnum Camp which I assume has a significantly thicker edge profile since people are chopping with it and not beating it apart.

Were both of the blades sharpened to the same type of finish and were both at the NIB edge profile?

I have not used any of the Becker line, but have used a few of Cold Steels Carbon V blades and can't remember being impressed with the cutting performance in regards to slicing, they had a decent polish was all, rusted and chipped out easily though.

-Cliff
 
The Sebenza has been sharpened on a Sharpmaker twice, and only for a few strokes each time, than stropped on leather smeared with Jeweler's Rouge. The edge was not reprofiled and as I take it out right now, it will easily shave hair. The edge on the MC has never been touched. And I have a nice deep gash in my thumb to remind me of just how sharp that knife is!

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
I played with the MC sample at the Blade Show West - nice knife. Is it me or does it seem to make a nice fighter? Perhaps a double guard and different grips and it would be obvious.
 
Cliff - Taking a quick look at the reviews on your site all that I can find on Carbon V chipping is either the Recon Scout or Trailmaster having a chip when chopping up a car, but the other one didn't have any problems, and the Trailamster chipping when chopping a large cow bone. The HI khukuris didn't chip but if they're like the HI blades that I have the edges have a larger angle on the edge than I currently do on my 3/4 ax. Neither of the CS knives chipped when chopping iron. You had commented that the edge holding was very good on one of the CS reviews.

Carbon V seems to be a decent steel with a good balance of toughness and edge holding for most tasks at the RC59 levels that CS evidently uses, and edge durability regarding chipping seems to be more of an issue of edge design than any inherent problem with the steel.
 
Hoodoo, a knife can push shave quite well and still not slice at all if the edge has seen significant use and the "sharpening" has been mainly alignment and not actual metal removal which is exactly what the Sharpmaker and stropping with JR (very low bite abrasive, usually for brass and such) will do.

To be able to make a direct steel comparison you would want to either wear the Magnum Camp in a similar manner as well as maintain it as well. But this is hard to estimate as well as unnecessary wear. It would be simpler to just recut the bevel on the Sebenza with a diamond hone if possible to make sure all the edge carbides have fresh surfaces.

Johno, you have pointed out one of the large problems with the older reviews which is that they are prone to qualitative statements which are based on performance baselines that were not well described by me and have changed significantly in the last couple of years. I have considered doing a large amount of edits on them - but unfortunately don't have the majority of the blades. This is probably the main problem I have and something I am taking steps to correct.

Anyway, I would call the steel brittle as I have done similar (and more stressful) things with blades of equal (or lesser) profiles with reduced damage. It is also based on how the blade reacted to sharpening after the damage. Brittle steels tend to fracture around the impact points and have deep damage that can be seen after sharpening. The metal keeps breaking away even after you have sharpened past the chip depth.

As an example of the relative work, both of the prototypes from P.J. Turner which have an edge angle of about 18 degrees could chop through chicken bones and ham and cow ribs (cooked) without harm. They were also used to chop up aged cow ribs edge side up (to increase the pressure) and sustained less damage than the Trailmaster did with it having a broader area of impact.

The iron block that I was using to chop into without harming the Trailmaster was quite soft. I sent samples of it around to several people to get some benchmarks and the only person who reported a chip was Will Kwan using an ATAK. Ed Schotts 3V camp knife with a 10 degree edge profile could chop into that without harm and would not chip even if twisted in it.

-Cliff
 
Cliff, you are assuming I never previously cleaned a squirrel with the Sebenza when it was new and therefore am unfamiliar with how it cut to begin with. And I'm not saying that I killed a couple squirrels in my back yard when hunting season was closed but if I had (and if I actually would do this, I would only do it because the squirrels were in my bird feeder, and obviously if I had done it, I wouldn't waste the meat but would butcher the squirrel--but I'm not saying that I actually did, mind you), and I noticed no difference between cleaning them when the knife was new and after it had been sharpened a couple of times, would that be a comparable test?

I can say that in general, my Sebenza slices just as good as the day I bought it. But I will be giving it the squid test today as I will be dissecting at least a half dozen squid today. Unfortunately, I can't give the Magnum Camp the squid test, as I would probably be fired.


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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
Unless that Trailmaster was made recently it wasn't the same steel as the Becker line. I'm not sure just how recent it would have to be ... Mike Turber probably knows....

-Cougar :{)
 
Never really noticed fleas on my squirrels. In the southwest, fleas associated with some species of squirrels are known to carry diseases such as the bubonic plague. But in the midwest, the only disease I know of that is associated with small game is tularemia. You can get tularemia from cleaning rabbits but it is pretty rare and you have to have a cut on your hand to get it. I field dress my squirrels immediately after killing, so if there are fleas, they are immediately removed. However, I've been hunting squirrels for 40+ years in Indiana and Michigan and never had a problem with fleas.

BTW, I just got 3 squirrels tonight. It sure was fun! This past week I had some of the best squirrel I've ever had. The squirrels were quartered, dipped in flour and fried until brown, then put in a baking dish with a little water, salt and pepper to taste, and baked until the meat fell off the bones. Wonderful stuff! People who don't eat squirrel don't know what they are missing! I prefer them to rabbit (but not by much) and equal to grouse although grouse is a completely different taste and more versatile for recipes. Grouse have white meat, squirrel dark. Grouse meat has a more delicate taste and is perfect for stir fry or smoked quickly and eaten hot. Or barbecued or...'bout anyway you want to fix 'em. Although the meat of grouse is white,it is far more flavorful than the white meat of chicken or turkey. No comparison.

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
I'm a squirrel eater too!! I like to bake mine in a cassarole dish with some rice and mushrooms or something like that. Now that deer season is over I'm looking forward to bagging a few squirrels. Sometimes I get them in the yard because they get so numerous the destroy bird feeders and plants. Unfortuantaly I am usually on my way to work, around noon and don't have time to clean them so they go wasted. That makes me feel bad so I don't do it unless I have to. I also don't like using an airgun to kill things with, not quick enough.
Anyhoo, I was looking for a fixed blade knife for fishing and small game use and went to the knife store. Nothing looked suitable for what I had in mind, even the outragous priced ones. I went to a walmart that is fixing to move and they were out of the fixed blade ones I liked but the fella looked in his case and there was an nice one by western, a wl66, and a swiss army champion. Got em for 9 bucks apiece! I really like the leather handle on the western one, my friend has a buck about the same size and the handle is so slippery it's hard to use. I put some leather treatment on the handle and sheath. The blade is nice and sharp, better yet, I won't be afraid to use it! I can't wait to try it out! I don't know if I have the WL66 or WL66c model or what the difference is.
I would really like one of those big bowie knives. A friend of mine used to have one, used the heck out of it.
 
gitarmac,
LMAO to see this thread revived!
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Squirrel season is over here in Michigan.
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Bunnies are still in, though.
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I've been on a kind of "squirrel" knife kick lately. Just got a nice utility custom from Bob Dozier which I know will be a good squirrel knife but I also ordered a Chipmunk from Allen Blade which should be a handy dandy small gamer as well. But I'm also excited about the BladeForums Talon I ordered in 154CM. This really is a sweet deal for a flat ground 3" hunter. I can't wait!

The Magnum Camp and the Companion will still go hunting with me, though. These medium size blades really have a place in the field. They are a great compliment to a small hunter/utility blade.

BTW, if you get a good pellet gun, you can drop squirrels right where they stand. Mine shoots 1,000 fps and is a good small-game getter in my back yard. Hit them in the head or lungs and they will die just as quickly as if you hit them with a 22 (although the 22 is much more effective at longer ranges). Keeps me fed!

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM

[This message has been edited by Hoodoo (edited 01-31-2001).]
 
Ok, I've learned that the "C" stands for clampacked. What is the difference between a clampacked knive and a non-clampacked one?
 
"...a good squirrel knife but I also ordered a Chipmunk from Allen Blade which should be a handy dandy small gamer as well..."

I know it's off topic, but I'm strangely amused about using a Chipmunk to skin a squirrel
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cj
s002cjs@yahoo.com
 
The only difference in a clampacked and non-clampacked is the packaging. The clampack version is the kind that is packed in plastic where it can be hung up on pegs in the store. The other comes box packed. No difference in the knife.

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<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by s002cjs:
I know it's off topic, but I'm strangely amused about using a Chipmunk to skin a squirrel
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Click to expand...

The chipmunk doesn't actually skin the squirrel. It just gnaws on it a little bit.
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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
Am I the Only one who feels just a wee twang of sympathy for the poor innocent little tree rats? Oh, the horror, the horror.

This reminds me a little of a co-worker who had been using a pellet gun at low pressure to shoo those darned pesky tree rats away from her bird feeder. She came in very upset one morning complaining that she must have pumped the gun at least one to many times. Instead of a low velocity pellet just bouncing off of the squirrel and making it scamper away at the sting, this particular squirrel simply keeled over dead, apparently shot through the heart. She was Very upset to have actually killed the horrible little disease-ridden bird-food stealing bicuspidly toothy little squirmy sneaky monster. I thought it was hilarious. Especially the part about digging a grave and saying a few words on the squirrels behalf.

Paracelsus, reconsidering vegetarianism
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[This message has been edited by Paracelsus (edited 02-01-2001).]
 
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