Marbles, Moran, Fallkniven: Convex Ground FBs

[johnniet]

I haven't used or held any of these knives myself. They are all small, convex ground fixed blades.
How do the grinds compare between the Marbles knives, the Spyderco Moran, and the Fallkniven convex ground fixed blades (WM1 and S1)?
How about cutting performance? Everyone seems to rave about how the Marbles cut, especially in 52100, so I wonder if the Moran and the Fallkniven are in the same class.
If there are any other similar knives out there I'd be interested.

 

[RokJok]

My subjective experience with "out of the box" sharpness in a Marbles 52100, Fallkniven, and Spyderco Moran Featherweights was:
- Marbles was the sharpest
- Moran blades next (about 75-80% of Marbles sharpness)
- Fallkniven below the Morans (about 60% of Marbles sharpness)
However, the Fallkniven is made from much thicker stock and offers more durability over the others. It's a question of what your critical factor is in considering the various knives.

The variation in handle styles & materials between these three knives is pretty big.
1. Marbles = slim contoured laminated wood
2. Moran = fat rounded Zytel with kraton inserts
3. Fallkniven = checkered rubbery material stick handle
You may want to go to a store where you can handle each of the models to see which one will best fit your hand or style of usage. This difference in handles is IMHO probably at least as important as the difference in relative sharpness between their blades.

 

[Sergiusz Mitin]

Comparing SPYDERCO Bill Moran Featherweight and FALLKNIVEN F-1 (because this knife would be right way to compare) I could say:

• Moran is better cutter, it has multi-position sheath what can be adjusted according user’s personal preferences. It is significantly lighter and easier to carry, especially if the weight of equipment is an important issue. It doesn’t offer too much strength and it is out of discussion to use this knife as prybar or something like this. The handle is very comfortable and secure for me but I know some persons who complained about grip comfort and security. The blade tang runs somewhere about 1/2 to 2/3 of handle length, however I didn’t hear if someone have managed to break it. Important: new edition Bill Moran knives come with conventional, not convex edge both in drop point as well as upswept point version.
  
• F-1 is inherently much stronger (4,5-mm thick stock against 3-mm one at Moran) and it has full tang construction. It is also significantly heavier. Due to full flat grind it cuts very well, however not as well as Moran. The handle has more conventional shape and it’s less risky to buy without prehandling. The knife comes with low carry sheath probably more suitable for uncovered outdoor carry, however this is the matter of individual preferences. Two sheath materials to choose – leather or Kydex. The knife is secured in Kydex sheath not only with resilient sheath lips but also with additional security strap. Important: the older edition knives came with conventional edge, newer production runs (since beginning of 2001 if I remember well) come with convex edge as well as S-1 or WM-1.

Reassuming: in fact I could simplify this question to strength (FALLKNIVEN) versus weight and ease to carry and maybe slightly versus cutting performance (SPYDERCO). Just think what is more important for you. However both are great knives and both would be on the very top of my very first choice list going into real wilderness.