Mora durability

when i started sailing(long time ago:D ),first day of my apprenticeship bosun gave me red handled Mora knife(i had it for a long time,but unfortunately lost it)
seeing stevadores(in most North European ports)with same Mora knife,extend of work done with them is just amazing,they cut everything ,wood,cardboard,ropes,plastic and metal tapes etc...
Since then,there is always one or two Mora knives around:)

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I grew up with Mora knives. Some were old, with sheaths made of pressed paper and a leather flap with ONE slit for the button on the work trousers. Then all the fancy plastic ones showed up. I have had them all. However, I rarely sharpen a Mora knife. It is not worth the effort. I just took a new one and threw the dull one in with the junk. If you visit a swedish farm you will find knives everywhere. Where you might need to cut something, there is already a knife lying about. people rarely carry knives in their pockets because they are everywhere already.

I obviously need to move to Sweden, ASAP!:eek::D
 
A Mora knife is almost never sharpened into death, if it is done by someone with knowledge. It is in fact sharpened into a a fine whittling (sloyd) knife desired for its ability to carve fine details. Really old Scandinavian knives is often left a 1" or 2" well sharpened blade.
In my youth a "good" knife had a red handle and a laminated blade. I have carried such knives a lot.
But there has been stories, of hunters, and military personnel(camp use, not de-animations), and workers, slipping their grip when (here is the point) cold and wet and covered with blood or goo, supposedly more than one should think, so I personally tend to prefer a little extra finger protection.
Even though I know how to use a guard-less knife when cold and wet, I also know I can forget myself, or be a little hasty, if just for a moment(which may be more than enough).
timann

"De-animations"...! What a great word!

I am reminded of a story my dad told about a co-worker who had been a member of the Norwegian Resistance. For some reason, one of the guys asked him whether he had ever killed a German with a knife. The old warrior replied, "Oh, no! You don't kill a man with a knife. You use it to pin him to the wall while you go looking for your axe"!
 
I guess finnish soldiers could tell you quite bloody and gruesome stories from the war. However they will not do that. If you ask them about the war, they just dont talk.
 
I guess finnish soldiers could tell you quite bloody and gruesome stories from the war. However they will not do that. If you ask them about the war, they just dont talk.

The real heroes very often don't talk much about their experiences. While such reticence is understandable, and even honorable, much valuable lore is now dying away as these courageous men and women pass into eternity.
 
Yeah my grandpa was wounded twice in Europe, lied about his age and went in at 16 in 1940 and did the whole war. Lots of action and the only war stories he talked about were his boxing tales, nothing else even if pressed.
He was a regimental welterweight with a pretty good record 27 win, 6 loss, 1 draw 16 knockouts (a kid fighting grown men), played goal for the Regina Pats after the war, almost made the NHL!!!
He said boxers make great goal tenders, used to getting hit in the face and good handspeed/reaction time, even more so as he did not wear facemask in the 40's.
RIP Bob "Mack" Rutledge you are missed.
 
Brad "the butcher";7944016 said:
Yeah my grandpa was wounded twice in Europe, lied about his age and went in at 16 in 1940 and did the whole war. Lots of action and the only war stories he talked about were his boxing tales, nothing else even if pressed.
He was a regimental welterweight with a pretty good record 27 win, 6 loss, 1 draw 16 knockouts (a kid fighting grown men), played goal for the Regina Pats after the war, almost made the NHL!!!
He said boxers make great goal tenders, used to getting hit in the face and good handspeed/reaction time, even more so as he did not wear facemask in the 40's.
RIP Bob "Mack" Rutledge you are missed.

thats quite ironic and brings back great memories for me of stories my grandfather told me while he was still alive. he too went into the military @ a young age. 15yrs old! lied to get in and when they discovered his true age he told them he had nowhere else to go so they let him stay. he was in the navy! also again he didnt talk much at all about actual combat but would talk for hours about his boxing exports. ive heard more stories about him boxing while in the military then anything else! if you hadnt mentioned your grandpas name id have thought we were related.
Don Andrews is my grandfather.....
 
i got 2 mora. Mora 2000 (which I bought for my son) and Mora all arround (which I usually told my wife to carry it in camping trip).

Both mora are easier to sharpen. Cheap. very light. retain edge almost good. easy to carry.
 
I've owned a mora carbon clipper for about a year or so. Until recently, it saw duty as a garage knife, light camp knife, etc. I've never pryed with it and used it exclusively as a cutting tool. I love the handle and ease of sharpening. After watching a destruction test, I figured giving it a real world moderate task as a test. I used it to make sod cut outs for some( 8 pieces) strip flagstone "4" x 16" strips for a path that the mower could go right over. Just some basic cutting and a small/medium amount of prying to get the grass patch edge up enough to pull it out. After about half of them, the blade snapped. Sadly, the housing snapped as well.

I have no complaints about the cutting effectiveness of this knife, but will probably never pry (even lightly) with one again. I'll now revert to something a bit beefier for a yard tool/beater knife.

What is a good option for a landscape/garage beater tool? condor?
 
I have the same problem with my hands and recently got a "grandfathers" knife from Ragweed Forge that is designed for exactly this type of situation. Small-3"- stainless Scandi blade in a large flatter handle. Very comfortable to use compared to my slipjpints and small handled knives. Its an Ericsonn, model 1329 I believe. Check it out.--KV
 
I own and use a few Moras. They are my go to around the house knife and have been extremely durable for cutting chores through a variety of media. No baton work with them though because they are pretty thin.
 
I was using my 840MG to baton some Gorse and whilst going through a particulary gnarly section created this modification to my knife:




I'm pretty sure that the twisting action on the blade caused it to snap.

I have smoothed off the sharp edges on what is left of the knife and it is now on kitchen drawer pencil sharpening duties!

 
thats quite ironic and brings back great memories for me of stories my grandfather told me while he was still alive. he too went into the military @ a young age. 15yrs old! lied to get in and when they discovered his true age he told them he had nowhere else to go so they let him stay. he was in the navy! also again he didnt talk much at all about actual combat but would talk for hours about his boxing exports. ive heard more stories about him boxing while in the military then anything else! if you hadnt mentioned your grandpas name id have thought we were related.
Don Andrews is my grandfather.....

Brad "the butcher";7944016 said:
Yeah my grandpa was wounded twice in Europe, lied about his age and went in at 16 in 1940 and did the whole war. Lots of action and the only war stories he talked about were his boxing tales, nothing else even if pressed.
He was a regimental welterweight with a pretty good record 27 win, 6 loss, 1 draw 16 knockouts (a kid fighting grown men), played goal for the Regina Pats after the war, almost made the NHL!!!
He said boxers make great goal tenders, used to getting hit in the face and good handspeed/reaction time, even more so as he did not wear facemask in the 40's.
RIP Bob "Mack" Rutledge you are missed.

Sorry to the OP for thread drift:

You guys (and any others out there like this) need to sit down with a tape recorder or camcorder and document all of your memories as fast as you can, before they start fading. I did that with my Dad (Omaha Beach, Normandy) and I've never regretted it. I realize both of these men are now gone, so do it yourself, and do it now.

Something to pass along to your kids. Believe me, many in your family will thank you.

Now, back to Moras. :D
 
Well, Steven, at least the grain showing in the broken parts of your Mora look silky smooth. Very desirable small grain structure.
Bummer it busted on ya, but, the best part is they are cheap to replace.
Gotta love a Mora.:)
 
Good luck with it.
And, please let us know about it after you put it through the ringer a bit.:)
 
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