Ontario Ranger Shank, question...

[Wolf_1989]

I really like this design, as it is essentially a beefed up version of one of my favorite knives of all: the Green River Dadley.

However, I've seen two versions of it on the internet.

One, with what appear to be longer micarta slabs for the handle, with the tang extended for the lanyard hole, like this:

And a second version, with what looks like a shorter handle:

I really want one, but I want the former. The second version with the shorter handle doesn't appeal to me at all.

Does anyone know if one is an older version? Or What?

 

[Planetcat]

It looks like from the Ontario website, that the lanyard hole version is the latest model. I have a shiv that I bought on ebay about a year ago that has no lanyard hole, and I can tell you that the handle is too small for my averaged sized hands. Construction is decent, but I wish I had seen it before I bought it. That nylon sheath is a useless POS, too. I would look at one first before buying it. I really like the designs of both the shiv and shank. Just my .02.

 

[midnight flyer]

I think he is right. I have one that is about 3 years old now, and it is the shorter one that has the hole through the handle scales. The handle is a bit small, but I bought it for a pack knife, so it is fine. It is perfectly usable as it is a smaller knife and the jimping allows you to easily choke up no the handle with your thumb on the spine for accurate cutting. And with the blaze orange handles, it is perfect for outdoors.

But the sheath.... what a waste of nylon. There is not much good to say about it other than it covers the blade. Again, as a covering for a pack knife it does its job, but if you had to actually carry that knife on your belt you would lose your knife in no time as the 1/2" square velcro keeper doesn't hold the blade well at all. It is a generic sheath, the same kind as provided with a lot of cheaper, foreign made knives that are about the same size.

Love the knife but if it wasn't a pack knife I would look for a new sheath.

Robert

 

[PayetteRucker]

The handle on my Shank is ridiculously small, I had to take a bastard file to the swells so that I could hold the danged thing.