Politically correct blade choice

A

alephlex

Joined
May 4, 2005
Messages
151
Hi everyone,

This is my first post outside the Austral-asian forums although I've lurked around for years. So please excuse any errors.

As luck would have it, I'm probably going to start off with a horribly difficult topic for a first post. My question is this: Do any of you have a recommendation for a 'politically correct'-looking knife that can be more easily carried around on hiking/camping trips? Between 5-7 inches and at the $80 mark. Terrain varies from temperate rainforest to temperate deciduous and alpine. Use involves slicing for food prep, chopping/splitting for firewood, and other camp chores. I'm less likely to dig and pry with the knife but like to have some ability to do that just in case I find myself in the tight spot.

Some background might be in order here. I know that some of you will argue that I should carry any blade I like and forget about pleasing the 'sheeples'. However, in the last few years, security has been very much more prominent in the public mind and I suppose I'd prefer to remain inconspicuous and not appear like a 'Rambo' type straight off.

Generally, I'll happily carry my larger blades in my backyard and if I'm in the deep woods or camping in local areas -- BK10 or BK7 + Mora for fine work+ SAK. In the city, I tend to carry a leatherman or SAK.

My question concerns situations where I travel out of my local area for an extended camp-cum-hike (even interstate)where I know I might cross state boundaries and therefore possibly customs checkpoints. I think pulling out my BK10 is likely to result in more questions asked than pulling out my Mora. I've been happily waved through with Moras in my luggage. But I've felt at times the need for a slightly heftier blade than a mora -- especially in Winter when I know I need to chop and split firewood. Any suggestions? Remember that I'm travelling light and an axe probably is extra weight and would cause more questions than the BK10.

Thanks in advance.
 
I'd look at one of the larger Puuko or leuku knives offered by Ragweed Forge. Other than looking pretty non-threatening, they happen to be fantastic performers.

I'd take a long hard look at the offerings from Ahti, Roselli, and Jarvenpaa.

http://www.ragweedforge.com

Edited to add:

You might also want to consider Bark Rivers. they have alot of more traditional leaning non-tactical designs, and many models have blaze orange or bright, bright neon looking blue handles available as an option. Not very weapon-ish looking, at all IMHO. If not one of those two handle choices I still personally believe that natural handle materials tend to look a bit friendlier than black G10, micarta, etc. Like the forementioned Puukko and leuku, they make a hellaciously good camp knife, and perform well beyond thier price range.

I am assuming you want a large-ish fixed blade, since you mentioned the Beckers?:o
 
You will probably pay a little more than 80 bucks, but some of the old line swamp rats would meet your criteria, and scrapyard knives may be for sale soon, they have res-c handles that look friendlier than micarta. Buck model 119 might also be of interest to you, as they are popular and smart looking.
 
Some things you could look for :
- not too pointy
- large belly (look more a tool than a weapon)
- some kind of sheepfoot profile, maybe
- nice color for the handle and the sheath ; no black, nothing tactical.

You should look for a Grohmann knife : funny looking small fixed blades, quite cheap, good overall quality

Grohmann's website
 
Well... What exactly are you planning to do with it? Are you looking for a fixed or a folder? A folder will be more sheeple friendly, whereas a fixed blade will look more Rambo-ish.

Since you mentioned staying sheeple friendly, I'll stick to folders. If you looking for heavy duty use in a folder, I'd go with a Spyderco Manix or even a D'Allara DP. If you're looking for light duty, maybe a Spyderco Native I. The Native is a lightweight, but useful knife.

Regards.
 
For a folder, a Buck 110 is a good choice. They are as common as dirt, so people are used to seeing them. They are also a great knife. The Spyderco Native, $40 from Wally-World is another good choice.
For a fixed blade, The Fallkniven F1, The Cold Steel Master Hunter (Carbon not Stainless), and the Shrade 150T are excellent choices.
 
+1 on the Grohmann’s. More specifically, the #4 Survival should fit you criteria. The Grohmann sheathes are not that good, so you might want to replace them, though I would personally stay with leather to keep the traditional look.


You also might want to consider a good folding pruning saw for “chopping”, these are very light, safe, efficient and innocuous.


Another one to consider is the Cold Steel SF shovel; it looks fairly harmless especially if stowed along with your jack and tire iron in your vehicle, but can be used for chopping wood and even for clearing brush like a machete.






- Frank
 
Maybe a Buck 105. A pretty traditional Bowie type hunting knife, and made in the USA. Here the go for $40-$60 USD.
 
Bark River makes some excellent knives that are also very traditional-looking, and hence very sheeple-friendly. You might get comments on how "pretty" your knife is, rather than suspiscion or reluctance. Bark River is my favorite fixed blade maker; their knives are on a par with any other top-notch maker, and are custom-quality. You definitely cannot go wrong with their products, and their customer service is the best around.
Check them out here (my favorite Bark River dealer):
http://www.dlttradingcompany.com
 
Thank you all for your comments.

I think many of you have hit the nail on the head -- I have been thinking of a picking up a leuko or a Bark River for some time. I also really really like the link to Grohmann knives -- Wow! They are pretty and really unusual!!

How does a Leuku stack up vis-a-vis other hard use knives, i.e. Beckers? I know this is probably like comparing a sharpened prybar to a more dedicated cutting tool. But have any of you used both and how do they compare? I guess I mention the Becker because I already have one and have a standard for comparison. I'm thinking of the Helle Laplander or Stromeng (everything else I own is probably not very well known in the US market)

Have any of you used the Grohmann as well? How does the blade shape work out in the field? Do you have to change the way you handle the knife much from using a regular shaped blade/handle?

Thanks very much, please keep the suggestions coming.

And yes, I'm looking into a fixed blade rather than a folder -- ease of maintenance and also I guess that the less moving parts, the less likelihood of failure in products of similar quality.
 
It just so happens that I have a couple Beckers as well as a couple of Leuku.

You're pretty much spot on, no leuku is going to be as hell bent for stout as a Becker, but they'll clear out a camp spot, cut a stack of firewood, make a fuzz stick, marshmallow sticks, and cut up meat, veggies, open packages, slaughter animals, and clean decent sized fish with the best of 'em, what more can a guy expect? They will provide a lifetime of use, as long as you don't plan on using 'em to breech doors or anything.

The only Becker I still use is my #5 Magnum Camp, which is incidentally VERY Leuku-ish in it's nature.

The Helle Lapplanders are very, very nice. I have one I've been using for awhile now with great results. takes and holds a hellacious edge. Infact, it's one of the few Helle's I still truly like. (Just don't need two of them)

Matter of fact, when my wife was taking these pics of one of my Lapplanders:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=421610
She had quite an adventure, and wound up dinging the sheath, her camera, and her jacket before she was done, mostly through casual handling. Gave me an earful about my "damn insanely sharp knives!":D

If you're likin' the Grohmann Pattern, you might check out the offerings from knives of Alaska. (Same thing, but in D2):D

I'm trying to remember if Bark River offers any Canadian styles...I think I remember a couple, but I'm not positive. EDIT:

Yup! they do! http://www.dlttradingcompany.com/index.php?cPath=24_126
 
A large leuku is not normally considered to be the only knife because of the way they are sharpened. They are whackers, so another smaller knife is used for other tasks. Lapps even today often carry two leukus.

TLM
 
Look at what Ragweed Forge has in this leuku and the following leuku & puukko combination. I have the combo in carbon steel, but stainless might be a better idea for you, and he even has it for less money.

http://www.ragweedforge.com/FinnishKnifeCatalog.html
(Third and fourth items down.)

The leuku is slightly thinner than the BK-7 but unless you are planning on testing these knives to destruction, it will hold up under any hard use you put it to. Leuku & puukko & sheath weigh slightly over 12 oz.

If you want a really heavy duty leuku, look at the Roselli http://www.ragweedforge.com/RoselliCatalog.html about halfway down the page, which is of comparable thickness to the Becker.
 
TLM said:
A large leuku is not normally considered to be the only knife because of the way they are sharpened. They are whackers, so another smaller knife is used for other tasks. Lapps even today often carry two leukus.

TLM
Click to expand...

Very true, I guess it's a given that most folks don't want to get by with just one large knife irregardless of where you might live and play. I had an incident where one got me by for a few days this summer. (had a case of cranial rectal inversion and packed everything but my beloved Swiss Tinker):o It worked, though it was far from ideal.

Generally speaking though, I would just naturally figure that a smaller knife is already being carried or considered.

EB: That combo you're always showing is awful tempting. Is it very bulky? does it hold the smaller blade pretty securely? is the sheath pretty sturdy?

Only doubts I've had about it were that it looked a little bulky, and I'd hate to lose both my knives if I go for an unscheduled swim in the river.

Must be alot to be said for the idea though. I saw a picture of three Chukchi men recently, and one of them was wearing a very similar two knife combo. (I'm sure they've long since learned what works and what doesn't living that kind of life)

Thanks!
 
The combo is not bulky at all. Its only noticeable dimension is its length. I can reach around the widest part with my thumb and middle finger.

But if I were out in the wild with it, I would rig a better carry. I do not trust the twisted leather loop they tie on them.

My sheath is waxed, but it seems like even unwaxed, it would be pretty tough.

Both knives fit deeply in the sheath. Just before they go all the way in, there is a tight spot that holds them very securely. Less than an inch protrudes, but with the flared metal buttcap, they are easy enough to extract.
 
Buck 110/112 for a folder, 102/105/119 with Cocobola handles for fixed blades, Grohmann's are also nice. I'm Canadian, so i have to reccomend 'em.
 
Only doubts I've had about it were that it looked a little bulky, and I'd hate to lose both my knives if I go for an unscheduled swim in the river.
Click to expand...

A double sheath is not traditional but it works, never seen lapps use one though.

TLM
 
Thank you all for your suggestions and comments -- especially Runs with Scissors for giving me that comparative feedback with the Beckers and Leukus. That was very helpful. I hope your wife didn't hurt herself while shooting your pictures?

I've decided to go with a bare Leuku blade and will do the handle up myself with some local hardwood (Jarrah or tasmanian oak etc). The Erikson at 0.127" thick at Ragnars is similar to the Roselli that Esav Benyamin recommended and looks like it will be a tad bit stouter than the Helle Laplander and Stromeng blades which are both at the 0.110" mark. If the heat treat is the same on all the blades, the Erikson looks like a winner.

I agree with many of you who have commented that using just one large blade is pushing it for all tasks. I carry a Mora at all times on hikes anyway so I'll take up Esav Benyamin's suggestion to incorporate that with a larger leuku and do a two blade setup for carry. For those of you what are interested, I've noticed that this style of 'piggy-back' sheath with two blades (and sometimes even three blades) is very common amongst the Spanish manufacturers. It is quite secure if the sheath is properly made -- I've had one (now retired with a relative) that I've lived with in the tropics for years and there have been no issues. I've found that they in fact look much neater and will snag less than carrying two blades separately because you present a neater profile in the bush.

I confess to also having fallen in love with the Grohmanns and will wait a little for a few more saved $s to spend a #4 -- they are just such stunners. I'm a postgrad student so the $s are tight at the moment.

And thank you all for ideas on the shovel and saw -- i have them in the boot when I'm with travelling with my family in the car on camps. You're right about them being great tools. But when I'm on my own, I tend to be on the motorbike and on foot. In those circumstances, I'm down to my bare minimums so the one or two knives I carry will have to suffice for everything. I used the saw + Mora for a bit on the motorbike but gave up on the saw because it couldn't split wood to allow me to get to the dry centre of the wood in wetter seasons.

Meanwhile, Lapinot2003 provided some really interesting food for thought with his criteria for a innocuous looking blade. His post got me thinking about modifying my Becker 10 with wooden scales and enclosed rivets and a traditional wooden/leather sheath to give it a more mundane, non-tactical look. I bought it off a mate who had taken most of the black coating off and who lost heart when he saw the unfinished nature of the blade. He wanted a mirror polish but I thought the raw blade was pretty cool looking. Anyone think that will succeed in making it look more innocent? I'll do a post with pics if I get it done sometime soon (while waiting for the Leuku to arrive!)

Thank you all once again -- there's so much experience and wisdom on these forums. It's great!
 
alephlex said:
I've decided to go with a bare Leuku blade and will do the handle up myself with some local hardwood (Jarrah or tasmanian oak etc). The Erikson at 0.127" thick at Ragnars is similar to the Roselli that Esav Benyamin recommended and looks like it will be a tad bit stouter than the Helle Laplander and Stromeng blades which are both at the 0.110" mark. If the heat treat is the same on all the blades, the Erikson looks like a winner.
Click to expand...

AWESOME way to go!!:D :D My EDC when I'm around home here is a 3 3/4'' Lauri Puukko blade with a golden maple burl handle. It's starting to rack up some serious mileage. Good cheap way to get a new knife, and a tremendous amount of satisfaction to boot. Hope you plan to show us pics of the finished product!

Good luck with your project and with your travels!:D
 
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