Ratmandu?

3

3wolves

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Dec 28, 2007
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Hi guys, Anyone own and use a ratmandu in the field? How does it compare to a bravo-1 in terms of slicing ability, edge retenion, ease of sharpening etc.
Thanks
 
Wish I could help ya, but I will be listening to the answers as this interests me also.
 
The ratmandu is a great all around knife, don't own a bravo (yet) but the rat can do it all. I sold mine to fund others, but it is a good tool.
 
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Slices great, maintains a great edge and is quite easy to re-sharpen. It also feels better in the hand than any other knife I own and if I had to get rid of all my knives except one this would be the one I kept. As regards a Bravo one , however, I don't own one and so cannot compare !!!
 
I don't own a Bravo one either. But the Ratmandu is possible the best all around knife i have owned. It is a perfect size to me. A very tough knife. Feels great in the hand. Hard to believe any other knife could me much better.
 
I also can't compare to the bravo, but the way the RMD felt I liked it so much i started making myself a copy of it, and will keep the real one in the safe for future purposes.
 
I'm gonna have to go against the grain here. I had a Ratmandu, and I wasn't all that impressed. Don't get me wrong, it seems like a beefy knife, that would handle anything you threw at it. I had 2 problems with it. One, the handle was not all that comfortable to me. I mean, it wasn't horrible, but I have several knives that fit my hand much better. Heck, for example my Scrapper 6, with it's Res C handle, felt more comfy. And my good old BRKT Fox River, better. My moras, as well. Two, that thing is HEAVY! I couldn't justify bringing it into the woods, because it felt like it weighed a ton. I have plenty of 5" blades that feel not only much lighter, but more well-balanced in my hand.
I didn't weigh the RMD, but I'd guess maybe 8 or 9 oz minimum (if anyone has one, I'm curious to know the actual weight!). Moreover, I don't have much liking for choils. I sold my RMD, without really getting to use it in the woods, so maybe I'm missing out. But from a pure comfort/feel standpoint, the RMD was not even in my top 5. OK, flame suit on...
 
I have both knives and consider both of them to be my best outdoors blades. Steel on both of them is excellent, with the Bravo-1 being slightly harder feeling on a ceramic stone (A-2) and the Ratmandu (SR-101) being tougher from what I hear. Both have excellent edge retention, and are sharpenable in the field if you have diamonds or ceramic. I favor the Bravo-1 over the Ratmandu for a few reasons: Full convex blade (I put a convex edge on the Ratmandu and it cuts real well too, but it's not full convex), no blade coating (both a positive and negative, but I don't worry to much about rust), and it comes with a decent sheath (the Ratmandu comes with no sheath).

Both knives are excellent, both are stout (Ratmandu: 3/16", Bravo: 1/4") knives designed for the field. Ratmandu's handle is a little thinner, while the Bravo's is more hand filling, and is contoured in all 3 dimensions. These two knives are right next to eachother in performance, intended use, materials, and quality of workmanship.

It is a very hard decision to choose between the two. Both are almost perfect outdoors blades. I have had the Ratmandu for much longer, so I can't speak about much cutting experience with the Bravo, but I'd say get both!

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Hey michaelmcgo, which one is a better slicer/whittler? You know for food prep, fuzz sticks, trap parts, cutting notches,etc. It seems like the bravo-1 would be a better bushcraft blade but I am a bit scared of the convex edge and rusting under and around the scales. I just heard so many good things about both blades I'm torn between them but I have a suspision the bravo will win.
Oh yeah, how did you get a firesteel loop on your bravo sheath? Did you make it or do they all come with it?
 
The Bravo-1 is a better slicer due to the convex grind/no coating, and would be better at food prep for those reasons too. The Ratmandu is a little thinner though...
I'm going to say the Bravo is a slightly better bushcraft knife, and the Ratmandu is a slightly better combat/survival/SHTF knife.

Don't fear a convex edge, it is the best thing in the world. Cuts awesome, and is very easy to touch up on a bench stone just like a normal edge.

The firesteel loop comes with it, but the firesteel does not. The loop is designed for a 3/8" firesteel, but I made a few 1/4" firesteels with micarta handles I wanted to use. A little time in front of a heat gun, and Kydex does whatever you want it too.
 
The Ratmandu is a full tang, in that there are no cutouts, which may explain the extra weight !!!
 
RMD Full tang,Excellent field/ camp chore knife can do alot of things,I also own a Bravo 1 and it is a better slicer,other than that I prefer the RMD over the Bravo1....either blade you pick up will satisfy you,only up side to the Bravo 1 is it also comes with a sheath...comparison pics have already been posted..
 
Hey michaelmcgo, henceforth known as enabler #__ .
Because of your input, I pulled the plug on a Bravo1 this morning.

Thanks for the information,......I think. :(

Doc
 
Don't have a Bravo 1 but I do have a Ratmandu and it takes a razors edge and holds it well.
 
Like the others who have both, you can't go wrong with either.

The RMD seems to balance a little better than the Bravo-1. One (RMD) has a slightly thinner grip, while the other (B1) is more robust. Both feel good, however. Neither will fail you. My RMD cuts pretty damn good, but my Bravo-1 cuts without having to touch the edge to what I'm cutting.:D Possibly the sharpest knife in my collection. It's not likely either will be leaving my possession anytime soon and I'm happy to have both.
 
I have three ratmandus and had three B1's until I traded my third one for a Bark River Huntsman. Can't beat Bark Rivers for the convex edge done perfectly. I prefer the feel and balance of the RMD, though. I bought some of the Okuden sheaths that they sold on the Swamp Rat site and its just about perfect. I too, would prefer a much smaller choil on this size knife but I can live with it and actually in use it does lend itself to some fine work. Like them both, B1 is easier to get and so if a RMD pops up at a good prize buy it. You can resell it if you don't like it and get all or most of your money back while the B1 while outstanding, you can always find them at a good price under the going retail rate. Good luck.

Pete
 
I love my Ratmandu. Its a dam near perfect knife. That SR-101 is some tough steel. Dont have a B-1 so I cannot speak on it. I am sure both will get the job done just fine.
 
I find it funny there are so many people who feel the RMD is the "perfect" knife. That is what I thought when mine arrived. It really is a good handling knife.
 
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