RC-3 vs fallkniven F1

[sambo.]

completely re-profiling an edge using just stones and a strop most certainly is an art form.

 

[mat_890]

why believe that sharpening convex edges is difficult when it isn't?

Why be an asshole when I said nothing provoking. If anything you should take what I said as a compliment. You can do something a lot of people can't. A quick Google search should turn hundreds of horrid attempts and damaged knives after someone told them that its not hard.

Don't forget who the audience is this is not a sharping sub-forum, many ESEE users opt for a sharpmaker over stones to make life easier. We already have a member in this thread who said his attempt to use a stone resulted in micro chips so relax a bit.

 

[sambo.]

Why be an asshole when I said nothing provoking. If anything you should take what I said as a compliment. You can do something a lot of people can't. A quick Google search should turn hundreds of horrid attempts and damaged knives after someone told them that its not hard.

sorry if i came across a little aggressive.

just about everyone who can sharpen freehand on stones has botched more than a couple of attempts during the learning curve.

i know certainly have and still do on occasion. i've never botched it so bad the blade was a write-off however, only cosmetic scratches.

Don't forget who the audience is this is not a sharping sub-forum, many ESEE users opt for a sharpmaker over stones to make life easier.

i'm getting some paper wheels to make life easier at home and the DC3, nice though it is, can be relegated to field touch-up duties.

maybe i'm old fashioned, but being able to keep an edge on a blade with basic equipment used to be considered "common knowledge" and pretty much everyone knew how to do it.

 

[guns_and_labs]

I suppose if I can't peel an apple with a chainsaw its operator error too eh?

I find the F1 to be a superior apple-peeler, personally.

I've never tried chopping wood with it, though.

Back to the OP, I guess it's what you're interested in. The F-1 was designed for relatively short-term use in a survival situation, with ease of maintenance built in. It seems to excel at that purpose.

 

[Yorkshire Boy]

Before buying the F1 I did a lot of searching and reading on the internet about it. It seemed to have both lovers and people who were indifferent to it. I read about the mouse mat technique of sharpening it.

Not long after buying it I moved to Japan for a year.

Buying wet n dry paper was proving problematic, so I bought a soft white wet stone.

The box that comes with the F1 actually makes no mention of the mouse mat technique, instead it says to use a white Arkansas stone to sharpen it. User error or was I following the makers guidelines on sharpening?

The stone I bought was very soft and created a grey slurry when water was added and sharpening commenced.

I noticed very small chips on the blade edge.

After much searching I found some wet n dry paper and commenced trying to use that method. I could get it so it could just pull the hairs off my arm, then after preparing food for cooking the blade had lost its edge somehow. Still sharp but the keenness had gone, very strange.....

I came back to England and gave the F1 to my brother in-law. He's not a "novice" and he worked on the edge with the mouse pad. Strangely over time he said that micro chips would appear. He took it to his friend who is the owner of bushcraftuk and he worked on it too. A shaving sharp edge was put on it but with little work it disappeared, very strange....

Now, many people like and hold Fallkniven products in high esteem. There are fellows who write excellent outdoor reports and make good youtube videos on skinning, bushcraft etc...Southern Cross is one of these people, he loves his Fallkniven and has only positive things to say, I respect him and others very much.

I had just one of their knives, but it wasn't a great experience. I'm not suggesting it is indicative of all their products but I'm just relating my experience with an F1.

I've written about it before, even on the Fallkniven forum, and it was suggested that maybe when they hand ground the convex edge it was heated a little bit too much, that using and sharpening it would sort the problem out over time.

I would also like to say that the fact someone can ask a "this knife vs that knife" on the makers sub forum and no mods and fan boys come in to wildly champion their "home side" speaks volumes for ESEE integrity. Go to another makers site and ask the same comparing questions and this thread would've turned into a love fest for the home blade. Seriously....ask the question in reverse on the Fallkniven forum and see what answers you get.

For me, I believe the RC3 was the much better purchase.

 

[dogboye]

I've got three Fallkniven's. A1, S1, and H1. Bought in that order. A1 is tough as you-know-what. It is old, back in the day when they weren't laminated. Just solid VG10. It works well, holds a great edge, but is difficult for me to sharpen (as are all convex blades; I hate sharpening convex blades! ).

Both the S1 and H1 are laminated. Both are great hunting/skinning knives, and I've used both for that. The H1 is the best. The H1 is my go-to hunting knife (for now; this year I hope to use a custom O1 that a buddy made for me). But that H1 is ONLY a hunting knife. It only cuts meat, skin, and bone. It will go through a deer from gutting to skinning to boning, and not need sharpening. And it will only need a touch-up then. It will zip through the rib-cage on anything up to a large doe like a laser and show no damage. But again, I only use it on meat. I will NOT use it for general purpose, because it took me forever to get the edge on it that it has, and I don't want to throw it away on wood. So I actually carry another knife for any kind of general tasks.

So, H1 goes into the woods with me hunting, but never for anything else. I never carry a convex blade with me hiking/camping/backpacking, and certainly never when I'm going to be out in the woods several days likely using the knife. A convex takes, for me, specialized equipment to sharpen. Anything else can be sharpened on just about any sharpening stone, even one that can be tucked in a small pocket. So for me, while I love the Fallkniven's for hunting, that is it. Anything else? Give me an ESEE, or some other flat, saber, concave, anything.

So my vote? ESEE-3.

 

[zyhano]

I'm with you.......I don't believe they should be compared to each other as they are in a class of their own.....and both "must have" for me.

nice handles rayban :thumbup: Did you have to drill a hole in the tang for the lanyard hole on the f1? It's in a different position from the factory one..

Before buying the F1 I did a lot of searching and reading on the internet about it. It seemed to have both lovers and people who were indifferent to it. I read about the mouse mat technique of sharpening it.

Not long after buying it I moved to Japan for a year.

Buying wet n dry paper was proving problematic, so I bought a soft white wet stone.

The box that comes with the F1 actually makes no mention of the mouse mat technique, instead it says to use a white Arkansas stone to sharpen it. User error or was I following the makers guidelines on sharpening?

The stone I bought was very soft and created a grey slurry when water was added and sharpening commenced.

I noticed very small chips on the blade edge.

After much searching I found some wet n dry paper and commenced trying to use that method. I could get it so it could just pull the hairs off my arm, then after preparing food for cooking the blade had lost its edge somehow. Still sharp but the keenness had gone, very strange.....

I came back to England and gave the F1 to my brother in-law. He's not a "novice" and he worked on the edge with the mouse pad. Strangely over time he said that micro chips would appear. He took it to his friend who is the owner of bushcraftuk and he worked on it too. A shaving sharp edge was put on it but with little work it disappeared, very strange....

Now, many people like and hold Fallkniven products in high esteem. There are fellows who write excellent outdoor reports and make good youtube videos on skinning, bushcraft etc...Southern Cross is one of these people, he loves his Fallkniven and has only positive things to say, I respect him and others very much.

I had just one of their knives, but it wasn't a great experience. I'm not suggesting it is indicative of all their products but I'm just relating my experience with an F1.

I've written about it before, even on the Fallkniven forum, and it was suggested that maybe when they hand ground the convex edge it was heated a little bit too much, that using and sharpening it would sort the problem out over time.

I would also like to say that the fact someone can ask a "this knife vs that knife" on the makers sub forum and no mods and fan boys come in to wildly champion their "home side" speaks volumes for ESEE integrity. Go to another makers site and ask the same comparing questions and this thread would've turned into a love fest for the home blade. Seriously....ask the question in reverse on the Fallkniven forum and see what answers you get.

For me, I believe the RC3 was the much better purchase.

:thumbup: Nice post, just your experience without any bashing on the knife. I never experienced chipping, not when sharpening both on stones and sandpaper and not when using the knife. I do believe that sometimes it might be because the user did something wrong, and that there is variation in the blades being produced, why not, since there are still parts in the production process that are human controlled.

Lots of possible causes. But also lots of people that like both knives. I like my rats and my fallknivens. And the diversity of it all is what makes you appreciate what is good for YOU even more

 

[rayban]

nice handles rayban :thumbup: Did you have to drill a hole in the tang for the lanyard hole on the f1? It's in a different position from the factory one..

Z.....I started with the blade only, which is a full tang. It (the tang) is shaped differently than the factory knife, which is more like a stick tang. You can buy the blade only at several on-line stores and interestingly enough, they cost about $10-$15 more than the factory knife.
See the little nipple on opposite ends of the logo oval? Yours will have a clean oval, sans the nipples....fastest way to tell the difference.

 

[PlayMaker]

Yorkie your either a liar or an idiot if you're creating "micro" chips when convexing and Matt...you're just an idiot who got caught saying something stupid.

 

[zyhano]

Yorkie your either a liar or an idiot if you're creating "micro" chips when convexing and Matt...you're just an idiot who got caught saying something stupid.

Please refrain from being too harsh to people or unjust. This is not deserved imo

Thanks rayban for your explanation

 

[PropThePolecat]

Yorkie your either a liar or an idiot if you're creating "micro" chips when convexing and Matt...you're just an idiot who got caught saying something stupid.

Your attitude sucks. Get lost and dont come back.

 

[HandofCod]

I've never understood people who say convex sharpening is difficult. I can't use a stone to save myself but using a strop is easy as pie. You don't even need the mouse pad (and those things are actually difficult to find nowadays) you can put the sand paper right onto the strop.

BTW - I just bought a strop from Lee Valley and it's much better than the one I got from KSF. My Aurora will not pop hairs on right off my arm.

 

[Jeff S1]

Yorkie your either a liar or an idiot if you're creating "micro" chips when convexing and Matt...you're just an idiot who got caught saying something stupid.

You are either trying to defend the F1 in an ill attempt or are just showing your colors. Both attempts make you look like a dolt. Go away please and play in another sub forum.

 

[mat_890]

Yorkie your either a liar or an idiot if you're creating "micro" chips when convexing and Matt...you're just an idiot who got caught saying something stupid.

Hey, playmakers back...

I thought you left, never to return after your meltdown about the search feature.

Do us all a favor and don't come back....again