recommendation? Fallkniven F1 or not?

F

Flash Owl

Joined
Aug 24, 2011
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hi,
so im looking for a shtf fixed blade, that can take abuse. i understand its stainless steel, doesnt neccessary do anything great, but seems to be able to do just about everything well.
i also fish, no hunting though and no chopping will be done. so thats why im thinking of the stainless steel. its seems plenty tough enough for whatever i can throw it at.
i like the blade design, not too fond of the handle, but it needs to be tried first. ive also looked at the S1, but for a larger fixed blade, i think id go with a tougher carbon steel.

the only other fixed blade i have is a izula. so im thinking the F1 next, but probably not last.
any other fixed blades in the range of 4-5 inch blades i should consider?
ive looked at esee3/4, bark river bravo/gunny, dozier, knives of alaska, spyderco temperance2, swamp rats. busse is out of my price range as of now.
i really like the bark river offerings too, but keep coming back to the F1. for price, and the stainless steel, and if i want carbon i think id much rather go for the more aesthetically pleasing swamp rats.


also, what field sharpener?
from my findings, it seems to be a contest between the DMT diafold, and fallkniven DC3 or DC4.
if i get the F1, all my knives will be sub 4 inches. do you think the DC3 would be good enough? cause im having trouble finding a good dealer with the DC4 in stock.

thanks
 
Yes, if you want stainless, F1 is probably what suits your needs the best compromise (although personnaly, I also like H1 a lot).

One thing you may want to have a look at is Svort fixed blades. Those are made of carbon tool steel (swedish L6 band saw steel type), have a convexed edge and are quite inexpensive. I've had one for a month and while I didn't push it to its limits I'm quite happy with it so far (Just be aware that finish is very basic, I even had some large burr left on the blade, but if you sharpen your blades this is really minor problem considering price).

Also don't count moras out. The one that comes with sharpeing stone and firesteel isn't a bad deal imo.

About sharpener, regarding DCx stones, I d'trade DC4's extra inches for the higher price and marginally higher bulk, but you could get going with the DC3. I also like the adhesive stone system for plastic shealth makes the stone handling easier and safer although I somewhat miss the ceramic plate.

A warning, some times ago I would have recommended DCx as the best available, but in recent period they have had some quality issues. I had some recently and they didn't positively compare with my older one. From what I hear they even stopped production at some point to tighten the screws and maybe quality is back to normal, hopefully some recent buyer could give you hints about that.
 
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The F1 is rightly considered to be on of the best field utility knives around. I have used mine very hard and its eaten everything I've thrown at it for breakfast. The key to the strength is the laminated steel, very tough!

Get one, you won't be disappointed.

Alternatives are the BRKT Gunny, Aurora or Liten Bror. All are excellent.

In terms of field sharpening just get a small strop. You can get them cheaply from KSF.
 
The F1 is a convex grind and with normal use will not require more than a regular hone on a strop - even a leather belt will do for this
 
I have had one for a few years. Sterling service.

Just occasional touch up on the Sharpmaker and its shaving sharp.

It fits my hands ok , and does not cause blisters when used.

Go on - Buy one !!
 
Highly recommended all around camping knife. Strong, a good cuter, stainless, good steel, not very heavy to carry. I still carry mine sometimes when i go camping, and its been the first I've packed in the past outings, being the one that has been with me the most.
Of course, like said before, it does not excel at anything, too small to chop with, to thick to be a good slicer, but you can't have it all, can't you :D
 
For about $50 less you can get Cold Steel Master Hunter. The pattern is very similar, yet the Master Hunter is .5" longer. The blade is also laminated construction, but the stainless steel is the slightly less wear resistant VG1 (the F1 is VG10). Since you don't plan to baton with it, I think the Master Hunter would do just fine.
 
I'm also trying to decide between the F1 (I actually have two unused) and the CS Master Hunter. The F1 surely has the reputation of being a better knife, but how much better? Reviews indicate the VG-1 holds an edge well, corrosion resistance should be the same, the MH has an extra 0.6" of blade length, I prefer Kraton to F1 handle material, the MH sheath is definitely superior to the rather lame one that comes with the F1, and the F1 is 50% more expensive than the MH. I'm thinking I should give the MH a shot.
 
Although you mention great blades, I'd think twice about using a thick blade for fishing. You want a thinner slicer for handling fish and you can still have a strong blade at the same time. Take a regular all-purpose Mora, for instance. They are widely used in Scandinavia for fishing — even by the pros. Yes, Mora does fillet knives as well and the pros use them just as much; but, I've seen them use the regular ones just as much for taking out the guts and so on. Some even fix a spoon at the pommel, for raking out the intestines. So, get a strong, yet thinner blade than the F1 or get two knives — one for fishing and one for SHTF.
 
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thanks for all the suggestions, and advice.
I think i will have to get a dedicated filet knife too :rolleyes:
i checked out the cold steel MH, and the price difference isnt great. noticed another recent thread about the F1 and CS, and everybody there was also recommending the F1 over CS.
ive pretty much have my mind set on the F1, but yesterday i was carrying my spyderco dragonfly, and felt i need something bigger. LoL and now cant stop thinking of a Para2
i also need to do more research on what sharpening route i want to go.

thanks again for the help!
 
BillWolfel said:
I'm also trying to decide between the F1 (I actually have two unused) and the CS Master Hunter. The F1 surely has the reputation of being a better knife....
Click to expand...
Not with a lot of hunters. Keep in mind the CS MH predates the F1 as well. Find one in Carbon V, it's a very, very good knife for hunting.
 
Do keep in mind the F1 is a convex edged knife, not a v-ground knife so you'll want to you a leather strop or sandpaper/mousepad if it gets very dull, a stone or hard flat surface will change the grind, in other words you'll basically have to reprofile it if you want to use stones to turn it into a v-grind. Convex sharpening is quite easy, I only have one convex knife (bark river bravo-1) but its very easy to keep sharp.
 
You are talking about some abuse, and then say that there will be no chopping.... What kind of abuse without chopping and the batoning - ever so popular here. It is like not cool any more! Or are we talking prying and stabbing car hoods? :D
For abuse I indeed was going to recommend some Cold Steel - like SRK or Recon Tanto. You would not call them exactly slicers... Or even cutters - but they are relatively cheap and as I imagine are quite difficult to destroy.
F1 is a nice knife for sure. Not suitable for chopping - you are right here. And probably not so suitable for abuse - though that is arguable. I just have a prejudice against VG-10, even if not Spyderco. So I would rather abuse a knife made of AUS 8.
But used the one made of VG-10 of course. ;)
 
the price im looking to pay for a F1, is about $110. and i dont think thats too much for a quality product. although, ive been drooling over some busse, i might be too too timid at first to actually use the thing.
if i need to chop or baton wood, or anything, ill find a better alternative than a 4 inch knife. i might get the urge to chop bait and catch, instead of slicing it. hehe
the type of abuse it might see is prying, and harder side pressure against the blade. maybe hammering & cracking open some nuts LoL. things that many folders wont be able to handle by design.
and also, im not looking to heavily abuse the knife. but i dont want to have to think about being gentle with it either.

and how would i put on my own handle? is there somebody i can commission to do that? ok, im going to try looking it up....
ive seen the F1 with bark river handles, and those seem to be reaching busse prices. if was to pay over $250 for a smaller fixed blade, id take INFI over VG-10 everytime.
 
OK, im about to order a F1.

another question...
if you had the chance to get the older full VG-10 model, as opposed to the newer laminated VG-10....
which would you get?

what are the qualities of one over the other?
 
Chiming in late as it sounds like you're going for the F1, but I'd highly recommend the Swamp Rat Rodent Solution as your first foray into bussekin,<$110 at the store and often available on the exchange for $100, and a perfect leather sheath is available for $14...
It's not stainless nor satin finish (which are certainly attractive on the F1) and it's a bit heavier, but it's built tougher than most similar stuff out there right now, and you need never be afraid to beat up a swamp rat (or any bussekin) as they have an unbeatable warranty and are US manufacture so they're easy to deal with.

Good luck on your final decision :thumbup:
 
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