- Joined
- Mar 27, 2000
- Messages
- 1,818
Recently I put my hands on Sam Wilson's P.A.C.K. Lite knife (it's a mid-tech line of Sam's knives and it's called TekLine). I've been using it for about 6 weeks now, so let me share some thoughts (and photos) of this fixed blade buddy.
I’m certainly not a newcomer if we talk hollow handle knives. I’ve been using them for about 20+ years now. And I’m not talking about „Rambo knives” but things like CRK MK.VI, which you can see in my hand in the photo below (me and my buddy after using it to clear some branches during heavy rain). It was taken easily 20 years ago... yes, that guy on the left with MK.VI is a young version of me! Photo taken by my wife, she was on a sailing boat and waiting for me with a camera:
And here it is compared to my CRK Scout, a 1-off moded Ubejane, which left CRK facility the way you see it after Chris did his magic to it. Still that CRK Scout is a relatively heavy survival knife, made to abuse... but it'd be an ultralight hiker's nightmare. It certainly has its place, but it is not something I'd carry when mountaineering with a light pack. Now times have changed and I prefer lighter knives, especially when hiking. Still, there’s something cool about hollow handle knives… and now Sam combined the hollow handle idea with lightweight (but still tough) construction.
It's not a survival knife, but rather hiker’s tool with optional storage for essentials. So what do I carry in my Sam Wilson knife? Only what I may need in my area (central Europe). So don’t expect a fishing kit etc. For me, „a survival situation” means „being able to start a fire” which I may need for heating and/or signaling. Yes, there are still cases here, especially in wild forest-covered mountains in fall/winter, when a small fire can literally save your life. So what’s inside the handle? Storm matches with striker, tinder, 3ft of braided kevlar wire (for gear repair) and… bandaid. Don’t laugh, it’s really useful to have it around when you play with sharp knives. I carry IFAK too, but still, a bandaid is good to have close at hand. Additionally I made a Mini-BIC holder and put it on the sheath. Added a bit of gaffer’s tape too. That’s all. No aqua tabs, no fishing kit, no-nonsense (for my area!). Fire is the key.
But still, this knife can easily be batoned through some branches (easily up to 2 inches) to find dry wood inside, can whittle feathersticks, and scrape fatwood for tinder. It cust well, keeps a sharp edge, and has a darn good kydex sheath! I’ve been baking kydex sheaths for 15+ years so I know something about kydex. It’s a good knife/sheath combo.
I'll keep posting here from time to time, I want to use this knife really hard this summer. And BTW, that's me now, 20+ years after that first shot in this thread (photo by my lovely wife as well):
:]
I’m certainly not a newcomer if we talk hollow handle knives. I’ve been using them for about 20+ years now. And I’m not talking about „Rambo knives” but things like CRK MK.VI, which you can see in my hand in the photo below (me and my buddy after using it to clear some branches during heavy rain). It was taken easily 20 years ago... yes, that guy on the left with MK.VI is a young version of me! Photo taken by my wife, she was on a sailing boat and waiting for me with a camera:
And here it is compared to my CRK Scout, a 1-off moded Ubejane, which left CRK facility the way you see it after Chris did his magic to it. Still that CRK Scout is a relatively heavy survival knife, made to abuse... but it'd be an ultralight hiker's nightmare. It certainly has its place, but it is not something I'd carry when mountaineering with a light pack. Now times have changed and I prefer lighter knives, especially when hiking. Still, there’s something cool about hollow handle knives… and now Sam combined the hollow handle idea with lightweight (but still tough) construction.
It's not a survival knife, but rather hiker’s tool with optional storage for essentials. So what do I carry in my Sam Wilson knife? Only what I may need in my area (central Europe). So don’t expect a fishing kit etc. For me, „a survival situation” means „being able to start a fire” which I may need for heating and/or signaling. Yes, there are still cases here, especially in wild forest-covered mountains in fall/winter, when a small fire can literally save your life. So what’s inside the handle? Storm matches with striker, tinder, 3ft of braided kevlar wire (for gear repair) and… bandaid. Don’t laugh, it’s really useful to have it around when you play with sharp knives. I carry IFAK too, but still, a bandaid is good to have close at hand. Additionally I made a Mini-BIC holder and put it on the sheath. Added a bit of gaffer’s tape too. That’s all. No aqua tabs, no fishing kit, no-nonsense (for my area!). Fire is the key.
But still, this knife can easily be batoned through some branches (easily up to 2 inches) to find dry wood inside, can whittle feathersticks, and scrape fatwood for tinder. It cust well, keeps a sharp edge, and has a darn good kydex sheath! I’ve been baking kydex sheaths for 15+ years so I know something about kydex. It’s a good knife/sheath combo.
I'll keep posting here from time to time, I want to use this knife really hard this summer. And BTW, that's me now, 20+ years after that first shot in this thread (photo by my lovely wife as well):
:]
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