Seax Field Use Test Request

A

alexanderkbaker

Joined
Jan 26, 2008
Messages
207
Can someone please post a field use review with pics on the seax. I just ordered one and I would like to find out how well it works as a field knife, specifically splitting would and fire craft. I can't seem to find any done.

Thanks.
 
Mine worked well for light batoning. The wide back edge and convex edge was good for that. It did not work well for chopping (well, compared to a khukri). It was too light and the balance was toward the handle so it didn't "snap" into the wood. I think it would work fine as a food prep knife. If it had a little bit of a curve to it, its kind of the size and shape of a heavy duty chef's knife.

The sheath is all but useless, at least mine.
 
The knife it's based on was THE survival/utility knife for about a thousand years;) The HI version more than stands up to the test. I've have one for nearly a decade, and I still keep it in my truck as a trusted back-up. The straight edge makes for easy sharpening in the field with just a stone or file. The wide blade makes it easy to do a pinch grip on the blade so you can really leverage your knife tip for fine work. The point is great for making holes. I once used mine to bore some pilot holes in some leather to patch a tarp.

It will baton just fine if you are mindful.

A couple of downsides: As Shann said, it's not a chopper. It's very handle heavy, but it was never meant to be something you're going to fell trees with. The tip by design is fragile. I don't mean to say that it's going to snap off or bend, but physics is physics. You can't take a near needle point, jam it into a log 1.5", torque it sideways and expect it to survive without a boo-boo. Finally, there is a learning curve to the knife. The palm swell really helps, but keep in mind you can't use it like a knife with a guard. It's like a giant Mora. Use it with respect and care, and you'll be fine. My HI seax is one of the few knives that has NEVER bit me, and I've used it slick-handed many times:)

I too cobbled together a sheath. Actually. I think it was the second sheath I ever made. It needs a little touch up or maybe even a remake, but for what it is, it's great. I never cared for the small-of-back horizontal sheath. I made a basic vertical one, and it's worked well for about 8 years:)

Use it in good health:) The seax is a no-nonsense design that goes back 1000's of years. Anyone with any Saxon/Celtic/Norse blood should feel a connection to the knife:)
 
Give us your thoughts on it when you put it through its paces, Kevin:) I haven't read a review on one of these in a good long time:thumbup:
 
Steely_Gunz said:
T..., but keep in mind you can't use it like a knife with a guard. It's like a giant Mora. ...
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some seaxen have guards. at least 1
View attachment 333880

33 1/3% of mine have guards... :)
1 small one not shown above
View attachment 333881

p.s. - wharncliffe/sheepsfoot/lambsfoot blades are essentially seaxses ;)
cold steel even makes one with a guard. the 'boar hunter' -sadly it's a rubbery guard,
not metal.
 
Last edited:
alexanderkbaker said:
Are Seax's differentially hardened?

Thanks,
Kevin
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The etch on mine shows that it is. Lots of deep gray on the edge and about the first 1.5" of the tip. The rest of the blade is lighter and softer. Very tough knife.
 
Yes, where did you order from? I have been looking for a quality seax since a family friend made a cusom for my father in law. Would be nice to get one for myself!
Thanks ahead of time,
Kevin
 
XiaolongJackson said:
How do you order one of these?
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Kcuff said:
Yes, where did you order from? I have been looking for a quality seax since a family friend made a cusom for my father in law. Would be nice to get one for myself!
Thanks ahead of time,
Kevin
Click to expand...

You can either wait for one to show up here on the DOTD, as they do from time to time, you can send Auntie Yangdu an email at himimp@aol.com to see if she has one or two laying around or you can get together or separately email her to ask about a special order.
 
Thank you very much.


Karda said:
You can either wait for one to show up here on the DOTD, as they do from time to time, you can send Auntie Yangdu an email at himimp@aol.com to see if she has one or two laying around or you can get together or separately email her to ask about a special order.
Click to expand...
 
Mine has since arrived. Amazing knife, fits my hand perfectly and came with very nice wood grips. It is definitely strong enough for field use. The tip is very pointy but it does stay relatively think till almoast the very point. So far I have cut up a pineapple and a roast, and it did well with the factory edge. I like to cut up pineapples because they give the knives a great field use patina.

Kevin
 
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