Are you planning on piggybacking them? I'm in an opposite situation in that I've got a small knife, Krein tk1, and I'm trying to decide how long of a blade I want on it's bushcrafting partner. Do you like the 4.5" blade of the aurora when thinking of paring it with something smaller, or would you rather have a slightly larger blade?
Yes, I'll be piggybacking them. I love the Aurora....I started with the North Star - nice knife, but the handle was a bit small for me.
The Aurora is perfect for my hands. As far as bushcrafting goes, I'm fine with a 4.5" blade and a smaller detail blade - we're talking woods hikes and short camping trips, with common tasks you would encounter on something like that.
Now, if I were on something a bit more substantial, I would want a larger primary blade, I think...probably 6-8 inches. That one, I'm still thinking about. I've got a Bark River Golok already, plus two Evo I's and one of their Northwind short swords; so I've got the "really big blades" covered. I'm mulling over a Barkie in 6-8" range....not sure what I'd like, yet.
But the Aurora is a wonderful bushcraft blade...very sturdy, but with a nice edge; and I love the handle - good for control with larger hands. I'm no bushcraft expert, but I find it very easy and comfortable to use, at least for me. I'm very pleased with it. Now, I do think that KGD is right - you can do fine detail work with the Aurora, too. So it would be a great knife if you were only carrying one (and your requirements were not for
really large jobs...chopping in particular). But as a matter of practice, I like to separate my fine task knives from all my other ones; so I will always have two, regardless of relative size. I don't personally find the extra weight to be a detriment, especially if they are connected together; and I like the control I get from a small fixed blade (which will generally get the most use).
Rksoon, I'm definitely going to request one of the upcoming Little Creeks from DLT (I'm on their mailing list - they're gearing up for another production run) in Black Micarta...because that's my best chance at getting the one that I want. However, I really want the Micro Canadian; but I want it in Black Micarta, so I'll have to keep an eye on the "upcoming production run" announcements. That's my #1 choice, because of the belly...I really hope they're going to do another run soon. I'll also probably get a micro Tusk - again, if they do another run of them. I've heard the wharncliff blades were excellent for fine utility work. That way, I'll have choices. It's ironic...of the three, the Little Creek blade is most like the Aurora's in shape (based on my limited experience, it's nice to have more specialized blades for specialized tasks, especially when your larger blade can already handle some fine work)....but the Little Creek appears to be the one most available right now in the handle material that I want. Oh, well...like everyone says, "Get one of each!".
Thanks for the info, guys!
BK86
I would echo the above except I like the Mini CND better than the Micro. That said, the micro probably makes more sense. The little creek is great. They are still available. I don't know if they are discontinued.
. I'll probably wait until the next run to pick one up.
I think Sharp Eye made a good point about going for a small guy with a little belly to it :thumbup:.
