Swedish Issue Mora

Cynic1 said:
Moras have a steady reputation (apparently) in US, but dont mix apparent good performance with TRUE quality... They cut well straight from the box etc... but they are mass produced knifes meant for normal everyday work, from carpenters to fishermen etc...It breaks, you buy a new one.

In survival/serious hiking etc you need different level of quality. Like puukkos...;)
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I quite agree, Moras are very good value for money, perhaps the most knife for your dollar even(?), but they are not the ultimate knives by any means. Moras are very good everyday use knives, great for beginners, great for kids, great for carpenters, craftsmen, construction workers, elictricians and plumbers, great for woodworking, camping, scouting, fishing, hunting, and a great and cheap way to learn about handling and sharpening knives and so on. Scandinavian (or rather Nordic) knives are roughly of the same basic design, just look at Ragnars site, so what might differ is the quality between various manufacturers. I have seen expensive hand made traditional puukko type knives that were not very robust, not very suited for military use for instance. Some traditional type material and beautifullly crafted knives can't stand the same abuse as the mass produced, cheap and cheerful, ugly plastic Moras can. Some trad knives are superb, and some are not, but with a plastic $7 Mora, then at least you know what you get. I have rather extreme requirements on durability and functionality though. What I really wish is that they (various Mora makers) would make some more 'serious' knives. I wish they would make knives of the same quality steel, fit and finish, only with slightly larger, thicker and more robust blades, solid full tang and so on.
 
Mora's are like Opinels- they are great, even fantastic everyday knives that don't cost much, but will handle 99.9% of what you are going to have to cut. Due to the low unit cost you can own several to play with, collect them, modify them like I do with the wood handles on my Opinels and not have much tied up in them. Another good thing is they are very light weight. You can keep a spare one in your pack and forget its there till you need it. I'm sure alot of the old mountain men had a spare Green River knife or two tucked away in thier gear.

If you run into something that may be a bit too much for one to handle, thats what they make Granfors bruks hatchets and Ontario 12 inch machetes for.
 
Hillbillenigma said:
I have several Erikssons (and the Mora 2000) and I would never trade one of these for a Cold Steel knife. If you want to improve and have extra money you can do much better than CS, but the performance you get from the Moras and Erikssons (Bang for the Buck) are outstanding.

Continue to do some homework and you will learn much about performance vs. price.
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Cold Steel was merely used as an example, but in a way I almost consider them to be the American answer to Mora, not in style but since they make knives that are relatively cheap and that you can actually use. The homework and performance vs price comment doesn't upset me, it's just silly. If you knew anything about me, or just how common Moras are (or at least were) in the everyday life of many people in this country, the country where the knife originates from, well, nuff said...:)
 
[Mora 2000]

Nord said:
...my overall impression and experince of it has not been very good, especially when compared to other Moras. And I do think it is a bit pricey too, when compared to other, and better, Moras.
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It is much more expensive than the entry level models which are $5-$10 in comparison to the $30 for the Mora 2000 (Ragweed Forge), this makes it 3-6 times the price. However forgetting about percentages, the cost is still fairly low in general for a small production fixed blade especially considering what is available in North America and thus most people there are really impressed with the price.

I like several of the aspects of the knife compared to the more basic models. The softer grip tends to be more ergonomic in long term use than the plastic grips and it more secure than the oval one and has a light forward guard and end pommel to enhance security further. It also has a tapered tip due to a forward flat ground which makes the tip better for precision work. The more narrow edge on the tip also makes it easier to shapen.

In general I would not recommend it as a general purpose knife as the steel is far too slender and likely to break as you described if used for rougher utility work. Mine is used just for cutting and some light impact splitting, I have other knives for heavier work.

-Cliff
 
Cliff Stamp said:
[Mora 2000]



It is much more expensive than the entry level models which are $5-$10 in comparison to the $30 for the Mora 2000 (Ragweed Forge), this makes it 3-6 times the price. However forgetting about percentages, the cost is still fairly low in general for a small production fixed blade especially considering what is available in North America and thus most people there are really impressed with the price.


I guess it is made in fairly small runs, unlike the others who must be made by the thousands, most ending up with industry users like construction workers and such. I find it strange that you don't have a wider selection of cheap user friendly knives of reasonable quality on offer in America. Why is that?


I like several of the aspects of the knife compared to the more basic models. The softer grip tends to be more ergonomic in long term use than the plastic grips and it more secure than the oval one and has a light forward guard and end pommel to enhance security further. It also has a tapered tip due to a forward flat ground which makes the tip better for precision work. The more narrow edge on the tip also makes it easier to shapen.

There are still two rubber grip models from KJ Eriksson and the Clipper from Frost, if ergonomic rubber is what you want, and they are much cheaper. They even come in olive green too. The sharp pointy tip of regular Mora blades can actually break quite easily if you abuse it (only a mm or two usually though, and it can then be resharpened with ease), the tips are very good for precision work in wood carving for instance. I never had any difficulty sharpening the regular Mora type blades.

In general I would not recommend it as a general purpose knife as the steel is far too slender and likely to break as you described if used for rougher utility work. Mine is used just for cutting and some light impact splitting, I have other knives for heavier work.


-Cliff
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Exactly. I am not against the Mora 2000 or anything, it's just that I wouldn't buy it myself, I'm sure it can be a great knife in many ways for many people. Still, if you want the most rubber grip utility knife for your dollar, I would recommend one of the other "rubber" models.
 
WOAH... NORD, I was not insulting you, Sorry for the misinterpretation on my post. I am a self proclaimed Hillbilly, but I don't want to hear anyone else call me that. :D Just as I am a Jarhead, but unless you are one also, do not refer to a United States Marine by that name!


Hillbillenigma said:
Continue to do some homework and you will learn much about performance vs. price.
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What I should have said in my final statement was continue to do some homework on knives made in the U.S. .... etc.

Sorry for the confusion.

CLIFF - you have Mail.
 
Nord said:
I find it strange that you don't have a wider selection of cheap user friendly knives of reasonable quality on offer in America. Why is that?
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The culture here is more on replaceable blades for work knives, hence the common stanley and olfa knives which are used by carpenters and similar tradesmen. Often small swiss army knives or some cheap knockoff is carried, but the vast majority of work is done with a replaceable blade knife.

Trades which use fixed blades such as butchers and fish plant workers have blades which are fairly inexpensive (Dexter Russell) and similar to the Mora knives in terms of class but they don't get much discussion on the forums because that tends to be dominated by higher priced knives, and especially tacticals.

There are still two rubber grip models from KJ Eriksson and the Clipper from Frost, if ergonomic rubber is what you want, and they are much cheaper.
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Yes, the Mora 2000 simply gained popularity here pre-1998 when the selection of that style of knife was at that time limited. Right now there are as you noted many other knives of similar features which are much cheaper. However with lots of people on the forums who have used a Mora 2000 for many years it gets recommended more so than the newer knives from which not as much experience (here) has been had.

Have you any experience with the ultra high carbon (UHC) versions which are ran very hard, past 60 HRC.

-Cliff
 
darklight943 said:
Just ordered my Mora from Ragnar's site. :D Thinking about a sheath from OnSceneTactical, too.
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Eric's sheaths are top notch. Great guy to deal with also. :thumbup:
 
Yeah, I was just going to purchase from Smokey Mountain, but figured I'd give my business to someone that was recommended on this site. Thanks for the tips and I'm looking forward to the Mora.
 
Cliff Stamp said:
Yes, the Mora 2000 simply gained popularity here pre-1998 when the selection of that style of knife was at that time limited. Right now there are as you noted many other knives of similar features which are much cheaper. However with lots of people on the forums who have used a Mora 2000 for many years it gets recommended more so than the newer knives from which not as much experience (here) has been had.

Have you any experience with the ultra high carbon (UHC) versions which are ran very hard, past 60 HRC.

-Cliff
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At least the "711" from KJ Eriksson has been around a while (maybe not in the US though of course), it came sometime in the early 90's I think, but not sure, could be slightly earlier. I have not used any of the UHC knives you mention. I am not a knife and steel expert like some people on this site, I am just very fond of knives and have used knives quite a lot, especially various Moras. I am always trying to learn more about things I like though and I will try to catch up, I have read a few books on knives and knife making over the years and I will obviously learn a lot from this great forum!
 
Hillbillenigma said:
WOAH... NORD, I was not insulting you, Sorry for the misinterpretation on my post. I am a self proclaimed Hillbilly, but I don't want to hear anyone else call me that. :D Just as I am a Jarhead, but unless you are one also, do not refer to a United States Marine by that name!


What I should have said in my final statement was continue to do some homework on knives made in the U.S. .... etc.

Sorry for the confusion.

CLIFF - you have Mail.
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No problem, and like I said, I was not insulted, just slightly puzzled. I realise now that compared to what has been on offer in the US the Moras are great value for money knives. At least I think that is what you mean? There is a lot to learn about US knives in general, and I'm working on it, but that is not what you meant I think. I have a pretty positive view of hillbillies in general too, not that I ever met any American ones though.:D
 
Nord said:
At least the "711" from KJ Eriksson has been around a while (maybe not in the US though of course) ...
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Yes, I should have been more clear, I meant available here. As well it is likely that the "tactical" nature of the Mora 2000 also gave it some appeal to the inner "rambo".

Nord said:
I realise now that compared to what has been on offer in the US the Moras are great value for money knives.
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Yes, a lot of it is also because it isn't well known that there are inexpensive knives here with similar grinds :

04143.jpg


Does the edge grind on that remind you of anything?

-Cliff
 
Hey Cliff...

What size blade is that on the Dexter knife ??
Looks like a fair sized Butcher knife...

I have a Frost butcher knife that is kind of similar..I believe it has a 7" blade,,Very thin....

ttyle

Eric
O/ST
 
Big, 12", they are used locally in supermarkets. I keep meaning to pick one up and try it out as a short machete.

-Cliff
 
Got my Mora Clipper from Ragnar yesterday and my Swedish Mil. Mora from Sportsmans guide today. I like dealing with Ragnar mmuch better.
I like them alot. The stainless Clipper takes a blazing razor edge when stropped with boron carbide. I have not had a chance to hone the carbon Swed. Mil. Mora yet.
 
tarmix101 said:
Generally the sheaths are the most hideous things I have seen:
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Im using a carbon steel clipper in green, and while the sheath is irritating me, i feel safer with it than i did my last kife (origionaly my dads) which was slowly cutting it's way out of the bottom of the sheath.

kiahs said:
While it may sound silly, I slide two small pieces of corrugated cardboard down into my clipper sheaths. The friction usually holds them in place just fine, and the blade slides easily between them. This takes away all the rattle, and the knife is held securely, even if carried inverted.
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sounds like a plan. wouldn't the cardboard disintigrate when its gets wet?
 
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