That's the one I'd pick as well, with the one next to it on the right as a very close second choice. When I'm backpacking, the only thing I do is maybe make stakes, open food packaging, food prep, maybe some firemaking, maybe some cord cutting, maybe cloth cutting. Either would do a good job opening fish. I like the utilitarian sheepsfoot blade, and the more acute wharnie would offer a little more tip precision. Both remind me of a carbidized Ti Necker I had from Ban Tang a while back and regrettably lost on an abalone diving trip:
Like Owen, I prefer the lack of choil on the third from right, it seems like the sharpening choil on the next one is a bit large for my tastes, but hard to tell from this pic. I find that the larger sharpening choils tend to get snagged on stuff, and of course the cutting edge is further out. If that one didn't have the choil, it'd probably be my first choice. I also like the FFG vs the Saber, but could live with the saber just fine for a knife this small and thin. I like that the handles are less constrained on those two as opposed to the one on the right. As I mentioned, the tip on the 2nd from right is finer and would offer more precision in a pinch grip if you're using the tip, but I could certainly work with the 3rd from right's tip just fine as well. Lastly, it seems like the 2nd from right has a little more meat in the handle for the last three fingers. A little hard to tell, but it looks like my medium sized hands should fit all four fingers on the handle, a must for me. Can you take more material out of those two handle tangs for less weight and still balance well with scales (akin to the 2 on the left)?
I don't know if I'm crazy about the relatively aggressive concave handle designs (the 3rd from right is the most versatile), they tend to be very dependent on fitting specific hands. And I often use the chest-lever grip to take off material quickly, and the concave handle designs aren't as conducive to those grips, though one can make it work. I wouldn't be doing extensive carving projects with a knife like this, so it wouldn't be so crucial.
My third choice would be the 2nd from left. It looks like there's enough flat edge to carve wood without slipping off too easily once you hit the belly, and the more centered tip would be nice for the rare drilling or pounding into a log for a static cutting edge, vs the sheepsfoot/wharnie designs. I also like the handle design on that one; it looks to have a good length and would do well in a variety of grips. I don't know how that little point on the bottom back of the handle on the 2nd from left and 2nd from left would work out in an actual grip, but it looks like it may not contribute greatly to grip comfort, perhaps even making the grip with the last 3 fingers a little awkward. Hard to tell. The integral guard on that one also looks a little obtrusive and perhaps unnecessary for the ways I like to use knives. But it wouldn't be a deal-breaker I think, for a sporadic use knife, and it'd make for a nice retention hook for a kydex sheath.
So I guess in summary, I'd pick:
1) 3rd from right
2) 2nd from right
3) 2nd from left
Great job! I may have to pick something up from you in the coming year
What's the hardness on these?
