Underwhelmed by Helle products

Tombo 65

Tombo 65

Joined
Sep 11, 2013
Messages
332
I've been looking for another knife in the puukko or leuku style. I've had my eye on the Ahti Vaara, Kellam Wolverine, and Enzo Nordic. I also considered a few of the Helle models, and read good things about the company. Unfortunately, I hate to buy knives online unless I'm familiar with the brand or model, having either owned or handled an example of the product before I order one.

I found a shop here in Vermont that has ten or eleven of the Helle models in stock (very unusual to find knives around here other than the standard Buck, Gerber, and Browning hunting lineup, and a smattering of absurd tactical nonsense). I took a trip over to the place and looked over all of the Helle's they had and I have to say I was very underwhelmed. I've owned several Marttiini knives, including a Leuku I still have and enjoy using. None of them were very robust, but the prices were reasonable considering what you got. Kind of like Mora knives. Great knife for the money, but if I had to pay $127 for a Mora, the appeal would evaporate. Anyway, none of the Helle's, even the Temagami, inspired much excitement based on the fairly high prices they are selling for. At least that was my take on them. They may be great knives, but they didn't feel significantly more substantial than a Mora or Marttiini.

Can anyone offer some advice on the numerous variations of this style knife. What are people's impression of the Vaara, Wolverine, and Nordic, which I mentioned above? I'm looking for a rugged, preferably rat-tail tang puukko or similar style knife that is similar in design to the three I mentioned, and is between $75 and $125. The key is that the knife should feel worth the money. This isn't a lot of cash for a knife, but it isn't a $17 Mora either. If I were going to spend more than that I'd just buy another Fallkniven F1, or maybe go for a $280 Ismo Kauppinen Käyttöpuukko or Kainuun Puukko Pokara Tommi. For upwards of $250 I feel that a Fallkniven or Bark River is worth the money, but without hands-on experience with the scandi-style brands I've mentioned (except for my lackluster impression of the Helle knives) I am skeptical of whether they are worth the cash.

I'd really appreciate any advice, photos, and info fellow forum members can offer.
Thanks
 
Did you go to the Fjallraven store in Burlington on Church St.? I was just there a few weeks ago. I noticed the shiny knives, saw they were expensive imports, and moved on. I purchased a Lauri blade and mounted it. It's not much to look at, but it's my own and it works great.

lauri01.jpg
 
Tombo 65 said:
Anyway, none of the Helle's, even the Temagami, inspired much excitement based on the fairly high prices they are selling for. At least that was my take on them. They may be great knives, but they didn't feel significantly more substantial than a Mora or Marttiini.
Click to expand...

I don't think beefier construction is what you're buying for Helle's higher price. At any rate, I'll be curious to see what you come up with. I'm interested in the Leuku pattern too, and have never seen one in person. There isn't a great deal of discussion about them online (in English, anyway...).

How far upstate are you?
 
I've posted on here fairly often about leukus and puukkos. You should be able to find several threads in the search section here. I've always used leuku/puukko combos for camping and the outdoors. I have several J. Martinni's too.

Like so many other basic knife patterns, leukus have been bastardized far beyond the original design. It should be pretty easy to find a real one though. There are plenty of good Nordic and Scandinavian makers out there with most of their products being available in the U.S.

I don't really like the Helle's either, nor most brand name attempts. I'd only buy this type knife from either an indigenous maker or one who obviously knew the knife and its history.

You will not find them to be costly or have fancy marketing or hyped steels for the most part. There are good ones with quality sheaths out there. A little time on Google should get you well on your way.

btw, the pic in Post #2 says a lot toward what you are looking for.....

EDIT: Here are a few just to get you started:

A little history:
http://finnish-puukko.blogspot.com/2007/02/leuku-big-knife-from-lapland.html
A good site for the basic knives and pics:
https://www.ragweedforge.com/WoodJewelCatalog.html
Another sample combo set:
http://www.galapagoknives.com/store/p96/Jarvenpaa_Leuku-Puukko_Combination.html
 
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I'm in Morrisville. The store I visited today was the Outdoor Gear Exchange in Burlington. I almost bought a Benchmade 162 Bushcrafter. It felt nice and I liked the blade, but I have plenty of other knives in the same vein. The clerk said they normally carry more Helles, so I may wait until next week when they expect to have the Viking, Futura, and Jubileum. Is anyone aware of some other locations selling Scandinavian knives anywhere in Vermont? There doesn't seem to be a big market for them amongst the deer hunting crowd in my neck of the woods.
 
dogstar said:
Did you go to the Fjallraven store in Burlington on Church St.? I was just there a few weeks ago. I noticed the shiny knives, saw they were expensive imports, and moved on. I purchased a Lauri blade and mounted it. It's not much to look at, but it's my own and it works great.

lauri01.jpg
Click to expand...

Dogstar,

I'm leaning toward doing exactly what you did. Nice job on your Lauri blade mounting. Did you buy the bolster or fabricate it yourself? What is your impression of the blade quality? That looks like the non-nonsense kind of tool I am after. The Helle Viking and the Anti Vaara look similarly practical, but making your own must be pretty satisfying.
 
I had the Helle Fossekallen, and while it was okay, I sold it. I prefer the Kellam Puukko, which has the same handle as the Wolverine. Very, very comfortable in hand, beautiful wood and better sheath than the Fossekallen. I found it new for $70 shipped to my door.
The bevels are ground a bit unevenly, most noticeable at the tip, and the spine is quite rough, but overall I like it a lot. Some pics of it when new:
IMG_5110_zpsb725d91e.jpg


IMG_5112_zpsbba2f5b4.jpg


IMG_5103_zps904fc5c7.jpg
 
I was in the outdoor exchange also, did not notice puukos there (tons of people doing Christmas shopping, quite hectic place). Check out the FjallRaven store next time you're in Burlington. It's on the same street as the Outdoor exchange.

About my knife, I put it together 3 years ago. I made a video about the process. It has lots of thumbs down :D The reason is, I did not do it the traditional way, with stacked leather washers, or bone or curly birch with a hold drilled through it and filed. I don't have a garage, a shop, or workbench. Everything I do is in my living room, using hand tools or small power tools, like a hand drill. I also did not have a set of jeweler's files, which would have been very useful. My goal was to use what I had on hand, not to drop a lot of money on new tools. I am very happy with my knife; it is strong and feels good in the hand.

If you decide to build your own knife, look around; there is lots of good information out there.

Blade is 59 HRC. It is good steel. One thing, I read on Bushcraft USA that the spine is difficult to square up (too soft) for a firesteel striker, except for 1/2" at the tip. My experience parallels this, if that matters. There is enough material at the tip to spark a ferro rod, though.

[video=youtube;AuD4d90tXfQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuD4d90tXfQ[/video]

The first thing I did was beat it through some knotty wood, like a yahoo. Haven't done it since :)

[video=youtube;9cKpGvFmas4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cKpGvFmas4[/video]
 
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Dogstar,

I really enjoyed your videos. The batoning video is great. I love the speeded up portions, too. It the knife can take that type of abuse I think you did a fine job and I also think the Lauri blade would be ideal for my purposes. I think I'll order one or two and try my hand at it. By the way, even though your knife is not a stacked leather or birchbark handle, I think you should be quite proud of it, especially given the tools you had to work with. Inspiring.

cyc79,

That Kellam Puukko looks really nice. The fit and finish look equal to the Helle's I looked at yesterday, but the design is closer to what I am looking for. I may order one of those as well.
 
Tombo, thank you! Good luck with you knife making! There is a knife making sub-forum here, FYI.
 
Thanks for the leuku links. those are different from what I've found before. Still, there isn't a lot of discussion out there on the technical details. I'm looking for enough information to make a decision on how to make one for myself - what to keep and what to change.
 
Frederick89,

Those are beautiful. Thank you very much for the info. I can see I'm going to have to set aside a lot more cash. This thread has already added at least three blades and four knives I want to purchase.

To all of you, I also appreciate the videos, and reading material. This has been a very very helpful thread.
 
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