What mora do I buy?

A

ASharpCanadian

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Sep 12, 2011
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Im checking out amazon for a nice, cheap little mora to accompany the ratmandu I just bought. Mainly to practice and learn to sharpen with it before I destroy my RMD. As well itll be nice to carry a smaller,thinner blade for finer stuff which im finding the RMD does alright but not that great. (maybe it needs to be sharpened?) Anyways which cheap mora should I buy? is amazon a good spot?
 
Any of the low priced Moras would do well for what you want. Probably #11675: The HighQ Allround Carbon or maybe #11672: The HighQ Allround Stainless. I have these and like them a lot.

All of the Clipper series and the Craftline series knives are good.


The #511 is very inexpensive and yet quite good for the price.
 
I have the mora 2000 in 12C28N? sandvick and I love it. But as stated earlier, you can't really go wrong with any of them. Their so cheap, I would suggest buying two or three you like and try them out. They really are some of the best values in the knife industry
 
I wouldn't buy a mora. A scandi grind isn't goint to help you with sharpening your RMD. I'd suggest getting any flat ground cheap knife to practice on. You could go with an Old Hickory or even a Victorinox paring knife.
 
I like the Companion or the #137. The Bushcraft Force is a nice piece of work too.
 
Shotgun said:
I wouldn't buy a mora. A scandi grind isn't goint to help you with sharpening your RMD. I'd suggest getting any flat ground cheap knife to practice on. You could go with an Old Hickory or even a Victorinox paring knife.
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I second what this man says.

I would also think that a good hollow ground knife would be equally good for practicing sharpening. Scandi ground knives are really easy to sharpen due to the bevel being so wide and easy to mimic, where as with flat or hollow ground knives you have to find the edge through feel or visual cues vs laying the bevel flat on the stone. You could checkout the BK 11, Condor Survival Craft, or a number of cheaper buck fixed blades for this purpose.
 
Buy one of each :D

Also, I'm going to disagree about not getting a Mora for learning sharpening. The Mora is what really opened my eyes to what I needed to do to get a knife decently sharp. Yes, it will be different than sharpening a normal v edge, but before I was so focused on trying to get the right angle on the normal edges, that I neglected everything else. The Mora takes away that one concern, so you can learn the rest. Kinda like training wheels.

Maybe it's just me, but I honestly had tried sharpening a ton, watched a bunch of videos and read helpful threads and never quite got it, until I started sharpening my Moras.....
 
goodeyesniper said:
Buy one of each :D

Also, I'm going to disagree about not getting a Mora for learning sharpening. The Mora is what really opened my eyes to what I needed to do to get a knife decently sharp. Yes, it will be different than sharpening a normal v edge, but before I was so focused on trying to get the right angle on the normal edges, that I neglected everything else. The Mora takes away that one concern, so you can learn the rest. Kinda like training wheels.

Maybe it's just me, but I honestly had tried sharpening a ton, watched a bunch of videos and read helpful threads and never quite got it, until I started sharpening my Moras.....
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:confused: The correct angle is the single most important thing to get right. What "other things" are ya talking about?
 
The 711 is probably my favorite model the ergonomics are outstanding for such an inexpensive knife:thumbup:.
 
I think that it would help a beginning sharpener become acclimated to the feel and appearance of a proper edge angle with relation to the stone. Once you get used to sharpening a Mora, you've established muscle memory. This will help with estimating the proper sharpening angle on a conventional edge configuration. That being said, there are LOTS of different appropriate ways to learn how to sharpen a knife.

One easy way to approximate a normal 20 degree angle is to hold your knife over the stone at 90 degrees. Halve that angle to 45 degrees, then halve it again to 22.5 degrees. Back the angle down just a hair from there and you're good to go!
 
I have the regular old red wood handled model and I'll tell you what: sharpen that along its scandi grind, then put a very slight secondary bevel on it with ceramic rods and it becomes just about the sharpest piece of steel you've ever seen. Literally scary sharp.
 
moogoogaidan said:
I have the regular old red wood handled model and I'll tell you what: sharpen that along its scandi grind, then put a very slight secondary bevel on it with ceramic rods and it becomes just about the sharpest piece of steel you've ever seen. Literally scary sharp.
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That has been my experience exactly.
 
I think the Mora Bushcraft Triflex would be a good backup to your RMD. I was 'sharp edge' challenged before I learned how to freehand sharpen my Mora knives. the skill I developed sharpening Moras transfered to some extent to sharpening my Green River butcher and boning knives and my Opinel paring knives. A large Old Hickory paring knife or small butcher knife would also make a good backup knife for your RMD.
 
I just received a stainless companion MG today and I have to say that I am IMPRESSED for $13... it is just as sharp as my Helle and the grind is move even! Very comfortable and grippy handle, stout blade with a very pointy tip! The sheath isn't bad either -- no rattle or movement, no wasted space, and secure retention. For about $15 shipped from some places there really isn't any way you could go wrong with one of these things!
 
1966c10 said:
How do you establish "muscle memory" with something that just lays flat on the stone? That's what makes it easy to sharpen, you don't have to manually hold the angle. That's like saying a RANSOM rest will make you a better pistol shooter.
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You DO have to manually hold the angle--it's just broad and easy to feel when it's level with the stone. If you actually laid the knife flat on the stone you'd be removing material from the sides of the blade stock, not the edge bevel. By holding the knife in place with the edge bevel flat against the stone, the repeated motion will make you grow accustomed to holding that angle with relation to the stone. ;)
 
Shotgun said:
:confused: The correct angle is the single most important thing to get right. What "other things" are ya talking about?
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I found that I 'd get a great edge on the stones and then round it off on the strop. What works for me when stropping, is to halve the angle used for sharpening. The amount of pressure I use and the "sponginess" of the leather gives me the right angle for hair popping sharpness.

To respond to the OP, have you considered Hultafors as an alternative? Cheaper (over here anyway) and very similar spec. but comfier handles and a better sheath. I'd post a link, but got told off for doing that last time. Something to do with unlicensed advertising.
If you stick with Mora, the 711 hunter is a very nice knife and the blade is slightly thicker than the clipper.
 
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