which of these 3 very awesome knives (pics)

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big_chief

Joined
Jul 25, 2009
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Picture yourself a modern day minimalist, you are going to own 3 knives and only 3. You are an extreme hunter and camper, your job is hard labour and you are concerned about self defense and home defense. Your large survival blade is undecided but dont worry about that, your edc folder is a spyderco para military. (this is not an option like it or not you own a para military and love it) which of these is your real user fixed blade?
Firt up is a swamp rat howling rat lm
awesome yes
steel sr 101
overall length 9'' ish
blade length 4'' ish
blade thickness (idk close to the others lol)
weight about the same also sorry for this im being lazy
SwamoRat-HowlingRatLM-15.jpg


second bark river bravo 1, a pos? I think not, an awesome blade fo sho.
steel A2
overall length 9'' ish
blade length 4.25''
blade thickness .215
weight 7.3 oz
Bravo_1_Black_Canvas.jpg


third is a rat rc4 junk? nope very tough and very capable
steel 1095
overall length 9''
blade length 4.5''
blade thickness .188
weight 7.4 oz
dsc00601ux1.jpg



ok so i'll walk you through some of my thoughts and then i'd love to hear yours

im not worried about the steels so much i know, they are all great

howling rat - looks the coolest for sure has a great grip shape length and material, the choil is at a nice angle where you can comfortably use the palm of your thumb on it in a reverse grip and combined with the great grip provides a lot of slip resistance. black coating makes maintenance a bit easier and this blade has a cool factor i dont think the others can match.

bravo 1 - timeless look, prefer the look of the non coated blade, prefer a convex edge, finger choil is adequate and on a nice angle but grip suffers a bit due to the polished micarta,on the other hand the smaller choil is a good thing for a lot of cutting tasks making it a bit more versitile imo. dont really love that the edge starts so close to the handle for most cutting duties i dont need that and if i slip im gettin cut overall great blade will without a doubt do everything i need it to

rc4 - cant get really excited about the look of it or 1095 steel, great blade thickness for what i want it for but the handle is a tad short and the finger choil is at an angle where its a good compromise between grip security and handling comfort, dont love the big ugly logo, like the jimping and like the flatness of the grip, overall great blade would do anything i wanted it to

whats your pic guys only 1
 
For me, of the three, I'll take the bravo-1. Clasic lines, positive grip shape, blade length.
possible down side, may be a little slick when wet. My opinion...
 
I'm with the Bravo 1 also. Great knife, and don't worry about slipping. The handle will fit your hand like a glove, if it's anything like mine.
 
Bravo-1. Howling rat is odd looking to me and the 1095 is nothing to get excited about. A2 is a great steel and its a great looking knife. You can get the micarta scales bead blasted for a really non-stick feel.
 
+1 to the barkie and if you have a problem with the handle being slick some sandpaper will solve that.
 
1095 is a dynamite steel whether you like it or not. Everyone is so worried about rust prevention when simple maintenance, aka a silicone whipedown after every sharpening, will keep it rust free. I've used 1095 for years and have NEVER had a rust problem! Many RAT owners strip the blade, they are beautiful naked. Bravo 1 is another unbeatable rough use knife. If the Bravo1 and RC4 are in your lineup you might as well include the Fallkniven F1. You can't go wrong with either of those two.
 
For my smaller knives I usually prefer stainless because I am much more likely to use them for food prep, but out of these 3 I will pick the Howling Rat.
 
The Bravo 1 hands down. Its the one I picked as my only fixed blade, I went with the CPM-154CM version.
 
Firstly- 3 great knives for sure- winners all!

The Swamp Rat for me b/c I'm a Rat!
 
As has beeen said before me, they are all excellent knives.
I chose the Bravo-1 and love it. I did not like the kydex sheath and bought a sharpshooter sheath to go with it. It has been a good knife for that mid-size fixed blade.
 
I'll go with what will be the easiest to sharpen...either the 1095 or A2
 
I'd get the Swamp Rat 'cause I know it'll be a bazillion times tougher than the others, with lifetime guarantee.
 
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