OregonJohnny
Member
Hello THR knife experts. Please go easy on me.
My current blade knowledge plays a very distant third to my firearm and flashlight knowledge. I have a drawer full of decent Benchmade, Kershaw, Lone Wolf, and Buck EDC folders, but I now find myself looking for a very nice large fixed blade. And yes, I have read through the entire recent, "Advice for a survival knife" thread.
I do have a R.A.T. (before they were ESEE) Izula, and I love the little guy. It is so light and handy, and has taken a short camping trip full of minor abuse, and is still shaving sharp. Now I want a very nice large companion to the Izula. This blade would literally be in a custom kydex combo sheath with the Izula, so I want something substantially larger than the Izula. My main uses for this knife, in order of importance, will be:
1. Camping/hiking/bushcraft (batoning, fire prep, whittling, general...um, beating? )
2. Yard work (cutting twine, slicing canvas plant sacks, chopping small branches, cutting open bags of fertilizer, cutting blackberry vines off of EVERYTHING)
3. Everything else that takes a very sturdy large fixed blade
My budget is about $150-$175. I would like new as opposed to used or discontinued. I would prefer a blade length of 5" to 6.5", thickness at least 3/16", plain edge, made in the USA, handles of micarta or G-10, made of steel that can take a serious beating and hold an edge. Sheath doesn't matter too much, since I make my own kydex sheaths.
I have looked at the ESEE 5 and 6, and I like almost everything about them, but they lack a certain...I don't know - uniqueness? I like the looks and specs of Busse and Swamp Rat, but it's hard to figure out what is currently available new from these companies (it seems extremely limited - and can you buy them from anywhere except their websites?). The Bark River Bravo 2 looks great, but I wonder how well it holds up to abuse like batoning and moderate wood prying/chopping. Also, I like a choke-up choil (but am not necessarily married to the idea), and the Bravo 2 doesn't offer this, nor does the ESEE 5.
If I didn't have the Izula, I think the ESEE 4 would be my best choice as it seems to be the "Goldilocks" of outdoor knives. But I think I'd like a larger blade that will compliment the Izula. The Izula handles the smaller finer chores fantastically, but lacks heft, grip, blade length, and frankly...distinction.
I am now open for suggestions. Thanks!
My current blade knowledge plays a very distant third to my firearm and flashlight knowledge. I have a drawer full of decent Benchmade, Kershaw, Lone Wolf, and Buck EDC folders, but I now find myself looking for a very nice large fixed blade. And yes, I have read through the entire recent, "Advice for a survival knife" thread.
I do have a R.A.T. (before they were ESEE) Izula, and I love the little guy. It is so light and handy, and has taken a short camping trip full of minor abuse, and is still shaving sharp. Now I want a very nice large companion to the Izula. This blade would literally be in a custom kydex combo sheath with the Izula, so I want something substantially larger than the Izula. My main uses for this knife, in order of importance, will be:
1. Camping/hiking/bushcraft (batoning, fire prep, whittling, general...um, beating? )
2. Yard work (cutting twine, slicing canvas plant sacks, chopping small branches, cutting open bags of fertilizer, cutting blackberry vines off of EVERYTHING)
3. Everything else that takes a very sturdy large fixed blade
My budget is about $150-$175. I would like new as opposed to used or discontinued. I would prefer a blade length of 5" to 6.5", thickness at least 3/16", plain edge, made in the USA, handles of micarta or G-10, made of steel that can take a serious beating and hold an edge. Sheath doesn't matter too much, since I make my own kydex sheaths.
I have looked at the ESEE 5 and 6, and I like almost everything about them, but they lack a certain...I don't know - uniqueness? I like the looks and specs of Busse and Swamp Rat, but it's hard to figure out what is currently available new from these companies (it seems extremely limited - and can you buy them from anywhere except their websites?). The Bark River Bravo 2 looks great, but I wonder how well it holds up to abuse like batoning and moderate wood prying/chopping. Also, I like a choke-up choil (but am not necessarily married to the idea), and the Bravo 2 doesn't offer this, nor does the ESEE 5.
If I didn't have the Izula, I think the ESEE 4 would be my best choice as it seems to be the "Goldilocks" of outdoor knives. But I think I'd like a larger blade that will compliment the Izula. The Izula handles the smaller finer chores fantastically, but lacks heft, grip, blade length, and frankly...distinction.
I am now open for suggestions. Thanks!