ArfinGreebly
Moderator Emeritus
(Split from the original [thread=525900]Buck Muskrat thread[/thread].)
In the bargain bin at the gun shop/pawn shop mentioned in the above mentioned Buck Muskrat thread, I found an old, well-used Normark/EKA "Super Swede" outdoor folder ("hunter" if you prefer). Looks to be 20 years old. Snap is still excellent, no play, and the blade -- although scratched and showing wear -- has an sharp and undamaged edge. Ten bucks.
I fixed dinner with the Normark (tacos with all the fixings) and used it to dice tomatoes, shave lettuce, and stuff like that. Awesome. Not a job for a dull knife, and this thing just sings.
The "Super Swede" has an odd blade profile. Thick spine, wide blade with lots of belly, steep clip point, curved Scandi grind. Usable point. Hard, smooth, black plastic handle. In many ways, it looks like the precursor to the Swede 82 & 92. In fact, I have found photos of knives with "Super Swede" etched on the blade, which knives are clearly the Swede 92.
Here's a picture that is nearly what mine would have looked like new:
(Actually, this is the model between mine and the later Swede 92. It's still called the Super Swede, and still has the old hard plastic handle, but the blade is the newer, "pointier" blade [with nail nick] that would become the Swede 82 and 92. The etching is correct, the handle is correct, the logo placement is correct, but the blade's clip point is too tapered.)
(Here's my Swede 92 and the Normark branded version for comparison)
On the original Super Swede, there's no nail nick, but the broad blade exposed makes it easy to grip and open. Also the older blade has a substantially steeper clip at the point. This knife was designed to be opened with two hands, which hands were likely to be wearing gloves or mittens. Even though it's "odd looking" by our standards, it's a serious outdoor knife. Very robust blade, hefty construction, back lock at the tail avoids accidental release. (See below for a photos of the older blade profile.)
Found a couple of pix of the older blade design:
The black handled Normark in the middle is the one I have. Notice the absence of a nail nick at the peak of the clip.
--
Here's another. It's the upper knife in this photo.
(The lower knife is the "Big Swede" also by EKA.)
This knife (the Super Swede) is the perfect "beater" knife for dropping into the Jeep's center console.
Heck, just for laughs, I might enter it into the EDC rotation for a while, despite its rough appearance.
In the bargain bin at the gun shop/pawn shop mentioned in the above mentioned Buck Muskrat thread, I found an old, well-used Normark/EKA "Super Swede" outdoor folder ("hunter" if you prefer). Looks to be 20 years old. Snap is still excellent, no play, and the blade -- although scratched and showing wear -- has an sharp and undamaged edge. Ten bucks.
I fixed dinner with the Normark (tacos with all the fixings) and used it to dice tomatoes, shave lettuce, and stuff like that. Awesome. Not a job for a dull knife, and this thing just sings.
The "Super Swede" has an odd blade profile. Thick spine, wide blade with lots of belly, steep clip point, curved Scandi grind. Usable point. Hard, smooth, black plastic handle. In many ways, it looks like the precursor to the Swede 82 & 92. In fact, I have found photos of knives with "Super Swede" etched on the blade, which knives are clearly the Swede 92.
Here's a picture that is nearly what mine would have looked like new:
(Actually, this is the model between mine and the later Swede 92. It's still called the Super Swede, and still has the old hard plastic handle, but the blade is the newer, "pointier" blade [with nail nick] that would become the Swede 82 and 92. The etching is correct, the handle is correct, the logo placement is correct, but the blade's clip point is too tapered.)
(Here's my Swede 92 and the Normark branded version for comparison)
On the original Super Swede, there's no nail nick, but the broad blade exposed makes it easy to grip and open. Also the older blade has a substantially steeper clip at the point. This knife was designed to be opened with two hands, which hands were likely to be wearing gloves or mittens. Even though it's "odd looking" by our standards, it's a serious outdoor knife. Very robust blade, hefty construction, back lock at the tail avoids accidental release. (See below for a photos of the older blade profile.)
Found a couple of pix of the older blade design:
The black handled Normark in the middle is the one I have. Notice the absence of a nail nick at the peak of the clip.
--
Here's another. It's the upper knife in this photo.
(The lower knife is the "Big Swede" also by EKA.)
This knife (the Super Swede) is the perfect "beater" knife for dropping into the Jeep's center console.
Heck, just for laughs, I might enter it into the EDC rotation for a while, despite its rough appearance.
