Well a little while back I asked how Foresters would hold up to chopping and batoning. Got no replies, but all is well. I found out mself. :)
Surprised I haven't seen much of anything posted about it. Very fun knife. Despite it's size it's still a little on the light side for a dedicated chopper. It worked well with lighter, quicker chops than with more powerful strokes. I found the edge slightly thick, making it not bite into the wood as well as it could, but on the positive side there wasn't any edge damage after a day of chopping the toughest seasoned wood I could find. Also did some batoning and prying. It's really fun going at it with this knife. The handle is very comfortable and a literal pleasure to use compared to other choppers I've used. Enough words, here are some photos:
Overall I'm very pleased with the knife. Only negative things I have to say is I didn't find the default sheath setup 100% comfortable on my right hip because the handle kind of digs into my side, but I could deal with it. I'll play around with different carry positions tonight. Also after about 20 to 30 minutes of chopping the handle started to rattle some. No big deal as it tightened right up when I got home, but it made me realize that some philips screws would work better for me should that happen again in the field. My swiss army knife (Victorinox Locksmith) has flat head and philips but no torx built in. I'll probably use some loc tite on them. Great knife overall, it feels very capable in the hand. Not so much a dedicated hardwood chopper, but a great all around woods tool that can do a little bit of everything. Even has a comfortable grip in the choil for more precise tasks.
I've wanted one badly ever since they came out. Your pictures make me want one even more. I hope they stay around until the summer when I will have some cash to spare for one of these bad boys.
Thanks for the review and pics, Vivi. Always trust a man that reads H.D.Thoreau.
Regards, Al
The "soul" of hi-tech materials like G-10, H1, ZDP, Titanium, carbon fiber, etc is found in the performance. That appreciation of the "spirit" comes out in time, after use. It's saying, you can depend on me! I'm there for you no matter what! - Sal Glesser
oh sorry i haven't posted in a while .i have used my forester heavly for a little over a year .shelter buliding fire making a bit hard to use for trap making. it has been to **** and back. up the river and down the creek, the steel hardly shows any stains and the grip is so confey durning long chopping chores. the edge retintion is pretty good. the rounded spine makes yur baton stick last forever unlike squared off spines, it's lite for it's size. the grind is great for makeing furry sticks,don't have to fuss to much with keep the acids from food off of it, and it sings to you while you chop or baton with it. over all it's a great knife.
drop the angle of the grind some and it will bite down hard.
"THE ROUGH RIDER”“FAR BETTER IT IS TO DARE MIGHTY THINGS..THAN TO TAKE RANK WITH THOSE POOR. TIMID SPIRITS WHO KNOW NEITHER VICTORY NOR DEFEAT.” THEODORE ROOSEVELT 1899 spyderco making mans oldest tool mans most advanced tool:spyder: THE GREATSET POWER IS OFTEN SIMPLE PATIENECE The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
eastr wrote:oh sorry i haven't posted in a while .i have used my forester heavly for a little over a year .shelter buliding fire making a bit hard to use for trap making. it has been to **** and back. up the river and down the creek, the steel hardly shows any stains and the grip is so confey durning long chopping chores. the edge retintion is pretty good. the rounded spine makes yur baton stick last forever unlike squared off spines, it's lite for it's size. the grind is great for makeing furry sticks,don't have to fuss to much with keep the acids from food off of it, and it sings to you while you chop or baton with it. over all it's a great knife.
drop the angle of the grind some and it will bite down hard.
Based on the past couple days of use I'd have to agree. The rounded spine and dropped point work great for batoning. The corrosion resistance has proved very good for me so far. The knife also took some 10 degree or so bends during some batoning without any issue.
Another thing I noticed is when whacking thorns and lighter vegetation out of the way, using the choil grip actually works better because you don't have as much of a forward balance. When chopping wood you have something that hits back and stops the knife, but slashing at lighter things you go right through it and have to stop the weight of the knife yourself. Less tiring with a more handle heavy balance.
I'll be pairing this with my Aqua Salt for trips when I want a powerhouse of a knife in addition to a smaller utility blade.
I like mine as well. I found the curve in butt of the handle is enough to grap onto straps from packs or straps from life jackets for example. Pulling the Forester out of its sheat on a rubber raft is a start of a long day. :eek: (so make sure you have good sheath retention)
If you are really running through through the briars and brambles you might want a different sheath or some sort of lanyard set up.
multi flower rose bushes i don't relish those none at all it them wrong and they will pull you in. there in my stateso there most likely in yurs to. the forester gives ya good reach on them so whenyoou do find the rubbery ones at least yur not in the thick of the patch :D
"THE ROUGH RIDER”“FAR BETTER IT IS TO DARE MIGHTY THINGS..THAN TO TAKE RANK WITH THOSE POOR. TIMID SPIRITS WHO KNOW NEITHER VICTORY NOR DEFEAT.” THEODORE ROOSEVELT 1899 spyderco making mans oldest tool mans most advanced tool:spyder: THE GREATSET POWER IS OFTEN SIMPLE PATIENECE The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Nice review and pics . Always enjoy a FB review , only have had a chance to handle a Dayhiker and found the handle a little small in hand for me . Review has peeked my interest in a larger model in the future . Regards MG2
Manix Guy 2 wrote:Nice review and pics . Always enjoy a FB review , only have had a chance to handle a Dayhiker and found the handle a little small in hand for me . Review has peeked my interest in a larger model in the future . Regards MG2
The Dayhiker is the only Hossom with the thinner handle scale thickness. The other three models have thicker handle scales.
take care,
Doug
SFO Alumni/Authorized Spyderco Dealer (Startup)
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I'm tempted by the Forester. If I didn't already have a Woodlander, I would have pulled the trigger already. The last two that sold on ebay went for $143.50 plus $5.95 shipping and $162 with $12 shipping, so $128 at Knife Center is incredible.
Our reason is quite satisfied, in 999 cases out of every 1000 of us, if we can find a few arguments that will do to recite in case our credulity is criticized by someone else. Our faith is faith in someone else's faith, and in the greatest matters this is most the case.
- William James, from The Will to Believe, a guest lecture at Yale University in 1897
