Spyderco Forums

I would rather get a proper slicer and a heavier thrash kind of tool. Something like a tac hawk with a spike and thick bevel, that or a Cold Steel shovel.

Blerv -

Years ago Al Mar designed the "Smatchet"...that would fit your description/requirements quite nicely.

Thanks Tobii :) .

tobii3 wrote:Ha ha...no offense intended Ken!

No worries brother, it's all good. Just giving you a poke, eh?

Anyway, for such use, I keep a large Busse (FBM LE) around, but way out of the intended price range, I'm afraid... Sorry. Great knife though. Also have a Busse hatchet for things like Blake is talking about. That little sucker is a tank (reminds me, I need to sharpen it..... New thread)

Ken

Warrior for me - thick but light, convex SE on back, rust proof. You can find it for under $200 if you look.

jeep45238 wrote:Esee.

This.

1095 is easy to sharpen and holds a great edge. They are built tough as nails and carry an unconditional warranty.

I EDC an izula (with a delica 4) at work, a Laser Strike is my camp knife and an Esee 4 is in my GHB (get home bag).

Outside of work it is either a PM2, Yo2, or GB with the Esee 4 in the GHB always close.

+1 on a Khukri, check out Himalayan Imports. Also, ESEE Junglass, ESEE 5, BK2, BK9 or BK4 are worth a look. I do like the Rock Salt and Schempp Rock, I have both but I would put them in the lighter category compare to the others.

Swamp Rat Rodent 9 model.

9 1/2-inch blade.

Right under budget at $198.95

http://usaknifemaker.com/clip-poirt-bla ... round.html

I went and bought this mostly finished blade blank and about $40 in supplies (G10 scales, 1/4" brass rod, a sheath). Well under my price limit, and a simple project to work on.

Truckie453 wrote:This.

1095 is easy to sharpen and holds a great edge. They are built tough as nails and carry an unconditional warranty.

I EDC an izula (with a delica 4) at work, a Laser Strike is my camp knife and an Esee 4 is in my GHB (get home bag).

Outside of work it is either a PM2, Yo2, or GB with the Esee 4 in the GHB always close.

I like ESEE knives in general for their designs, warranty, and materials. However, I've never been able to get used to the coated blades. I know this cuts down on corrosion and rust, but it just makes the blades a lot less useful as slicers. The paint seems to drag through the material as you slice. I've seen some discussions on BF about how to remove it - but it seems like a lot of work... Temp2 sounds like the best option for me...

TedP

tobii3 wrote:Blerv -

Years ago Al Mar designed the "Smatchet"...that would fit your description/requirements quite nicely.

I think the Smatchet pre-dates the late great Al Mar's knive designing days. It was a WW2-era knife. Al Mar made a replica.

Al Mar didn't make "replicas", Rex. One of the main reasons he and his knives are held in such high regard in the SF Community.

It was designed off a Celtic Sword. Allow me to reference Cutler's Cove...Al Mar Combat Smatchet

If you compare Al Mar's Smatchet with any of the other ones on the market you will see a big difference in fit, finish and quality. Al's is much better!

He didn't make a "replica"...he perfected it.

I hear you about the coatings. If you are interested, stop by the Esee forums, there are a number of guys who have stripped and put a patina on their ESEEs.

General forum http://jungletraining.com/forums/forum.php

Here is a thread about the Esee 3 model showing mods. http://jungletraining.com/forums/showth ... f-your-3-s!

phillipsted wrote:I like ESEE knives in general for their designs, warranty, and materials. However, I've never been able to get used to the coated blades. I know this cuts down on corrosion and rust, but it just makes the blades a lot less useful as slicers. The paint seems to drag through the material as you slice. I've seen some discussions on BF about how to remove it - but it seems like a lot of work... Temp2 sounds like the best option for me...

TedP

Schemp Rock or ESEE Junglas for sure

Absolute best bang for the buck? A $12 Tramontina machete, and a Moran (fantastic slicer for the money!) or Hossam series, or ESEE 3 or 4.

I agree that the epoxy coating on the ESEE 1095 knives doesn't slice as well, but it is pretty tough and does help prevent rust on them in the field. I have a couple of Junglas' as well and love them, but it is hard to get past the cost vs. a well-made machete, and save your knife for when you need to *cut* rather than chop something.

Ever seen uk top gear destruction testing a Toyota hilux absolutely incredible the destruction tests are ott but if you watch the fallkniven test it speaks for itself.
As much as I like tops they can't hold a candle to what Esse can do and still perform a perfect example of how a ht can make all the difference.
The hilux reference is to highlight how some things are over engineered wether designed for what they are put through if they hold up then they obviously are made of the right stuff.

I thought S30v steel is known to be brittle, especially if you're high on the RC scale? Seems to me if I'm whacking the spine of a blade with a sledgehammer I'd use something with a more appropriate tool steel like D2, no?

tobii3 wrote:Al Mar didn't make "replicas", Rex. One of the main reasons he and his knives are held in such high regard in the SF Community.

It was designed off a Celtic Sword. Allow me to reference Cutler's Cove...Al Mar Combat Smatchet

He didn't make a "replica"...he perfected it.

I agree Al Mar made great quality blades; I think we are on the same page. "Replica" was not meant in a negative way, at all. I have one of the original SERE folders, and a Pathfinder; great blades! I wanted an Al Mar Smatchett, but it was beyond my means at the time.

FroOchie wrote:I thought S30v steel is known to be brittle, especially if you're high on the RC scale? Seems to me if I'm whacking the spine of a blade with a sledgehammer I'd use something with a more appropriate tool steel like D2, no?

It's still considered a high carbon wear resistant steel. While D2 is tougher I'm not sure if the difference would be noticeable in an impact situation unless the knives being compared were vastly different.

Traditional Khukuri's are made in Napal from Mercedes, Saab, and Japanese truck leaf springs (like large service trucks). Heated in that 58-60rc range these steels aren't nearly as wear resistant as we are used to but about 8-10mm thick and tough as heck. I'm sure in a perfect world they would be using something like CPM-3V but you can't source it from a junkyard or heat treat it in a hut.

If you're whacking the spine of your knife with a sledgehammer....you seriously need to reconsider exactly wtf you are trying to accomplish.