Here are my three Bark River knives. Mike Stewart makes good stuff...the material used is of the highest quality and the skill of the artisans is great.


The first knife is the tactical and survival knife, the STS-5. It was developed for the Marine Recon guys who demanded a tough, rust proof, no nonsense knife with a five and a half inch blade that meshed with the needs of modern belly to belly warfare and this was the result. It is a wonderfully designed knife, great in the hand and quick to draw from its sheath. Randy Chinn from California designed and built me some Cocobolo scales to replace the G10 units that came with the knife.
The second knife is the wonderful Gunny with the Desert Ironwood scales from Bark River. This knife is a smaller more utilitarian version of the Bravo 1 which is the third knife. The Gunny's blade is just shy of 4 inches and is all around a little shorter/smaller than the Bravo1. The blade is of the excellent A2 tool steel. It is the ideal camp knife in a smaller package. It can make fuzz sticks, baton wood or do kitchen work along with the best of them. It came with a wonderfully sharp convex edge. As I said, the Bravo1 is a bigger version of the Gunny and it too was developed for a Marine Recon group who wanted a powerful survival tool for use behind enemy lines and which could also be used for man to man close-in fighting. This was the result. The blade is also of A2 tool steel and a little over 4 inches in length. A2 holds an edge beautifully and sharpens up with ease in the field or at base. The Bravo 1 came with a super sharp convex edge and the scales are of Spalted Maple Burl wood.



Here are my wonderful knives from Helle and Fallkniven. The first knife is the Jarl SK1 from Fallkniven...it has a 4 inch blade made of the 3G powder super steel from Japan. The blade is laminated with softer steel on the outside and the super 3G providing the edge at Rockwell 62. The edge out of the box was remarkably sharp. The handle is the typical barrel shaped Scandinavian traditional design and in this case is made of Curly Masur Birch. The second knife is from Helle of Norway and it is their Temagami model, named after my old hunting and SCUBA diving area 60 miles north of North Bay Ontario where I grew up. This is an excellent knife with a triple laminate carbon steel 4 inch blade. It is touted by Helle as being a survival knife and I believe it is just that. It has a 3/4 tang and the blade is the sharpest out of the box edge I have come across. And it retains its edge very well. The handle is strudy and comfortable and is made of Masur Birch treated with boiled linseed oil. A very nice knife and one of my favourites. The last knife in this group is the Fallkniven TK2, once again with the marvellous 3G Powder steel. It is an excellent knife with an edge that makes your eyes water just looking at it. The handle is of Thermorun, a rubber-like substance that gives a great grip and feels good in the icy cold of winter.
And finally we have my great knives from ESEE..the 4, the 5 and the 6.


The first knife is the ESEE-6 with a Honduran Rosewood Burl handle again by Randy Chinn. This 6 ich blade is of 1095 tool steel and has an edge created by Clay for me...ouch, it is so sharp and has a fine mirror finish. This knife falls into the category of survival knife, as do all ESEE knives. All of them are value priced and come with a lifetime guarantee with no questions asked. If you break any of their knives they will replace it gladly. The ESEE 5 is another one of those knives designed with the collaberation of the military. This beast of a knife is part knife and part pry bar and it was developed to help helicopyer pilots to escape from the wreckage of their vehicle should they go down. You have only to hold one in your hand to know that it is indeed capable in that or any other survival situation. Once again 1095 steel with a spine of .27 inches!!! The handle on this monster is of Madagascar Ebony designed and built by Peter Rassenti from here in Quebec Canada. He and Randy are remarkable craftsmen. The next knife is the ESEE-4 with scales by Randy Chinn once again. The wood is museum grade Bird's Eye Maple Burl. The blade is a handy 4 inches in length and of the three is probably the most useful knife around the camp for most chores.All these ESEE knives retain their edges well and sharpen up with no problems to a razor keenness.
I think I got them all but if I screwed up I will edit!! LOL! So report me to the Moderator! ROTFLMAO!

Wonderful collection of knives, Leo - but I think I need to report that tablecloth background to the mods!

jendeindustries wrote:


Thomas!!!
Don't you be knockin' my choice of backgrounds! Or I might cry!

Leo

That is a beautiful collection, Leo.

And once again you may have helped me without knowing you did so .

I am looking for a fixed camp/bushcraft knife. I have a Fallkniven A1 to take with me in the woods and a Swamp Rat Ratmandu. Those are great knives, but a bit too large and thick for camp tasks like food prep. (Although my girlfriend uses the A1 to cut chicken joints )

So I had my eye on a Bark River Fox River, but that one is still slightly too large for my purposes. Then I thought of an ESEE-3. And now you show me the Bark River Gunny! It sure is a beautiful knife. Have you ever been able to compare it to an ESEE-3?

mark76 wrote:


Mark my friend! Always good to hear from you. I don't have an ESEE-3 but my son Paul does. He loves it...it is flat ground with a factory 20 degrees per side apex, 1095 tool steel which strops up beautifully nd holds an edge well. He did two white-tail deer with one and still the knife was good and sharp.


The Gunny is full convex ground and is of A2 tool steel which is an excellent steel in every way. I have used it to cut chicken joints by the way and it does so well...and butterflies chicken breasts nicely. The cutting edge of the blade is almost 4 inches and come out nicely using the WEPS. I have put a 16.5 degree per side edge on mine as I prefer that to the very thin, almost 0 edge from the factory. It does everything well, but is not the greatest slicer. My grandson Owen uses it to make fuzz-sticks for starting fires and batoning kindling. I recommend it but I am sure the ESEE-3 is just as good...it is also much cheaper so it is a good value.
I hope this helps.

Cheers
Leo

Thanks, Leo! That is useful information. And that ESEE sure looks like an effective knife. It is a real pity the only deer around here are at children’s farms...

I will let you know which one it will be. In the meantime, here is a picture of my Swamp Rat Ratmandu, when it still was in almost virginal state. I love the handling of this knife; it really has great ergonomics.



I don’t have a picture of my Fallkniven at hand, but I promise I’ll post some when I’ve gotten around to do its convex edge on the WEPS.

Glad to help Mark. It's OK about the A1 picture...I know the Fallkniven stuff off by heart. I am an old fan of the Swedish company...I have a TK-2 and a PXL folder.

Cheers
Leo

leomitch wrote:


Leo, what causes the Gunny not to be a great slicer? The reason I am looking for a thinner blade is mainly that I also want to use it for food prep...

The blade on the Gunny is not a great slicer because it is not flat ground. Also it is a little too thick to be a great slicer. Remember, this knife is derived from the Bravo1 which was developed as a survival knife for the Marine recon guys,so in effect the Gunny has those attributes. Having said all that, it is not bad at kitchen tasks but chunks of carrots go flying when cut with a Gunny if you are not careful. It is however a very useful knife in every other way when it comes to camping and hunting chores. It can also be useful around the kitchen and the rest of the house and yard.
Now the Le Trappeur is a fine slicer because it has a thin, flat ground blade as do most French knives, but then you want a nice small fixed blade.

Leo

Hi Leo,

It has become a knife whose maker I did not know until recently: Arno Bernard, from South Africa.

I saw this knife at a show in Germany and just had to get it. The knife is made from 12C27 steel; this stuff seems to chase me .

The handle is made from warthog tusk (had to look that up in the dictionary). It also came with a beautiful sheath made of cape buffalo.





Now I know that in my house beautiful knives don't always become users. So still 50% chance I'll get the ESEE-3 or a small Becker before summer begins .

Mark