Les Stroud Knives

[Gary B.]

[JAfromMn]

Nice looking knives.

Real world use will be the judge if there any good or not.

[dks]

They are made by the Legendary Camillus, so they must be good...   

 

Ideally he should have come out with a multitool as that is what he usually uses in his show.
He seems very keen on the grip..

We had a discussion about them ages ago; I assumed they must have been out by now but I have not seen any tests or reviews about them.

Anybody??

[Grant Lamontagne]

They were still in the very early design stages at SHOT this year- so much so they didn't have actual knives there so much as plastic mockups of what the knives were supposed to look like.  I have to say I wasn't impressed though- the specs on the knives seemed decent enough but they seemed more like survival kits packaged into a knife sheath rather than something you'd actually have with you in a STHF type situation.  I liked the knives well enough in their own right, just as I pointed out in the Survival Knives thread, I wasn't certain how useful they'd be. 

Def

[sergemaster]

Amici,
I'm perplexed, first off I thought Camillus was out of business along with Schrade? Now that doesn't mean that a company like Taylor didn't possibly buy the rights to their name and designs just making everything in China?

Secondly, what happened with Les and the Helle Temagami? I thought this was also another knife he designed from the ground up for survival?

In the meantime, I think I'll stick with a Custom Folts Minimalist along with a Juice C2.

Cheers,
Serge

[AimlessWanderer]

The first thing I notice in the vid was a combo edged blade ...  ... what on earth is all that about  Why is an otherwise rather clued up survival guru touting a CE blade for outdoors (non-marine/climbing/sporting) survival?

I think I'll pass and stick with my other options 

[dks]

Amici,
I'm perplexed, first off I thought Camillus was out of business along with Schrade? Now that doesn't mean that a company like Taylor didn't possibly buy the rights to their name and designs just making everything in China?

The new Camillus just has the rights to the name, which it uses, like the new Schrade.

There is no other connection to the original maker and the quality is not the same, so far.

Why is an otherwise rather clued up survival guru touting a CE blade for outdoors (non-marine/climbing/sporting) survival?

Money  ; also Bear Gryllis, who actually uses a knife, uses a combo edge knife too (Les is a multitool fan).
In addition, the public sees anything with teeth on as more dangerous and tactical.

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Not another CE edge

I'll stick with my Temagami for now I think

[jekostas]

The new Camillus just has the rights to the name, which it uses, like the new Schrade.

There is no other connection to the original maker and the quality is not the same, so far.

This is a really unfair comparison to make.  The current Camillus is not the original Camillus, no, but the new series of knives made by the company are of far, far better quality than the crap that populates most of the new Schrade line up.

Also, as of Shot Show 2012 Camillus introduced a new line of US-made fixed blade knives.

As for the Stroud line - he actually designed these knives from the ground up and field tested them.  They aren't the Gerber Bear Grylls rebrands.

http://smallcaps.us/knife-world-features-camillus-and-les-stroud-in-5-page-article

To quote:

"Mr. Stroud says that he was involved in every step of the design process. He told the technical people at Camillus what requirements the knives had to meet in terms of design, usability and comfort. And each time a prototype was ready, he took it outside to test. Only after several of these cycles the designs were finalized. He added that a survival knife has to help you to survive and that he wanted to make sure these knives did exactly that, without compromises."

[Gareth]

Amici,
I'm perplexed, first off I thought Camillus was out of business along with Schrade? Now that doesn't mean that a company like Taylor didn't possibly buy the rights to their name and designs just making everything in China?

The new Camillus just has the rights to the name, which it uses, like the new Schrade.

There is no other connection to the original maker and the quality is not the same, so far.

Why is an otherwise rather clued up survival guru touting a CE blade for outdoors (non-marine/climbing/sporting) survival?

Money  ; also Bear Gryllis, who actually uses a knife, uses a combo edge knife too (Les is a multitool fan).
In addition, the public sees anything with teeth on as more dangerous and tactical.

except he didn't.  The knife that he actually designed for himself and had custom build was totally plain edged, not quite my taste design wise, but a good looking knife.

BTW Bear Grylls is no longer associated with Bayley knives AFAIK.

I'm also not sure it's fair to write Les of as multitool guy and not a knife guy.  He's been an outdoorsman far longer that he's been a survival show host and I am sure he knows exactly what he does and doesn't want in a knife.  Remember that the premise of his shows was always "what would happen if..." this always took into account what a normal person might have on them in certain situations; light aircraft crash or snowmobile accident?  Might have a multi.  Boat sinks in the bayou? More likely a knife.

Sadly I suspect you were spot on with your first assessment; it's the money.  Lots of people will want a CE blade and so they have one to offer.   I'm likely going to keep on believing that until he can convince me that he really thinks a CE is way superior to a PE in the great outdoors.

[dks]

Jekostas,I have no experience with the new Les knives, which is why I said that the quality, (again in general with respect too the new Camillus, not these knives) is not the same as the original Camillus, so far. I know that they are moving some production to the US, but to me they are still not real Camillus.
The comparison with Schrade was to explain the use of the name not to say they are the same quality. I have several Schrades, new and old and the new ones are really bad.

In my previous post, 2nd from the top, I was asking for a review of them, so as to make a more meaningful decision on their quality. If the price is ok for the quality I may even buy one.

In truth I am against this whole policy of putting a famous name on goods that have very little to do with the original maker of the goods, be it knives, cars (e.g Daewoo = Chevrolet) etc., usually followed by  statements about sticking to the originals spirit, history and so on, tricking people into buying them.

This holds true for collaborations, in which a part of a product is made or designed by someone famous and that is supposed to magically improve the product. (e.g. Proton cars with Lotus [they own it] badges or SSansyong 4x4 cars with Mercedes engines, food mixers with chefs names on them etc..).
With respect to the BG knife, I am sure I saw him using a combo edge on some episodes, though maybe not all. 

Whatever happens according to EDIThis this site:
http://www.bear-grylls.com/bear_grylls_knife.html

“The Bottom Line: the knife designed by Bear and Gerber® tops every knife Bear has used on Man vs. Wild so far.  Its handy innovations make it the go-to knife for anyone who spends time in the backcountry, or travels (especially by plane) frequently.  This knife will give you an edge on surviving if you ever find yourself lost or stranded.”

So it is a lot better than that custom knife you are talking about, Gareth…   

[jzmtl]

They seem to be out. http://www2.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_store.html?ttl=Les%20Stroud%20Series&k=Les%20Stroud&brand=5&&utm_source=KnifeCenter.com&utm_medium=home_banner

[AimlessWanderer]

And it appears there's a plain edged version which is cheaper than a combo edge 
So who's going to do the review for us? 

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Wow there a lot cheaper than I thought they would be with Les's name on them

[dks]

"Since 1876,    Camillus Cutlery has been supplying the world with reliable, innovative and quality made knives that have survived the true test of time. As one of the oldest knife manufacturers, Camillus Cutlery has always answered the call for quality and will continue to do so with our hunting, fishing, sporting and tactical knives.

Craftsmanship with a worldwide following – it's been the Camillus way for over 130 years  .

Camillus products are made of Titanium Bonded® cutlery-grade steel   and are through-hardened to hold an edge.

At Camillus our legendary products are supported by an equally legendary promise. If your Camillus product fails to perform due to defects in materials or workmanship, we will replace it regardless of age. "

With a lifetime warranty they will be worth a try, especially once the prices get even lower  

[Gryffin]

Camillus products are made of Titanium Bonded® cutlery-grade steel  

From the photos, I assume "titanium bonded" means a titanium nitride coating, like other makers' "diamond-like coating" or DLC. Damn tough stuff.

[Sparky415]

Sorry but it sounds like salesman BS to me where they blind you with salesman science,
 
I was waiting for Adamantium to be mentioned 

I want my bush knives made from old leaf springs 

[sergemaster]

Amici,
I have to admit for me, I was never a big fan of any sort of coating applied on a blade besides a good parkerizing that's found on most USMC Mark II combat knives. Everything else is nothing more than high quality paint as found on the new versions of the Mark II and even the Azula.

Cheers,
Serge