What fixed blade are you carrying today?

[zoidberg]

(Image removed from quote.)

What is the handle material?

Website says it is rubber. https://www.varusteleka.com/en/product/terava-jaakaripuukko-carbon-steel/56524

[sak60]

Thanks. I’ve bought a couple of things from them. Really quick delivery time on both.

[Nix]

Koyote custom today:

[styx]

that looks interesting

[Nix]

that looks interesting

As in, "I hate it"?  Or simply, "I wouldn't carry that in a 1000 years..."?   

[Alan K.]

Nix, I would never carry that knife.... because it's yours.  Now if it was my knife I would carry it often.  Very nice.

[Nix]

 

[zoidberg]

Koyote custom today:

(Image removed from quote.)

Drool.   

[styx]

that looks interesting

As in, "I hate it"?  Or simply, "I wouldn't carry that in a 1000 years..."?   

as in the blade profile looks familiar yet distant, the handle looks like it could be mangificantly comfortable or as slipperly as owl snot
in other words it is a knife I'd gladly try and by the looks of it either wouldn't give it up ever or would yell that ain't for me in 30 seconds

[clown]

[Nix]

That Barkie always kills me, Clown. Nice one. 

[clown]

That Barkie always kills me, Clown. Nice one. 

Thanks! Hasn't seen much love lately so I decided to take it out for some air.

[Nix]

Excellent! 

(Now stop posting pics of that much needed coveted knife!)

[styx]

You could also give us some more feedback on that Koyote custom

[Nix]

You could also give us some more feedback on that Koyote custom

Oh, dear. You just asked a knife guy to talk about knives....... how much time you got?

Let's start with the whole package:

[Nix]

I got the above knife and sheath from Koyote about....ten or eleven years ago.

He made the knife, the sheath was made (I believe) by his buddy Koyote Girl. The sheath is a stout leather, probably 8-9oz. The belt loop is adjustable so it can fit different belts, even MOLLE gear.  It can be worn high or as a 'dangler' (Useful for the wearing a back pack with a waist belt.  )

The knife 'snaps' into the sheath and is held quite firmly.

If you wanted to find fault with the sheath, it's a bit heavy and overbuilt......but that's not a problem for me.

(I better grab a shot of the back of the sheath. Hold on.....)

[Nix]

[styx]

ok that explains the sheath. and i've got all the time in the world for things like this

[Nix]

I think that covers the sheath...it's been excellent for me.

Now, onto the knife. This is my first Koyote and still a favorite:





I'm not sure what to call this knife.    A drop-point Kephart?

I think of this knife as being a small knife, so I'm always surprised to realize the blade is about 4.5" long.

The pinned scales are made of Osage Orange (a native American hardwood known for it's toughness.).

 At first, the handle seemed short to me. I mentioned this perception to Koyote. He explained that he designed it with a shorter handle that one could 'palm' when using. Now, I have some XL hands, so I was a bit skeptical. I got this knife to be a woods-bumming knife, camping & hiking knife, I thought I'd want a big handle. A handle I could use to really get some work done.

However, time and experience has proven him to be the wise one here. The handle is big enough to get a full, four-finger grip when holding it with a 'Hammer Grip'. In a 'Saber Grip' (thumb up on spine), the pommel ends up being tucked right under that fat muscle of my thumb. This is the same when using a 'Pointing Grip' (index finger on top of spine). As a result, the knife is really secure and well aligned for a push cut, slicing cut, or draw cut. I'm not sure how important a handle is for a 'Chest-lever Cut', but this handle works really well for that.

The handle is slightly contoured which also aids in providing a really solid grip. Gripping this handle, your hand isn't going anywhere.

At some point, I soaked the handle in linseed oil. As in 'dunked it in linseed oil for a few days'.

After that, the handle has had a slightly 'tacky' feel. It is very smooth, but 'grippy'. I actually worried fo ra I hike that I had screwed up by doing this; I worried that the handle would collect dust or dirt. But this has not proven to be a problem. So, in the end, I'm glad I tried that.

I had a lanyard on the handle for a while, but it interfered a bit with 'palming' the handle comfortably, and I removed that. Good move there.

So that's the handle covered....unless there are other questions.... 

[Nix]

ok that explains the sheath. and i've got all the time in the world for things like this

    Me, too!

[Nix]

As to the blade on the Koyote "Drop Point Kephart", I think Koyote told me he made it from an old saw blade, an he believed it to be L6 steel . Sounds right.

The stock is about 1/8" thick, It has a convex edge, and I'd be tempted to cal it a 'Scandivex' edge, as long as no one get's his or her feelings hurt here.

I don't know how Koyote achieved that spalting on the blade. I like it aesthetically. I was worried that stuff like peanut butter would be hard to clean off, but that hasn't been an issue.

Regardless of the steel, the knife takes a wicked sharp edge. Edge retention is good, but not astounding by modern "super-steel" standards. But I don't care, it sharpens easily and can be touched up in the field if needed.

The blade geometry in timeless and fairly instinctive to use. The edge does a good job splitting wood as well as slicing foods. I've batonned this knife through small-diameter wood with ease.

I cold see where one might want a slightly thicker blade in a woods knife, but, really I've had no issues using this and it has proven tone reliable and capable. I suppose one advantage of the thinner blade is that the knife is relatively light weight for a 4.5" knife.

I guess that about does it for my insights. If I think of anything else, I'll add some more later.   

[FInixNOver]

I didn't actually carry it, but I just bought it today, and the question is: does an axe count as a fixed blade?


Sent from my Redmi Note 5

[Nix]

I say, "Yes".

Why not?

[SteveC]

 I reckon so as well     

This wouldn't     

[David]

Koyote custom today:

(Image removed from quote.)

Good looking knife. The OO handle works well with blade.     

[David]

(Image removed from quote.)

      

[David]

I reckon so as well     

This wouldn't     


(Image removed from quote.)

Yup, thats a folder for sure.       

[Nix]

   Osage orange has been a long time favorite of mine... 

[styx]

As to the blade on the Koyote "Drop Point Kephart", I think Koyote told me he made it from an old saw blade, an he believed it to be L6 steel . Sounds right.

The stock is about 1/8" thick, It has a convex edge, and I'd be tempted to cal it a 'Scandivex' edge, as long as no one get's his or her feelings hurt here.

I don't know how Koyote achieved that spalting on the blade. I like it aesthetically. I was worried that stuff like peanut butter would be hard to clean off, but that hasn't been an issue.

Regardless of the steel, the knife takes a wicked sharp edge. Edge retention is good, but not astounding by modern "super-steel" standards. But I don't care, it sharpens easily and can be touched up in the field if needed.

The blade geometry in timeless and fairly instinctive to use. The edge does a good job splitting wood as well as slicing foods. I've batonned this knife through small-diameter wood with ease.

I cold see where one might want a slightly thicker blade in a woods knife, but, really I've had no issues using this and it has proven tone reliable and capable. I suppose one advantage of the thinner blade is that the knife is relatively light weight for a 4.5" knife.

I guess that about does it for my insights. If I think of anything else, I'll add some more later.   

To be fair the more I learn from experience and read, the more I'm convinced that a sub 5" blade very rarely benefits from being thicker than 1/8th.

The handle would be my first concern as well. Not so much that is looks small since the reality of that can only be felt in hand* but rather that is looks slick. Guess that whole experiment with linseed oil at least added to the shiny factor.
The blade profile reminds me a bit of a chef knife. Maybe something that would easily be seen in a Green river catalogue.

*what I mean by this can perfectly be explained by 2 Spyders - Sage and Para2. Sage has more width and while it is an excellent knife I find it to be quite awkward in most use due to the handle feeling small. Para2 on the other hand doesn't cause any issues for me

[Nix]

Yes, the linseed oil did give the handle a shiny appearance. The handle is in no way slick. Smooth, yes. Shiny, yes. It is still quite 'grippy', though.

I agree. I don't think a knife blade really needs to be over 1/8" - 3/16" in this size range. The exception being in a very wide blade, where a thicker stock will allow for different primary edge geometries.

For comparison, let me put up a photo contrasting a Treeman Pathfinder with the Koyote (the Treeman has a lot of odd angles and it's hard to get a clean shot):



The Treeman is made with a massive 1/4" thick O-1 tool steel stock!  Because of that, the blade has a deep hollow-grind. It does give the knife a razor's edge, but it also makes it a less clean slicer. The thick blade stock give this knife a very heft and solid feel. It feels indestructible. And that come with a price: the Koyote comes in at 127 grams on my kitchen scale, the Treeman is a big 317 grams. (For reference: my Vic Explorer and Wenger Esquire together weigh 127 grams.)

Here's a better shot of the Treeman:




It's a beast. 

As you can see, the handle is highly contoured with elements of an integral guard and pommel. Your hand is really locked in when holding it with a hammer grip. While the handle looks like it would limit other grips, I have to give Treeman some credit for creating a fairly versatile handle. Saber grip feels good to me, and my thumb lands quite naturally on the big 1/4 flat of the spine, before the false edge up front.

The big choil does let one choke up safely, but I don't think I could do so with gloves. Using a pointing grip (index finger on spine) is less comfortable. The swell at the pommel creates a small point of discomfort and the lanyard attachment loop digs into my palm. That contrasts sharply (bad pun) with Koyote's handle where the rounded pommel fits comfortably in the palm.

The other big problem with this handle comes up when trying to use a chest-lever grip. It's possible do use this grip, but really awkward with bits of the guard and pommel digging into the hand. The Koyote is fantastic when used with the chest-lever grip. I think the Treeman wold start to feel very uncomfortable if one were using this grip to make a large number of cuts, e.g. making six tent stakes.

I think it's interesting to contrast these two knives, because they are both described as "bushcraft" knives. Obviously with very different emphases. While the Treeman is a very versatile knife, I have to give the "Bushcraft" prize to the Koyote design. As a "Hunting" knife, the Treeman has some advantages.....but then there is that weight.....

Since I pulled out the Treeman, I'll be carrying it today. With a stiff belt and the kidex sheath, the Treeman actually carries surprisingly well, despite the weight.