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Comment by Jeremi Lett on December 4, 2012 at 4:57

Used Eli Jensen custom Prionus fixed blade to open plastic sealed packages when we went shooting and opened beer after done shooting for day/nightprionus

Comment by Jan Carter on November 18, 2012 at 20:32

Blade Magazine Holiday Gift Guide

Blind Horse Knives US-Made Blades
Find the perfect Christmas gift for under $75 with a BHK Frontier First or Frontier Valley! You can also check out one of our many other hand-made blades all built right here in the USA. Our skilled craftsmen produce a wide variety of sizes and styles so you get exactly what you need. Choose a long-lasting knife you will be proud to pass on to future generations. Custom orders are welcome and in-stock items ship as fast as we can!

Visit www.blindhorseknives.com

 

Comment by Jan Carter on October 22, 2012 at 6:05

Clint,

LOL, maybe even a couple

Comment by Clint Thompson on October 20, 2012 at 17:53

You could clean a fat chipmunk with this bad boy.

Comment by Jan Carter on October 20, 2012 at 17:00

Comment by Jan Carter on October 19, 2012 at 19:49

A friend and member recently put this n his blog.  Its longer than we normally see but it is quite interesting

Cold Steel SRK vs Fallkniven A1

While I'm a huge fan of the Great Easterns and actually use them, I do head out in the woods on occasion and feel a need for a little sturdier 'camp' knife.  Earlier this summer I posted my impression of the SRK Carbon V and came away with the impression that it was a great knife and did everything demanded in fine form.

But, always in search of a 'better mouse trap' (or in this case, 'sharper knife') I've been selling the Fallkniven's for quite some time and watched a destruction video on youtube that was pretty amazing.  So, it was kind of a natural to take one out on a trip see if the Fallkniven was as great as it appeared.  And just as important, how does it compare with the SRK?

So to lay some ground work, the Fallkniven A1 is on the left next to it's leather sheath from the guys at JRE with a sleeve for the Firesteel, and on the right is a Cold Steel SRK with Carbon V blade.  While I'm not a huge fan of the 'tactical' style sheaths, the aftermarket JRE leather sheath is terrific.  When the Fallkniven is bottomed in the sheath, it's not gonna fall out.  Tip it upside down, shake it, try to 'throw' it out of the sheath.....oh yeah, that baby stays put.  The other great feature is the sleeve (barely visible behind the knife) for a Swedish Army size FireSteel.  Are you listening Dan???... the only add on that would finish the sheath would be a pocket to carry a DMT pocket stone.  Otherwise, very nice!



Here's a list of the critical specs on the two knives.

	Fallkniven A1	Cold Steel SRK
Steel	Laminated VG10	Carbon V
Handle	Hard Rubber	Hard Rubber
Tang	Full	Full
Weight	11.1 oz	8.8 oz
OAL	11.0625"	10.75"
Blade Thickness	0.225"	.0218
Point Tapers	1"	1.25"
Ricasso	.3"	.870"
Belly Depth	1.3"	1.185"

Comment by Jan Carter on October 19, 2012 at 19:48

Both knives have a black coating on them of questionable effectiveness.  On the Cold Steel it does a fair job of protecting the carbon blade, but the finish on both blades wears off and on the Cold Steel it chips.  

I had used the Cold Steel before and had touched up the edge prior to heading out.  The Fallkniven was new out of the box and was literally razor sharp.  

Since I gave the Cold Steel a thorough workout previously, I really spent most of my efforts on evaluating the Falkniven.  First task at hand was building a fire and splitting a little wood.  Take note of the where the blade's heading.



Yup, right into the gravel.  Now, while it wasn't a destruction test and I wouldn't normally recommend doing this, I had my camp mate put both knives through a few extreme conditions.  We shaved some kindling, did some splitting basically using the knife as a wedge and trimmed a few limbs around the tent, cut a little rope and started on supper.



No....those aren't my hands.   At this point the Fallkniven held an edge over the Cold Steel.  While both were still in shaving shape, the Fallkniven had the edge.



While both knives held an edge in fantastic fashion, both blades are pretty thick for any delicate work around the kitchen.  And of course, that's where the Great Easterns can come in!!  You can also see in this picture where the finish has started to wear off after a little wood splitting.  

One of the 'specs'  I listed above is the ricasso on the blades.  That's the unsharpened portion between the hand and the blade.  The Cold Steel has a distinct advantage if you're like me and like to move your hand up as close to the 'working' area as possible on small trimming jobs.

Comment by Jan Carter on October 19, 2012 at 19:46

On the Fallkniven, ....keep your grip on the handle...period.  That blade is sharp!!



Another minor detail I particularly liked about the Cold Steel is the top swedge or false edge.  It's bit sharper then the A1's and worked fantastic for fire starting with the Fire steel.  If you've ever used a Swedish FireSteel and have struck the starter with a sharpened knife blade, you know you can throw some serioussparks.  The problem is, those sparks are extremely hot and can be tough on the finest knife blade.  The top of the blade however is another thing.  You don't depend on it for a cutting edge and if it gets an incidental knick or ding, no big deal.  I think I'll remedy that situation on the Fallkniven with a little judicious file work.

The handles on both knives are pretty equal in my estimation.  The Cold steel has some shallow grooves on the top and bottom of the grip that offer minimal additional gripping surface.  Not a big deal.  One point for the Fallkniven is the full tang that's exposed at the butt.  Nice minor detail if you need a lightweight hammer or you're in a situation where you need to open a car window in a hurry.

Comment by Jan Carter on October 19, 2012 at 19:45

Both knives have substantial blades that should handle some serious prying and poking with a slight edge for the A1.  A spec that I listed above is one of my own creation that I call "point taper".  (I know there's a fancy term but bear with me anyway.)  What I'm referring to is how far back from the tip the full thickness of the blade starts to taper to a point (length of the swedge).  Logically, the closer to the tip the blade retains a full thickness, the stronger the tip should be.  Add the fact the A1 has a little deeper belly, I gotta give this one to the Fallkniven.  They have a reputation for having a very strong blade and it's easy to see why.

A spec I'm not qualified to comment on with any great authority is the blade steel.  The composition of the Carbon V steel has always been a bit vague to me in that I think there was more then one recipe for Carbon V.  The VG10 Laminated blade has an excellent reputation and it appears that rep' is upheld through my experience.

Another critical point is the difference in weight.  Both of these are terrific knives and I wouldn't blink an eye grabbing either one and heading off into unknown territory for a week of survival exercises requiring a reliable blade.  IF I had the time to pick one over the other.... I'd grab the Fallkniven and the weight would be a big factor.  While 2.3 ounces doesn't sound like much, once you start doing some chopping or wood splitting, that extra 2+ ounces makes a huge difference.  You have to feel it to believe it.  

But the strongest reason influencing me to grab the A1 is the edge retention.  Both knives got a thorough workout including running the blades through the gravel splitting wood.  By the way, I don't think that's an unrealistic aspect to the test as most knives that are in the field for any extended length of time without proper attention often see some unexpectedly rough use.  Both did a great job on edge retention, but the A1 definitely wins.  While you could see minor dings in both blades after the workout, the A1 would slice through a sheet of birch bark as smooth as butter.  The SRK did a good job, but you could feel blade drag on the burrs.  AND, it only took about 10-12 strokes on a piece of cardboard for an improvised strop to bring the A1 back to good as new condition.  Unbelievable.  Not only did it hold an edge, it was a piece of cake cleaning up the rough spots.  I'm not sure I've ever seen a blade this tough be so easy to bring the edge back.  I have a 80's vintage Buck 110 that can take an edge, hold it fairly well, but is an absolute bear to sharpen if you let it get too far past 'touch up time'.

While I was testing these two knives out, I thought about how many years I "saved" money by buying less then the best when it came to hunting clothing, boots and knives.  (Guns were a different thing!)  What a mistake.  While $150+ might be a lot of cash for a knife, I'd fully expect either the Cold Steel or theFallkniven to 'outlive' most of us.  Fortunately, I figured out the quality thing some years back, but boy do I wish I'd found out about the A1 sooner!!!

Comment by Jan Carter on October 18, 2012 at 18:31

Now I am taking a long hard look at the drop point

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