October 21, 2022
What's in my gear bag - Knives
Welcome to another issue of the Efficient Hunting Newsletter.
I appreciate your attention and feel honored you're on this journey with me.
This is an episode of "what's in my hunting gear bag?
Today, it's about the knives I use.
I will add that I've always had a fascination.
So over time, new candidates are likely to make the cut.
And some of them might get time on the bench.
These are the three knives I use regularly.
Hultaforse craftsman's knife
Civilware Packer
Extrema Ratio
Shrapnel OG
I'll include links in the description.
And by the way, I'm not affiliated with any of these brands.I don't get any
commission.
And I purchased the knives for my own money.
Well, only two of them, more on that later.
Hultafors craftsman's knife
This is my go-to knife for field processing deer.
It’s a Hultafors knife.
I think it’s their craftsman’s’ model.
It’s a fixed carbon steel blade. 2.5 mm thick.
does it work, or what’s special about it?
Well, there’s not really anything extraordinary about it.
It’s a knife made on traditional tried and tested principles.
If I should point to something special, it’s probably the fantastic value for money.
What do I like about it?
I like it because it’s easy to work with all around. It’s easy to grip with bloody or wet hands.
It’s light. It’s got a scandi grind, so it’s easy to sharpen.
And it gets very sharp. By the way, I’ll make another video on how I sharpen my knives.
What would I change?
I’d like the blade to be a bit shorter.
And you could probably also shorten the handle a little to make the whole thing a more compact package.
The sheath could do with an upgrade. But that would make it more expensive.
I will add that I often just carry it in a cargo pocket anyway,
so the fact that the sheath is basic is not a major issue.
Civilware packer
What is it?
This is a modern take on a fieldcraft knife.
One that works well for several tasks.
And it comes in a well-made Kydex sheath.
How does it work, or what’s special about it?
It’s a well-made knife that feels good to work with.
What do I like about it?
I like it because it’s small and easy to work with. And, the sheath fits on my bino harness.
What would I change?
I like guards on knives, so I’d like to add more of a guard here.
Not a traditional guard.
That would make it another knife.
Just a little more curve in the finger groove.
Extrema Ratio Shrapnel OG
What is it?
Extrema Ratio refer to this as a backup knife.
To me, it’s kind of a bushcraft knife on steroids.
What do I mean by that?
Well, the blade is a quarter of an inch thick.
6.33 milimeters. That’s what I mean by steorids.
It has a Kydex sheath with a Bladetech mount.
So it also works well on my bino caddy.
How does it work, or what’s special about it?
Its leaf-shaped blade is short and thick.
So it’s like a stout little bulldog that can take a serious beating.
And dish one out too.
It’s also got a very characteristic look.
I once had a leather maker refuse to make a sheath for it because of how aggressive it looked.
What do I like about it?
It’s solid and dependable, and it gets very sharp.
It’s also short enough to use for more delicate tasks.
It’s probably my top pick for an all-around field knife.
Especially when combined with a folding saw.
What would I change?
Nothing. I really like this knife.
My wife gave it to me when we lived in Switzerland.
Well, to be exact, she gave me a similar but bigger version, thinking it was the one I had been looking at.
But I changed it to this one. The one I so desired.
My precious.