Ray Mears made his Woodlore knife famous. Many makers have copied the design. I have a custom one made by knife maker Andy Mills in England. Funny story how I can to have it. He issued a challenge. And it was ten years ago, so my memory may not be precise. He said the first person to guess correctly, the pub he was at in some town would win the knife. I hazarded a guess on a lark. Never thought I would win, being in Hawaii. And never been to England. I won! Told him he could give it to the next closest person in the contest in England. Shipping to and from Hawaii has always been and continues to be expensive. But he said he was good for it and shortly after, my knife arrived. Complete with papers. 22F84F20-B918-467B-9111-7C17037334D4 by Hanzo posted Jan 20, 2019 at 18:35 So I am seeing all these ten year challenges all over the place. I am not posting my mug. But I did post my knife. 2009 and 2019. Since the Mora Companion that I normally carry on hikes has a rounded spine, I decided to carry other knives that have a squared off or more sharpened spine. First up is the Woodlore. So I cleaned it up and gave it a strop to get it back to shaving sharp. I never carry it very often because it is wet here. And the sheath is leather. Maybe not so condusive to a wet and salty climate. Any suggestions on alleviating that? The Woodlore just would not look at home in anything but leather, IMO. A33E08A6-4601-405A-9697-36366932F863 by Hanzo posted Jan 20, 2019 at 18:35 It has a nice natural patina on the carbon steel blade. It has been used enough that I can barely make out the makers mark any more. A great knife though. The handle is big enough to fit my hand. (I have another custom Woodlore clone. That handle just barely fits my hand.) Only thing is, I do not need all the lashing points that he made in the handle. But it was already made when I won it. I can't complain. Gary Mills does good work.
What a beauty. Ray Mears really knows his gear (and skills obviously). I pretty much trust anything he had a hand in designing, or even just chooses to personally use.
There are some very nice stainless pukko knives at Ragweed Forge of Finnish and Swedish origin that might be a nice option for wet environs. I live in Tidewater, VA and the humidity here is unreal in warm and hot weather. I have both carbon and stainless blades ( mostly carbon) and really haven't had too many issue with rusting. The stainless wares hold up very well in some pretty wet conditions. Mora is an excellent maker of stainless budget ( oh how I hate that word!) Knives and I've gifted more to my friends who hunt due to the excellent performance in rough climates. The Finnish traditional knives made of carbon hold up very well with reasonable care and are great additions to anyone's day bag.
