custom knives worth it or not?

[sir-lamp-alot]

sadly a few weeks back my last remaining nan passed away and she has left me with a small sum of money which understandably i dont want to be just spent on anything and ive been thinking of a few ideas new .22lr, decent scope for the hornet and also a custom knife. A custom knife is somthing ive never owned or really have any knowledge in at all and when you start to look into it its a minefeild of options around what steel to use so my question would be is a custom knife worth the effort and money i know it will look nice as it will be what i choose but will it be a better knife than the mora i currently have will it be sharper will it keep a edge for longer as you can imagine i dont want to waste the money i have and i want somthing i can remeber my nan by so i welcome your points and views also who you might recomend to build a knife if i go down this route

 

[finnbear270]

sadly a few weeks back my last remaining nan passed away and she has left me with a small sum of money which understandably i dont want to be just spent on anything and ive been thinking of a few ideas new .22lr, decent scope for the hornet and also a custom knife. A custom knife is somthing ive never owned or really have any knowledge in at all and when you start to look into it its a minefeild of options around what steel to use so my question would be is a custom knife worth the effort and money i know it will look nice as it will be what i choose but will it be a better knife than the mora i currently have will it be sharper will it keep a edge for longer as you can imagine i dont want to waste the money i have and i want somthing i can remeber my nan by so i welcome your points and views also who you might recomend to build a knife if i go down this route

Stick with the Mora, Too easy to become a lost memory,I would choose something more long lasting & easy to keep tabs on.

 

[caorach]

The custom knife thing will not really get you a tool that cuts any better than something off the shelf, but clearly you can get something very pleasing in many other ways. However for me a knife is something that is very easy to lose so if it were to have a lot of sentimental value then it would be best kept at home. There isn't much point in a knife you are afraid to take out and so my position is that it might be better to spend the cash on something else. Maybe you could buy something nice to keep and treasure and also buy a good but reasonably priced "workhorse" off the shelf knife with the money? That way you get a lot of use out of it but it isn't the end of the world if you do use it as you have spent the bulk of the money on something else to keep.

 

[Markfox]

U won't beat a mora as a stalking knife

if u had a custom made and you lost it you'd be really gutted


I'd buy something more homeley that you know will be safe won't get lost

 

[enfieldspares]

Buy a decent clock for the mantlepiece. Never put money that you can't be willing to write off as a loss into any sort of weapon or firearm that may, at some future time, be banned. My late mother bought me a Smith & Wesson Model 29 .44 Magnum for my twenty-first birthday. Don't have THAT, now, do i...

 

[sir-lamp-alot]

thanks for your replys chaps and you all make a very valid point, ive never lost a stalking knife but you just know it would happen and enfeildspares i feel for you having to give up on a gift from your mum

 

[Kalahari]

A good watch might be a memory that you could keep with you.

David.

 

[thistledeyke]

A good watch might be a memory that you could keep with you.

David.

+1 for a good watch.
Pete

 

[Cris]

I wouldn't be put off. Mora knives are OK but not the best at keeping an edge. Like you in 25 or so years of stalking I have never lost a knife. Still have the first stalking knife I ever bought and a Swiss Army knife that lives in my pocket and given to me by my parents for my 18th birthday thats traveled the world with me.
Custom knives are far more than a tool but something you should be proud to own for the craftsmanship and memory as to how you came to own it. Sure if you are worried about loosing it then use a Mora for most things and the custom on those special days and take care of it. Can't understand people that are careless with there kit.

 

[mChavez]

I agree - a custom knife is not necessarily a better tool. It's something you should be proud to own, so that every time you take it out to gralloch a beast, it brings back a memory or just looks and feels so damn great that it puts a smile on your face.

If you are just getting a knife for stalking & gralloching, steel quality does not really matter. You're only supposed to use one knife per beast, and even the cheapest knives you can buy from a souvenir shop will hold the edge long enough to perform one gralloch. When you're back home after a stalk, make sure you strop the knife so it's sharp enough to shave with again.

Better steel will hold an edge better, but it will also be harder to strop. Cheaper steel will lose the edge faster, but it will also take less time to strop it back to the right sharpness. For the purpose of one gralloch, you're not going to gain anything by buying more expensive steel.

 

[The Singing Stalker]

I don't get the custom knife thing personally. Mind you there are lots of things I don't get but is what makes us all different I spose. It's a bit like I can see no point in buying a new car as it will devalue by thousands when you drive it off the forecourt. But others must.
I use Mora knives myself and they are perfectly good. When I finish I sharpen it with one of those tungsten v sharpeners. It does the job. Can't be arsed with stropping.
If it floats your boat then go buy the knife and use it. No point buying a Ferrari then keeping it in an aircon tent and not driving it. Otherwise go buy something else. I like the idea of the watch myself.

 

[norma 308]

Like a nice rifle or high spec binos ,or the best clothing a custom knife has its attractions I bought an Alan wood stalking not bushcraft knife and have to say enjoy using it very much and it's insured with the rest of my shooting equipment ,my kids can scrap over who gets it when I pass to the hunting grounds above thats some of my satisfaction anyhows .
norma

 

[finnbear270]

Remember reading on here how a guy had climbed into a high seat & found a best damascus knife lying there, now it has obviously slid out of a trouser pocket when the owner left,maybe he did not cast about like some of us to check before climbing down, I would not call that careless, just how things can turn out, As to Mora's, fantastic value for money & great little blades, mine go stalking a couple of times before making the trip from the dishwasher, into the kitchen for general purpose work, got a bucket load here.

A very nice pocket knife I was gifted from a German hunter, never gets out.

 

[Taff]

Never understood the " you may lose it" you may never lose it , I have carried a custom knife for yrs, and was out with my rifle after something at least 4 days a week, carry a semi custom folder everyday, I tried the mora and thought a opinel was better ( I know it's wood and may contain germs of some thing ) . But get something you will use or at least see or touch everyday.

 

[Jagare]

I wouldn't be put off. Mora knives are OK but not the best at keeping an edge. Like you in 25 or so years of stalking I have never lost a knife. Still have the first stalking knife I ever bought and a Swiss Army knife that lives in my pocket and given to me by my parents for my 18th birthday thats traveled the world with me.
Custom knives are far more than a tool but something you should be proud to own for the craftsmanship and memory as to how you came to own it. Sure if you are worried about loosing it then use a Mora for most things and the custom on those special days and take care of it. Can't understand people that are careless with there kit.

+1 Never lost a knife in the many years I've been stalking. Get your custom knife and enjoy it. I bought a Stuart Mitchell knife for my 65th birthday that i only use for boar and lovely it is.

Your money, your choice. No memories in a Mora knife. Don't listen to the cheapskate, no class, knife loosers on here .

I bought a Lapp half horn knife in the summer. cost loads and a thing of beauty. No other reason to buy it other than i wanted it.

 

[I. Farticus]

I'd buy a metal detector if I lost one of my decent knives!

 

[tusker]

Any kniife you have whether it be custom made or off the shelf, you should be able to trust it with your life. That is if your life depended on it ,it would not let you down.
Tusker

 

[tjm160]

I certainly can't justify a custom knife the little I get out, but equally wouldn't be without my Dougster/Richard Eadon "Stalker". As others have said, it's just a much better tool and evokes pleasant emotions you'd never get from a Mora. Indeed, it's such a joy to use, it makes each gralloch more bearable, holds its edge far better and longer than a Mora and being so well designed, is so comfortable and easy to use whether skinning or easing a joint apart. All the arguments in the thread are valid and if prone to losing kit, then perhaps not worth considering. Otherwise however, it's something you'll treasure the rest of your Stalking life and perhaps even hand down to the next generation.

 

[finnbear270]

One thing about Mora's, and others constructed the same way,... they comply with best practice, no muck traps

 

[stephentri]

I wouldn't be put off. Mora knives are OK but not the best at keeping an edge. Like you in 25 or so years of stalking I have never lost a knife. Still have the first stalking knife I ever bought and a Swiss Army knife that lives in my pocket and given to me by my parents for my 18th birthday thats traveled the world with me.
Custom knives are far more than a tool but something you should be proud to own for the craftsmanship and memory as to how you came to own it. Sure if you are worried about loosing it then use a Mora for most things and the custom on those special days and take care of it. Can't understand people that are careless with there kit.

+1