Nice to see you're back! The scale blocks you ended up using turned out really sweet looking. I came across your channel quite a while ago via the 6x7 medium format camera video. But I also like knives, watch a lot of bushcraft and EDC videos.
Thanks! Ya, I think that's the most-watched video on my channel and probably one of my favorites to have made. I'm the same; love bushcraft, camping and hiking videos as well as photography and video-related content. Thanks for dropping me a line! Cheers
I guess Im randomly asking but does any of you know a tool to log back into an Instagram account..? I somehow lost my account password. I would love any tips you can offer me!
@Kendall Jalen I really appreciate your reply. I found the site through google and Im in the hacking process atm. I see it takes a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
A really nice build you did there. I've got an Utvaer my self. Love the blade, but the original handle is a little bit on the short side for my hand. Unfortunately I don't have the tools or the skills to fix it.
I can see that. Longer blanks are easier to work with in that scenario. With this, and others, the pre-shaped handles are "stuck" as-is. My only luxury is how thick the handles ends up and where it tappers :/
Not in a demanding way, no. The Utvaer is actually 12C27. The 14c is on a few of the Enzo’s and the Mora Garnett and the like. I like that steel quite a bit. Personally, I’ve always kind of found the 12C27 on the softer side when laminated. The edges tend to roll in my experience and don’t hold up quite was well under moderate to high stress. Some of the harder offerings like on the Enzo Nordic are excellent. It’s very similar to other Helle’s, though stouter because of the full tang. A great sliver/feather stick blade, but maybe not the best if heavier use is needed like batoning, etc. Would it work if needed in a survival situation? Very likely, it’s just not something I would choose to use as my regular outdoor blade. The 14c is very good. I love it on my Mora and some other offerings. I hope to be able to try some things out in the future. I got a Reel Steel in 14c for Christmas that I’d like to compare the the Bravo 1 LT. See how that 14c compares to 3v. I’m sure others have done this comparison though. Sorry I can’t offer more insight, but in my time/experience, these are the thoughts I currently have.
I was making a Helle utvaer handle yesterday, it was a nice time in the workshop. I don't make knifes, I only have basic grinders at home. It's a "homemade" low-level quality handle, but I like it anyway. I took a piece of ash from from the garden woodshed. It was like an hour grinding + engraving inscription (to personalize that little bit more) + applying hardwax. It took maybe 3h. It's not stabilized wood, it is not very well polished, not glued. When the wax dries, I am going to sew a sheath from leather from China, which I had at home originally for another purpose. I just needed a knife into the woods, but I didn't like the "plastic" alternatives. The blade "Helle Utvaer" + other expenses = total 69$. What do you think about this? Was it a bad idea? @One Degree Life: man, I also didn't like the pointed section at the back. I kept it there, but I didn't follow the original design, and I made the wooden handle up to the pointed end.
Well, ...I can easily make another handle, if I don't like the first version anymore. I really like the blade. The 3mm thickness makes it feel like kind of a really universal knife into the woods.
Hey! Well, my philosophy has been, make a handle that suits YOU that YOU will like the feel/use of. It’s a bit hard to envision exactly what you might be designing, but as long as you feel like it’s stable (won’t break) and comfortable, then you’ve got a good handle! Let me know how you like it!
@@williegroundskeeper1072 yes, is a thicker blade, esp stout for Helle. I’ve not been in the forest yet since completing my build, but hopefully soon. Cheers!
I've got about size 11 hands for gloves and wonder, would a brisa/enzo trapper blank be better for large hands than the Utvaer? I'd rather make a Helle as a "woodlore" (roughly) type full-tang than a Brisa/enzo. But if I gotta remove too much of the inside/bottom part of the tang/blank. I'd rather just look for a different blank design because it would usually also negatively affect the visual dimensions of the blade.
Top to bottom, the Helle offers a touch more room to work with. However, the bigger issue for myself, and my friend with larger hands is in the distance between the finger guard and butt end of the knife. As your grip, your fingers tend to swell out from the pressure creating more of a tight sensation between the front of the index finger and the back of the pinky finger. It’s good if you like your hand to feel locked in place, but less advantageous if you want some room for dexterity and different grips. Though I’ve never used a woodlore specifically, I don’t think the Brisa is way off in the height department and you can make the scales thicker if needed. Just my thoughts. My friend who has very large hands prefers a larger handle, and has an ESEE. In my current line up, he says he prefers the BRKT Bravo and of the scandis, the Trapper/Badger bc the back end is rounded more than the Helle. Another thing is, although the Helle is a beautiful mirrored steel that’s hair-piping sharp OOTB, I still feel the laminated steel a bit more delicate than non-laminated offerings, esp in wood use. I love many of the Brisa steels, but many other providers offer solid metal blades as well that, IMO, are superior in strength and edge retention. I’ve not had a Helle break or chip out severely, but the fine edge does tend to roll, even with its steeper bevel, in my experience. Others’ millage may vary. For ME, I prefer non-laminated options. In the laminated, I do prefer Fallkniven in the Nordic style. For the price, I’ve very much enjoyed the Brisa. I’ve got a Real Steel Bushcraft I hope to try out in the coming weeks, if I get the time. I got one with removable wood scales and a full convex edge, which is my personal preference. They also offer them in flat and scandi, I believe. A blank is only like $40 from Blade HQ, but I don’t like the pre-drilled hole layout for contouring. The version I got was like $90-100, but that comes with a sheath and I find the existing shape very nice. But it’s NOT a traditional-looking Nordic style knife. I’m thinking about making some of my own scales that are also removable at some point bc all the hardware is in place. This blade is more in the BRKT Bravo line, again, a favorite of mine, and I’ve seen it in 14C28N and D2. The handle on mine is much larger length wise, which is very helpful for larger hands. It would be more $ than a traditional blank, BUT, you’d have some versatility and may not want/need to reshape the metal at all. I like this option because I can also epoxy my own wood design if I choose. They have G10 versions available that don’t have removable scales. I’m not pitching this, just saying the size is equal to, or slightly more than the Enzo on height, and it has noticeably more working room front to back without an intrusive hump. There is a go by we groove, but it’s also not sharp and more gradual. I’ve yet to test it, but I tend to like 14C28N and 12C27 more than the Helle laminated. I wish I had more specifics I could offer you. The Helle was fun to make, but there’s no way to lengthen the opening in front is the back drop and I feel this is the more restrictive aspect of this blade handle.
@@OneDegreeLife thank you for the detailed reply. Being from Europe, I do not know if BladeHQ is wise with the shipping. Brisa is pretty cheap to ship here. And yes, I was referring to the belly/part where the fingers go, so that does sound like a bit of an issue then, thank you. I've seen people managed to open it up a small bit by removing a few millimetres of steel where your index and pinky go, but like I said earlier, it alters the look of the recasso etc too much, making it look out of proportion. And I prefer dexterity over stability. Slightly. Ofc a little of both is best haha. The brisa/enzo trapper 95 or 115 is probably a better idea then. With indeed much better steel selection like elmax even (if they're in stock...) And yes, Laminated steel tends to bring more disadvantages than advantages. Under very hard use they tend to delaminate where even lower quality homogeneous steels hold up (not personally seen it, only in video's), and you generally can't scrape Ferro rods with them. (Personal experience) At least, not the Morakniv ones even if you sharpen the spine to such a sharp 90° that it creates a burr, fallkniven seems to be one of the few laminates that can. I wish Fallkniven would redo/restock those full tang F1 and S1 blanks they did a decade ago. I'd go with those in a heartbeat. The price also wasn't too crazy. (I know the F1x also has a full tang but I'm not a fan of the F1x or S1x blade shape, and their stock/thickness just too thick as well, they're significantly thicker than regular F1 and S1) Also, I thought the Utvaer was a 12c27 laminate btw.
@@Stormcloakvictory All good points! I also think similarly about the Moras. The Black and the Garberg are the exceptions. I love both, but particularly the Garberg. Excellent in the SS. Yes, you're correct, the Utvaer is 12C27, but really does feel similar to the other Helle's I've had. MUCH stronger, but the edge still seems to roll. Since you are in Europe, I think the Trapper is an EXCELLENT option, esp. at the prices you can likely get them for. I particularly like the 115 size. Yes, Elmax is excellent, if you can find it, but I don't recall if I've used it in the Brisa line. I've tried many. There's another model called the Trooper that's similar, but I think might have a slightly higher scandi grind. My vendor here only has it in 80CrV2, but not sure if it's in other metals. Hope your build goes well for you and that you love whatever it is you decide on! Cheers
@@OneDegreeLife thank you for all the replies, and I hope your future projects as well :) And I hope the RU-vid algorithm is also happy with the comment string hehehe, it's a nice build and I like that you show the mishaps like the broken scale too, it's good for aspiring knife makers to see that things rarely go perfect and that sometimes it's just out of your control like getting a faulty piece, even for the experienced. But that in the end, with a little perseverance the end result will be great nonetheless. cheers 🍺
@@Stormcloakvictory thanks for that! Honesty is the best medicine. I’m glad you saw value in my mistakes, and as you said, I hope it helps others. Take care!
The Trapper. There are obvious differences in steel performance in the Trapper line, but overall, I like it better. The Utvaer is larger top to bottom, so the palm size can be made to feel larger, but the laminated steel is soft for my liking, and it's the only option. With the Trapper you can explore O1, Elmax, D2, N690, etc. And you can find them in 95 and 115 mm. I really like Brisa blanks for the most part. Their Nordic Skinner 12C27 is a little on the bland side, but other than that, I like most of their offerings. I've become a big fan of their O1 and 14C28N, but I think the latter is only on the Farmer line - similar to the 95 Trapper, but with a stick tang. Hands down, I'd personally pick the Trapper based on performance.
@@blakefl8623 Sweet! The necker was one of the earliest builds from Brisa that I tried. That should give you a good look/feel for what to expect when moving up the line. Their filet knife, the Nordic skinner and tundra were all kind of exceptions to the general rule though. I didn't care for those renditions of 12C27. Good luck!
@@OneDegreeLifeI wish Brisa would have more metal selection for their smaller knives. For my kids though, 12C27 should be fine. When I get around to making my own knife I want to do either N690 or Elmax since I'm in the south with high humidity.
@@blakefl8623 as do I and a more corrosive-resistant steal is a great asset. The Necker I did was very stout and I enjoyed it until I gifted it to a friend :)
I have a second Utvaer blade that I will build with a more traditional handle, but I'm not sure when I'll begin work on it. Been working on other projects recently and my current knife build is a hidden-tang scandy, but I'm not running video on that one. I'll try to film my next Helle build though. Take care.
@@plumerault I will be making it in the future, maybe in the summer, but not sure when. Please know that I don’t sell knives at this point though. I may be filming my progress though.
@@lizheinzb4033 I appreciate that. When I look closely at contours and scratch lines, they are never perfect so that's part of where that hold back comes from.
