Bark River Trailmate

Well, since theres still activity here, I guess I should expand on my impressions. The trailmate is one of the best knives Ive ever used! Lets get the bad stuff out of the way first though. The handle is a little square on the back and can poke into the protective covering that I keep over my 6 pack abs lol One side is fine, but the other is a bit sharper and pokes when I carry cross draw. Speaking of, the sheath is......ok I guess.... I like the sheath alot, but the belt loop is really 2 in 1, so that you can carry cross draw or standard. This design is good in theory but in practice leaves some to be desired. The knife also needs to be slightly pointier, and I could do without having a lanyard hole and a lanyard loop, it has both for some reason. I dont use either.
Now, for the good! This knife is fantastic. It is comfortable to carry in the standard position, and I hardly notice it. The sheath has great retention, and looks great. The trailmate itself is a sturdy little knife, that some people think is strange looking but I like it. Its only about a 3 inch blade, but it has a great belly that really gets work done. It has a nice convex grind, and I love BRKT A2 steel. The knife cuts extremely well, and is secure and comfy in use thanks to a great handle and the knifes thumb ramp. Its very comfortable!
The A2 steel works well, its a good tool steel. I have a Blackjack 125 with this steel (an offshoot of BRKT) and its my favorite hunting knife. A2 keeps and holds a great edge, and doesnt rust too much. It does spot a lot, and needs some care, but its not bad. Its extremely tough, and is easy to sharpen. I havent used the trailmate hunting yet though Im sure it will perform well. Its been used mostly for making food and general use, though I think itll make a very nice skinner too.
The fit and finish is good too. Nice but rather plain. Not a showy knife, but thats the way I like it. Its got a nice satin finish and no real issues. The wood could be prettier, not much grain on mine, but really thats a nitpick. I dont know what else to say about it really, ask any questions you have and Ill answer them. :)
 
MadTrapper said:
Congratulations on your first Bark River! They can be addicting. Bark River makes a great knife. I own two Trailmates in A-2. Micarta and G10 handles though. I don't buy wood handled knives. Bark River has a life time warranty so use it, that's what they're made for. As far as the drama that you mentioned, this board is full of it.
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How do you like your trailmates?
 
:D
CVamberbonehead said:
Well, since theres still activity here, I guess I should expand on my impressions. The trailmate is one of the best knives Ive ever used! Lets get the bad stuff out of the way first though.

1. The handle is a little square on the back and can poke into the protective covering that I keep over my 6 pack abs lol One side is fine, but the other is a bit sharper and pokes when I carry cross draw.

Speaking of, the sheath is......ok I guess.... I like the sheath alot, but the belt loop is really 2 in 1, so that you can carry cross draw or standard. This design is good in theory but in practice leaves some to be desired.

2.The knife also needs to be slightly pointier, and I could do without having a lanyard hole and a lanyard loop, it has both for some reason. I dont use either.

Now, for the good! This knife is fantastic. It is comfortable to carry in the standard position, and I hardly notice it. The sheath has great retention, and looks great. The trailmate itself is a sturdy little knife, that some people think is strange looking but I like it. Its only about a 3 inch blade, but it has a great belly that really gets work done. It has a nice convex grind, and I love BRKT A2 steel. The knife cuts extremely well, and is secure and comfy in use thanks to a great handle and the knifes thumb ramp. Its very comfortable!
The A2 steel works well, its a good tool steel.

3. I have a Blackjack 125 with this steel (an offshoot of BRKT) and its my favorite hunting knife.

A2 keeps and holds a great edge, and doesnt rust too much. It does spot a lot, and needs some care, but its not bad. Its extremely tough, and is easy to sharpen. I havent used the trailmate hunting yet though Im sure it will perform well. Its been used mostly for making food and general use, though I think itll make a very nice skinner too.
The fit and finish is good too. Nice but rather plain. Not a showy knife, but thats the way I like it. Its got a nice satin finish and no real issues. The wood could be prettier, not much grain on mine, but really thats a nitpick. I dont know what else to say about it really, ask any questions you have and Ill answer them. :)
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Just a few reflections of Your impressions.
The sharpness of a BRK comes from the convex geometry.
BRK and a few other brands like Hess Knives excel in proper geometry for efficient cutting.
Fällkniven is also in this group, but they are more often thicker in the edge. than BRK's.

1. I often modify a production model if I have specific needs like rounding sharp corners.
For this purpose I have invested in a 1" x 30" beltsander.
I have two of the Woodland Special, with the same basic handle and bladelenght as the Trailmate.
I modified the first one with a more profiled handle in Stag. I also changed the profile of the back of the tang, reducing weight in the rear of the handle.
The spine was also rounded to save the skin of my fingers, when working with wood.

2. If I want another profile of the blade like a pointier tip, it's the same procedure. I put the blade to the beltsander and fix it the way I want it.
The alternative is to get a new knife and that's seldom a problem for us knifenuts.:D

3. The Black Jack brand is owned by Blue Ridge Knives and BRK makes the Made in USA models. It's the same with Marbles knives. To my knowledge Mike Stewart still accept warranty jobs on the older Black Jack's and Marbles he made in the past.

Regards
Mikael
 
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Its funny that you mention hess, Ive been really debating getting a hess for a while. Seems like they do good work, for a fair price.
Anyway, the tip doesnt bother me enough to do anything drastic with it, its not a big deal.
 
CVamberbonehead said:
Its funny that you mention hess, Ive been really debating getting a hess for a while. Seems like they do good work, for a fair price.
Anyway, the tip doesnt bother me enough to do anything drastic with it, its not a big deal.
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If You like Hess don't Hess-itate, get the one You are thinking of! ;)
Hess Knives uses 1095 steel that's been cryotreated for best performance in combination with a thin full convex blade.
The bladefinish is raw, but the handles are really wellmade with very high finish.
The sheaths are simpler than BRK sheaths, but fully functional.
At around $ 80-120 they are great value, for those seeking traditional huntingknives at reasonable quotes.

Regards
Mikael
 
Im not sure which one I want. I want to be a cheapskate and get a simple caper model, but Hess does make some nice looking handles.... Im thinking about getting a stacked leather knife instead.
 
Well, I couldnt find the one I wanted in stacked leather. So I got a Hess whitetail in Cocobola wood. :) you all are a bad influence (looking at you Mikael W) lol
 
Back..:rolleyes: I like my TrailMate..:cool: Fits my hand well and the blade shape works for me.. Blue C-Tek handles are KOOL too!!
John
 
Mikael W said:
Thanks, stacked leather just gets better with use.
Congrats on the Whitetail! :thumbsup::D
I hope You will post Your impressions after some use.
I definitely will. Thanks. And yeah, stacked leather improves nicely if cared for properly. If not....well...Ive seen some pretty rough old Kabars. Lol I am thinking about getting a blade blank and making a stacked leather handle knife. Though, I dont think I could make anything as nice as those! Are they both Hess, or just the one?
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The Bowie is made by BRK as one of twenty Cold Steel Recon Scout blanks they got after Camillus closed the doors.
Camillus made the Carbon V Recon Scout for CS.

Good idea to make Your own stacked leather handle!
I did one of leftover materials from the scrapbin + a Mora blank.
IMGP6521.JPG


Regards
Mikael
 
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I said I would tell you all about this Hess White tail I bought so here goes. Its great! Its smaller than I expected, kind of a bird and trout knife, like a Kabar little finn. But very nice. And it cuts like crazy. It has nice wood on the handle and a nice little leather sheath. I like it.
I breasted out some geese with my Trailmate the other day, and it did a great job, I expect the Hess would also do well. I like a small fixed blade for dirty jobs, as a pocket knife is hard to clean. Anyway, not what this thread is about but I did say Id talk about it.
 
CVamberbonehead said:
I said I would tell you all about this Hess White tail I bought so here goes. Its great! Its smaller than I expected, kind of a bird and trout knife, like a Kabar little finn. But very nice. And it cuts like crazy. It has nice wood on the handle and a nice little leather sheath. I like it.
I breasted out some geese with my Trailmate the other day, and it did a great job, I expect the Hess would also do well. I like a small fixed blade for dirty jobs, as a pocket knife is hard to clean. Anyway, not what this thread is about but I did say Id talk about it.
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Oh oh, hm, now I also want a Whitetail!
At least I will lookout for them and if the right handle configuration occurs, maybe, maybe.

Regards
Mikael
 
I've had a Bravo 1 for 6-7 years and it has done everything I've ever needed from a fixed blade knife. I got it used. I've used it for camping, cutting wood, cutting pork and other meats. It's tough and thick. Sharpens easy and looks great. I like the sheath too. The ghost jade handle can get a little slick at times depending on what you're cutting with it. I'd buy another if this one ever fails.
DSCN1295.JPG
 
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