Help me pick a small fixed blade

Thank you for all the suggestions! The battle horse looks great but is scandi ground, the esee also looks great except all the bill boarding. For me the esee almost costs the same as lionsteel m1 and bark river psk.
 
Grohmann stuff is awesome. So it the White River stuff.... simply great.

You want something reeeaaally inexpensive that carries wonderfully, get a A.G. Russell Woodswalker.

Super easy to maintain, and available with a leather pocket sheath that is a work of art all its own.

Like around $20 or so.

Also there is the small BuckLite Max. It doesn't have a leather sheath, but it carries very nicely in the one it does have.

Or a custom piece.
 
The battle horse looks great but is scandi ground,

If the Battle Horse is quite a bit cheaper in Canada (it is roughly $50 cheaper in US dollars) then the other two you mentioned, you could always have the blade reground to meet your needs. I'm not sure if that is something you want to deal with but it's an option.
 
The White River Knucklehead is also great. Carries really well.

I got the first version which is chisel ground, but were I to get another I'd get the Knucklehead II.
 
I know very little about the custom knife world but I imagine it takes time and is costly. I may go down that rabbit hole in the future, but not at this time. Certainly something to think about, thank you.

Send me an e-mail at wjkrywko at gmail dot com. Small knives like this are quite simple to make. Pricing goes from quite reasonable to nutty depending on material choices. A lot of my customers go for their number one steel choice, then use micarta or g-10 for the handle to keep the cost down.
 
Interesting knife, but might be too big for pocket carry.

I updated my original post, Enzo Necker, and I also recommend the Exchange for affordable small fixed blades, prices vary but good bargains to be found. There are some good small fixed blades by GL Drew there now. I also like the individual fixed blade section of the exchange where you can also find a lot of production knives and some used and lightly used customs. Hope this helps and would like to see what you discover and your thoughts.
 
You want something reeeaaally inexpensive that carries wonderfully, get a A.G. Russell Woodswalker.

Super easy to maintain, and available with a leather pocket sheath that is a work of art all its own.

Like around $20 or so.

Also there is the small BuckLite Max. It doesn't have a leather sheath, but it carries very nicely in the one it does have.

Or a custom piece.

Great idea about the AG Russell Woodswalker or the smaller Bucklite max. There is also a combo of the Bucklie max with an all metal caper. Goes with the two knives is one philosophy. Do you have to worry about concealed pocket carry of a fixed blade in your area?
 
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Ranier knives look great, maybe a mini-scandi from tops knives or check out some of the Lauri PT knives via Brisa and build it yourself.
 
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This would be my recommendation without hesitation, the Grohmann #3 Army/Boat/Yachtsman. It is a real workhorse and just the right size, small enough to carry and big enough to handle just about anything within reason.

I use it as a utility knife and have used it to process everything from trout, squirrel, to a deer. It’s also good at food prep and is a great steak knife.
 
Whenever someone says small fixed blade I always think Buck 102. But that's been mentioned already.
 
One last idea, is the Fiddleback production Hiking Buddy, good size and great stainless steel. A bit more expensive, but cry once for quality.
 
The Cold Steel Mini Pendleton Hunter is just the ticket. The straps come off the sheath and you can shove it in your pocket. You can get uncoated stainless steel (around $30 for the stainless).

I have an old discontinued Kershaw Field Knife Hunter that I carry in my front pocket. You can still find them and they are cheap. They cut very well with that high hollow grind but the thick spine adds strength (around $40 or so).
 
I do sharpen and maintain my knives. I have a spyderco bow River in the mail (budget knife).

I do not like carrying a knife on my belt, I don't know why, I just don't. I prefer it in my pocket, backpack or fanny pack depending on how light I am traveling.


the bow river is going to do exactly what you want I think... you'll be surprized at how well it does for what you've described ; )

I know it's sacrilege on bf to suggest 'not' buying another knife, but there you go
 
the bow river is going to do exactly what you want I think... you'll be surprized at how well it does for what you've described ; )

I know it's sacrilege on bf to suggest 'not' buying another knife, but there you go

I agree, at least try it out to see if it will do what you need before ordering more.

That said, if you want a cheap option that cuts great, is light, and is better for food prep than a Mora, I'm partial to the Cold Steel Roach Belly. The plastic sheath is nothing special, but for ~$15 you won't be out much if you screw it up or lose it. It's not FFG like the Bow River, but it has a super useful shape and is very light. After Moras, the Roach Belly is one of my favorite cheap fixed knives.
 
Since you're located in Canada... What about one of the awesome locally made knives by North Arm or something? Maybe something like the Lynx or Bird and Trout?

I purchased one of their Kermode fillet knives for my little brother and he is in love with it. CNC milled stainless S35VN steel and phenomenal fit and finish. I also picked up a Spyderco Bow River for my father in-law so that he has a knife when he's on the river and he seems to enjoy it also. Great knife for the price.

(all pictures from NorthArmKnives.com)
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7jmyKLl.jpg


6KQAH7A.jpg

oxJZI7h.jpg
 
If you don't mind doing a bit of searching around, one knife I can recommend is the Marttiini model 10LL Lapinleuku. This has a 3 1/2" blade thats not quite 3/4" wide and about .1" thick at the spine, .07 at mid blade with a nice bevel thats almost a convex grind on the lower 1/3 of the blade (not a typical scandi grind). Its a wicked slicer for food prep, it weighs all of 92 grams in the sheath according to my scale, it fits nicely in the front pocket of a pair of jeans and has a fairly flat cross section so you hardly notice its there. I don't know if Marttiini makes these any more but they do come up pretty regularly on the auction sites for not a lot of money. They aren't stainless but as long as you keep the blade clean and the sheath oiled you won't have a problem. I have been carrying a puukko around in the pocket of my jeans for some time now and this little leuku is a favorite.

A 10LL in its sheath
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with a standard sized 7 3/4" puukko
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Since you're located in Canada... What about one of the awesome locally made knives by North Arm or something? Maybe something like the Lynx or Bird and Trout?

I purchased one of their Kermode fillet knives for my little brother and he is in love with it. CNC milled stainless S35VN steel and phenomenal fit and finish. I also picked up a Spyderco Bow River for my father in-law so that he has a knife when he's on the river and he seems to enjoy it also. Great knife for the price.

(all pictures from NorthArmKnives.com)
hy7bjAf.jpg

7jmyKLl.jpg


6KQAH7A.jpg

oxJZI7h.jpg
I'll second this. That bird and trout looks like their Trilium pairing knife. I've had one for years now and it is a fantastic little knife.
 
I only have two fixed blades, both Spyderco. One I purchased about 20 years ago and it is my #1 carry in the field when hunting, camping, etc.. A year or more ago I bought a Spyderco Bow River model just because it looked so cool. Both knives were very reasonably priced, light weight, and just work. I'm not a fan of lugging around big heavy fixed blades. A bone saw is a lot better option than whacking away with a big bowie beast, IMHO.


 
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