knives of alaska, good? or bad?

C

camuleyhunter

Joined
May 29, 2012
Messages
71
im looking at getting a knives of alaska trekker series pronghorn but i want to know what you think of knives of alaska as a brand and the quality of their knives
 
Fun fact: They're made in Texas. Sort of like how Arizona Iced Tea is made in New York. :D

They're not bad, but I consider them sort of ho-hum. Well made but kind of bland. Wish they'd ditch the heavy bead blasting.
 
I believe they are made here in Round Rock. I have had a few. Love the caper and am having a custom made based on that design. The rubber handles are great and stay grippy when wet. Unfortunately D2 hates me and I can never get it sharp. The 440 they use in some of their capers now is weak and does not take an edge. Some of the designs are better on than others IMO. On my list is the Jäger boning knife. If I could have that without a choil it would be nice.

I have had 4 of their blades to date. Sold one, the Alaskan hunter because of the D2. Still have two capers and will give the 440 one to my brother along with the camp knife in aus8. The last caper in D2 will stay as a back up in the kitchen. I can say their aus8 gets very sharp and holds a decent edge as that camp knife I have will shave hair after a full session on the cutting board.
 
I've got a pair of the hunters and have to say they're a pretty good knife. Mine are a few years old so I can't attest to the QC of the new ones. Big grippy handles , good cutters and a pretty utilitarian design. The D2 is a bitch to sharpen though.
 
I have the skinning caping set and the Chinook fillet knife. Overall they are good and haven't had any problem and I like the rubber handle for grip when cleaning fish. I think the skinning set is a bit too heavy but they are good solid utilitarian knives.
 
Back in March (2013) I was told that they were being made at a forge company in east Austin according to a guy I spoke with who had several "rejects".

He said that he got them via a friend who worked there. He was using them as fodder for his home-forging projects. The ones I saw had defaced logos on them. He had no idea as to why the ones he got were rejects because in his words "They looked pretty good to me." Maybe they ultrasound them or something and find cracks.
 
Have the bush camp knife, and love it. The rubber handle is nice, and the knife is Shaaarp. (BTW, a Worksharp works wonders on the D2). I only have the one because I don't need the other styles f their knives. A little boring selection, for sure.
 
A buddy of mine has some that I sharpen for him on my belt sander. The little skinner, caper and boning knife impressed me the most with their practical designs. They seem to be a decent value in the rubber handled versions. He doesn't have any of the cleavers but those look interesting to me.
 
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