Macchina
Gold Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2006
- Messages
- 5,191
I posted here a few weeks ago looking for info on the GEC fixed blades that were released late last year. Cory Hess was extremely helpful in answering my questions and pointing to Greg at TSAKnives who was able to order one from GEC. These knives have a seemingly infinite amount of options because you can get them in 3 handle materials (Orange Delrin, Natural Micarta, and Green Micarta), 4 blade styles (Drop Point, Clip, Muskrat, and Bird Hook), as well as the option of no sheath, single sheath, or a very cool double sheath... I wanted the drop point so the only handle option left was Orange Delrin: and man is it nice! I've only had this knife for less than a week but it's been on my side for most of that time (turkey hunting and staying at my cabin) and I have really come to appreciate the functionality of this blade.
Sheath:
I've heard a lot of complaints of the sheath color that has been coming with these knives so I was a bit worried to get mine. Those worries were completely unfounded! The sheath arrived a nice dark brown and only became a nicer color after a couple coats of SnoSeal followed by a couple light coats of Obenhauf's Heavy Duty Leather Protector. The sheath is really nice. The button serves no purpose because there is no guard to lock around, however it is nicely ornate and doesn't bother me like non-necessary things usually do. The belt loop came tight and nicely forms to your belt for a snug fit and the retention on the knife is perfect. The only minor complaint (but not really) about the sheath is the inner surface was very rough (I've observed this same texture on Hunter brand handgun holsters) but leather is nice and thick so the coatings of SnoSeal helps to smooth out this texture. There is a rand in on the bottom half of the sheath that protects the stitching from the blade's share edge. Bottom line: I'm really glad I got this knife with the sheath, it's a great compliment to the knife and its small size and function encourages you to carry the knife often.
The Knife:
The knife itself is great. It obviously reminds one of a fixed version of the venerable Sod Buster. This knife functions well beyond that initial observation in a few ways. First, the handle length just doesn't get any better than what is represented here. When compared to the Case Sod Buster Jr. (my only Sod Buster) the two knifes appear to be siblings. After a second of use the benefit of GEC H20 becomes quickly evident: the useable handle goes all the way to the sharpened edge. This bit of extra handle length allows one to naturally choke up on the blade and position your thumb directly over the flat portion of the blade. This thumb position allows a lot of power to be applied during a cut and makes things like whittling very ergonomic. I have gotten into tomahawk throwing recently and find having a knife handy to trim the handle splinters that keep forming is invaluable. The GEC performed very well trimming a couple handles over the day. I drew tags for this week's turkey season and have had the knife on my side the whole time I pursued am April Thanksgiving feast. Though I didn't bag a bird, I use the knife often to trim branches away from some blowdowns that I could hide inside, make a quiet lunch, check the evening's steak, and whittle a bit when the birds were nowhere to be found.
The blade on this knife is typical of GEC's standard lineup. The finish on the blade shows the final abrasive lines, but these are so shallow that they are smooth when a fingernail is drawn across them. The edge came decently sharp but no where near GEC's 1095 potential. 30 minutes on diamonds, ceramic, and a leather strop and the knife was ready to shave with. The fit and finish was great but not perfect on my sample. The tang was proud of the scales near the butt by a few thousands (easily felt during my initial inspection) and the tip of the blade was a bit rounded during grinding. The blade tip didn't bother me much and doesn't affect function one bit. I am very particular about tangs being flush with scales so I spent an hour with sandpaper (laid on a flat, hard surface) and my buffing wheel to get them matched. It's pretty close now and allowed me to put a bit of myself into the knife. The handle is affixed with 2 brass rivets and a brass lanyard sleeve. All hardware was fitted perfectly without any gaps or deformation. My blade is 0.080" at it's thickest and ground to about 0.011" behind my 25° edge. This blade could not be more perfect for what I plan to use it for.
Final Thoughts
My intial thoughts made this knife out to be a fixed Sod Buster but I know think of it more as a full-handled carbon steel paring knife. As you can do 80% of all kitchen work with a sharp paring knife (and most of that it is the best tool for the job), the GEC H20 is made to be carried easily and cut anything without complaining. The sheath is functional, extremely well made, and just "fancy" enough to be truly unique. This knife cuts better than most of my $200 fixed blades (thinner blades), sharpens 10 times easier (thin grind and great 1095 steel), while costing only 1/4 as much ($52.95 shipped). I don't normally write reviews of knives, but there is shockingly little information about this awesome little GEC.
As compared to my Case Sod Buster Jr.:
In the turkey woods:
I also had my GEC Canoe this weekend:
And showing off my new tomahawk log I found:
Sheath:
I've heard a lot of complaints of the sheath color that has been coming with these knives so I was a bit worried to get mine. Those worries were completely unfounded! The sheath arrived a nice dark brown and only became a nicer color after a couple coats of SnoSeal followed by a couple light coats of Obenhauf's Heavy Duty Leather Protector. The sheath is really nice. The button serves no purpose because there is no guard to lock around, however it is nicely ornate and doesn't bother me like non-necessary things usually do. The belt loop came tight and nicely forms to your belt for a snug fit and the retention on the knife is perfect. The only minor complaint (but not really) about the sheath is the inner surface was very rough (I've observed this same texture on Hunter brand handgun holsters) but leather is nice and thick so the coatings of SnoSeal helps to smooth out this texture. There is a rand in on the bottom half of the sheath that protects the stitching from the blade's share edge. Bottom line: I'm really glad I got this knife with the sheath, it's a great compliment to the knife and its small size and function encourages you to carry the knife often.
The Knife:
The knife itself is great. It obviously reminds one of a fixed version of the venerable Sod Buster. This knife functions well beyond that initial observation in a few ways. First, the handle length just doesn't get any better than what is represented here. When compared to the Case Sod Buster Jr. (my only Sod Buster) the two knifes appear to be siblings. After a second of use the benefit of GEC H20 becomes quickly evident: the useable handle goes all the way to the sharpened edge. This bit of extra handle length allows one to naturally choke up on the blade and position your thumb directly over the flat portion of the blade. This thumb position allows a lot of power to be applied during a cut and makes things like whittling very ergonomic. I have gotten into tomahawk throwing recently and find having a knife handy to trim the handle splinters that keep forming is invaluable. The GEC performed very well trimming a couple handles over the day. I drew tags for this week's turkey season and have had the knife on my side the whole time I pursued am April Thanksgiving feast. Though I didn't bag a bird, I use the knife often to trim branches away from some blowdowns that I could hide inside, make a quiet lunch, check the evening's steak, and whittle a bit when the birds were nowhere to be found.
The blade on this knife is typical of GEC's standard lineup. The finish on the blade shows the final abrasive lines, but these are so shallow that they are smooth when a fingernail is drawn across them. The edge came decently sharp but no where near GEC's 1095 potential. 30 minutes on diamonds, ceramic, and a leather strop and the knife was ready to shave with. The fit and finish was great but not perfect on my sample. The tang was proud of the scales near the butt by a few thousands (easily felt during my initial inspection) and the tip of the blade was a bit rounded during grinding. The blade tip didn't bother me much and doesn't affect function one bit. I am very particular about tangs being flush with scales so I spent an hour with sandpaper (laid on a flat, hard surface) and my buffing wheel to get them matched. It's pretty close now and allowed me to put a bit of myself into the knife. The handle is affixed with 2 brass rivets and a brass lanyard sleeve. All hardware was fitted perfectly without any gaps or deformation. My blade is 0.080" at it's thickest and ground to about 0.011" behind my 25° edge. This blade could not be more perfect for what I plan to use it for.
Final Thoughts
My intial thoughts made this knife out to be a fixed Sod Buster but I know think of it more as a full-handled carbon steel paring knife. As you can do 80% of all kitchen work with a sharp paring knife (and most of that it is the best tool for the job), the GEC H20 is made to be carried easily and cut anything without complaining. The sheath is functional, extremely well made, and just "fancy" enough to be truly unique. This knife cuts better than most of my $200 fixed blades (thinner blades), sharpens 10 times easier (thin grind and great 1095 steel), while costing only 1/4 as much ($52.95 shipped). I don't normally write reviews of knives, but there is shockingly little information about this awesome little GEC.
As compared to my Case Sod Buster Jr.:
In the turkey woods:
I also had my GEC Canoe this weekend:
And showing off my new tomahawk log I found:
Last edited:
I'm very glad I found it when I did, and was able to revive it, but am sorry the blade didn't get to age more gracefully.
