Yeah, I have another Mora knife review for you. This is one that not too many people knew existed, and it definitely doesn't look like a Mora. This is Frosts' of Sweden model C-223, for butchering large game, and it dwarfs even the large 6" Craftsman that I reviewed earlier (here... http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=628787). It's been described as a Swedish version of the Leuku. Price was $36, and it included a quality leather sheath instead of the typical floppy black plastic Mora thing. As with all Moras, the quality exceeds the price.
The Handle: The handle on this knife is one piece of hard black plastic, and it's been molded directly to the tang. From the butt to the blade, it's 5-3/4" long and 3/4" thick. There's a considerable groove in the front to serve as a choil, as well as a palm swell and a flared butt. The handle has a cobblestone texture, and while it's a bit more aggressive than the normal Moras, it's still not very aggressive. All of this makes the knife lock into your hand quite nicely, but won't abrade it. There's no lanyard hole, but I can drill one with no problem. I should point out that this knife is available with either a yellow handle or a black one; I chose the black one. This is one comfortable handle when you're doing some serious work; I think "ergonomic" is the word I'm looking for.
The Blade: The C-223 has a whopping 8-1/2" long blade, and it's 1095 carbon steel treated to 59 on the Rockwell scale. The blade isn't thick at 1/16", but it's sturdy enough for cutting tasks while not being a chopper. Yes, I said the blade is only one-sixteenth of an inch thick. At its widest point, it's 1-1/2" wide. The blade is Scandanavian ground, and came really sharp (but with a burr). A few seconds on a ceramic made it shaving sharp. The entire blade, except for the grind, was coated with a black coloring. At first, I thought this was just left over from the heat treating process, but rubbing it with simichrome polish just made the black more uniform. I think I like it like this. There's an unsharpened clip at the tip of the knife - I'm not going to call it a swedge because it's not even ground - and it's 2-1/2" long. The blade is void of any markings.
All of this is just "stuff" without knowing how the actual performance is, and I'll tell you that it's pretty darn good. Remember this is a thin blade designed to skin large game; it's not a chopper and it won't take too kindly to being batoned through wood. It will handle your slicing and skinning tasks easily, and is good for what it's made for - butchering (and some light to medium-duty use).
The Sheath: The sheath is also void of all markings. It's 13-1/4" long. With the knife inserted, the entire package is 15-1/2" long. The sheath is made of black leather. That's right, you get a leather sheath with a Mora. The leather is soft and thick enough (1/8") without weighing your stuff down. The knife will snap into place via strap, but it takes a little time to get used to. Since the blade is so wide and the strap goes behind the choil area on the handle, the edge of the blade rubs into the strap every time you extract the knife. Eventually, you're going to cut your strap off if you're not careful. The sheath has a standard belt loop, and it will fit a belt up to 2" wide. It also has a slash and hole for the Scandanavian way of carrying a fixed blade (on a button). Overall, the sheath is of nice quality. Rivets and stitching hold it shut, and it holds the knife securely. Even when upside down and shaken.
Next to a Clipper for comparison...
This Mora, again, is a nice knife for the money you pay for it. As a camp knife, it does great with everything except chopping. As a kitchen / butchering knife, it excels. If you keep its 1/16" blade thickness in mind, you should be pretty satisfied with this particular tool from Frosts' of Sweden.
In hand...
The Handle: The handle on this knife is one piece of hard black plastic, and it's been molded directly to the tang. From the butt to the blade, it's 5-3/4" long and 3/4" thick. There's a considerable groove in the front to serve as a choil, as well as a palm swell and a flared butt. The handle has a cobblestone texture, and while it's a bit more aggressive than the normal Moras, it's still not very aggressive. All of this makes the knife lock into your hand quite nicely, but won't abrade it. There's no lanyard hole, but I can drill one with no problem. I should point out that this knife is available with either a yellow handle or a black one; I chose the black one. This is one comfortable handle when you're doing some serious work; I think "ergonomic" is the word I'm looking for.
The Blade: The C-223 has a whopping 8-1/2" long blade, and it's 1095 carbon steel treated to 59 on the Rockwell scale. The blade isn't thick at 1/16", but it's sturdy enough for cutting tasks while not being a chopper. Yes, I said the blade is only one-sixteenth of an inch thick. At its widest point, it's 1-1/2" wide. The blade is Scandanavian ground, and came really sharp (but with a burr). A few seconds on a ceramic made it shaving sharp. The entire blade, except for the grind, was coated with a black coloring. At first, I thought this was just left over from the heat treating process, but rubbing it with simichrome polish just made the black more uniform. I think I like it like this. There's an unsharpened clip at the tip of the knife - I'm not going to call it a swedge because it's not even ground - and it's 2-1/2" long. The blade is void of any markings.
All of this is just "stuff" without knowing how the actual performance is, and I'll tell you that it's pretty darn good. Remember this is a thin blade designed to skin large game; it's not a chopper and it won't take too kindly to being batoned through wood. It will handle your slicing and skinning tasks easily, and is good for what it's made for - butchering (and some light to medium-duty use).
The Sheath: The sheath is also void of all markings. It's 13-1/4" long. With the knife inserted, the entire package is 15-1/2" long. The sheath is made of black leather. That's right, you get a leather sheath with a Mora. The leather is soft and thick enough (1/8") without weighing your stuff down. The knife will snap into place via strap, but it takes a little time to get used to. Since the blade is so wide and the strap goes behind the choil area on the handle, the edge of the blade rubs into the strap every time you extract the knife. Eventually, you're going to cut your strap off if you're not careful. The sheath has a standard belt loop, and it will fit a belt up to 2" wide. It also has a slash and hole for the Scandanavian way of carrying a fixed blade (on a button). Overall, the sheath is of nice quality. Rivets and stitching hold it shut, and it holds the knife securely. Even when upside down and shaken.
Next to a Clipper for comparison...
This Mora, again, is a nice knife for the money you pay for it. As a camp knife, it does great with everything except chopping. As a kitchen / butchering knife, it excels. If you keep its 1/16" blade thickness in mind, you should be pretty satisfied with this particular tool from Frosts' of Sweden.
In hand...
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