Pen Knife testing, initial results

Set to work right after morning chow and taking care of some first sergeant stuff. Here's a brief description of the testing so far;

1. Two-by-four chop: Don't let the small size fool you, this knife chops very well. I'm thinking this is due to the deep belly and thinner edge area than usual. Hacked through a two-by-four so easily (six chops) that I immediately moved on to a two-by-twelve, and the little Pen Knife walked right through it too. Then I tried it out on some native wood. Don't know what it's called, but it bears a very close resemblance to Osage Orange, and just like good old Bo'darc, it's hard as he&&. The knife bit deeply, even on a well seasoned piece, but demonstrated a slight tendency to "wedge" in the harder wood. Throughout the chopping tests I was impressed with how well the knife handled and how comfortable the handle was. It's definitely made to be used

2. Free hanging, one inch manila rope cut: Hung up the rope and took a good swing at it, then another, and another, and another. Regardless of angle or technique I applied, the best I could manage was a clean sever of two and a half of the rope's three strands. The manila rope I was able to scrounge for this test was pretty dry and sun baked, so I suspect that had something to do with it. Laid flat on a piece of wood, the same rope was neatly severed by the Pen Knife with a simple flick of the wrist. Still, tough rope or not, I've got a feeling my old A.G. Russel combat bowie would have made the cut

3. Wood splitting: Here, the Pen Knife acts like what it is, a knife. Swung hard it bites very deep and then just sort of stops there. No, you're right, I wasn't surprised It has neither the mass, nor the convex blade geometry of the larger khuks that seem to make wood just fly apart. Those familiar with axes will know the difference between a felling axe and a splitting axe. The same characteristics that make the Pen Knife chop well and bite deep work against it when it comes to splitting wood. Not a big handicap if you camp like me and just collect fallen deadwood for the cook fire.

That's as far as I've got, but more to come soon. I've got a feeling this knife is going to fare well in cutting and slicing tests on cloth, leather, cardboard, plastic, etc., it's already impressed me with it's cutting ability. I started with a sharp edge, did no touching up between tests, and at the end of testing the knife would still shave hair off my arm with moderate pressure. Very impressive, but then again, Bura made it, what else can I say?

All in all, this is an excellent field knife that can easily handle constructing makeshift shelters, clearing fields of fire, and other chores a soldier might encounter, but it's not a replacement for a good BAS or AK. That's fine,'cause it wasn't meant to be. The Pen Knife is, IMHO, a camp knife and a dadgum good one. If a weight conscious backpacker was looking for a serious knife to slip in his/her ruck, this knife would fill the bill in spades. Can't wait to be sitting by a campfire in a quiet forest somewhere slicing bacon with mine

Sarge

 

Re:Internet
Kendo, they've got stuff over here right out of a science fiction movie to an older guy like me. I don't pretend to understand how it all works, but satellite communications have something to do with it.

Sarge

p.s.: Sounds like you like your Pen Knife as much as I like mine, they're great ain't they? I'm hoping they catch on well enough to become a regularly available, or at least special order, part of HI's product line.

 

Still going strong

To date my Pen Knife has been tested on the following;
Rope, leather, cloth, cardboard, 550 cord, plastic banding, tree limbs, nylon webbing, two-by-fours, plywood, MRE wrappers, plastic map laminating film, pencils, oranges, a plug of chewing tobacco, and a camel spider.
Since the first good edge I put on it, it has recieved nothing more than cleaning and light burnishing with the chakma. It no longer shaves cleanly, but it does still shave, and continues to cut quite well. The test of a whether or not a design is useful is in the using.
I can guarantee you this little khukri won't gather any dust around me.


Sarge