Why a Nessmuk?

kgd said:
Albeit, a combo-contest in the future might make for a really interesting idea!!!
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I like the way you think!

Still, I'd like to see a Nessie in the Bushcraft Challenge mix. I remember Ray Mears writing about knife design for bushcraft and really emphasizing a straighter edge. I'm not sure how strongly I agree with him, and a Nessie might be a good challenge blade.

IIRC, Kephart recomended a Marble's Knife in his book on Woodcraft. He recommends a Marble's knife that is not dissimilar to a Nessmuck. (He says he used his own design until he found a production knife he liked.)

Marble's Woodcraft, as recommended by Kephart:

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Now maybe the emphasis was significantly different for these guys. Maybe they had axes to do some of the things we might use a knife for. But, for these early guys, the curved blade seems to be favored as a woods knife.
 
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I think Andy and Scott both made really good comments that brought up important points.

Here's the thing- what's bushcrafting to you?

To Sears, it meant a lot of hunting.

Let's be honest, MOST places, any of us ex boy scouts can make a shelter without a knife or axe. Might not be pretty, but could get by. Wth an axe, we can build a village.

Bushcraft for most of North American history from the fur trade up to post war meant hunting, and that meant guns to kill the meat and knives to process it. Even trappers used "production" technology traps, and didn't spend all their time notching figure-4s. Now, there's nothing wrong with that, and it's a great skill.

But the idea of what means "going bush for a while" has changed as we've regulated hunting and firearms.

So, the nessmuk is a W&SS knife, and one I quite like in the right place. And it can do mean duty in woodslore style bushcrafting! But - for me- it's more of a wilderness knife for forgaging and hunting than for anything else.

Again, all that being said, a broad spearpoint thumb ramped nessie style can be a mean contender in the fire drill making arena.

Andy has a realyl solid point with the anti-tactical knife- but i don't think it addresses nessie versus "woodslore" style. A lot of bushcraft knives are similar in the anti-tactical sense. Removal of sharp pointy bits, long term handle comfort, non restrictive handle ergos, working blade profiles/geometries.

Often a newbie will think that a sharpened prybar is a bush knife because it's a "survival" knife.
 
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cnas122 said:
From left to right: Tony Bose Moose, Lee Reeves Single Bit, Scott Gossman Nessy
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Thanks. That's some fine steel. This has rather unexpectedly turned into a great thread. Not that I expected it to be a bad one, I just didn't expect it to continue for as long as it has and to contain so much good info.
 
what does offset handle mean?
PayetteRucker said:
It works.






The design of the nessmuk is as a simple efficient slicer, that's comfortable and easy to use for skinning and camp cooking and basic woodcraft. Thin blade, thin grind, offset handle. There's not much more to it.
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9$ Ontario skinning knife modded via dremel cutting wheel, add rivets and ebay bought wood slabs and brass tubing= econo Nessmuk!
I do like it, its comfortable, cuts like a razor but i need to make a sheath for it!
oldhickorynessmukresize.jpg
 
You guys have all forgotten a very important use for the Nessmuk knife, not only was it efficient for skinning & dressing game, and in food prep ... but it was an ideal tool to eat with.

The blade could be used as a spoon and you could eat peas straight from the can way back in the day.
 
Virtually identical to a lamb skinner butcher's knife. I suspect the original Nessmuk knife was just a lamb skinner with a stag handle.

Here's a modern lamb skinner:

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FortyTwoBlades said:
Virtually identical to a lamb skinner butcher's knife. I suspect the original Nessmuk knife was just a lamb skinner with a stag handle.

Here's a modern lamb skinner:

IMG_0104.jpg
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You sure that ain't a Canadian Belt knife? ;)
 
Here's a Green River lamb skinner. You can get them as blade blanks, even. If you took a blank and stuck it in a stag crown you'd have a near spitting image of the original.

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I'd like to make a 'muk, but man it's easy to make an ugly one. Lots of evidence of that.
There are a few stunners out there, and boy they're compelling!
 
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