Would you stake your life on a Mora?

alephlex said:
I agree with everyone who said that a person knowing the limitations of his/her tools is more likely to walk away from a bad situation with less injuries than someone who is unaware of the tool's limitations and uses them inappropriately!

On a totally different issue ... I'm really curious, Sodak, about the rate of failure you reported with the Moras you've tried. Can you tell us about the manufacturer of the Moras you have and give us some detail on when some of the failures happened? I mention this because I bought a lot of moras (5) on auction and my experience has been that the QC on my batch has been outstanding. So I'm curious about whether this is a manufacturer issue or whether the QC varies between batches. Have any of you faced similar QC issues? Thanks for info.

Nice work with the coconuts Mac -- been there done that. And you're absolutely right -- they are tough nuts to crack!
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The only two Mora manufacturers you are likely to come in contact with are Frosts and KJ Eriksson. Swedish steel has always been of very high quality. Both the carbon and stainless varieties are made from high quality steel. These are cheap mass produced items though, and the main market is industry users who often throw the knife away when it gets dull rather than sharpening it (horrible, I know). You often see them with construction workers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and such people over here. If anything is likely to break it is some of the plastic handles in my experience. A mm or two of the very sharp and pointy tip can also break off, no big deal though, just resharpen it.
 
for realistic wilderness use? definitely. I don't really ask much of a wilderness knife. shave a few fuzz sticks, notch some boards, a light bit of batoning, if necessary, and that's about it.

For personal defense against attack? errr....sorta....I dunno. It's not a knife I've ever really considered from that perspective. It's got a sharp point and a razor sharp edge, so I suppose it would work as well as I could make it work.

To me though that's in about the same realm as "which weapon is better against a bear attack, a Garden hoe, or a rake?" It's just another common tool that may or may not be at hand during such an unfortunate situation.

If attacks were a big concern for me, I guess I'd still just carry my Mora along with my .45, and still not have as much weight to haul around as I would carrying some of the more heavy duty knives out there.
 
Jim Craig said:
I have seen many, many knife injuries in the field, and have seized a pile of knives used to cut or stab people.
Some are crappy folders, some are box cutters, but the VAST majority are cheap steak knives, or no-name kitchen knives with those really tight serrations (Wiltshire maybe?)
I can't remember ever seeing one that was broken from the knife fight/stabbing, and all are thinner and more brittle that a Frosts of Sweden blade.
I even worked on a murder in my first year as an LEO that was committed with a Frosts Clipper. 11 wounds, no real damage to the knife.
This is not to tout the ability of the knife, or to minimize these crimes in any way.
The point is any knife can easily stop or kill a human without breaking. Moras and steak knives are thinner, lighter and faster, than a thicker, "camp" or "combat" knife and in my opinion more lethal because of it. It is very easy to penetrate clothing, skin, the rib cage, etc with these thin tools.

BUT MORE IMORTANTLY...
The idea of planning to use a knife for self defense is dumb. A wooden staff, baton, club, whatever, is much better. A firearm is better still.
Using your head to avoid these encounter is best, and is only vary rarely unsuccessful.

The purpose of a knife is to cut. This includes making/shaping other tools. Why split big wood with your knife?
Why do pull-ups on your knife handle? (save it for the gym, Arnold)

I will bet cash money that a person using a Mora, who understands it's strengths and weaknesses is far less likely to break or lose his knife, or hurt himself, than the guy chopping up the woods with his big bad Busse.

Yes I would trust my life to a Mora.

No, a Mora is never my only knive in the woods. No knife is ever my only knife in the woods.
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This was the most beautifully worded responces to this post I've seen, and hits all the nails right on the head. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
jackknife said:
This was the most beautifully worded responces to this post I've seen, and hits all the nails right on the head. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
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My sentiment follow yours to the letter JK. All this nonsense about "would you.... wouldn't you" dosen't mean scratch when/if TSHTF.

Know what you're comfortable with and plan accordingly. Big, small, or in the middle. There is no one way to do it.
 
woodsmoke said:
The question isn't if the Mora is a good, solid knife or not. It is a great knife and as useful a cutting tool as there is. The issue is would you stake your life on it. To me that means making a conscious choice to choose the Mora over other knives to do all the possible tasks a survival knife may be asked to do. If the Mora was the knife I had with me when in a survival situation I would not be dismayed. It would do but I would have to be careful not to stress it to the breaking point which may, in a pinch, compromise my chances. If I had an SRK, Becker 7, Gossman Tusker or the like, I would not have those reservations. This gives me more options. In certain situations abuse is a given. If I had my druthers I would opt for a heavier knife than a Mora.
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Thanks Woodsmoke, you said it better than I could.

Alephlex,

I have gotten them by ones and two's, so I don't know if it was a batch or whatever. It was an Eriksson red handle (501?), and a clipper style Frost SS (blue pommel). I'm not upset or anything, I'm glad to know when to stop. I think they're fine for a cheap knife, I just don't always understand the fascination with them. But that's ok, to each their own.
 
I'm new to the whole Mora thing (I have one Frost's Swedish military knife, I like it a lot so far), but I think the fascination is very much what you said, sodak; it's because they're so cheap and simple, but they do what they do so well. "Form follows Function". I would go so far as to say they are a high example of elegant, complete and well-thought-out, well-executed design in general, not to mention the high-level of quality-control I've heard reported.

The Frost's site has good articles about how their knives are meant to be used and cared for, not just fluff advertising. Worth reading. http://www.frosts.se/index_2_uk.html

Not to go off on a tangent, but my Mora reminds me a lot of my Dad's Rapala filet knife, in good ways. I remember being kind of surprised when I realized I could afford one on my quite meager allowance :)

The short answer is, yes I would stake my life on my Mora out in the boondocks. I would be more gentle with it than I would a big bowie, of course. But I honestly think I would be fine with it and a bit of restraint. Maybe the limitations would inspire me to try making a stone axe! Nothing wrong with that.

I think it's both interesting and just plain smart to at least consider getting familiar with different styles of knives, as with any other tool. Hey, I play Fenders too, not just Gibsons :)
 
longbow50 said:
What I can't figure out, is why someone would use a Mora, like they use their Busse, expecting the same results and then whine about the poor quality of the Mora. Just doesn't make any sense to me.
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This is a good comment:thumbup:. I suppose this is where we need to go back to knowing the purpose / limitations of the tool one has (as I have previously stated, to me a knife is first and foremost a tool). There is an old saying about it too: form follows function.
 
pict said:
My point is that I have never had to use anything like the force needed to open a coconut when dressing a deer or cutting meat. If in a defensive situation you apply enough force to snap the blade or fail the handle you will have done traumatic damage to your opponent. Humans aren't made of tough stuff to cut or puncture anyway. I think a Mora would do just fine if pressed into service as a fighting knife. Mac
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It is true that "humans aren't made of tough stuff", so in reality I don't think one needs to have an overly built knife just to cut or stab another human being. Remember that some of the most effective knives in dispatching people traditionally have been butcher knives and they can hardly be regarded as "thick" knives. These are knives made for killing animals and their designs have been tried in the course of time and they have been proven that they work times and again. To me the issue of choosing a knife for SD has a lot to do with the shape of its handle. Quite frankly I don't think that Mora's have a handle that is up to the standards for SD. On the flip side of the coin, their thin blade profile should give them an advantage in stabbing, as well as, in cutting / slashing. However, when someone chooses a knife for whatever purpose, I think they should consider all of these aspects before they make their final choice.
 
Jim Craig said:
The point is any knife can easily stop or kill a human without breaking. Moras and steak knives are thinner, lighter and faster, than a thicker, "camp" or "combat" knife and in my opinion more lethal because of it. It is very easy to penetrate clothing, skin, the rib cage, etc with these thin tools.
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Exactly! Due to their blade profile they present less of a resistance while cutting / penetrating.

I will bet cash money that a person using a Mora, who understands it's strengths and weaknesses is far less likely to break or lose his knife, or hurt himself, than the guy chopping up the woods with his big bad Busse.
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I second that:thumbup:!
 
I am sure that anyone knowing the limitations of any tool and using it within those limits is less likely to have it "break" than one without that knowledge.

However, those in emergencies have been known to be unusually "enthusiastic," even judged by "normal" for them. (They may also be clumsy.) As a result, Ka-Bars have been snapped off in these easy-to-disassemble targets in documented instances (not to mention prying a tad to speed opening up wood). A "margin of error" beyond what a MORA offers could be useful. And I make this observation knowing that Mors, Ray, and Old Jimbo are advocates of MORA's, expressly including batoning.
 
I agree with TL.

But will add something. I am certain that we all have the physical strength to break a Mora, doing something beyond it's limit, such as excessive prying.
it's not a crowbar, on that I think we can all agree.

I cannot say the same for a Busse. (in reagrd to having the physical strength to break it) perhaps if we used a moment arm or some kind of force multiplier like a lever, "maybe" we could break one, but even then it's iffy.
Cliff S. may have some words on this.

Hurting ones self or losing your knife are both subjective, I would submit that if we ignore actual size for a moment, that a given individual is just as likely to lose a Mora as they are a Busse. Add actual size back in and you could make a case for a Busse being larger thus easier to find, or, add in a Mora's orange handle and you could make the argument it's easier to see.
Same goes for injuring ones self, that is also a subjective exercise in probability on a person by person basis. Is a given individual more apt to hurt themselves with one knife over another? I don't think there is enough information in the equation to offer a sound answer.
I don't think any of us could draw a conclusion that Mora or Busse are more or less likely to get someone injured.

Lastly, to restate what TL wrote, if used within it's limits, the Mora is no less likely to break than any other knife, and additonally, perhaps it's limits are farther than we suspect?? Sometimes physical size can fool us into thinking something is weaker than it really is.

I'd like to hear from someone who has broken one? And what it took.
 
If 10 people are given a task to complete, your going to see the task completed 10 different ways. Everyone has their own way of doing things. Could it be that we all survive differently? If each one of us was thrown into the same survival situation, I am sure none of us would react the same. If we are all still alive at the end, then we completed the task of surviving. Each one of us is going to use our knives differently, so while a Mora may not work for someone who likes to baton wood, it may work fine and still be more than what is needed for someone who is going to use their knife for whittling and game cleaning.

Les Stroad uses nothing but a Leatherman, but he always seems to make it out in the end.
 
NO!

And Les Stroud is 1 sat phone call away from help, pure entertainment.;)

Skam
 
troutfisher13111 said:
He may be, but he is still surviving. And he is doing it without the use of a huge knife. So it can be done.
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No offense but using Les as an example of what is possible is dangerous.

We "DON'T" know that he doesn't have loads of gear off camera or that he's actually only 20 meters from help.

There are better survival guru's to learn from, that aren't a slave to ratings and have been mentioned on this forum.

Skam
 
I don't learn from him or the show. I am just using how he survives as an example. My point is there are many different ways to do the same thing, in this case survive. We don't all need huge knives to do it.
 
I do not dismiss Stroud's program as without any educational value. However, the mental aspect of survival is very important. People die because they don't recognize -- or admit - the risks, cannot "think outside the box" to adapt to their situation, or give up struggling against those risks too soon. Stroud is not in a survival situation to begin with so he does not undergo the same psychological stresses. We do not even know what pretend risks - if any - are unplanned. Furthermore, I cannot accept that he would actually do some of the things he does (drinking questionable water with no attempt to filer or purify) if his life was really on the line.

Just my opinion.
 
Ya, unfortunatly this is television, So anything could be really happening.
 
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