Miguel Nieto Warfare 5

When I first looked at the Warfare 5 from Miguel Nieto SL in Spain about 6 months ago, my immediate impression was that it looked a bit like a butcher's knife but with that fancy guard region.
This is a budget knife selling for around an incredible 30 Euros on the net, that's about $34 USD!!!.

So does this mean this knife is shit? No WAY!!. For a start I have many knives using the AN58 steel and all of them hold an edge very well and have a Rockwell of approx 58-60 according to Nieto and they have actually undertaken independent University tests (The Science and Engineering in Materials College of Castilla-La Mancha University) on this steel, with the following elemental key composition based on this University analysis:

C 0.45
Si 0.34
Cr 13.5
Ni 0.12
Nieto heat treats at 1,060 C and tempers at 350 C for 3 hours to achieve a HRC of 58-60.

The warfare 5 is designed with a hollow grind for excellent cutting, with a sheet thickness of 4.3mm or 0.2" thickness at the spine. It's a full tang knife. The centre of gravity or the fulcrum sits behind the guard.

Full tang knife with aluminium inserts

This is my second Nieto knife with this funky kind of guard. So how does it work and does it work? It allows an up close (to the blade) grip on the knife. Make no mistake this area has aggressive gimping and those with woosy soft skin beware LOL!

This model is features the cheaper Forprene all weather handle. The nature of tis Forprene  formulation makes the surface a little slippery when used with wet hands but the deep ridges (2 per side) allow ones fingers to maintain a good grip if used with wet hands.
There are excellent positions for the thumbs (crescent shaped indents at the front of the scales X2) in order to manoeuvre the Warfare 5 with blade facing uppermost, a common position when skinning. 

Forprene scales

Undersurface of handle.

I could shave (dry) the hairs on my legs with this knife how it came out of the box. 
The butt end features a nice rounded pommel so as not to hurt the palm of your hand should you wish to apply pressure to this region.

The grip is very comfortable when bashing around with this knife and that's simply because these polymers like Forprene absorb a lot of vibration/shock. Pushing down hard without gloves on to do the above yielded no hot spots from this handle.

Anyway, I've just finished abusing a knife entitled "Warfare 5" as I figure if you give a knife a name like tis you had better have produced a product that can live up to that name and everything it conjures up. I'll let you in on a secrete, so far the abuse has had no effect on the functionality of this blade! 

Stay tuned!

BCT

Nieto Chaman Macro Review

Hi all, here is the field testing complete of the Nieto Chaman Macro.

Kept sharp with only one touch up after  one week of use. (which included opening one can with it). Despite it being a rather hefty fixed blade even at 6inches or so, I don't think it's a good chopper too (you can't have it all- or can you?). This is a solidly built drop point suitable for heavy tasks around the campsite and easy to maintain with excellent corrosion resistance as well. I used it on the coast- that's next to the salt water and sometimes in it LOL. Personally, I don't see a problem with the use of DIN 1.4116 in outdoor knives. Maybe I'd like to see some grooves in the handle scales as I tend to use all of my knives without gloves (except in the snow of course). But that's just me. Anyway see what you think.





HKTFWC

New from Miguel Nieto in Spain

The CHAMAN MACRO!

WOW What a knife!

The Nieto Chaman Macro, hot on the heels of the smaller Nieto Chaman. The MACRO version is much bigger, very slick lines and curves, now with a narrower handle for increased grip needed for a bigger knife. 

The Chaman Macro features: A curved top spine, tapering to a swedge; excellent thumb/finger gimping; 6mm/1/4" (5.68mm at the tang).

150mm/5.7" long blade (as measured from the guard).

The blade steel is the same as for the Chaman. Nieto are using a common cutlery grade steel DIN 1.4116 standard Stainless alloy. The HRC is 54-55, easily sharpened in the field, with good toughness properties. To be honest there is absolutely nothing wrong with this alloy if correctly hardened.

DIN 1.4116 Stainless alloy. Holds a good edge and easily resharpened in the field.

The Micarta version also has a divert for a fire bow drill, which is great as making the drill, the base is easy but finding a good top block is much more difficult.

The Chaman Macro is a design by Manuel del la Torre.

Nieto Chaman Macro at home for the "outdoor" BBQ

Nieto Chaman Macro on the coast, no need to worry about corrosion with the DIN 1.4116 alloy.

The Chaman Macro is a great performer for food prep too.

How about food acids and prolonged cutting on wooden boards? No problem

Hacking into tough fibrous objects like sugarcane, no problems.

The Chaman Macro comes with a well made full leather scabbard and attachment-Molle-like for 

Nieto's small "survival kit" the latter I have to say is quite good as far as "ready made survival kits go". (see my video review on this kit in the Chaman review on BushCampingTools.

Stay tuned to BushCampingTools for an in depth tour of the Nieto Chaman Macro in the field.

BLACK FOX BF 710

MODEL:

VESUVIUS

AFREDO DORICCHI DESIGNED: BUSHCRAFT KNIFE IN 440C STAINLESS STEEL FROM BLACK FOX KNIVES

THE VESUVIUS

Black Fox knives is a division of Fox Knives in Maniago Italy.

Black Fox are premium quality knives produced in Asia for Fox Knives. The build quality of this Vesuvius is top notch, including the scabbard made from Kydex.

The Black Fox Vesuvius features a full tang blade made from 440C martensitic stainless steel.

Full tang 440C stainless steel

Some of you will no doubt be familiar with other designs of Alfredo Doricchi's such as the well-known FKMD Parang amongst others.

The Vesuvius or BF 710 is marketed as a Bushcraft knife and I'd say it's pretty handy as a camping knife. Let's face it, 440C was and still is a great choice of steel for knives. It can be hardened to a high Rockwell and still be very tough. It's resistance to corrosion is very good (it's used in dive knives by many manufacturers). In this case the listed HRC is:
57-59.
The blade thickness (max) is 4.72mm (I measured- which rounded to the nearest 10, equates to 5mm or 0.186".
I measured 104.56mm it's listed length as 105mm or 4.1" in length, with a total length of: 22cm or 8.6".
The handle is made from 2 slabs of black G10,  with a very fine surface texture which provides a sure grip even with wet hands. There is a palm swell and even better the handle tapers nicely towards the butt which makes it very easy to hold. There is a lanyard hole but no pommel, you don't really need one in reality. Because the butt end is smooth you can easily place your palm of your hand over it to drive the knife forward.
The scales are fixed to the tang by tubular rivets of stainless steel. The rivets are not seamless and you can see the weld marks within the rivets. Being a stickler for quality production, I checked at high magnification for the presence of any cracking of this seam when these tubes were peened over but there wasn't any, indicating the welds are quality welds.

Stainless tube rivets securing a slightly textured G10 handle.

The Vesuvius is typical of a "Bushcraft style" knife with a full flat grind, this model is a "stone wash" finish. The overall knife is well finished and has a nice weighty but not too heavy feel to it.
The scabbard is of Kydex and included is a fire steel. The attachment to a belt is achieved via a type of Tek lok, (Black Fox list it as Teak Lok) the actual brand on the lock says "by DOTS Pat. P" and is also made in China. It looks strong and well made. There is some kind of spring mechanism within this locking system that could see trouble should dirt or fine sand/dust enter and prevent or encumber the release/function of the lock but I guess if you don't intend on rolling in the mud with the knife attached then it should be absolutely fine.
All in all, the Black Fox Vesuvius or BF 710 so far for me appears to be AN EXCELLENT BUSHCRAFT/CAMPING KNIFE!

Overall, the Black Fox Vesuvius or BF 710 handles very nicely in field tests conducted by myself to date, soon a video to follow showing it's capacity in real situations.

The Black Fox Vesuvius also came with two short pieces of Para-type cord.

But you be the judge of the video field review soon to come on BushCampingTools.

Razor sharp plain blade featuring a full blade length swedge, the FKMD predator liner Lock folder, FX446-GR

FKMD Predator II Liner Lock with

L. A. W. K. S (Lake and Walker safety system).

New for 2017, in gray FRN/Zytel-like scales.

Preview!!

FKMD Predator II liner lock folder the FX 446 GR (That's "G" for Gray/Grey) in the field.

N690 cobalt stainless steel and 420 stainless liners combined with a Fibre reinforced nylon body scales. Let's face it FRN is basically what everyone knows as ZYTEL developed ages ago by Dupont and known to be virtually indestructible. I rode skateboards that had their trucks made out of Zytel and it was/is tough stuff!

The FKMD Predator II, features light weight but strong FRN scales over 420 liners, a lanyard "bar", a reversible deep carry pocket clip and the LAWKS safety system. This combination of features makes the FKMD Predator II a sturdy liner locking folder good for vigorous usage where there can be no doubt as to accidental blade closure. Some do not like the FRN/Zytel compared with G10 but the fact is the FRN is more than adequate from the point of view of knife design, and what forces a pocket folder may encounter during realistic usage.

LAWKS safety system engaged, see below image too.

LAWKS safety system engaged, virtually impossible to accidentally disengage the liner from the back of the tang as there is simply no place for the liner to move in the event of "rough handling"

Heavy duty tasks for a locking folder! Idroglider coating, no reflective PTFE coating, for smooth passage through almost any material, thanks to the low friction properties of TEFLON substances.

Reversible deep carry pocket clip (tip up)

Stay tuned for a full field review of this "newish" model from Fox Knives FKMD of Italy, on BushCampingTools!

FKMD PARUS PREVIEW NEW RELEASE

Preview

Fox Knives, FKMD in Italy, have just released this amazing designed knife, The PARUS. There is a recapitulation of the large recurve section closest to the handle, which we have already seen in the very successful earlier models, such as: the FKMD TRAPPER (reviewed extensively by me) , FKMD TRAKKER, the FKMD Trapper 2 (also just released and reviewed by me). 

WHY is a recurved blade useful? Well, this recurve section forms a very practical function and can be explained by physics. The curve enables a greater contact area for cutting and slicing rounded objects such as small to medium sized: sticks, poles, ropes etc. It enables better "biting power" of the blade. To be honest recurved blades of course have been around for centuries!

The PARUS also features multiple grip positions, well placed finger choil, all combined into a very beefy 5mm/0.2 inch thick slab of N690 Cobalt martensitic stainless steel. 

Big thick (but not too thick! ie under 6mm) 5mm /0.2 inches, spine tapering to a well built swedge

I'm a real devotee of N690 and fact is, it is a very good stainless steel tool steel for making knives from. Good corrosion resistance and harden-ability heat treatment regimes make it a good choice for premium stainless steels. The FKMD Parus has a HRC of 58-60.

N690 Cobalt stainless tool steel

How is the balance of the FKMD PARUS?

The fulcrum is right at the choil for a well balanced knife. The "feel" is strong!

There is a big swedge up front but make no mistakes the chunk of steel under it is huge! This enables are very strong pointed knife.
The FKMD Parus is a knife built for the serious outdoors persons. In fact FKMD/Fox Knives are also selling it with a "survival kit" more on the latter later.


The N690 blade length is 7" to the hilt or 180mm in the metric, so this is not some huge chopper but a knife that is every sense a practical length. I would recommend a ceramic stick to sharpen this type of blade design, especially, the recurve section.

FKMD Parus showing multiple grip positions

My FKMD PARUS made short work of a green coconut!

Food preparation with the FKMD PARUS of such  large tropical fruits etc is no problem

The FKMD Parus also features Fox's ergonomic FORPRENE grip, no exposed tang to freeze your paws or to burn you in the desert. Forprene will resist all chemicals within a practical encounter, either urban or wilderness, without degrading.

How does it swing???

Well the FKMD Parus swings very fine! The knife geometry is well balanced and does not want to leave your hand when swinging this knife. That's not just due to the grippy nature of the handle but more importantly,  due to the weight distribution of the varying blade thicknesses. 

How about the sheath/carry system???

There is no disappointment when it comes to the carry system. I say carry system rather than sheath, as that's what it is, a "carry system"

Firstly there is a really cool easy to remove snap system, aided by a small plastic tab on the main knife retention snap. Gone are the days of frozen fingers trying to remove a stubborn snap. This is a great idea.

Secondly, the actual sheath itself is fully Molle compatible, front and back, well stitched and like the sheath of the PANABUS, the FKMD Parus sheath, one can also remove the belt strap via a quick release plastic buckle to enable the sheath (only) to be strapped to a pack or carried alternatively to on a belt.

A  big velcro belt loop enables the knife to mounted or removed from your belt without having to undo your belt, easy as.

Assisted opening of the main retention snap/strap on the FKMD PARUS, makes easy removal of the knife, especially if during cold weather.

Velcro belt loop, can also be easily removed via the quick release Fastex-type buckle.

Plenty of Molle loops for attachment of the "survival kit" if wanted or any other compatible pouch.

The weight of the FKMD PARUS is 342 grams (Approx. 12 Oz.) knife only and 486 grams (approx. 17 Oz.) with scabbard minus the supplied survival kit.

(WOW! That's basically 89 grams (approx. 3 Oz, less overall weight than competitor models). Less weight means going further and harder into the bush/wilderness and staying longer. That equals more fun!!!

Make no mistake the FKMD PARUS is one capable knife and the rest is up to the skills of the user.

As a "survival-type knife" I believe the FKMD Parus rocks! Let's see if my initial views based on usage over several weeks will reveal. Stay tuned to BushCampingTools for more info. Don't forget to check out my FaceBook page too.

Update!!!!!!!!!!! Here is my field review of the PARUS from FKMD

BCT

PS forgot to say the handle bolts are T15 torx socket heads. The tension of these bolts depends upon some stiction being set up by the Forprene. One could non-permanently Loctite them but probably not necessary.