Elk Ridge 10.5 Bushcraft .... ( Preview / review )

[old4570]

Here is a knife I have Ho Hummed over for several years .
And most knife reviewers seem to have nothing but nice things to say about it ! I wonder why ?
Where to start ..

Sharpening Stone :
A) My first suggestion is to gift it to some one you don't like
B) throw it away (?)
C) put it somewhere and forget about it

Ferro Rod :
A) The ferro rod is ok
B) The striker is - rubbish - I threw mine in the rubbish !

Sheath :
A) Yeah , it's nylon with some sort of hard liner
B) Comes with a length of Para chord ( Maybe 2 meters )

Sheath is ok I guess for something cheap N nasty .
So that leaves us with the knife .

Knife :
A) Has some kind of funky coating ( black ) for ? reason ! Is it just for looks ?
B) Spine wont strike a ferro rod well , the black coating will be worn away exposing steel .. So may improve .
C) Very comfortable grip
D) Good overall size
E) Factory edge slices paper , but has a serious burr , a little rough .
Update : Edge is very rough .. Will go straight to a re grind ...

And next will come some rope slicing as time permits .

 

[old4570]

Regrinding the edge ( just completed )
Wow , was that factory edge poorly ground . ( FUBAR )
Took a bit of work ... To clean up ! ( Wet Stone Grinder )
Slices paper really well now ..
It's getting warm out there .. Tomorrow should be a cool day in comparison , so will slice rope then !

 

[Howling Dingo]

Not sold on this brand myself..

 

[old4570]

Really Humid and moist day ...

So the knife failed at 250 slices ..

There was no edge roll that I could detect = Which is good .
I think the edge is around 18 degrees .. So tightening the bevel to 16 degrees is quite possible & not out of the question .
As this would allow for better slicing and possibly a longer lasting edge .
The blade is about 1mm thick right behind the bevel / edge .. So not that slicy !

I found a leather sheath that fits almost perfectly , and has a loop for the ferro rod ..
I think the Elk Ridge 10.5 has found a new home ..
Another knife for the new ( still to arrive ) guided knife sharpener .
I will have to tighten up that bevel and see what happens .
For now , I would rate the Elk Ridge a reasonably good knife for the money .
If the knife will hold a tighter bevel ? It might be even better .

Stropping :
No issues , I was able to restore the edge on the leather strop .

 

[old4570]

Update !
There be no new Guided knife sharpener on the way ...
The seller was unfortunately BS .
So I reground the bevel today much tighter ..
Might have to slice rope again ....

 

[old4570]

Going to edit video ASAP ..
Verified the bevel @ 16 degrees ... With a bevel gauge
And ........................... Wow !

 

[old4570]

Elk Ridge 10.5 with a 16 degree bevel

A) Edge did not roll
B) 400 slice fail - Cam battery gave out just before I was done
C) Slice power seriously improved ( Slices so much better @ 16 degrees )

Holly Smoke Batman !
The 10.5 made it to a 400 slice fail , this is serious goodness for the money !
You may have poo poo'd at the thought of owning a 10.5 , but it is a lot of knife for the money .
I really was expecting the edge to roll at 16 degrees .. And I have some bevel gauges , and I checked ! ( 16 degrees )
But the edge held up and just slowly wore away . I did a wood strop at the end and there was no difference to the edge .
A shame about the cam battery giving up .. Would have been nice to have it all on video .

And while the ground edge is a little rough , ( Wet Stone Grinder ) , it strops back so strong ! ( on leather alone ) .
Looks like the Elk Ridge 10.5 is a keeper !
I payed a little under $50 oz bananas for mine shipped to my door , and I think I got a decent amount of knife for my money .