Sharps: Heartland blades

As much as I love a good knife, I'm already on-record as not being fond of throwing wads of cash at esoteric über blades:

"To be sure, there's nothing like using an expensive handmade knife. I'll even grant the higher quality and, in some cases, superior durability and utility of handcrafted blades and tools -- but are their ultimate attributes, whether real or romantic, worth $500, $1,000 or more?

"That question must be answered by each buyer. For this buyer, the answer generally is 'No.'"

That said, not all handmade knives are absurdly expensive. Both of my favorite fixed-blades -- the Bravo-1 by Bark River Knife & Tool and the Blind Horse Knives Small Work Horse -- are crafted by hand, but neither one breaks the bank.

My own personal bank is a bit weak these days, of course, so I won't be shopping for sharps, custom or otherwise, any time soon -- but if I were to add just two more high-quality knives to my kit, I'd be going right back to Bark River and Blind Horse.

The BRKT Bravo-2 looks to be a natural evolution of the original Bravo-1, but with a considerably larger convex-grind blade. (The Bravo-2's is seven inches long, its predecessor's 4.25 inches.) That doesn't make it a machete by any means, but when bigger is better -- and yes, there are times when that's actually so -- the Bravo-2 would fill the bill. The Bravo-1 is more my style, frankly, but I sure wouldn't mind rolling with its big brother for a while.

I handled a prototype of the BHK Bushcrafter at a Columbus gun show back in August and promptly fell in love. It's an old-school woodsman's knife -- nothing fancy, just a functional 3.5-inch blade and a comfy maple handle. (For most chores, a bigger blade is overkill anyway.) The Bushcrafter might just be the sweetest little knife I've ever held in my hands -- and at a hundred bucks, it's a steal.

Finally, there's one more reason for me to choose these knives -- both are made by small companies located right here in the American Heartland. Bark River Knives are handcrafted in Michigan, Blind Horse Knives in Ohio. Even the knives' leather sheaths are handmade by Heartland companies -- Sharpshooter (Michigan) for Bark River, JRE (Illinois) for Blind Horse.

Building our economic strength, in my opinion, begins close to home, and doing business with a couple of genuine Main Street companies would be absolutely the right thing to do.

Earlier posts
Sharps, Part I: In the pocket
Sharps, Part II: On the belt
Sharps: BHK Small Work Horse

Links
Bark River Knife & Tool
Blind Horse Knives
Sharpshooter Sheath Systems
JRE Industries
KnifeForums.com