There are many, many overdone field knife sharpeners on the market but very few that I would consider carrying regularly. That is why I love my USA-made, easy-to-carry Hewlett Two-Sided Diamond Sharpeners with medium (600) and fine (1800) grits. I have had a couple of these knocking around for years now. It might be the most versatile, easiest-to-carry, field sharpener I own.
These diamond plates are the right size – small enough to carry in their included sleeve and large enough to actually work. They are just under 4″ long, 1.25″ wide, and just about 1/16″ thick. They weigh just over 1 ounce.
I rarely use the medium side but it is coarse enough to get some mild reprofiling done in the field should you take some chips out of an edge. The fine side is all I usually need to touch up an edge before finishing with a quick strop.
I have even used mine to strike a ferro rod and scrape tinder like fat wood thanks to the crisp edges on the plate. It isn’t meant for that and I am sure it isn’t good for it… but it works.
I purchased a SOG Tellus FLK a while back because I couldn’t resist what appeared to be a very good deal for a large folding knife. I was also intrigued by its surprisingly lightweight given its size and the way SOG executed the frame-lock (more on this later).
SOG states that the Tellus FLK is an “outdoor workhorse,” which is certainly the vibe I get from this knife. The blade shape, size, and overall feel in the hand remind me a lot of past Zero Tolerance/Rick Hinderer collaboration knives and that is a complement. The knife feels like it is ready to work thanks to SOG’s design choices.
The first thing I noticed about the Tellus FLK is its weight. Now, I am not saying this is a lightweight knife but it one of those knives that messes with your head a bit. When you pick this up, you expect it to feel much heavier than it does. It feels very light for its size. This is thanks to SOG’s choice to mill out very large voids in the liners and likely the use of polymer for several parts of the knife including the scales, backspacer, and even the thumb studs.
Those polymer thumb studs are actually very comfortable to use and the blade deploys easily when using them. In fact, I greatly prefer them to the flipper tab that this knife also includes.
The scales have diagonal, grooved texture that offers a ton of grip without being aggressive or hard on your pockets. They are relatively thick and well-contoured. The polymer scales are affixed to the steel liners via internal, nested screws. SOG also chose to affix a small section of scale to liner-turned-frame-lock which improves the comfort in this area. This is the kind of innovative thing that can and should be done with polymer handles!
The 440C used in the Tellus FLK’s broad, drop point blade is easy to resharpen and seems relatively tough. The height of the blade, coupled with a nearly full-height flat grind allows the blade to really thin out behind the edge. This knife cuts better than a lot of knives with even thinner stock thanks to this cutting geometry. It is impressive in this regard.
The pocket clip is reversible and offers a ton of clearance for pockets with chunkier fabrics. The position is somewhat low on the knife which, for me at least, allows it to fall in a comfortable part of my grip rather than being way out toward the edge of my hand.
The blade locks up solidly though there is some slight side-to-side play which is typical for larger bladed folders with ball-bearing pivots.
All of that sounds pretty good (and it is) but there are a few design choices that leave me scratching my head. First, I am little confused by the use of a ball-bearing pivot given the “outdoor workhorse” intentions of the Tellus FLK. Boring old PB washers would like stand up to fouling more readily and might have even been cheaper. Second, the pivot screws on this knife are fairly large but they went with a T6 driver… and that fits kind of loose. Be careful when adjusting the pivot on this knife. Again, different hardware might have made more sense for this design.
Wrap Up
This knife offers a combination of features that make it very attractive at the price: standout ergonomics, tough stainless steel, great cutting geometry, and multiple deployment methods. It is also significantly larger than a lot of knives in this price range and that is worth something if you need a larger knife for your application.
I like the Tellus FLK so much that I could see choosing this over other classic, low-cost work knives like the RAT 1 just based on just how much knife you get for the money. I’m impressed.
I purchased the SOG Tellus FLK with my own money, from Amazon: SOG Tellus FLK
I owned a Cold Steel Pendleton Mini Hunter years ago. I never really did much with the one I used to own because I didn’t have a sheath that made it very practical to carry but the knife itself was excellent. I thought of it as a paring knife on steroids which is to say it was an excellent utility knife that was quite stout.
Fast forward to earlier this year when I was looking for a knife with some basic requirements – stainless, large and stout enough to baton sticks of a reasonable diameter for fire making, small enough to EDC, and with a 90-degree spine. The idea was that, when coupled with a Swiss Army Knife (with saw) and a ferro rod/lighter, it would be the foundation of a sort of EDC-able survival kit. Surprisingly, this was difficult to find in a relatively affordable production knife which drove me back to the Pendleton Mini Hunter. It not only fits this niche but I found that it has become extremely affordable. I purchased one for just $35.
The knife itself is excellent. The flat ground AUS-10A blade is 3″ long and .130″ thick at the spine which is quite stout. It features a drop point blade shape that has a distal taper to the tip rendering a strong but useful point. The handle is molded rubber that allows a four-finger grip (though it is narrow) and is comfortable to use even when cold thanks to the lack of exposed tang. It has a small guard that is unobtrusive and the 90-degree spine throws sparks like a champ.
In use, it really does feel like the most useful paring knife if your kitchen but 10X as durable. It may not sound like it initially, but that is supposed to be high praise. It can cut your apple for lunch, trim a thread, dress your deer, or start a fire in challenging conditions which is pretty impressive for a knife that costs $35, weighs 2 ounces, and is exceedingly easy to carry… as long as you spend a bit more money on sheaths.
When it comes to sheaths, there are a ton of options. I can only speak to the two I’ve tried. The first is a KSF (Knives Ship Free) Pocono Pocket Sheath. This leather pouch sits gracefully in your front or back pocket and has room to carry a ferro rod (which I do) in addition to the knife.
The sheath second option, a kydex sheath from RK Kydex, is probably the better option considering the versatility, availability, and affordability. I set mine up with a single snap loop which makes it easy to carry on my belt, as a neck knife, or in the pocket. I had this sheath in days, the quality is excellent, and I only paid $28 for it which is very affordable compared to most of the market. I highly recommend these sheaths.
The combination of the Cold Steel Pendleton Mini Hunter and the RK Custom Kydex Sheath was perfect for fleshing out my pocket survival knife idea. It is on my belt as I type this. I think this knife would make a great addition to anyone’s kit or a great gift.
One Asterisk Industries is developing a prototype for what is currently being called the DCH or Deep Carry Hook. The DCH acts as both a folding knife finger ring and a VERY deep carry pocket clip, making the knife both more discreet, easier to retain, and easier to deploy when used with one of their Thorn openers.
I purchased a Sosby Blades Wedge almost two years ago. It is an excellent knife that pulls off being both very compact and very hand-filling. The handle locks into the hand via a generous choil and works in any grip which can be achieved directly out of the well-designed sheath. The design of the blade places the needle-like tip exactly where it should be for piercing. This knife is a compact, self-defense powerhouse with decent utility.
There was just one small problem… I purchased my Wedge secondhand and the previous owner decided to give it what appeared to be a Worksharp edge. It was well polished and sharp but it looked like they lingered too long in one spot because there was an inward curve to the edge. I don’t mean something like a graceful recurve or hawksbill-style edge… it was like a shallow angle. This made it just about impossible to lay the edge down on a stone for sharpening.
I contacted Sosby Blades asking if I could pay to have the edge reground and was totally open about having purchased the knife secondhand. Sosby Blades was concerned that too much stock had already been removed which would change the intended geometry of the knife so rather than letting me pay for a repair, they offered to replace the knife at no cost. Needless to say, I was impressed.
Sosby Blades is a custom maker that releases knives in batches. They have stock right now on some of their most popular knives. Check out their website: https://sosbyblades.com/
