Peltonen M95 Ranger Puukko Uncoated (Leather Sheath) FJP143

The M95 Ranger Puukko is in a class of its own. It arrives sharp out of the box and is well constructed. It fits very comfortably in the hand and is well balanced. Beautifully designed, this knife is a perfect for all your bush crafting needs. Peltonen, the name says it all. I want to thank the guys at Rageeed for their first class customer service.

This might be that proverbial "grail" knife that knife enthusiasts are always in search of but rarely find. It doesn't have many bells or whistles; it's just elegant in its simplicity, and eminently capable. Even the sheath bears mentioning its own right: it's the best design I've ever used (with a roller mechanism that grips the finger guard). The leather looks to be veg tan, died during tanning. It's the good stuff for sure.

There's a balance to this knife design that has been struck to make it so useful. The grind in the blade is so high, that it actually cuts tomatoes with similar finesse to an Opinel. But, the stock is still so thick that it batons through wood like a hatchet. In the picture I uploaded, I sliced a tomato thinly with ease after making six feathersticks and batoning two aspen logs. The knife is also perfectly weighted in the hand; balancing evenly on the forefinger toward the front of the grip... and that grip! The grip is even better than the Mora Bushcraft Black (which I thought was already as good as a handle could get).

If there's a criticism it's that the spine won't strike a ferro rod. I'm not sure why that functionality is omitted from the design, but frankly, after you've tried this thing, you simply won't care. Just use the metal striker than comes with your ferro rod.

Context is everything though. If you're only interested in wood carving, then just buy an Ahti or KPP knife-they are a true scandi grind with a barely visible microbevel, and they will make curls on a feather stick until the cows come home. But if you want to strike a balance between carving, food prep, and some heavier camp chores, this is your knife. And that extra length really helps with food prep and grabbing food out of the fire. I don't see how you could top this knife for bushcrafting and camping.