The Helle Viking Knife from Norway. A black
blade...something that Turin Turambar might carry?!
Overview111 mm x 3.7mm blade with black carbon residue for a rustic aesthetic. Hand sharpened with a scandi grind which is asymmetrical - each side of the grind, whilst uniform, has a different depth and angle to the other side giving an idiosyncratic hand-made feel, but which doesn't affect function.
Triple
laminated carbon steel: hard centre with softer metal on the outside - its
razor sharp. A rat tail tang offers a light weight handle. Simple but
comfortable handle in curly birch. A solid medieval looking sheath.
Summary:
A rustic
simple aesthetic which is slightly underwhelming on opening - minimalist even -
but which soon becomes charming, idiosyncratic and characterful. A knife which
has its own soul, it doesn't feel too safe though, a dangerous sort of knife,
and a knife that likes to drink blood!? THE VIKING KNIFE:
I have been
using the Viking Knife for about 8 months now and I must say it has become my
"go to knife". But there is a caveat because, as beautiful as it
looks, this is an unforgiving knife. I feel intrinsically that this knife has a
real spirit, so much so that I want to call it Gurthang, the Iron of Death in
Tolkien's Legendarium. Why do I say this? It isn't just because I have
cut myself really badly with this knife, which I have, but because no other
knife has felt as alive as this knife, and dangerous. Poetic license? Perhaps.
Despite this, I really love this knife.
That's
not to say that it has its foibles which some would see as negatives for a
knife in this price bracket. The carbon residue on the blade, making it
black, is part of the manufacturing process and will develop its own patina and
wear off with use. Personally I like this, others, perhaps expecting a proper
rust resistant black coating might not like it, or not understand its purpose.
It's simple: the black coating has no purpose other than for its aesthetics. What’s more,
the grinding is hopelessly asymmetric which some will hate, and the sheath is impractical. It ties on the belt with a leather thong and the knot tends to work itself loose every 5 to 10 minutes. Using around the house and garden the sheath is perfect but for anything else I would worry about losing the knife. A better
sheath would make this a much better bushcraft option. Although
having said all that when I am in the woods I fit the knife through my belt loop and tie the leather strap
around my belt (a very nice Hebtroco Garrison belt) Samurai style and it seems to stay put. It has a rat tail tang which again many will not like as most bushcraft
knives are full tang but it makes it a light weight
knife which is nice to carry and hold.
As a
bushcraft-type knife it is pretty damn good, as stated it is not full tang so you
have to be careful, but I have batoned smaller pieces of wood just fine. The
best thing about the knife is the sharpness, it is razor sharp and so easy to
sharpen. It is also a thirsty blade which has enjoyed drinking my blood. It
certainly doesn’t feel like a safe sort of blade so I guess not for
beginners, or for very clumsy people.
I also
like the tri-laminated steel although it does seem to rust along the top edge
after batoning. It is great for feathering fire sticks, carving and general
bushcraft duties. It is my back-up knife and also a knife that I will take on
general walks where I am not expecting to do huge amounts of bushcraft. If you
are only taking one knife for a bushcraft excursion you will probably want a
full tang knife and one that you can strike a ferro rod on, so probably this is
a back-up knife, and an aesthetic knife rather than your number one bushcraft
knife.
Having said
all that this knife has really grown on me, I have had to try hone the
asymmetricalness of the grind, just enough to dissuade my obsessiveness, as I
have said, this knife has a real soul. The curly birch handle is just great to
look at and to touch and the blade itself has a certain feel and patina. I feel
there is almost a Japanese aesthetic going on, its almost minimalist, but it is
endearing and full of its own individual character. It certainly has more soul
than the Casstrom Woodsman which whilst much safer (I have never cut myself
with the Woodsman) is more or less a tool for a job, whereas this is like the
sword of the samurai, it has soul and it has personality. Which is surprising
as I was underwhelmed when I first received it. However, the Helle Viking has become my go-to knife whenever I need a knife, even in gardening
or cooking a BBQ, I reach for this knife first and above all others. Why?
It just has a shape and feel which lends itself to any task, and that sheath, which is impractical in many ways, is actually really good on the hip taking the knife out and putting it back in effortlessly whilst in the midst of a task, such as gardening, cooking or even wood carving.
My
conclusion is that it is one of my favourite knives but it has its issues, in
terms of quality control. Now there are two ways of looking at these quality
issues, one, that these are foibles of its handmade nature or, two, it is just
poor quality. I tend to think it is part of its characteristic foible. Having
said that I didn’t pay full price, it was about £72.00, if this was full price
and nearer the £100 mark I would be sending it back until I get a perfect
example! So, there is some risk buying this knife. It is probably best to see a
bunch of these in the flesh and find the perfect one! A risky purchase but I
think worth it. If you are looking for a knife with character, which will
develop its own patina, and its own story, this is the knife for you. 
I am typing
this with my index finger heavily bandaged, I can’t help feel that this knife not
only deserves respect, but demands it of you. It wants to be anointed with oil
and it wants a name. I don’t know how Helle did it but they channelled the
Viking spirit into this knife, and what a knife it is!So, in short, a very characterful knife with a comfortable handle but an unforgiving blade that draws blood when not respected and rusts when not cared for.
