Black Fox Explorator Micarta Fixed Blade 18

having owned for a month now I am supplying an updated review. Please note that with the Kydex sheath and the problems I have encountered this is a 4 star knife - however, I have since replaced the sheath with one of Heinnie's standard Leather Sheaths for a 5 blade and it has reformed the practical use of the knife not to mention the safety. The Kydex was so tight that I, a 50 year old 6 foot well built man needed both hands to draw the knife and even then it would come out at speed in an uncontrolled manner - not great for a razor sharp, heavy piece of steel! Yes, I could heat it and adjust but it's not the only issue with the Kydex - the sheath causes the knife to stand proud from the body like a gunfighter's quick draw holster. this means that the knife flippin catches on EVERYTHING! trees, coats, doors, seats... the simple £8 sheath from Heinnie has solved this problem and it is now my go to heavy duty bushcraft knife.

Where to start. Good points: Very sharp out of box Extremely well finished for the price point Mircarta is lively and feels great in the hand Very substantial, thick and full tang. Nice balance. Negatives Heavy.. that thick full tang comes at a price. The sheath.. i'm not adverse to kydex sheaths however, this one makes it quite difficult to draw the knife. Grips it so hard that the it requires considerable strength of draw it. Such that it suddenly releases causing the knife to fly out in an uncontrolled manner, not great for a knife this sharp or heavy. Yes, you can use heat to adjest kydex but the 'pinch' which holds the knife in is rather difficult to adjust. The knife also sits pretty proud in the kydex whick means the handle is away from the body and snags on branches etc. The sheath is, frankly, rubbish for bushcraft, where you need to be able to quickly draw with one hand when the knife is needed for work. Quite frankly a leather sheath with a decent popper or tie would be a huge improvement. I like the knife so rather than send it back I'll get a decent sheath made for it. The other negative is the fire rod and holder.. why??? It looks cheap and causes the sheath to sit at an angle on the hip. I removed it and put the stick in my edc. Is it worth 55quid more than a Mora? Probably not but it is tougher and the mircarta is nice.

A sturdy well made knife, 440C stainless steel blade, and a micarta handle, it comes with a kydex sheath and a flint, a nice knife to use .