Fallkniven F1 Survival

It is a job to see how this knife could be improved. Light but very strong, razor sharp, the handle is comfortable and effectively indestructible. Overall finish is exceptional and the blade is a thing of true beauty. Feels modern and hi-tech and I guess "Swedish" rather than "woodsman" I would imagine it would stand a lifetime of hard use.

If you have to trust your life to a blade this one wont let you down. 'nough said !.

I've had the F1 for a couple of years now. I bought it as a 'bushcraft' knife and at about the same time, a very good carbon steel scandi grind knife with a birch burl handle, and the two make a good comparison. The burl handle fits my hand like a glove, better than the rather thin handle of the F1. Both sharpen up very well and hold their edge. The burl-handled scandi looks much nicer. However, at the end of the day, I tend to choose the F1 when I go out. I can't define exactly why, I just like it more; it just seems to 'work' better. Being stainless I can use it for camp cooking and gutting fish and with the Zytel sheath I never have to worry about it getting wet and staying wet. So it may not be the prettiest knife, but it feels really solid in the hand and as a working tool, I don't think it could be beat.

I have owned and used a lot of knives and I mean a lot and have always said that there is no perfect knife and no one knife for all things and I still maintain this, however, after owning and using the Fallkniven F1 for a while I think I have found the knife that will always be with me, no matter what else I am carrying or using. The ergonomics of the F1 are close to perfect, the blade to handle ratio is just right, the laminated VG10 takes a super-fine edge and keeps it, even after some hard work, the weight and balance could not be improved and as long as you don't try and use the knife for tasks that it was not designed for, you will not be disappointed with this blade. The only thing I have had to improve is the sheath, the leather one is good for storage, but a nice deep Kydex sheath with Tek-Lok makes the F1 the complete package, buy one, buy two, you will never regret it.

Ok so first things first I was umming and arrrring between this and another knife on this site. Quick email to Richard and a speedy response later my mind was made up. Placed my order at 17:09 and the package arrived at my door 10am the very next day absolutely amazing service, you would think that after all my previous experience shopping with Heinnie I would no longer be amazed but this level of service will never get old. Now onto the F1 itself it's true that it will win no beauty contest but immediately it felt practical in the hand. The blade is convex and came real sharp straight out the box, I stopped the blade a few times for good measure and now it's just scary sharp. I decided to head for the woods and put the knife through some tests. Feather sticks we're made easy, quickly and in abundance. Next some battoning, and again the F1 made light work of the task. I then used the back of the blade on a ferro rod and huge hit sparks were produced with ease. Living in Wales we get a lot of wet weather and all these tests we're carried out in the wet. The handle was a joy, no hot spots it wasn't cold to the touch and the grip kept things nice and safe. After all the tasks the blade remained shaving sharp and with absolutely no micro chips or damage to the blade. This knife feels like it could take some real abuse and last a lifetime I hope so. So if you are thinking of purchasing one but are unsure as I was just do it you won't regret it, and if the guys at Heinnie use it themselves with all the stock they have access to...............well enough said.

I've had one of these for ten years, and it looks close to new. Decently sized, comfortable for long use, and takes an edge and keeps it very, very well indeed.

I was choosing between this and the Esee 4 and ended up with buying this because I'm Swedish and the price was lower as well.

I have owned and extensively used this knife now for well over a year and I can safely say that the F1 is the ultimate bushcraft/ survival knife - second only to the S1. Why? Because in my opinion (and I own and use both) the S1 has the edge over the F1 as a true all-rounder. The F1 is perfect in every way, but chopping, battoning, prying and drilling (which the F1 can do) is easier with the S1, which is slightly bigger and thicker. Yet, the S1 still does everything the F1 does; perhaps even slightly better. I'd happily, and without second thoughts, take the F1 into the woods with me as my only knife, confident of its reliability and performance. However, given the choice in this case between the F1 and the S1, I'd take the S1. Having said all that, though, if you're looking for a no-nonsense, functional, extremely well made and reliable bushcraft/ survival knife, you will NOT find anything better. Period. Another tip: If you don't mind taking more than one knife with you, get the F1 and the A1 together, and you will have the ultimate knife set-up. They compliment each other perfectly, and there won't be a single task out there known to man that you wouldn't be able to do.

This knife has numerous reviews and so I'll just cover my impressions of the knife. Firstly the f1 was much smaller and lighter than i expected, it has a tool like utility feel to it, which I like very much, I have other larger heavier knives, but I prefer the balance of this blade, less tiring to use for most tasks. I done fire wood processing with the f1 and found it up to the task, but it is my main choice for game preparation, the convex grind suits meat prep, and you can choke right up on the blade for fine tasks. I have sharpened this knife using the mouse mat and sand paper method, this does minimal damage to the black coating. My knife came shaving sharp and has retained its edge fine. Finally the knife is easy to carry and looks sensible and so less likely to attract attention. My f1 is my first choice of knife in almost any situation.