Kershaw Camp 10 Fixed Blade Knife Machete (10" Black) 1077

I got this at the kershaw warehouse sale for 24 bucks, but I thought I would post a review on my favorite online retailer. The camp 10 has a specific job that it does very well. This isn't a knife for food prep or fine carving. Don't expect it to hold an edge well, or carve nice feather sticks. This knife has a design similar to a kukri, with the belly (and weight) focused forward, with a slight angle. This means the knife swings very effectively and bites deep into wood. It is perfect for pruning green limbs, but it will also get a fire going for you. It can chop dead wood too, but I would avoid harder woods and thick, knotty woods for reasons I'll detail later. This knife will also baton nicely, it's plenty thick to do the job, and long enough to span nice chunks of wood. It's not perfect though, the handle is solid enough for you to feel plenty of shock from striking the blade with the baton. Not a big deal. The grip is very nice, with a pronounced palm swell. The flare at the ends lock your hand in nicely, and the handle is close enough to the edge for you to do some fine-ish cutting if you need. The rubber is nice and firm, but the texture is a tiny bit rough for use without gloves. I'm gonna do a wrap with some hockey tape, which gives the knife some ugly uniqueness and will soften the grip. I do this on most of my fixed blades. The sheath is sorta weird. Because of the recurve the sheath doesn't fit snugly, it has plenty of room inside to rattle around. That said, it's not a gross nylon sheath and the retaining strap does its job nicely. It is pretty heavy though. The steel, 65mn, is a pretty run-of-the-mill cheap carbon steel. It's tough as nails and they run it pretty soft, so don't expect super good edge retention. When I first got this knife I busted through some dry wood I was carving and I was disappointed to see some flat spots on the edge. It dulled pretty fast. At first I was even skeptical the knife had a faulty heat treatment. I have since learned to appreciate this. The softness means the steel is even more tough, and it can be touched up in an instant. I ran my medium sharpmaker rods down the edge a few times and that immediately eliminated any dull spots. Also, keep in mind this knife is not a machete. This isn't a con per se, but don't get the two confused. This is a nice big knife that was born to chop, especially into green, soft wood. It is thick enough to provide some heft and and is durable enough to baton too. The knife didn't come too sharp, but I'm not going to waste any time putting on a super nice edge. The steel is soft enough to make it not worth the effort, and the knife isn't designed for fine cutting tasks that would warrant a super sharp edge. Overall, I'm super happy. Don't judge the knife too much before putting it through some wood first. I was handling mine for a while before I got the chance to use it and at first I was a bit disappointed, especially seeing how soft the steel is. Don't let that fool you though! Witness the Camp 10's chopping power and durability and enjoy this tool.