I got a new knife….If you know me, this shouldn’t surprise you.

I’ve been hanging out around saltwater a lot lately, camping, wading, fishing, seining, spearfishing, etc., and have been carrying around my Mora Companion 11863 in carbon steel, and it’s been getting quite a bit of saltwater abuse, mostly showing in the form of rust. I’m not a huge fan of stainless, as it has a history of being inferior steel that won’t hold or even take an edge. However, I was so impressed with the 11863, that I thought I’d give the stainless version a try. Specs showed it to be the exact same dimensions, so I could interchange the sheaths, a bonus. I already liked the heft and handling of the 11863, and knew Mora to be a maker of solid knives, so I sent for one.

When the package arrived, I of course was wearing my green Companion, my everyday companion. Being a bit over-sized, I tend to carry it in my daypack, and as soon as I get home, it goes on my shorts to carry until I go to bed. I thought it rather fitting to be opening the stainless Companion with the carbon version 🙂

My initial thought was WOW that orange is BRIGHT! I then swapped knives and sheaths, and found then to be an exact fit. Excellent! Then taking the new knife out, I tested the edge. Holy Smokes! The nail drag test showed it to be VERY sharp, easily taking a bit into my nail. I then turned it to the hair on my left arm to find it capable of shaving.

I then tucked it right next to my carbon Companion, and went about my day, loving the new knife. I used it for my every day chores, cutting, chopping, slicing, and whittling, every use making me appreciate Mora knives even more. However, I still had to test it in the harsh saltwater environment.

Going fishing on Mother’s Day may not seem like a good idea to you, but it at least gave me an opportunity to fish, test a new knife like I wanted, and allow my wife to sleep in, a rare luxury, all with my friend Eric, and his son, who were also shirking their Mother’s Day duties. I was able to slice fish, cut monofilament and braided lines, and chop on barnacles under water. The last task was a bit overkill, and ended up leaving small nicks in the tip of the blade, nothing serious, but enough to mar the shaving ability. Pulling out my Smithfield, I quickly touched the edge back to shaving sharp, even removing the tiny nicks. Sweet!

Later in the day, I was able to use the new knife to harvest a hen I had purchased a while back, a hen that started to crow last week. No roosters here! Id handled the task admirably, and I may have a new go-to knife for hunting and dressing animals.

I am impressed. Really, my only complaint is that I have been pushing the carbon version so hard, RidgeRunner opted to buy one, the same day my stainless one arrived (SORRY RidgeRunner!) 🙁

I LIKE it, and it has just become my EDC of choice.

This brings us to the specs:
The knife weighs in at 2.938 ounces according to my scale,
and 4.095 ounces with sheath. This is slightly heavier than the carbon version due to steel composition. Worth the weight 🙂

The length of the blade is 4 1/8 and 8 5/8 overall, same as the carbon version. The overall size of the knife again falls between my EDC pocket knives and my Randall Model 5-6″ Camp & Trail, the knife I usually used to use when field dressing deer.

The handle is a blaze and O.D. green rubberized plastic, and grips well, even when wet, seeming to grip better than the carbon version.

The sheath is made of blaze (safety) orange plastic, and uses a friction grip to hold the blade in place. It includes a drain hole at the bottom, as well as a fold-over belt loop with retaining clip, allowing you to quickly hook over your belt or remove with a minimum of fuss, yet remain in place otherwise. Since they are the same size, and the carbon knife’s color is less obtrusive, I tend to carry the OD green sheath with the new knife.