Marttiini Condor Timberjack

This knife is an utterly reliable tool. Got my first for $17 some years ago and just purchased my second, paying $21 here in the Spring 2022. Solid value at either price. I've had a few Morakniv Pros and Classics over the years and while they are also an excellent value, I think the Marttiini better in multiple ways (grip performance and ergos) and comparable in all others—while being negligibly more expensive.Neither of mine came especially sharp (a different experience than some reviewers); but that's an easy fix (bevels have all been fine).Rubber handle is a great shape that stays well out of the cutting path. The nearly-disc-shaped end is very handy for positively gripping & pulling the knife from the sheath. Comfortable and sufficiently grippy for all of my uses (dry hands: yardwork, some rough wood shaping). May be slightly more prone to causing blisters than a wood handle (I've had the occasional forced work stoppage from both types), but I've got soft hands (full time IT worker) so this may not be a concern for most. Wears in nicely (unlike wood). After a few months of use the grip will slot into your hand perfectly!Blade is excellent, readily takes an edge, maintains it long enough for me to forget how long ago I sharpened it and touches up reasonably quickly (especially for a scandi) when resharpening time does eventually come around. I've got knives in a variety of mid-range steels (A2, D2, N690, VG-10, 154CM) and edge-wise it performs practically on par with all of them. The D2 and some more premium steels will likely hold an edge noticeably longer when doing similar jobs but most are also a massive pain to sharpen when needed. Assuming sharpening is available; overall, I prefer the Martiini blade for a knife that gets regularly used. Corrosion might be an issue for serious camp use and disqualifying for survival use, but as neither interest me I've had no issues. The knife survives wet vegetation, being set down in the mud and even occasionally being rained on without issue as long as it gets dried off and oiled at the end of the day. Since I use this knife primarily in my yard & workshop this is as easy as having an oil rag around and taking a few seconds to use it before putting the knife to bed.The sheath is cheap plastic and I did remove the flimsy-looking "belt loop" immediately. That said it actually serves my purposes perfectly well. Easy enough to tuck into a belt and wide and flat enough to "sit up" in a pocket. It's very easy toss this knife in a pocket and extract it when needed by slotting my pinky under the flat disc pommel of the knife and flicking the sheath off with my thumb. Said sheath then stays in my pocket while I work and it takes just a bit of care to slide the knife back into the sheath when finished. The whole package easily survives a toss into a tool bag and being kicked around a workbench—so I've got no complaints. Wouldn't trust it to hold up to too much crushing and anyone wanting to carry the knife regularly or hike with it should probably plan on purchasing a better sheath, but for a freebie at this price the included one is actually surprisingly useful (for my kinds of use, anyway).Ultimately a great knife at a remarkably low price. Gets a wide variety of jobs done with minimal fuss and lasts through years of regular use. Has its weaknesses (would need a sheath with better retention for regular carry, probably not suitable for "survival" use) but I can't think of anything actually bad to say about it.

I bought this knife because, after being so impressed by the several Swedish Moras that I already had, I was curious to see what a Finnish variation of a Scandi knife was like. Also, because I thought that the contrasting dark mottled finish of the blade stock with the mirror-polished edge looked so darn cool.This is the entry model of the Martiinni line of hunting/woods knives. From the popular models of Mora knives that I have (stainless steel Companion, 2000, 511 Basic, 748), the Timberjack most closely compares to the Companion, although it shares the ~3mm blade thickness of the Companion HD version.I found the original rearward slope of the plastic fingerguard and the 3 pronounced ridges at the top uncomfortable when carving wood so I sanded it down to a more forward sloping shape similar to that of the Companion, and removed the ridges. Now it feels great. Perhaps the handle is designed for a surer grip required for use as hunting knife when wet or when using winter mitts? In any case, the knife is referred to as "black carpenter's knife" in some European websites.The Timberjack's blade is thicker, but the very shallow angle of its Scandi grind (I estimate 23 degrees--similar to that of the regular Companion) makes it the knife I grab if I want to carve a tough piece of wood. Note that the Companion HD has 27 degree grind which will make it a bit less of a slicer.The sheath is minimal and not as well designed or of the same quality material as the Companion (apparently the majority of Martiinni knives are supplied with better quality leather sheaths). After the thin belt loop part started to rip, I cut it off and replaced it with a spare nylon strap fastened with two plastic zip ties. I positioned the locking tabs so that I now have ramps to push off/pull on to facilitate one handed removal and insertion of the knife.The shape and texture of the Timberjack's checkered solid rubber handle is soft and comfortable. It is epoxied on to the rat tail tang rather than molded into a solid plastic core like with the Mora, thus it is less resistant to heavy twisting or abuse (i.e., you can't hammer on it).In summary, compared to the Mora Companion, blade is as thick as the HD model, yet its grind is as sharp as the regular one. It's currently priced right between the two Moras. Sheath quality and handle durability go to the Moras.I am glad that I bought this knife. It is an interesting variation of a Scandi knife, good quality and excellent value at the $16 price I paid. After making my small modifications to the fingerguard, it has become one of my favorites.