Customer Reviews

Frosts Carbon Clipper Utility Knife

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

To say that I'm hard on knives is a huge understatement, which is why this quickly became my favorite knife. My red handled stepchild gets beaten on a regular basis and has yet to let me down. It's super easy to resharpen to hair shaving status, and keeps its edge fairly well. Its not the prettiest knife around, the spine had the classic crappy stamped knife roughness that I ground smooth soon after getting it, but it feels surprisingly good in hand. There's no other way to describe the sheath other than... it sucks. Minute cosmetic issues and a crappy sheath aside, this knife is a solid performer and has been the best all around woods knife I've found so far. Plus IF you manage to break it, you're only out [...] bucks.

Perfect utility/survival knife. Easy to sharpen (none of that 45 Rc stainless, tuff-as-nails stuff here). Built to take a lickin'. Fits well in the hand. And, the red makes it easy to find if you're the dufus that left your new knife in a pile of leaves after cutting down a small sapling with it.

This is a no BS knife, for whatever you would use a knife. Good steel, very sharp, easy to sharpen. Cuts great. Not too thick so it works great on food. Very comfortable handle. The blade finish is kinda rough, but who cares? It actually looks good this way. It needs a little vegetable oil on the blade if you store it for a long time in a damp environment, but keep in mind that the best Japanese swords also require oil. Sheath looks cheap, but it works. As long as the knife is not upside down, nothing you do will shake the knife out. The sheath plastic can also be used as an insert for the leather sheath which you can easily make yourself. Overall this knife is the real deal, basically what a knife should be: "A sharpened strip of good steel with a good handle". Best bang for the buck if you care for my opinion.

It is not often that I can recommend ANYTHING without meaningful reservations. This little knife occasions one such time.

My observations reflect most of the ones that have already been made. The knife feels very good in the hand, it is inexpensive, and it cuts like a mother-in-law's tongue! In regard to the last observation, this little knife comes pretty sharp from the factory but it really shines after it is properly sharpened. (By the way, carbon steel Clippers ARE easy to sharpen but the first sharpening can take a bit of time, After all, Clippers are cheap knives and, while their "factory edges" can cut well one cannot expect the same kind of "niceties" on a Clipper that one might find in a much more expensive knife. After the first sharpening, however, the knife actually is quick and easy to sharpen.) A properly sharpened edge on a carbon steel Clipper knife can be scary! One almost gets the impression that Excaliber was made in Sweden. (This is a slight, but very slight, exaggeration!)

Even the knife's much-maligned sheath does a nice job of protecting the blade (and, protecting from the blade) and it doesn't carry all that badly. Those who would "improve" this sheath will find ample ideas on YouTube.

I have often read that the Clipper is a "light duty" knife. It is true that the knife's blade is thinner than some Scandinavian knives (which, by the way makes it a great slicer, unlike too many knives from that part of the world). However, I would be very hesitant to consider the knife to be in any way "fragile". As videoed "destruction tests" prove it requires an awful lot of abuse to wreck these things. I find it difficult to imagine a reasonable scenario where these knives would not work as well as any knives of their size.

One potential problem that has not been mentioned is the problem of "maintainance"...i.e. being able to "maintain" one's ownership of these knives. It seems that someone always needs this knife more than the current owner. This is no big problem if a "stash" of these knives is kept, however. I have never known a person to whom I have given one of these knives to be anything other than thrilled with it and (at least temporarily) with me.

This goes double for a male purchaser with a woman in his life. He would do well to go ahead and order two "Clippers" because one of them is almost certain to mysteriously "disappear" in short order. This phenomenon has been known to happen even when the female partner is otherwise unimpeachably honest and upright!

My recommendation would be that the purchaser buy at least four of these knives for his own use and then order a custom sheath. This should keep him and his grandchildren nicely in knives at least until the turn of the next century (or, until such knives are banned, whichever comes first).

The only other "improvement" that I can recommend is to file the spine if the knife's blade flat. The knife will look a bit better and the modified spine also works very well with ferrocium fire starters and even as the "steel" in "flint and steel".

The Clipper has recently been phased out, though I understand that Mora is now offering a knife that is pretty similar. That having been said, I recommend that "real" Clippers be purchased for as long as they are available.

First, let me say that I am a carbon steel man. Stainless is great for saltwater, low maintenance or even some looks; but for me, the most usable and dependaable edge comes with carbon. Professionally, I deal with oil-country metals and except where potential for high corrossion environments exists, carbon steels for exceed the usable properties of other alloys. The Frosts Carbon Clipper IS a utility knife. Mine stays with my grab pack and is used for many woodland cutting and slicing jobs. It is not for heavy work, but for light duty around the stand, campfire, cookfire and trail, it has become my partner. It fits the hand and most tasks I ask it to perform. It's edge is easily maintained with proper care (I must admit an obession with proper sharpening). Light oiling prevents rust and the rough finish adds to the beauty of a "utility" knife. Back in the woods I would much rather have function than shine.

If you are like me, and buy knives for their use, not their reflection, you should check out carbon steel -- After all, it is recommended by Julia Child.

Very good general purpose blade.

These are looked upon favorably by the knife crowd for outstanding value. The steel is excellent and comes with a hair popping edge. It's almost identical to the Mora Craftline series of knives with the exception of a slightly larger and wider blade. This is not stainless so it's very easy to retouch the edge but it does require a bit more care to prevent rust.

The title says it all; this is, hands down the best knife on the market for the money. I got it a while ago, with pretty low expectations but I was blown away when I started putting it to the test against my other knives! Is it the best knife in the world? No. Is it a knife you should have in your collection whether you are a novice collector or a pro? Most certainly.

I bought my first Frosts Carbon Clipper 5 years ago. It is by far my favorite knife. I just bought two more. One for my son for a birthday gift, and a second one for me so I can keep one in my hunting bag and have one in my shop. It holds an edge better than any other knife I own and when it does need sharpening I can shave the hair from my arm in minutes. As others have said, the sheath is a bit chinsy but the knife is fantastic. I read a review where someone said it will easily rust. It is made with high carbon steel so you MUST keep a light coat of oil on the blade. As I said I have had one for 5 years. After cleaning it I wipe it with a little 3 in 1 oil and haven't had any rust problems. Are there better knives out there? Possibly BUT NOT FOR THE MONEY. Buy one, keep a little oil on it and you will be completely satified. I suspect you will end up buying a second one.

Ordered on 2/24/10. Came in on 2/27/10. Awesome time on shipping. Knife is sharp as heck. Sheath is ok. Theres a healthy sounding click when the knife is settled in. As with the other reviews, it wont slip out when you hold it upside down and shake it. I wish the sheath had a full loop but its only a standard clip on. Its the only reason I didnt give it a 5 star. Probably look online for a leather sheath. It'll be my fishing knife/camping knife. Real great deal on a real good knife. You wont be disappointed.

I have extensive experience with Frost Mora blades. I have owned nearly all of them, including the curved carving models.

Overall I give Mora blades a 5 star rating with the following understanding: Mora blades are made for CUTTING applications. Mora blades are NOT intended as heavy chopping, battoning, or prying tools!!! If you are looking for a knife to beat on, don't get a Mora. Get a Becker, Kabar or something with real heft and thickness. Mora knifes are brittle for that kind of work. Some folks probably get away with it, but I choose to use another knife for those applications. Mora's wonderful carbon steel edge does however excel at cutting chores.

This model I give a 4 star rating as I don't prefer it to the standard full-tang wood handled model. I do really like this knife and if it is available, it is a great choice for most cutting survival/bushcrafting chores.