Customer Reviews

Gerber 22-01339 Winchester Large Wood Handle Fixed Blade with Nylon Sheath

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

 

 

I like the knife. Think it's good value for the money.

It has a mystery steel, so no telling what it might be or how consistent it is, or even whether it'll be the same steel from knife to knife. That said, the blade on mine holds an edge very well. I can hack around with it on wood for quite a while before the edge becomes noticeably less sharp. I'm pleasantly surprised by this as cheap knives usually don't have steel worth crap. I think the steel in this knife is actually quite decent, heck good.

The downside is that to get that durability the knife is hefty. It's one heavy puppy. The blade is hefty, and although I can't see under the scales I'm guessing it's one solid hunk of metal - very heavy. The forward scale is a steel piece and that adds to the weight, although having broken a few scales batoning, I must say that this definitely won't break and as a matter of fact is why I bought the knife in the first place.

The blade is hollow ground, so it's not as strong as a half bevel ground knife, but it's a hefty hollow ground - it's pretty strong actually. Whether it'll chip over time, I have no idea. Most knives will, especially when it's cold, but I have no indications that this knife will be any worse than others.

If you're into knife steels, I think this knife steel is better than Gerber's 420HC by a long shot, and better than AUS8 by a moderate amount. Just an impression from use, of course, and it's actually difficult to tell because the knife is thick for what it is in all dimensions.

The grip itself is annoying. The handle is thickest in the very back forcing your hand forward. You do get a place for your finger to index but it's still a funky design. I have had this knife for six months now, and have been meaning to sand the handle flat, leaving a raised area for retention in the rear, but haven't got around to it yet.

Another thought that occurred to me is that the knife could be vastly improved by drilling out some of that excess metal in the tang. If one then re-handles without the metal finger hold this could be a pretty beefy, yet only medium weight knife.

Well, I like the knife. Good value for the money. Good edge retention. But, heavy with funky handle design. Keep it in the glove box, the garage, or skin the occasional grizzly with it.

I bought it for an emergency knife to keep in my glovebox for my car, I occasionally use it camping. The blade quality is nothing exciting, but I do think the knife itself looks good. Considering I will probably never use it, I'll give it 4 stars for looking pretty and shaving kindling when we go car camping

This knife is just the right size...not too big or small. And it's 'full tang' even has a reinforcement at the junction of the handle. The smooth wooden handle is not ideal for a great grip, but it looks very attractive. But with the way they designed the handle, it makes the blade appear longer than it really is...in case you plan on using it for defensive purposes. It's not made of carbon steel, and I don't even see any designation of "440 stainless", or anything similar. So, I would be hesitant at depending on this knife for 'heavy duty' tasks.

Even for the price, this Winchester knife is not capable of meeting the demands of a true outdoorsman. The knife comes dull out of the box, and its chopping performance leaves much to be desired. Even for basic woodworking, I had a very difficult time with this knife. In fact, after some low intensity use, the stainless steel blade sustained chips along the leading edge. On the other hand, this knife works great for soft materials such as fruit, and meat.

The knife feels comfortable enough in hand, but provides no shock mediation, and is extremely handle heavy. The smooth handle surface provides little traction, and I would dare not to use this knife with wet hands.

However, the nylon sheath provides some redeeming qualities. It seems to be well made, and the stitching is on par. The snap closure works nicely, but the belt loop lacks any type of tactical disconnect. The plastic molded insert is definitely a nice touch.

Overall this Winchester knife isn't bad, but I would consider spending my money on something a bit higher in quality. Fortunately, it was given to me as a gift. I give this Winchester knife two stars out of five.

I Bought this knife 6 years ago and I gotta say it is a great knife. I have used it for splitting logs or cutting trees. It holds a good edge if you know how to sharpern it a stone works best with this knife. overall this is a great knife one of the, no THE best knife i've ever used.