Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Sheath/Scabbard, Materials
Cons: Finish, Blade Sharpness
Nearly perfect all around outdoor knife
I pay VERY close attention to the specs of the fixed blade knives I buy. This is the first LT Wright knife that checked all the boxes. If been practicing with it for 3-4 weeks in my back yard (lock down). I've been obsessed for several years with finding a knife that can withstand HARD outdoor use, clear small limbs easily, easily chop and make tent stakes, yet feather stick and cut notches with ease. The Illuminous 5 is the closest I've used. It is a great design! And an excellent value. The Illuminous 5 is not primarily a bushcraft knife, but an all around woods knife. In my opinion. For an all around knife I like to have enough blade length, toughness, and weight so I can let the knife do some of the work. The Illuminous 5 is North of 5.5" long and tall enough to provide back up strength. Yet the blade is reasonably thin for a hard use knife and it cuts beautifully. I also love the profile and grind. I can get that tip into small notches when controlled with my off hand thumb. This knife can be whaled on with a baton too! (I'm convinced CPM 3V steel likes to be beat LOL). Yet the Illuminous 5 feather sticks and notches like a dream. It stays sharp, is easy to strop to razor sharpness, and is semi-stainless. The Illuminous 5 has a perfect slight weight forward balance which allows for light chopping, while keeping the knife balanced enough for finer tasks. The weight is just right for my uses, because you cannot chop effectively with lightweight bushcraft only knives. The handle on this knife is perfect for my L-XL hands. The larger diameter provides tremendous leverage when carving from tip to handle. The shape is immediately comfortable and perfect for my uses. The pommel shape keeps the knife safely in my hand during 2 or 3 finger chopping. There were some Cons that were completely over shadowed by the Pros. Keep in mind that I am way more critical than most; The knife I received was not uniformly sharp from ricasso to tip. I fixed it with some stroping. The tang was not completely flush with the handle. I fixed it with some 500 grit wet/dry paper while watching TV. The micarta was sharp all around the pommel. Sharp micarta happens on almost every knife I buy. Sand paper fixed it in a few minutes.. I have a bunch of fixed blade knives from $150 to over $500, sized from 4.5" to 8.5", most in 3V. This is the knife closest to a perfect all around woods knife I have used. BTW - I really like the leather sheath. I've had to make fewer modifications than others.
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