Pros: Weight, Handle Material, Overall Quality, Blade Material, Materials, Finish, Blade Sharpness
Cons: None
Instant Classic
I never was a fan of the Kephart knife design; I thought I preferred the more refined points on clip point and drop point blades. I was wrong. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you purchased Camp Lore PR4 when it first hit the shelves, you made a wise (perhaps lucky) decision. I discovered this fact when I went to PR4’s KnifeCenter web page and found it had been, “Discontinued.” But, in the side bar I noted ESEE PR4-BO. It took me a while to figure out what the difference was, but soon enough discovered the, “Camp Lore,” logo had been replaced by the, “ESEE,” logo. I wrote to ESEE and ask how many were made with the, “Camp Lore,” logo, and was told, “The original production run was somewhere in the neighborhood of 1500.” Collectors’ potential? (Cha-Ching $$$) I believe, so. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Don’t sweat it if you did not get in on the original run. ESEE PR4 is very collectable as a handsome and useful tool. This isn’t your Scandinavian bushcraft knife. This will beat the dog stuffing out of most of them. This is 1/8” thick, full tang,1095 tool steel, with a long primary grind that will perform as well as most scandi grinds. Strong point by design; you could literally drive this thru the body of a Mack Truck. Handsome Micarta scales appear to be chip carved by a cave man. Very comfortable, grippy, and secure handle. If you like Tops, Rocky Mountain Micarta scales, you’ll like the feel of this grip. The “Tumbled Black Oxide,” finish on the blade adds to its primitive appeal. >>>>>>>>>>>>> Good looking, adequate, if not rugged sheath. Add a 1” wooden bead close to the handle, on 3 strand braided 70# paracord, and it will make PR4 much easier to draw from its deep seat in the sheath. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> I took PR4 on a Northwoods camping trip last October, and put it thru the woodcraft paces (baton limbs, carve, drill, whittle, notch, ropes, struck Ferro rod, fuzzy sticks, etc.), and it performed well, remained sharp. Surprising to me, this handy, nimble, well balanced, center point blade drives like a Ferrari (see paragraph 1, sentence 2). Not much of a chopper, r/t its 4” blade, but it’ll sure chop your meat, onions, and taters in camp. Did not get a chance to process game with it yet, but I think it would perform reasonably well at the task, for a survival knife. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> This has been sitting on my desk, lodged in a block of wood, like, King Arthur’s Excalibur, where I have admired it daily since returning from that October trip. It is a shame my “Camp Lore” logoed, PR4 is destined to become a closet queen. This is such a great performing knife; I may buy a PR4-BO just to use. But, I already have enough bushcraft/survival knives to outfit the Boy Scouts of America (at least a good sized troop). How many knives do you really need? Everyone knows the answer to that … “Just one more.” : ) P.S. Would love to see this in a beefed-up, 7” bladed, “combat,” version. I believe this blade design would be well suited for survival/combat.
(
