Okay, my Scrapper 5 made it through customs and arrived yesterday. I was very much surprised at how light this knife feels in the hand and really appreciate that in a belt knife. The muddy grip feels great in the hand and the ergo's of the handle are superb. I think I like the SOD handle a touch better but the more I hold onto the muddy handle, the more I appreciate it. I also like the contours in profile on the handle. I often don't like aggressive handle contours as I find if they don't fit perfectly they detract rather than add to comfort. The S5's are shallow but defined enough to improve grip and feel great.

One small disappointment was that the length of the cutting edge is 4 5/8" not 5", with some of the real estate being taken up by the choil. I should have known this was the case as the SOD was spec'd the same. Still, I was expecting 5" cutting edge and would have preferred that over the slightly smaller one.

The other thing I'm not so fond of is the thumb ramp. Because of the handle size and my handsize, my thumb naturally wants to rest on top of rather than behind the thumb ramp. While not pointy, the top of the ramp ends up in the middle of my thumb and that detracts from comfort where if it was gone it would be a superb fit. To orient my thumb onto the thumb ramp properly, I need to grip the knife further back on the handle. This increases the distance of my hand from the cutting edge and will decrease power. Not to get over carried away but on this issue but when using the choil to choke up on the blade, my thumb rests forward of the ramp wants to slide down the ramp. This creates the opposite effect of the ramp's function and decreases security of grip.

Back to the positives. This knife came extremely sharp. I will eventually convex it, but because the edge is so nicely tuned at present, I'll probably keep it this way until it needs sharpening. I absolutely love the shape of the blade and the subtle drop point. The point is beautifully sharp. One thing I get annoyed at is a flat point on a knife and the S5 certainly has a pointy and highly usable point.

Thickness looks somewhere between 3/16" and 5/32" but its hard to tell with the coating. Balance is great. I really like the square choils also having gotten used to the one on my SOD.

So overall I'm very happy with this knife. My only real negative is the ramp and I wanted to post my thoughts as constructive feedback to Dan. Afterall, there is a slight chance that he might choose to grind it off in the LE-version. If he did that, I wouldn't hesitate to buy the LE version. Unlike all the infi rumours out there, I'd just love to see this blade in the same steel with a flat grind and lacking the ramp. Everything else is a winner.

Great job on this one Dan.

I like the ramp.

I'm sure it fits some peoples hands better than mine. I like everything else about the S5 though. Debating about having a knife maker friend just grind it off before getting it fitted to kydex.

I'm the opposite - I like the thumb ramp, and dislike the square choil.

I like both...I think it just depends on hand size, etc...But the S5 feels great in my hand. The thumb ramp makes the grip that much more stable.

MM- I wonder how hard it would be to round out the choil? Do you customize any of your knives?

When I choke up one the choil, I sometimes place my hands in front of the ramp. Feels just as comfortable to me.

The most customization I do is convexing edges. I don't think I'll be rounding the choil out.


Honestly, I rarely use choils on knives this small - I'd rather have the sharp part come all the way up to the guard.

I gotta admit that I like having a small choil on my knives; it makes sharpening them a lot easier on the belt sander.

That being said, yeah, the S5 choil is pretty large; I'd rather see it be about 1/3 to 1/4 that size, but it's not gonna keep me from buying it, that's for sure! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

I'm in the no-ramp camp but still love the knife. Would love to see a full flat on the LE.

Pink: I thought Bark river said that was the way that the thumb ramp was intended to be used? ..at least on their knives.
btw: nice color combo.
<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Yeah I've heard that too. I guess it really depends on the knife and person, whatever is more comfortable. When I use the thumb ramp, it's mainly for light cutting (like peeling fruit skins), my thumb acts as a control for the angle. For most heavy duty cutting, I mostly only grip the handle.
Thanks!

+1