Battle Horse Knives PLSK1: Knife Review

If this is the only knife review you read stop while you're ahead and buy a PLSK1. This knife is tough as nails, you literally can beat it with a stick, and it truly is a one tool option for self reliance. I have been using this knife for a little over a year and it has preformed flawlessly in every task I put before it. The entire two months of hunting season last year the knife processed all of my fire wood and made each fire and has made countless fires ever since. I have batoned wet oak, processed a deer and countless fish, and used the knife for every camp task imaginable and it had taken every task put before it, smiled and asked for more! So take a look at my video below of the knife in action and I will talk a little more about this knife below!

Check Out These Other Knife Related Posts: Mora Bushcraft Black vs. Mora Pathfinder (LINK); What to Look For In A Survival Knife (LINK); Easiest DIY Knife Sharpening Technique (LINK); 20 Knife Sharpening Techniques (LINK); Using Your Knife As A Spoke Shave (LINK); SCHF 38 Frontier Knife Review (LINK); Habilis Bush Tool Knife Review (LINK); Jeff White Nessmuck Review (LINK); BHK Short Trail (LINK); Indy Hammered Knives Bush Cleaver (LINK); Christopher Apodaca Neck Knife (LINK).  

Ultimate Survival Knife?

This knife meets all ten of my requirements for a one tool option with ease (see my post explaining the 10 requirements here- LINK) and boasts a great set of specifications to live up to all the hype you have heard about the knife:

Steel: 3/16" O1 Tool Steel

Overall Length: 10" 

Blade Length: 5.25" 

Blade Width: 1 1/4" 

Handle Length: 4 1/2" 

Grind: Scandinavian

Weight: 10  oz

Handle: Bead Blasted Green Micarta Scales

Sheath: Heavy-Duty Leather W/ Ferro Rod Loop 


Need A Survival Knife: Try One Of These

Fits Hand Comfortably In All Positions: The traditional trade knife styling of the PLSK series of knives lends them to being extremely comfortable knives. The bead blasted micarta provides a comfortable gripping surface that only seems to become easier to grip when wet. This knife feels like an extension of your arm when using it and for me there isn't much more you can ask for from a knife. 

Manageable Blade Length: This knife has a 5 1/4" blade length which is about perfect for a one tool self-reliance option if it comes down to that type of scenario. The knife works well for anything from fine carving to heavy-duty usage; while the scandinavian grind isn't as durable as a convex grind for heavy use it is ideal for fine carving so this knife excels at field dressing game, making try sticks and shaving fine tinder material but will lose its edge a little faster than say the Indy Hammered Knives Bush Cleaver (Review Here- LINK).

Solid/Flat Pommel: While this knife doesn't have a flat pommel it does have a very usable pommel. This past hunting/trapping season I used this knife to crush hundreds of walnuts and hammer in all of my tarp spikes. While it's not an ideal hammer it can easily be used out of convenience until you can make one out of a larger stick. 

One Cutting Edge With No Serrations: This knife obviously has one cutting edge which is ideal for long-term self reliance and also for ease of sharpening in the field through improvised means. This knife sharpens extremely easily on a river stone followed by stropping on a leather belt.

90 Degree Edge On Spine: While the spine isn't as aggressive as my Blind Horse Knives Short Trail (Review Here-LINK) it is still quite capable of removing a ton of material from a ferro rod and can easily scrape tinder material to process it further. I have used this knife to gather and process a ton of tulip poplar inner bark and it easily gets that fluff inner material processed from stick to fire in a few minutes. This 90 degree spine also enables the use of the knife as a flint/steel striker. I wouldn't recommend doing this on a regular basis on a $300.00 knife as it can decrease the effectiveness of the spine for scraping, but it can easily be used for this fire making method if needed.

High Carbon Steel: As I stated above the knife is high carbon 01 tool steel so it works quite well for flint/steel fire starting. While I don't use this knife on a regular basis for this task I have started a few flint/steel fires with this knife and it produces a good bit of sparks to catch in char cloth.

Sharp/Spear Point: This knife has a sharp point which can me fashioned into a spear quite easily. I haven't found the need for use in this application but have used it to drill a starter hole into a bow drill set, process small/large game and fish. This tip isn't going to be breaking off with normal use or by merely dropping it. I have dropped the knife a few times onto hard surfaces without any issues and used the knife many times a day for two months straight.

Heavy Duty Sheath With Ferro Rod Loop: I have a few a few sheaths for this knife, it stays on my water bottle EDC Bag in the kydex sheath most of the time and during hunting season finds it's self in a leather hip sheath. There are a ton of sheath options for this knife, I saw a dangler last week going for $6.00 on self reliance outfitters. 

1/8" to 3/16" Blade Thickness: At 3/16th thick this knife is built with long-term durability in mind. With the combination of the thick blade and scandinavian grind it is a great knife for all around use. This knife has withheld sustained use for well over two years and has showed no signs of slowing down.

Full Tang or Nearly Full Tang With 1+ Year Of Abuse Testing: This knife is full tang and has held up well over the one year of continued abuse as well as nearly two months in a hunting/trapping camp where the knife was used everyday for any camp activity I required. 

Conclusions:  

This knife is the "Grail Knife" of many outdoorsmen and for very good reason! This knife is built for long-term self reliance and was designed by Dave Canterbury and Dan Coppins the founder of Battle Horse Knives. Everything about this knife makes it easy to use by the end user and it to me personally it feels like an extension of my arm when it is in use. This knife has been with me for a complete trapping and hunting season and likely will used this fall once again. If you haven't tried out a Blind Horse or Battle Horse knife you simply must get your hands on one. I have been able to get my hands on three thus far and loved them all. The great thing about these knives is that they retain their value on the secondary trade market. Many Facebook trade groups feature these knives and they are usually gone within a day of being on the market.

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