rc-4 knife review on the west highland way part 2 of 3

this is a review of the rat cutlery rc-4 knife with a custom sheath by Martin Swinkels on the west highland way in Scotland. table of contents included.

This video is an impression of my 7 day hike I did in april and may of 2010, from Glasgow to Fort William, crossing the glenns, moors, hills and forests of the west highlands. It features some scenery, lots of pictures of where I went and me making some campfires, a little bushcraft and wild camping. And of course, the rc-4 and it's sheath.

I was given the rescue orange kydex sheath to accompany my rescue orange g-10 handled rc-4 blade by well known dutch custom sheath maker Martin Swinkels when I challenged him to make me a sheath for me to do a field review on. This was after he said he wasn't really good at watching table top reviews (especially my buck alpha dorado review). He took me up on the challenge, made me a sheath and I ended up doing a good bit of filming and using the sheath on the fantastic long distance west highland way in Scotland.

Martin is a fellow dutch bladesports competitor, forum moderator on the dutch bladeforums, a custom knife sheath maker (kydex, leather and all kinds of funky combinations) and a nice guy. I highly recommend his work based on what I've seen and experienced. Be sure to check out his website at http://martinsheaths.blogspot.com

The trip was a great experience. Scotland is beautiful and the people are very friendly. This isn't a table top review and it is a 3 part thing, I had to really cut out a lot of material. Hope you enjoy it!

table of contents:
part 1:
- introduction on the west highland way
- rc-4 in orange g-10 with olive drab coated 1095 blade
- matching sheath
- Martin Swinkels @ http://martinsheaths.blogspot.com
- form, looks, shape and construction
- teklok mechanism
- flexible kydex belt loop
- blade retention
- firesteel and knife combination
- arghhh, the drizzle..
- backpack strap carry with teklok
- horizontal belt carry with teklok (attaching/detaching)
- drawing the blade (vs the standard sheath)
- how I cut myself
- fixing a tent pole in the drizzle, using the knife's handle for pressure
- how to pee with a sheath on your belt ;)

part 2:
- the campsite in a pine forest (Queen Elizabeth national forest)
- building a fire with birchbark, tinder and kindling.
- scraping the bark
- using the rc-4 as a striker for the firesteel (not excellent, don't use the edge and if you must, use the tip)
- wild camping and fires in Scotland regulations
- clean campsite, be responsible
- cooking cream noodles, with spinach and chicken on the fire (freezedried, but dang, that tasted good!)
- carry on the hipbelt of the backpack
- Loch Lomond
- pace counting with counting beads, know your distance
- building a fire in a moist oak forest

part 3:
- shaving off the wet outer layer of wood
- rc-4 handle (g-10 vs micarta)
- the shores of loch lomond
- belt loop carry
- chow time, cutting up a good piece of meat
- weather, wetness and rust of 1095
- backpack belt carry, drawing the blade
- a campfire on the Rannoch moor
- aesthetics of the sheath
- a strong, nice looking, slender and very configurable sheath
- how the rc-4 functioned in some scenarios

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• rat cutlery
• rc-4
• review
• fire
• firesteel
• sheath
• rescue orange
• kydex
• g-10
• esee
• knife
• knives
• custom
• martin swinkels
• bladeforums
• bushcraft
• scotland
• west highland way
• glasgow
• fort william
• loch lomond

[zyhano]

fjallraven pants, the trekker/vidda version. see fjallraven dot us website

[FT86TT]

What do you call that thing? the one which you rub together? to make the fire...

[zyhano]

@FT86TT hey FT, it's a firesteel

[q1qeu]

I wonder how you got out of Scotland alive, the length of the blade is 2times of what is legal to carry in the UK … you happy camper hehe

looks like you had a good time up there :-)

greetings from Germany

[zyhano]

@q1qeu lol, what I don't know won't worry me :) yeah, I had an awesome time, I notice more and more people that have hiked in scotland these days, good stories to share with them

[101goodenergy101]

Hey Zyhano,

Thanks for the video I really enjoyed it. Looks like a beautiful country. I really like your RC-4 set-up and the orange is gorgeous. Have you tried to carry it on your thigh? I find this to be very comfortable and efficient when I carry bigger loads on my back, just a thought. Keep up the nice work.

[zyhano]

@101goodenergy101 thanks man. It is a beautiful country and it has a nice vibe. Thanks for the tip on the carry, can you explain it some more? You mean to let it hang from your belt? Because I do like to carry it that way, but it is cumbersome to remove it from the belt and for me the knife gets in the way of the backpack

[TheCostash]

What kind of pants do you have there? Very cool! Nice job with the reviews. You got me convinced with the F1 :)

[maethorize]

@q1qeu dunno if someone told you already, but there is a similar law in the uk to the law in Germany - you have to have a socially acceptable reason for carrying knives that are larger than the limit. Camping is one of them.

[seekertrth]

Humble suggestions: the branch (beginning) if u use a baton or take slices by hand (lil by lil) easier to cut. The birch bark, if u cut it into very thin strips (matchstick width), will catch the spark from a ferro rod.

The steel in the rc3 is the same as the rc4, the difference is the coating.

[zachwork]

hey zyhano what kind of pants are you wearing in these videos?????