American Survival Guide – October 2019

24 AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE [OCTOBER 2019]

‹ Left: Sisal rope posed

absolutely no trouble

at all for Bark River’s

Fox River EXT1.

‹ Above: The lanyard

hole on the EXT1 is

a great feature for

those who like to add

a bit of paracord to

their knife.

› Near right: Prying

wood is often a deal

breaker with a knife

tip, but I had no such

trouble with Bark

River’s Fox River

EXT1.

OUT OF THE BOX

Bark River offers a dizzying array of handle

materials and colors for their knives. For the

EXT-1, I chose the basic black canvas Micarta

handle. This is typically what we might call the

base model for their knives.

The knife was shaving sharp right out of the

box. As part of the manufacturing process,

every knife that comes out of the Bark River

shop is tested for sharpness multiple times

by multiple people, so this wasn’t a surprise. I

have fairly large hands and the EXT-1 fits my

paw perfectly.

Owing to a really stupid misadventure I experienced as a child, one of the first things I look for

on a knife is the handle shape, specifically whether it offers protection to the fingers. The EXT-1

has an integral guard that prevents fingers from sliding up onto the blade during use. The

handle also has a lanyard hole for those who like to add such adornments to their cutlery.

The EXT-1 has great balance. The spine is a perfect 90 degrees, which makes it great for

scraping ferrocerium rods, should the need arise. The drop point blade profile is one of the

most useful designs out there. Bark River uses a convex grind on most of their blades, which

allows for a very sharp edge.

As with all Bark River knives, the EXT-1 comes with a high-quality leather sheath. Something

worth noting, though, is that most of their sheaths that have snaps and straps are intended

to have their final fit performed by the end user. Right out of the box, the strap may not seem

“BARK RIVER OFFERS A DIZZYING ARRAY OF HANDLE MATERIALS

AND COLORS FOR THEIR KNIVES. FOR THE EXT-1, I CHOSE THE

BASIC BLACK CANVAS MICARTA HANDLE.”