Bernie Garland's Little Gutter (pic heavy)

[Silverback]

As promised here is my review on a real little gem from the man that needs no introduction . It is highly likely that if you belong to other forums you will see this review repeated elsewhere but remember folks - you saw it here first!

A full tang blade in 01 with steep scandi grind and patented ‘forward finger notch’. Dyed, stabilised elder burl scales, white liners and mosaic pins. Flared butt with brass lined lanyard hole.

Despite its rather unusual appearance (more on that later) this is a very attractive knife. The dyed stabilised elder burl looks stunning and works well offset against the white liners and mosaic pins. The handle length is perfect for a full grip with a slight palm swell and flared butt. The short ricasso ensures that sharpening on systems such as the ‘Sharpmaker’ is trouble free with no ‘bumping off the curb’ in the event of your technique being a little ‘off’. The high scandi grind combined with the 3mm blade thickness also make it a sound little prep knife easily capable of taking a bunny from the field to the table. Being a smaller blade, Bernie’s maker’s mark is proportionately smaller than I have seen on his other knives and is attractive but unobtrusive at the same time without taking away from the overall look.

Right, back to that unusual appearance or the patented ‘forward finger notch’ as it is more commonly referred to. To the uninformed, you may be scratching your head for a fair while trying to work out what it is all about. The clue is in the name ‘Little Gutter’. This knife has been specifically designed with the small game/vermin hunter in mind for the purpose of gutting (or if you are a stalker, gralloching).

A common technique when gutting is to invert the knife and rest the forefinger along the spine of the blade towards the tip, thus ensuring when carrying out the gut, that the internal organs are kept away from the business side/end of the knife. The forward finger notch takes this technique a step further by providing a convenient ‘parking space’ for your forefinger that allows easy location and prevents slipping when carrying out the task. The other benefit particularly when handling larger animals such as deer is that the gralloch can be carried out single handed, allowing you control over the carcass with your free hand.





This knife is in fact the second of this design from Bernie that I have been forwarded for trial and I should say from the outset that the knife is mine with the proviso that I write an honest and factual review. The first knife was sent to me ‘as is’ and as a result the dimensions of the knife did not suit my hand. I forwarded Bernie my recommendations and asked if he could make the necessary modifications to enable me to continue with the review. Bernie then quite rightly suggested that he actually make a new knife to my exact spec as this would be much easier to achieve and modification to an existing blade would be ‘trying to make a silk purse out of a sows ear’. To cut a long story short (if you’ll pardon the pun) the existing knife was returned and a brand new knife arrived, that straight out of the sheath, felt like an extension to my hand. This scenario perfectly demonstrates the need to communicate your exact requirements when commissioning a bespoke knife and no amount of measurements will ever be too much if it aids the maker in producing the knife to your exact specification.

My very first test is always to turn the sheathed knife upside down and give it a few good shakes (with feet obviously well out of the way and suitable soft landing provided) to mimic a typically energetic day out (the last thing you want is to reach for your newly acquired knife only to find it has gone). This sheath passed with flying colours with the knife staying firmly put and no noticeable shift.

The second test is the first unsheathed impression. To put it quite simply - stunning. The standard of workmanship that had gone into the production of this knife was immediately obvious with every attention to detail evident in the fit and finish.

Test number three is the mandatory forearm shave. This is where I was and have remained the most impressed. With little to no effort this blade very quickly amassed a thick carpet of hair lying directly over the blade and jumping forward a bit I should elaborate on this particular point because despite having processed in excess of 20 rabbits from the field to the table has only just started to present a very slight resistance at popping hair. I have not experienced this degree of edge holding ability in any other knife I have ever used or owned.

Test number four and probably the most fundamental is the field test. The description accompanying this knife identified it as a small game knife which I would typically identify with animals ranging from rabbit to small deer such as Muntjac. I have had the opportunity to try it out on both, and it has performed admirably without a single snag to the gut. Although not strictly intended for prepping, the knife is more than capable of taking a rabbit from the field to the pot however whilst a dedicated butchery knife would obviously be more preferable for Muntjac, you could just about get by with this as well. Rabbits can normally be ‘unzipped’ clean with little to no mess however the gralloch is very often a different story and those undertaking such a task will expect to get down and dirty. I was initially concerned that the smooth elder burl might become slippery when wet however this was not the case and the knife grip remained firm throughout the process without any noticeable compromise.

Test number five and my final test is edge holding ability and ease of sharpening. If you refer to test number three the edge holding ability is evident and with regards to ease of sharpening I can honestly say that although I did give the knife a couple of runs on the ‘Sharpmaker’ for the purpose of this review, it didn’t really need it.

In summary if you are looking for the perfect rabbiting companion this hard working little knife should tick all the boxes. It is worth bearing in mind that being 01 it will need looking after particularly given the potentially lethal effect blood can have on a blade if left to its own devices however just as you would look after your gun so you should look after your knife, so I don’t see this as being a problem. Due to the design of the knife, the point is very fine so unlike a tank built bushy this knife will need a little bit of finesse and respect when handling and a drop tip down could certainly end in tears. This knife will now take up a regular place on my belt for my rabbiting trips and my quest for the ultimate bunny ‘unzipper’ and ‘prepper’ I suspect, a bit like this review, has now ended!

Dave Franklin

[The Joker]

Top review thanx Dave. What a great knife

[Bernie Garland]

Many thanks Dave, for All the time and effort you put in to the review on this knife,and i would like to point out,that i was not even a member of this forum as Dave can confirm,when i sent this knife to Dave,as any of you that know me know,i'll do all i can to make something at a reasonable price, to do what we need many thanks again Dave for an honest opinion

Bernie

[SOAR]

Excellent review mate and a stunning looking knife.

[Spamel]

Nice one, looks like a little belter. When Bernie knocked the Bushcrafter up for me, I happened to mention I have small hands. He made the knife perfect for my hands and we hadn't even met at all! That was just by having a quick chin wag on the phone, if you're going for a custom knife it is far better to phone than email IMO. That knife will last you for the rest of your life, and it'll do the job perfectly.

[AndyW]

Looks like a fantastic knife.

Great review Dave. Thanks.

[JonnyP]

Nice one guys..

[Kepis]

Excellent write up Dave and superb workmanship Bernie.

[Shewie]

Originally Posted by Kepis

Excellent write up Dave and superb workmanship Bernie.

What he said

Good read that Dave and nice work Bernie, can`t you throw a crap one in now and then just to keep us on our toes ?

[sapper]

Excellent write-up of another innovative knife from the Master.