I did wish to add a final note on safety.

Which is what brought me to actual Suomi/Finnish/Ostrobothnian puukko as done by Kainuun rather than various other Scandinavian and Nordic knives so commonly encountered.

All of them are quite sharp, and can be brought to a sharpness well above most normally encountered knives, making even a box cutter blade seem rough. This blade design really cuts, even on cheapest versions, the high quality, clean, fine grained steels they use in that part of the world takes the keenest edge, even on the cheapies.

I have cut myself quite badly with several, and not with push cuts , especially with older factory slickly wooden handled versions, the handle squirting or simply falling through inattentive fingertips, the blade a falling razor with mass. And note most modern makes now incorporate more ergo handles with guards, even those plastic handled domestic consumption versions such as Morakniv sold at every convenience store counter in Scandinavia where they are a universal disposable tool.

But my thoughts were, "surely the old classic pre-factory versions had to have had more going for them in safety, or the type would not have survived minus a guard for so long? That, or the northern European countries were famous for 1000yrs of sliced tendons."

It took some looking, as many are not made traditionally, no matter the claim, and as much style and art pieces as anything. The iconic Hackman puukko designed by Finnish design sculptor Wirkalla well known in this country from the 1970s, or more recent Spyderco designs by Tuominen, both fixed blade and folders, come to mind, ....this particular folder interesting as Tuominen designed the knife for Spyderco and then made this handmade version for a customer who thought the Spyderco did not do justice to the design. But I would still be afraid to use it much.












But in this Kainuun Tommi style, I found that simple traditional puukko which is safe and secure in handling, for too many reasons to list (again) here. Various design elements keep hand instinctively located further back with no tendency for hand to shift forward or for knife to slip down when held point up, or even in push cuts (although obviously not the ideal knife for overhead stab into a tree stump), and for extra grippyness of any, there is always the stacked birchbark handle, which is quite tennis-shoe-non-skid. This linked German language video shows what I cannot write, which is how the knife handles in a user's hand, only pity the reviewer did not realize the knife out of camera view so much of time, but still, a viewer can see it a very fine and safe all purpose working knife that handles and cuts just great, and that he is in absolutely no danger of cutting himself all through a video filled with rather absentminded handling. This video of same sized knife as the one I photographed, the 100mm Moose (skinner).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6s25R0b_mI


If there is any single reason why I went this route, the handle of this particular style would be it. Otherwise, one might be advised to go for a more modern handle style, and even Marko replicates a finger rest version and guarded version introduced by Kainuun in the 1960s-1970s due to demand. Considering those designs won prizes at the time, the perceived need for such among the general populace accustomed to most other unsafe factory designs might be assumed, and this change swept through all large scale makers with time.

But with this version, I can have that classic lean, spare, puukko and not be in constant danger of maiming hand or requiring stitches. And it has been a near thing with other varieties, both other regional Finnish puukko, and Scadinavian/Nordic knivär.