Well fall is upon us and the outdoor projects are coming to an end. Now is the race to the wet season and time for an update on the Ozark Trail Glacier knife. I used this blade all through the spring and summer without sharpening it once. I wanted to see how long it took to become unusable. I will have to say the last month it has become difficult to use. I can still open boxes with it, but other simple tasks like cutting open bags and cutting up boxes for the recycle is a no go at this point.
I took a good look at the blade and it has shown its true colors: there are noticeable small divots and flat areas on the edge.
The coating on the blade has stood up quite nicely as well as the belt clip. On other more pricey knives the belt clip has come loose and required loc-tite. Not on this blade. The scales being molded into the handle have gotten smoother with use and every day carry. This would be an issue in jobs that have liquid or fine particles. Just running my hand along the handle it is noticeably smoother than when I purchased it. On to the mechanism: there are no issues to report with the lock or the pivot. The blade opens just as smoothly as when I purchased it; maybe a bit more so. I have not needed to tighten the main pivot screw at all. The locking mechanism has never failed even under some difficult conditions cutting rope wound around galvanized fence posts. The thumb stud is still sold, albeit with the paint worn off from use.
Sharpening:
The sharpening went well. I used a Smith’ Tri-Hone ‘s Tri-Hone sharpening stone system.
I started with coarse since there were flat spots and gouges in the blade. After about 5 minutes alternating sides the flat spots and the gouges were gone. I transitioned to the medium stone and went a couple more minutes alternating sides again. The blade was fairly sharp after these two sessions. I chose to leave the sharpening at medium and not quite razor sharp as this is a work knife and I want the edge to last a little longer without having to go back and touch it up. The steel was obviously soft enough to get a decent sharpening with little fanfare. This leads me to believe the blade isn’t a true D2 steel.
Conclusion:
I will go out on a limb and say for the money this blade is not bad at all. I feel like it gives Kershaw and some CRKT knives a run for their money. On to the elephant in the room: is the blade made of D2 tool steel? Unlikely. I have sold and used many a D2 blade and the feel, sharpness, durability is not there. Is it close? Probably. I’m sure the overseas foundries have worked their metallurgical magic and found a steel that has many similar properties to what us here in the US expect D2 steel to exhibit. This blade reminds me of an Amazon special knife I got that was a knock off of the Tops Street Scalpel 1. It purported to be D2 steel. And it was hard, and difficult to sharpen, and did hold a great edge, but lacked something. It could be the sound of the steel, how it sharpened, how it felt in the hand etc. Without some fancy analysis we wont ever know. What I will say is that if you need a knife that will last under moderate conditions, doesn’t break the bank, and one you won’t feel bad loosing or breaking, this is it. At $7 a pop you can easily put one in your fishing kit, your tool bag, and in the side-by-side all for less than one competitors’ knife. Would I keep one in my emergency or back woods kit? No. I would not bet my life on this knife, but at $7 that is not why you buy it. Anyway stay safe out there, link to the blade below
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