Condor Hudson Bay - Modified
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2017
- Condor Tool & Knife make some great products at reasonable prices. The Hudson Bay is a well made big knife but it has a few drawbacks. The Hudson Bay can be turned into a real performer with some simple DIY modifications. Let me show you what I did to my Condor Hudson Bay to make in a great camp knife
Hi Mark, you did an excellent series of modifications, as a matter of fact, I wouldn’t buy one unless it had your mods! I love the knife, but I knew the handle was way to short for my hands too. Your Micarta looks fantastic as well! I hope you can convince Condor to offer a version just like yours, or maybe you start your own company! Enjoy the day, thanks for posting.
Thank you so much for your kind words
That micarta handle really turned out great looking. I like that.
Thanks Lonnie. I was happy with hoe the micarta turned out as well. Wasn't all that hard to make either.
I'm wildly impressed with these modifications. That took a LOT of skilled craftsmanship. I'd love to try the same on mine.
More a bit of patience than talent. Not hard, just a bit or work. Made a huge difference to the knife. Thanks for commenting
I watch this video so long ago before I even had any Condor products, it's awesome to be searching for reviews just to come across one of your videos. I've said this before it's a gorgeous knife. But your videos are just as high quality!
Thank you for your kind words
Love the modified Hudson bay you have. Gives me ideas for my Hudson bay. Great video
Best part of this knife is being able to modify it without worrying that you will ruin it. Thanks for commenting
Your voice paired with the detailed information, just makes you tune in and take notes. Beautiful, Historical Knife. Well done..
Thank you for very much for your kind words
I have one of these in the mail right now and have to say, you Sir have my wheels turning. Excellent job on this.
The Hudson Bay is a high value knife for sure. My first thought would be to try it out for a while before modding it. It may work for you as is. Still, it could benefit from a reduced grind angle. Thanks for commenting
Awesome video bud, thanks for sharing 👍
Most welcome. Thanks for commenting
Wow ...raising the shoulder makes that a very good feathering knife.....it probably slices alot better too.
So much better. Thanks for commenting
Great customization, Mark. Some work and it turned into a knife you are happy with. Thank you for the video.
It turned really well. Thanks for commenting
Excellent review. Well presented and full of useful information. Thanks for posting.
Glad you enjoyed. Thanks for commenting
Killer job man! Well done. Love it!
Glad you liked it. Thank you for commenting
What an excellent modification with the handle. This is exactly what's holding me back from picking this up for the collection, though I really like this blade on the whole. Well done review thank you.
The mods made it a much more useful tool and were quite easy to do. Thanks for commenting
Just came across this video and I have to say the knife came out beautifully. The homemade Micarta looks very nice. You've turned the knife into a very useful woods tool. Thank you for the video.
Glad you enjoyed the video. The Hudson Bay is a nice knife but for me, really needed the mods to make it more useful. Thanks for commenting
I use that knife for freaking everything. To me it's a great survival knife
Hard to beat this knife. Thanks for commenting
Nice work sir👍
Thank you very much
Very nice work. It looks really nice more beautiful then the original
Thank you. Much more usable as well
Lovely mods would like to see it chopping with the grind like that. I really like mine and have filed the Ricasso down a lot too and am thinking of straightening out the handle as I also have large hands and it feels a tad stubby. But fantastic and affordable project blade. Handy for when I'm volunteering clearing out invasive Rhododendrons where it being a bit shorter but heavier gives it an advantage over a Tramontina which needs a good swing arc. And much more efficient at taking the small limbs off than most hatchets.
I agree. The condor knives are getting better and are still a good value for modifying. Thanks for commenting
love what you did with that knife , i have two of them ,i only have drilled them for lanyard holes that made a big differance ,the handels you made look awsome ,great job .
Thanks Mike. The mods were really not that hard to do and they made a bid difference. Thanks for commenting
Turned out great
Glad you liked it. Thanks for commenting
Man, that mod is beautiful! Great job! :-)
Thank you very much. Was a bit nervous starting out but was pleased with the end product
Im a bit late here but great video mate ! I also ordered myself a condor i went with the swamp romper and i was happy with the knife altogether but much like yourself i had to do a few modifications to make it 100% up to par which for the price is no big deal to me in fact i rather enjoy the modification process it helps me sort of bond with the blade so to speak and allows it to be more my own.
I think that is what I like best about Condor. Reasonably priced so I don't mind customizing them. Thanks for commenting
Nice! great work
Thanks for commenting
U made that knife ur own... very well done! The micarta looks awesome!
Thanks. I have make micarta for other knives but this one seems to look better that the others. Thanks for commenting
Very impressive transformation Mark! I think it looks vastly improved!
Thanks Wade. Works much better. Thanks for commenting
That is a really great mod you did there!
Worked out well. Thanks for commenting
Damn fine job Mark! The handle looks like a giant improvement as does the edge reprofile. I'm pretty impressed that you made your own micarta. That's pretty awesome.
Thank you Mike. It was a fun project that took a barely usable knife and turned it into something quite nice. Thanks for commenting
You did a good job on it
Thanks Martin. Turned out pretty good
Excellent work! I recently purchased this blade and loved it. But there were a few things I wasn't completely satisfied with. You addressed each one of my concerns with your custom modifications. I'll be trying a few in the near future!
Glad you enjoyed the video. Would be good to hear how you made out with your modifications. Thanks for commenting
WOW Mark you have done an outstanding job really love the micarta I gotta give that a try amazing blade overall stay strong&healthy safe&happy!!(=✌💚
Glad you liked the video. I love the way this knife turned out. The DIY micarta is pretty easy to make. Thanks for commenting
Hello! Awesome review! Looks like a great “project” blade. Those micarta scales turned out really cool. Congrats! Subbed!
Hello and welcome to my channel. I agree, at the price I paid for the knife it was a great chance to try and turn it into something more useful without a lot of money invested. Worked out great but is still a big knife. Thanks for commenting
like that edge and wish I had the patience to make those micarta slabs their real nice great video .
Truth is, it can be a bit messy making the micarta but it is not hard to shape. But for safety do it outdoors wearing a mask. Optionally, you could use larger pieces of hardwood for the handle slabs. Thanks for commenting
great job mark homemade micarta cool stay safe brother
Thank you my friend
You did a really nice mod on that condor knife👍
Thank you sir. Your approval means a lot to me. I have always been a fan of your work
Hi Mark,
Great mods! Very well done!
Duane
Thanks Duanne. It was a fun project and made a real difference in the performance of the knife. Thanks for commenting
I like your modifications, you did a very nice job. It wouldn't even occur to me to make my own micarta. I own a Condor Hudson's Bay and I can attest that it's one very tough knife. I was at a public campground where you had to buy your wood and they sold bundles of big pieces of kiln dried hard maple that I was able to split down to usable size by batoning the Hudson's Bay knife. When I carry it I carry it in my pack too.
I've done the same with my Hudson Bay at campgrounds. The nice thing about modifying this knife is that I wasn't too concerned with damaging an expensive knife. In fact I feel it has actually increased in value...not that I plan on selling it. Thanks for commenting
Kudos for your mods. The lanyard hole was as "must-do" in any event. I like the way you contour your handle all the way around the turn to the base of the ricasso. I do that as well . . can't understand knife makers who have the front of the handle slimmed down for the grip, then swell it out to the blade, and leave your hands to hit this narrow metal edge if you are stabbing forward. Bowie knew this - he put guards on his knives to keep his hand from running up onto the blade. Your handle shape does that too.
Glad you enjoyed the video. That's the nice thing about doing your own mods. You can make it fit your hand and add any design features you prefer. Thank for commenting
Great job on the handle. I don't like mine either going to work on the handle, might have to steal your design.haha
Please do. Thanks for commenting
Great job on a personal favorite blade, sub'd!
Great and affordable knife. Thanks for commenting
Hello Mr. Mark Young, great video and fantastic job on the Condor. I myself have about 5 condors that I use extensively and have no complaints but rather I am very attached to them. - Marco
2010chingonoutdoorsman Hello Marco. I agree Condos makes great value knives. Thanks for commenting
nicely done,you have to make them,they fit perfect in your hand
atb
steve
so steve I agree Steve. If it does not fit your hand it will be hard to use effectively and certainly not enjoyably. Thanks for commenting
nice work on that Mark...i've modified a few of these myself all the way down to the heat treat...atb...woods
MTwoodsrunner Wow, all the way to re-doing the heat treat. That is a lot of work. How did it turn out? Thanks for commenting
real good actually...you can see the knife up close on my m1952 mountain ruck review video...Thanks for responding amigo!...woods
wow, quiet an extensive mod list for that knife. looks much better than what you got originally.
Thanks Jim. It can be quite satisfying modding a knife to fit your needs. Thanks for commenting
Bardzo dobre bo logiczne usprawnienie. Good modified. Good job.!
Glad you enjoyed. Thank you for commenting
OK! :-)
Just picked this up and came across this review. this is the perfect knife for camp porters or cooks. if you look at professional chef's knives they look pretty similar shape wise. chefs hold their knives by pinching the metal directly in front of the handle so a shorter handle is ideal. if you're just whacking bushes its not ideal. but if you need an all purpose camp knife that you can do some real cooking with. this is the knife to go with. that new handle is gorgeous and I plan on replacing the handle material on my own and maybe reshaping to have a backstop for my pinky (like a french style chef's knife)
Right on. The original Hudson Bay knife was exactly that, a heavy duty butcher knife. This Condor version will work for food prep if a bit heavy. Thanks for commenting
Works great for food. Especially cleaving cabbages it's a great slab of steel to have on you.
Excellent modifications, both functionally and aesthetically. That handle is awesome. You should do a video on how you make your micarta. I don't use my Hudson Bay as much because the handle is short, I wish it had a longer handle. Thanks for sharing.
Don't be afraid to try the mods Mark. Take your time and I think you will be happy with the way it turns out. I may do a video on the micarta at some point as well. Thanks for commenting
Good job!
Glad you enjoyed. Thanks for commenting Yves
that micarta looks good to me. Good job!
Thank you. It was not all that hard to make but does look good when finished
Cool. You made that far closer to being a representation of a Hudson's Bay than it was before hand, by a long shot. Great job.
Condor makes great kit knives 😄
Still, I think I throw in here a bit on big knives.
The condor hudson's is made like most other big knives these days, with one particular design thought process feature that I think is really holding them back, as well as creating a reputation for big knives that's unfounded...everyone is potting these scandi -like or short saber style grinds on them; everybody has this "chop" thing so deeply ingrained in the thought process that its leading to really poor knife design.
Knives are not for chopping. Knives are for cutting. Axes are for chopping.
The perfomance of these big knives in cutting down small trees, bucking up small firewood, and fine tasks, is all GREATLY diminished in having these short edge bevels and thick blades.
I have handled three museum-bound knives considered to be "hudson bay knives"... all three were forged to a full v cross section and had secondary edges.
A well made, properly balanced, full V cross section knife will out cut these sharpened flat bars significantly.
They don't chop...there are no flying chips, like an axe, rather, they sink in very deeply, and stay...yes, it take a tiny bit of effort to remove them from the cut...but the cut will be two or three times deeper than what you would get with a thick blade and short saber or scandi-like grind.
Another well placed cut beside it and you now have a deep v-notch in the wood...and it will be a notch it would take many many strikes to produce with the short beveled knife.
The only difference you'll find in batoning is it will take one or two more strikes to set the blade into the end of the log...since the bevel...the full thickness of the blade...comes to the log a bit later, of course it will require maybe another hit to get the blade in there.
But after that, it splits exactly the same as the short bevel thick knife.
Your splits tend to be cleaner and straighter though, as now you have made a deeper guide cut before the splitting action begins.
And carving, there is a real difference. Again, instead of chopping and chipping out chunks, you are cutting instead. Its a power cut with a swing, but its still a clean controlled and precise cut. Much less effort, much less splitting out and cracking, and much better and efficient work is the result.
Finally, these big blades, with flat sides, and no tapers, are really not very strong. They have little flex, little shock absorption abilities. They transfer a lot of shock to the hand that you don't get with a distal tapered blade.
Now of course, this is all just talk, and opinion.
I have a video planned on this very subject, but it will be fall before I get it done likely.
I do want to get a different kind of big knife into your hands for a while though, one of these days soon.
I've spent the last number of decades very frustrated at the poorly designed big knives giving all big knives a very undeserved reputation.
Cheap manufacturing design standards have crept far too deeply into the knife world and I think its a real shame.
But to sum it up...axes chop. Knives cut. When you design a knife to chop, you have really gone the wrong direction, and made a poor knife...and a poor axe-like object to boot.
All that said, great video as always and you made a good tool out of the beast!
Wow. This is why I so love having you as a friend and mentor. Your knowledge and experience brings us back to back to reality. I am looking forward to both being able to test one of your knives and watching your video on the subject. Thanks Randal for commenting
Mine is not a flat bladed one. It gets thinner and thinner from the back/spine and down to the edge. And i gave it a higher convex. it chops and feathers and slices like nobodys buisness now. Love the knife
You corrected everything I believed needed to be fixed. I plan to put my knife on the bench soon. You did an excellent job on that my friend! Just the look of the original knife looked off. The handle was too small for the knife visually and once in the hand it proved way too small and poorly shaped. I like everything you did with yours. The hudson bay camp knife by Mark Young! the way it should have been designed
Hey Mark. Don't be afraid to have at it with the knife. I am sure you will do an excellent job of it and will be much happier with the end product. You may want to read Randal Graham's response below as well
Adventure Time Outdoors the design of that knife (ain't 100% if joe flowers designed it) but it was based of the original trade knife which it's primal use was to work meat and they also had small handles (that's why they came out with the moonshiner and the moonstalker) but the mods done to this are pretty cool
I remember buying an Esse 5. It arrived, liked it. Tried to use it, didn't like it! I thought and thought on what to do to it so it could do the work I bought it to do. In the end, and not having an axe file or the like, I went to my stones and took the edge that was on it and increased its height. I cant remember how long it took to get done, but every day for anout 10 days or so I worked on it some more as I didn't want to just rip into it and end up ruining the thing. In the end, I increased the edge depth to about 8mm as evenly as I could manage and from there I began the work of getting it to a mirror finish. I started with a 1000 grit stone and worked my way up to another, then another and another and so on until I finally got to my slate. I dont know if you have ever tried using slate to hone your knife, Mark. If you haven't then you really wanna give it a go. Even roof slate will suffice to begin with so long as its well supported. The Welsh slate which I use is around 15,000 grit. You get a really nice mud like slurry and man does it ever make that baby shine! I contemplated completely removing the horrible coating that at first attracted me to the knife (turns out it seems to almost stick to the wood you're trying to baton), but by then I had already decided it would end up an "ornament" rather than a proper "working" knife.
Great video thanks Mark!!
I am glad you enjoyed the video. I really like the process you went through to get to the most our of your Esse. Edge geometry makes all the difference in knife performance. I have a Ka-Bar BK 7 I picked up second hand with a messed up edge and finish. I went through a similar if not as detailed process as you did. It made a world of difference in performance. Thanks for commenting
Mark, you have done an utterly amazing job with those modifications, that particular knife is worth many many times more than when you got it in terms of both money, practicality and beauty.. Talk about taking something and making it better.
Seriously my friend I am envious of that knife and thank you for the video.. Keep up the good work..
Thank you for your kind words.
That is my Next knives, good proves
It is a big bruiser of a knife. You may want to take a look at the Terava Skrama as well. I have a video on that in my list. I find I carry that more often than the Hudson Bay. Thanks for commenting
Thats a sexy knife!
I guess it could be called that :) Thanks for commenting
condor, love them! my bushlore is all i've ever really needed. the hudson bay is for those moments in life where big, plain and ugly get the job done best. Excellent work on the micarta and getting a firestriker edge! as for a drawknife, hmm, very interesting idea - how bout gloves or at least a small chunk of wood with the tip buried in it to serve as the other handle?
I agree Condor makes some great, affordable tools. Yes, I should have shown using the HB as a draw knife with a stick fastened at the tip. I was showing the concept of using it that way without giving the best impression. Thanks for commenting
Researching this blade now.. im loving it and look who's review i stumble on. Do you still have the blade?
Hey Steve. I'll send you a PM about trying it out
Thanks for a great video! I’m aware it wasn't recorded yesterday.. 😊
but have ordered a Hudsonbay myself which is on its way. I will definitely modify the blade so that the grip is closer to the edge like yo did. Also thinking about a lanyard hole.. how did you drill through 5mm of hardened steel?
The good news is the steel is only hardened at the blade end. Quite easy to drill at the handle end with a drill bit made for steel. Thanks for commenting
@@MarkYoungBushcraft ok i see. Thank you Mark!
Hey Mark, great job on the knife. I have started the make-over of my condor Hudson bay today and so far I've put on a scandi grind and filed the tip to make it look more like a bowie knife for stabbing purposes. Now I want to change the handles since they really don't feel nice. This is my first knife modification project so I would like some advice on how you removed the old handle and fitted the pins in the new one. Could you reuse the pins or did you buy new ones? Greetings from Holland
Hello. Your modifications sound really interesting. I would love to see how the turn out in the end. I removed the existing wood scales and brass pins using an angle grinder with a cut-off blade. I clamped the knife to a work table and cut into the pins and the wood until I has able to pry under the wood and force the scales off. It took a bit of work and I wanted to be careful not to cut into the steel of the knife handle. The pins were destroyed in the process but brass rods are easy to find in hardware stores here. If you want to add and additional hole for a lanyard you will need a hardened drill bit. Hope this helps
P.S.
When you made the Micarta, did you let the material dry between layers? Just curious as to how that's done.
Hi Bruce. I am thinking I will likely make a video on my micarta process. Basically I prepare my strips of material, in this case from two different colour pair of pants. Then I mix up the epoxy resign but only using half the hardener to slow the hardening process down. Working fast I slap on a fair amount of resign (gloves on) and spread it over the material. Layering the alternate colours as I go. I do this on wax paper to contain the mess. I then sandwich the whole mass between two pieces of wood and clamp it tight for 24 hours. I am left with a block that I can then turn into knife handles. Thanks for commenting
Very nice job!!! A thousand times better than original. Is the new grind convex?
Thank you. Yes, It is what I would call a "partial-height convex grind". I originally got the edge using an axe file and a series of ever increasing grit wet-dry sandpaper. I usually maintain it with a strop but have used an axe puck on it as well when it gets really beat up. Thanks for commenting
Innanzitutto bella recensione complimenti.. vorrei sapere le tue impressioni nel batoning mi sembra dal video che vada alla grande .. ho notato che hai lamentato problemi al manico che hai cambiato con un micarta .. perché era troppo piccolo ? Fammi sapere io ho mani grandi un saluto ..
Ciao e grazie per aver commentato. Sì, questo coltello è ottimo per l'asse del legno. Anch'io ho mani molto grandi e per questo ho modificato l'impugnatura del coltello. Ho guadagnato più lunghezza e più larghezza. Se adesso mi sento molto meglio nelle mie mani
@@MarkYoungBushcraft grazie della tua risposta hai fatto un bel lavoro sul manico, ancora complimenti per il tuo canale... un saluto dall'Italia... ovviamente mi sono iscritto... !!! 👍
I was going to get that knife or the Bushlore, but too many rolled edges video's, and I didn't want to be one of the "Unlucky Ones" I so I went with a OKC Rat 5.
Hard to do better than an Rat 5. Can't imagine you will ever have an issue with that knife. Thanks for commenting
Try to find a Wilkinson sword or a mod. Knife from sheffield UK 🇬🇧 its made to be modified but an awesome slab of steel....
I will have a look and see if I can find one. Stay tuned for a video I will be releasing soon that may be the best big woods knife of all. Thanks for commenting
I keep hearing that Condor knives won't hold an edge. Any thoughts about that?
I have owned two Condors, the Hudson Bay and the Bushlore. I have had no issue with the edge of the Hudson bay but that may be because I convexed it, making it much stronger. It will dull a little faster than a "super steel" but it sharpens much faster as well. I found it challenging to keep the edge sharp on the Bushlore with a true Scandi grind (zero degree edge). When I put a micro-bevel on it, it lasted much longer. Again it was easy to sharpen. I gave the Bushlore away as it was too small for my XXL hands. Hope this helps
@@MarkYoungBushcraft It certainly does help. That's exactly what I was looking for. Thanks so much for the reply. I really enjoyed the video.
I just use a heavy broad hatchet for splitting kindling!
yes...that would work as well. Thanks for commenting
13BRAVO REDLEG I do, too. I also have a barn-find froe and dogwood baton by the stove...and a couple of wedges and a 4 pound sledge. lol
My Matt graham knife and Hudson bay both had the horrible edge obtuseness and is why I walked away from condor..both chipped easy to
This one works so much better modified with the convex edge but my Condor Bushlore would role the edge constantly. I got rid of it
Do you like it better then the moonshiner?
Have not had the Moonshiner. Looks good but no way to compare. Thanks for commenting
It amazes me the amount of people on UA-cam that chop and split with their knives me personally I don't abuse my knives like that. I have other tools meant for doing that job....Every knife blade will cracking and break over time from to much stress to the blade
I agree with you to a point. I prefer to use an axe for most of my splitting; however, I have no problem with using a well built knife for batoning small sticks. I know this issue can be very polarizing for people so I hope we can agree to disagree on this point. Thanks for commenting
James McIntyre ik this is late but i just wanna say people in the amazon abuse their thinner machetes much more than we do with our knives. If you're splitting wood that's wider than the width of the blade then it's abuse. But otherwise most knives can take it
Sometimes it’s too much to carry multiple tools in a survival situation. It’s always great to have a tool that multi-tasks...
Well done, indeed, Mark. I favor your improvements to that knife. Hopefully, Condor is watching.
I was not familiar with the knife anatomy term "ricasso". So, you've expanded my knowledge of knives. I've learned a lot from UA-cam presenters such as yourself, and I thank you. I'm Always pleased when I learn something new.
Thanks Bruce. I hope I used the term correctly here. My understanding is that the A ricasso is an unsharpened length of blade just above the guard or handle on a knife. Glad you enjoyed the video
That is the definition I found.
good...
thank you
Can i send you my hudson bay knife to modify.?
Sure but I would not want to deny you the fun of having done it yourself😉. Thanks for commenting
Hudson Bay vs Lochnessmuk?
Yes, That would be interesting. I like the looks of the Lochnessmuk. If I can get one I will. Thanks for commenting
@@MarkYoungBushcraft Greetings from Poland 🌲🗡
The original grip,fits my hand nice in lenght. But a little to thin,i think i just wil sew some rawhide around it's grip. Not many knives in the old days had long grips.A shorter grip is easy'r to flipp around in the hand for self defense you know. And that was moore important in the old days. But have those nasty bears still,here in Norway. And no point in chopping wood with a knife,does nobody on YT know that wood burns even if it is round;-)) it burns slower. No point in burning your wood fast,it just eat's upp your wood in no time.No point in that. If it is wet outside,just dont be so lasy,go find some dry branches they are out there you know. Small kindling ok,but wood? And i know,i live in some off the coldest and wetest country's in the world. And why are Americans so obbsessed with weight? that is not a heavy knife on the hip. People have 20-100 pounds of fat on they'r body. And cant carry a knife. Americans are not what theyb used to be,that is for sure!
You make a number of good points on firewood. We also have bear here in CANADA as well as a number of other dangerous animals but I hope my defense doesen't have to be a knife. Thanks for commenting
Morton- you are correct sir!... most Americans are nowhere what they used to be... and it hurts my soul!.
Blade is too wide, and metal is too soft. Better off with something that is thinner ( skinning etc.). With harder steel that does not fold over, when chopping. Basically pos!
cheers
why didn't you just buy another knife, you've ruin the original.
From my perspective, I improved the original to what it should have been to start with
@@MarkYoungBushcraft that doesn't make any sense at all. If you didn't like the original knife you should have bought another type.
good...
Thank you