My first meeting with the Italian brand MKM was a very positive one, and therefore it was perhaps not completely unexpected that it would lead to more knives from there finding their way to the deep forests of Småland. Those of you who have seen the news I presented here on the blog have already established that this was the case.
In fact, there are several similarities between this knife and the first one I presented. First, it's the same designer behind them. Furthermore, they are built with the same material in both blades and handles. But there the similarities ended and what remained was to see if this design called Timavo was as successful as its predecessor?
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| MKM Timavo |
The man behind both models is, of course, none other than everyone's likable neighbor Jesper Voxnaes. The Danish knife maker and designer has become a real superstar in the field. Most everything he touches seems to turn to gold. This applied, for example, to Isonzo, which was my first introduction to MKM. Therefore, I had high hopes for this knife as well.
It is manufactured by Mikita in Maniago, northern Italy. Don't get confused by "Mikita" and MKM respectively. The latter is the brand and an abbreviation to be read Maniago Knife Makers. Mikita, in turn, is a conglomerate of manufacturers in the northern Italian knife center that includes Fox, Viper, Lionsteel, and Mercury. They are responsible for the production itself. Unlike some other brands, they are proud of it and the information is easily accessible on the website.
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| Timavo is another orgy in excellent materials and stylish lines |
Twitter version: MKM Timavo, another elegant knife from Italy with a Danish designer but despite that maybe not be my absolute favorite.
Blade
A drop point, a kingdom for a drop point...you rarely have to shout. On the contrary, it is perhaps the most common blade shape on the market, and for good reason. Why is evident with all desirable clarity when studying this knife as you get a blade that is both pleasing to look at and practical and all-round in terms of use.
The blade on the Timavo is said to be 68 mm long. Then you have to measure a little carelessly from the tip to the absolute front edge of the handle. Otherwise, it is a few millimeters longer. The height is 24 mm and the blade is 3.5 mm thick. No extraordinary numbers in other words. But the result is attractive with a pronounced tip, a bit of a straight edge, and a sympathetic belly to work with.
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| The shape of the blade is ordinary but the execution is well done with a sympathetic finish and a rounded spine |
The execution itself is excellent with a nicely rounded back that usually distinguishes one of the knife manufacturers included in the conglomerate, which makes it easier to guess who is responsible for this particular model.
On the back of the blade, there are also some grooves that are, however, for the sake of sight or possibly for indexing as they are too shallow and soft to significantly increase traction.
The blade is stone-tumbled and the marking fairly discreet, despite the fact that it has been clamped with the Vox logo and Mikita on one side and the text MKM - Maniago Italy and M390 on the presentation side. But it's nicely done so it doesn't bother me.
M390 is of course the steel and is one of the finer ones available for use in folding knives and comes from Böhler/Uddeholm. I can talk about it for a long time, or not. In short, it can instead be said that properly treated, it provides an excellent balance between taking a heck of sharpness, keeping it for a long time, being reasonably shock-resistant without chipping, and at the same time not rusting very easily. For that reason, it counts as what is often carelessly (even by me) referred to as "super steel".
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| The blade steel is M390 from Böhler hardened to 58-60 HRC |
According to information, the steel has been hardened to HRC 58-60, however, the question is where in that range the knife is found. Now, I'm not one to obsess over steel qualities, but I'd like to get the performance attributed to the materials included.
The blade is then practically ground flat along its entire height. A small flat area is found near the ricasso. Speaking of the ricasso, MKM has succeeded with its "sharpening choil", the indentation at the beginning of the blade. It extends far enough out to be able to access with sharpening stones even the innermost part of the edge towards the heel. The factory edge was decently sharp, but the blade is a full 0.5-0.6 mm thick behind it. That's too much in my opinion. Especially as it was enough with a blade that was 3 mm thick in relation to the length.
All in all, the Timavo cuts well for a knife of this type but does not belong to what often is referred to as a "slicer" or a knife that is really good at cutting through stuff. If you need to cut something like a thin rope or cut off a branch, open a box, or the like, this knife is perfectly fine. It is not quite as pleasant to work with. Part of it is dependent on blade geometry and the rest has to do with ergonomics. This quickly brings us to the next part of the knife.
Handle
Like many of MKM's models, Timavo is available in several different designs. Both as full metal knives in titanium, with carbon fiber or G10 handles, and, as here, with Micarta in the handle sides. This particular variant is the sympathetic Canvas-Micarta, which upon arrival is very light in color but changes color after use. That's what makes it almost look like two different knives in the pictures.
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| The material in the handle sides is Micarta |
The material is finely worked as the sides are both slightly arched and finely cut as well as beveled at the edges. In the same way, the corners are well-rounded. But with the caveat that it is done as far as the design allows. More on that later.
The sides are screwed into a steel frame and small T6 screws are used for this. The screw that holds the clip as well as the pivot screw has larger T8 heads. In addition to being very small, they are also dome-shaped, so I recommend that great care be taken when disassembling the knife. Otherwise, you will strip the screws.
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| The back is open but the frame is not weight relieved in any way |
The steel frame is not lightened in any way. As far as that is concerned, I would have liked to see some small pockets in the metal as the balance of the knife is found in the middle/slight back edge of the recess for the index finger. The balance point should have been e five to ten millimeters closer to the pivot screw in my opinion.
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| The balance point is found a bit too far back and the handle is probably comfortable for someone else |
This handle is a bit strange in that it is both quite comfortable but not at the same time. It needs an explanation. If you hold the knife very loosely in your hand just to feel it, preferably in a saber grip, or just cut a quick light cut with it, the handle is perfectly fine. If you grip the knife harder or try to work with the knife, it is not. The handle doesn't really fit my hand.
Sure, it's a relatively small knife so for me, it's at most a "three-and-a-half finger knife" and that has to be taken into account. The little finger ends up halfway outside the handle. The indentation in the blade can be used as an extra "finger choil" if you have very narrow fingers and thus it does not apply to me. So that option is out of the question.
In addition, it can be said that there are sharp corners on the knife. The rear end has a shape that doesn't appeal to me at all. Both when the knife is to be opened, if it is held in a saber grip, or if I put it on the side with a thumb towards the pivot area, the pointed back end ends up in the middle of the hand and it is not comfortable at all!
This is especially true if you hold the knife with a slightly firmer grip as I said. Then the clip is also felt, which is otherwise not in the way. Also, it annoys me that what makes the rear end pointy is the damn lanyard hole. Remove it entirely or move it forward half a centimeter and round the rear end and that problem would be solved.
Opening and Lock
Timavo belongs to the category of dedicated flipper knives. It only opens one way. With much effort and great difficulty, you can get it up with two hands but it's barely. The resistance in the detent ball is precisely adapted for the flipper to function optimally.
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| The flipper tab is small and very triangular |
Incidentally, it does. If you hit it right, there is pretty good speed in the blade. But once again, the entirety has stumbled somewhat on the design. The reason I say this is that the execution is good but the design is not the best.
Opening the knife is not entirely straightforward. You can't just intuitively pick up Timavo and push. Then you will probably miss* and possibly get a little pain in your index finger as it slides off the tip of the small flipper. The pattern of grooves that are there is too small and they are too few to provide enough grip. Then you absolutely can't push the flipper tab downwards, it just doesn't work. Instead, the knife must be placed inside the hand, with the aforementioned sharp back end against the soft parts, whereupon you carefully place your finger in front of the flipper and pull it straight back. Then and only then does the opening work.
In order for the finger to land more softly, however, a small "runway" has been made in the form of beveled edges on the frame. It's nice!
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| Liner lock in steel |
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| The almost saw-toothed edge gives a lot of traction, but in the wrong direction |
The lock is a solid liner lock that does what it should. No play in the blade and the function is secure. However, it is not entirely easy to disengage. Here, unlike the flipper tab, the milling machine has been used and there are plenty of grooves to improve traction. That, combined with a fairly strong spring tension, makes it feel a bit when the blade is to be released. But if you don't do it every two minutes, it works ok.
To Carry
When it comes to Timavo, there are certain things that keep coming back. In this case, it is the rear end that haunts again as it adversely affects how the knife feels in the pocket. It is because they have chosen to place the clip a bit lower on the handle, which is otherwise very good as the actual bend of the clip tends to be less out of the way when you hold the knife.
But in this case, it also means that the rear end sticks out of the pocket by just over a centimeter. Unfortunately, it does so right where my hand ends up if I swing my arms when walking for example. It brings my hand into close contact with the rather pointy rear end of the knife and it's not comfortable for me. For that reason, I have started carrying it loose in my pocket instead, alternatively in a leather sheath from MKM.
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| The clip is large, substantial, and good, but it is also felt when you grip the knife tightly |
Otherwise, there is not much that causes problems. The sides of the Micarta are not excessively rough and the knife is certainly not ultra-light, while it is hard to think that a knife that weighs around a hundred grams is heavy. The thickness is 14 mm, which in the same way means that the knife is not among the thinnest, but also does not feel like a dugong in the pocket.
What is really good, however, is the clip! It is a steel wire clip made slightly thicker than usual. In addition to excellent tension, it also provides lateral stability, so it does not move in the hand when holding the knife. Something that I know some people get annoyed by. In addition, they have chosen to have only one screw to attach the clip and it is flat while the clip itself is recessed in the side of the handle. It gives good space for trouser fabric and the knife, therefore, fits well in a pocket. The clip can also be switched sides if desired. Then the clip would have been even better on another, larger knife.
To Conclude
I really wanted to like Timavo as much as my first acquaintance from MKM. The conditions for that were very good. The same Danish magician is responsible for the design, the materials are of the highest quality and the build quality is equivalent. So far no problems and to that can be added a detail with Timavo which I actually prefer and it is a pointier blade than what Isonzo offers. In addition, this knife does not have a giant hole in the handle. It should therefore be on the plus side if the two knives are compared.
Even so, this knife was not my favorite of the two. It has some characteristic that is not fully appreciated and it can be found in a couple of places on the knife. It's too sharp edges and corners! As far as I can tell, it's not a production fault, it's actually about how the knife is designed.
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| Timavo is an elegant little knife from MKM |
One of the obvious "edges" is of course the flipper tab. They can sometimes be a bit too sharp in general and in this case it is a small pyramid. And to be able to use it on a knife this small, the handle has to be placed inside the hand and that's when corner/edge number two comes into play. Namely, the one that makes up the stern. Not comfortable at all and it is also something that is sometimes felt when using the knife. This is especially true in a saber grip and especially if you want to stab the tip into something.
Somehow it feels like this model was originally meant to be bigger! The more I think about it and look at the knife the more I lean toward that conclusion. That it would be both more comfortable in the hand and get rid of the disadvantages if the handle was only slightly larger.
Otherwise, this is a very good knife put together in an exemplary manner. As said, the materials are of the best kind, here linen-Micarta and M390 are found in the handle and blade respectively. Besides, Mikita knows a thing or two about building knives.
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| MKM Timavo, an EDC knife signed Jesper Voxnaes |
Overall, it makes for a good EDC knife with a stylish look. The flaws I experience are not as prominent if you pull out your knife, open a package, and put it away again. For light tasks and cuts that are not through, this is not a bad knife at all. Then maybe the handle fits another hand better. It is always a present factor when testing knives. But on the other hand, my fiancee gave the same opinion about the handle.
In terms of price, MKM Timavo ends up around 180$ or 200€.
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| Maniago Knife Makers |
Specifications:
Length Overall: 182 mm
Length Folded: 105 mm
Weight: 103 g
Blade Length: 68 mm
Blade Thickness: 3.5 mm
Blade Steel: M390
Handle: Micarta
Lock: Liner lock
Produceed by: Mikita, made in Italy
/ J
* Something that was tested on a couple of blissfully unaware candidates in my immediate environment with the same results.
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