All-American hunting knife review | We check out the 7Forge Orso

This Midwestern forge is making quality cutlery the old-fashioned way – by hand, one knife at a time. The result is a work of art.

by Leon Pantenburg

Disclaimer: 7Forge supplied the Orso for testing and review and I bought another. Nobody had any input in this post. All we ever promise is a fair and impartial testing and review.

Ogden, Iowa is about 40 miles from my hometown of Gilbert. I’ve been there many times, and Ogden today is one of the cleanest, best-kept towns you’ll come across.  But who would have guessed that a world-class cutlery-making shop would be a block off Main Street? Or that Jessie Wipperman, a “Forged In Fire”, winner would be making knives there. (Check out Season 9, Episode 25 “Marvel’s Midnight Suns”).

So when in Iowa last summer visiting family and friends, I made sure to stop and visit the shop. Jessie and  partner Tim Ogg were hard at work. It is always fun watching expert craftsmen doing what they so obviously enjoy. And I really appreciate seeing American-made products being fabricated in American shops.

The 7Forge Orso is a quality hunting that is designed to work hard.

7Forge has always been a labor of love. The company started out with limited funds, according to the website, and Tim and Jessie welcomed help from anyone willing to lend a hand. This support included tools provided by Rick Ogg, Tim’s dad. Armed with little more than a pair of channel lock pliers for tongs, a rusty 3-pound hammer, and a punch that only stamped the number 7 backward, 7Forge was born.

The backward 7 became their maker’s mark, symbolizing the simple tools gifted by a blue-collar worker. Today, 7Forge makes a variety of  knife models, and ships cutlery all over the world. Being a proud (former) Iowan, I was naturally interested in things pertaining to my home state. I was particularly interested in the Orso – it looked like it would be an excellent hunting knife.

“Orso” is an Italian word that means bear, but it can also refer to a clumsy or grumpy person. It is commonly used in literature, folklore, and wildlife discussions. I didn’t think to ask about the definition when I was watching them work! Tim and Jessie are neither clumsy or grumpy!

Tim Ogg and Jessie Wipperman are the cutlery artists/craftsmen at 7Forge.

Here are the Orso specs:

How the Orso has worked out so far

Hunting season was still several weeks away, so the knife was used in the kitchen and around the house. It went on a mushroom hunt, where it was used to clean a few Chanterelles and I also whittled some feather sticks. The knife worked fine. If the Orso doesn’t get used on a deer this season, it may be put to use at a local meat-cutting plant.

Overall size:

This 8.25-inch overall length hits the sweet spot for me. I prefer a four-to-five-inch for my working knife that will be required to gut, skin and quarter a big game animal. It must also be able toserve as a survival tool in a pinch. The Orso checks all these boxes.

Steel:

I don’t have any experience with this steel other than some rudimentary knife work in the kitchen. Historically, 80CrV2 has been used in various applications, including the production of cutting tools, dies, and other high-stress components, establishing its reputation in the tool steel market. I like sturdy, user tools and I like  tool steel in my knife blades.

Key 80CrV2 Characteristics:
– Hardenability: The presence of chromium allows for deeper hardening during heat treatment, making it suitable for larger components.
– Toughness: The alloy’s toughness is enhanced by vanadium, which helps prevent brittle failure under stress.
– Wear Resistance: The high carbon content contributes to superior wear resistance, making it ideal for cutting tools and dies. (Metalzeniths.com)

Tang

A full tang blade is the strongest choice in a rigid blade knife. I like the tapered tangs. The tapered tang reduces some of the weight and bulk, with no loss of strength. And, it looks really great!

The Orso’s full-length, tapered tang is a direct result of Jessie and Tim learning from my friend Donavon Phillips of  Big D Knives in Morton, Mississippi. Donavon is a former Bladesports World Champion, and has made a couple of knives for me. Donavon’s knives are so sharp, a hair can literally be whittled with one. (I’ve seen him do this several times – Donavon will pluck a hair from his beard and carve shavings off it. Talk about impressive!) Anyone who learns from Donavon has studied under a master.

Grind

The convex grind is my favorite after trying a variety of different choices. The Orco owes a lot of its nimbleness and ease of handling to the quality steel and grind.

Handle

The handle on my Orso is micarta. For my money, micarta is the best, most durable material for a knife that will be used hard. But. I really like beautiful wood and bone handles too.

It isn’t intuitive, but micarta get tackier when wet. This is a big deal if you’re gutting a big game animal. A well-placed heart and lung shot may leave a bloody slurry in the abdominal cavity, and you may have to dip your hand into the mess to cut the esophagus and finish field dressing the animal.  My micarta handles never got slipperier. If anything, they became safer to use.

Blade design

The Orso is definitely a hunting knife. It has an excellent belly (the curved part of the blade from the tip to where it straightens out). The belly does all the work when it comes to skinning. The curve of the belly resembles the belly on several hunting knives I have used hard.

The point will help determine how well the blade works for different tasks. A drop point is one of the best choices for a hunting knife. It works well for piercing during that initial under-the-tail cut that leads to opening up the abdomen. A drop point also will keep the tip from piercing the entrails while gutting the animal.

Made here

All 7Forge knives are made here by American craftsmen. When you buy American, somebody is paying local, state and federal taxes and contributing to their community. I like owning a top-quality, Iowa-made product!

Do you need a 7Forge knife?

Everyone needs a quality knife, IMO. The best one for you depends on a lot of personal preferences. The Orso checks all the boxes for me – I’m looking forward to wringing it out in the field!

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