I got some use out of an Esee Izula during my most recent deer hunting trip. While it didn’t have a dedicated purpose like the Buck Knives 537 Open Season Guthook Pro did, I found it to be practical easy to carry fixed blade for miscellaneous tasks.
When I donned on my hunting gear, I opted for carrying this little knife in Armatus Carry kydex sheath on my belt oriented in front of my left hip instead of carrying my trusty Zero Tolerance folder in my back pocket. The reason for this in part due to my hunting pants not having the same pocket layout and style that my regular pants and shorts tend to have. The other was that I wanted to get a little use out of this knife that had been sitting on my desk.
While this knife wasn’t abused or was even heavily used during the hunting trip, I did find it very comfortable to carry and came in handy when dealing with miscellaneous cutting tasks. For example, it was very easy to pull out this knife and use it cut a slit in the deer’s ear where I attached the hunting license tag. It was also used to open deer corn bags, cordage, and other odds and ends.
There is nothing fancy about this knife. It’s just a practical little knife. I didn’t quite care for how the skeletonized handle felt in my hands when I first acquired it. But that can be remedied with a little paracord. Or by adding some micarta handles like I did. Another option is to check out the Izula 2 which comes standard with handles.
An aftermarket sheath like the Armatus Carry sheath isn’t necessary as the standard sheath works just fine. I opted for the market sheath because the horizontal orientation and style was more appealing than the vertical orientation of the included sheath. I will likely get some additional sheaths from Armatus Carry for some other knives which have sheaths I don’t particularly care for.
This knife and sheath will accompany me on future hunting trips and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone looking for a small fixed blade for outdoor activities. It’s a practical addition to anyone’s outdoor gear.