Helle
No.673
Audun – 2024 LTD – Curly Beech & Reindeer Antler

The 2024 Helle limited edition knife is designed by their chief handle maker Audun. Starting in 1973, Audun first worked on the cutlery before taking over as chief handle maker and foreman. For the past 50 years he has worked with and for three generations of Helles and played an integral part of many of our inhouse design. Helle has developed with Audun, and Audun has developed with Helle.

“This has been a good job my whole life. After I came home to my wife and kids when they were younger, there would always be a few wood shavings from my clothes on the bathroom floor. Then my wife said to the kids: It is the wood shavings we live from.”

This year Audun has made his own favorite knife, based on over 50 years of knowledge and skills. The finished product is a stunning knife that incorporates both the new and old of Helle. It features a classic triple laminated steel blade with Scandi grind and a slight drop point. The shape and size of the blade makes it ideal as an all-purpose hiking companion.

The handle features two of Audun’s favorite materials. The front piece is made of reindeer antler, protected in the front by a stainless steel guard. This front piece is effortlessly integrated into a colored curly birch handle. The oil mix used to color the handle is Audun’s special recipe, which creates a dark red and brown hue – a beautiful contrast to the white reindeer antler. It has the added bonus of smelling like you have just started a bonfire. The shape of the handle features the traditional belly that is a feature of many Helle knives, whereas the extensive pommel tips its hat to more recent designs.

The knife comes with Audun’s own version of his favorite Helle sheath. As a handle maker, he loves birch and the symbol on the front of the sheath is a birch tree in the spring time.

3½” triple laminated stainless steel drop point blade with a beech, leather washer, and dyed red oak handle. Includes leather belt sheath. Overall length: 8⅛”

Since early times, the Norwegian knife has been an important companion in everyday life. Norwegian knife manufacturing today is clearly influenced by traditional shapes and materials that were established hundreds of years ago. A well-made leather sheath and handles of wood, leather, and antler seem to be a legacy that Norwegians want to preserve. A/S Helle Fabrikker is dedicated to honoring this legacy by developing knives that are on the leading edge of technology, yet still maintain the traditional look and feel of a truly Norwegian knife. Unique in Helle knives is the laminated stainless steel used to produce a tough, razor-sharp blade. The technology was developed by their company in cooperation with a Norwegian steel mill. This high performance steel is available only in their knives and gives each blade a unique combination of high strength and long lasting sharpness. Laminated steel is another Norwegian tradition that is rarely found in other parts of the world.