Fällkniven AB
Fällkniven AB
Fällkniven AB is a family-run company founded in Norrbotten in 1984. Founded by experienced hunters and anglers who know first-hand what a knife should be like, Fällkniven produces folding and fixed-blade knives of various types and for various purposes: survival knives, hunting and fishing knives, kitchen knives and gentleman's folding knives.
Head of the company, Peter Hjortberger, started his business in 1984; at that time, he was not yet involved in manufacturing and operated exclusively as a retailer.
For the mid-1980s, Hjortberger chose an exceptionally successful and forward-thinking business model: a printed catalog featuring carefully selected knives from Sweden, the United States, Europe, and Japan. In Sweden, he was the first knife retailer to operate this way, effectively becoming a pioneer — and for a time, virtually a monopoly — in the Swedish knife market.
The business flourished, and in 1987 Fällkniven received an order from the Swedish Ministry of Defence. The Swedish military needed a modern survival knife for the crews of the newly developed Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft.
Hjortberger approached the task with the utmost seriousness. He conducted extensive testing of existing knives used by military pilots in Japan, the United States, and several other countries. The results were far from satisfactory. Hjortberger then decided to take matters into his own hands and developed a knife concept based on his own experience and his vision of the ideal survival knife.
The key word was survival. Unlike many military knives of the time, which were designed with the possibility of combat in mind, Hjortberger understood that an aviator needed a reliable and practical tool rather than a weapon. The result was the now-famous Fällkniven F1.
To this day, the F1 remains part of the survival equipment issued to Swedish Air Force fighter pilots. Its civilian version has achieved genuine cult status and remains widely popular around the world.
The military contract gave Hjortberger's company a rapid boost and enabled Fällkniven to establish its own manufacturing operation, focused on premium-quality knives.
Fällkniven knives undergo rigorous strength testing at Luleå University of Technology. As the company itself puts it: “Our knowledge and experience allow us to confidently say that we make the strongest production stainless steel knives in the world!”
Fällkniven knives feature blades made from Japanese high-performance VG-10 three-layer laminate produced by Takefu Special Steel Co. The company also uses 3G laminate, an in-house development combining premium Takefu Super Gold Powder Steel with VG2.
For its knife handles, Fällkniven uses G10, carbon fiber, Micarta, and proprietary high-performance polymers. The company also works with natural materials, including bone, leather, rosewood, curly birch, and mother-of-pearl.
Fällkniven deliberately avoids using deer antler for its handles. The decision is based not only on the material's aging characteristics, but also on concerns about wildlife conservation and the large number of unlicensed suppliers involved in the trade.
Since 1999, Fällkniven has been an official supplier to the Royal Court of Sweden. For a company, this distinction is comparable to a national order of merit — an honor reserved for the very best. Fällkniven, without a doubt, belongs in that company.
