It’s whispered about in some circles, and loudly argued about in others. One blade to rule them all. The fabled one tool option. To some, it’s a fantasy, nothing more than a bedtime story to tell little bushcrafters and survivalists. To others, the search for it is a lifelong obsession, akin to hunting for El Dorado. Fortunately, Work Tuff Gear makes the search easier for some with its Atayal.
The Work Tuff Gear Atayal
The idea behind the one tool option is deceptively simple. If you could only carry one bladed tool to handle everything you need to do in the field, what would it look like? We’re talking about building shelters, processing game, harvesting wild edibles, clearing brush, and much more.
The Atayal is named after one of the largest indigenous tribes in Taiwan. For folks like them, a knife is a critical part of their daily life. They may not have the luxury of ordering a slew of specialty ones from DLT Trading or KnivesShipFree. So, they need to make one knife wear many hats, so to speak. It needs to be their—wait for it—one tool option.
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Atayal Unboxing
Some might refer to the Atayal as a short sword, rather than a long knife. It runs 14.3 inches total, with an 8.8-inch blade that’s roughly 1.5625 inches high. It has a skeleton tang, which helps cut down the weight a bit without sacrificing strength. A slight swedge also reduces weight a touch. The official stats indicate it weighs 15.3 ounces, though my scale says 15.1.
The upswept, trailing point blade is made from Bohler K329 steel. This is a tough steel, rated well for wear resistance. It has a hand-applied satin finish that looks amazing. At the spine, the steel is 0.196-inch thick. Far from being a sharpened pry bar, which was seemingly all the rage not that long ago, the Atayal is well-balanced, light on its feet, and fast in the hand.
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There is a bit of jimping just ahead of the handle on the spine. It forms a bit of a ramp, though it isn’t very pronounced. It’s perfect for when you’re doing pressure cuts or carving. Other than this section of jimping, the spine has a perfect 90-degree grind on it. For the ferrocerium rod enthusiasts like me, this is always a nice feature.
Getting a Grip
The jungle camo patterned scales are G10, a material that’s incredibly tough. They are rounded and contoured, providing a comfortable grip. Rather than being polished smooth, there’s a bit of traction in the material. This is important as when you’re using a large tool like this, you want to be confident in your control of it.
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The scales are removable via two screws, so you can clean under them should the need arise. There is a pronounced finger choil, which is something I appreciate as a safety feature.
The Atayal comes with a taco-style Kydex sheath with a removable belt loop and Tek Lok. I’m typically a leather sheath guy, but Kydex is a great choice for this knife. It’s secure and easy to carry.
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Atayal Performance
This is going to sound silly, truly a “well, duh” moment, but bear with me. The Atayal feels incredibly dangerous in hand. Not to the user, mind you. It just feels lethally effective. Given that we’re talking about an 8.8-inch blade of razor-sharp steel, this shouldn’t be surprising. And it isn’t. Not really. But it is definitely worth noting.
Everything that comes out of the Work Tuff Gear shop is overbuilt and remarkably tough, and the Atayal is no exception. I carved with it and did some feather-sticking. I don’t know that it was intended to be a chopper, but I used it as one anyway. It didn’t take a ton of effort to make its way through dry black walnut branches.
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I stabbed it through cardboard boxes, then processed them for recycling. In the kitchen, I used it to slice cheese, though honestly, that was more for giggles than anything else. Through it all, the Atayal remained sharp enough to slice paper cleanly.
It handles like a dream whether you’re slicing or swinging. The Atayal can handle hard use chores as well as more detailed work.
Does the legendary one tool option truly exist? The Atayal from Work Tuff Gear comes damn close.
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Work Tuff Gear Atayal Specs
| Overall length | 14.3 inches |
| Blade length | 8.8 inches |
| Blade thickness | 0.196 inch |
| Steel | Bohler K329 |
| Weight | 15.3 ounces |
| MSRP | $199 |
