Imagine a powerful blade in a legal folding package. This friction folder is the offspring of Xavier Conil who is a really gifted bladesmith knifemaker and designer leaving in the South of France. Like every Conil’s knife, you find a strong personnality in a very well thought package.
No lock. The blade is lock with your grip like with all friction folders. Also this new version (the third actually and for history the first batch has been offred and carried by Sal Glesser four years ago…) provides a choil which is a second security.

The really good point in the Couteau des Sorgues is… Wait a minute. you don’t know what a Sorgue is, do you ?
OK let’s start by this: the sorgues are a net of streams and rivers in the south east of France in the Vaucluse. The Sorgue is a river. So this a knife for the outdoors and for the amphibians…. the frogs !
The beautiful wooden Olive Tree handle is gentle and generous. You cut hard and deep. The belly of the flat grounded convexed edge blade helps a lot. This is a knife thought for great performance. Once open the “natural” lock works perfectly and the new add choil helps you to feel what is happening.
For reminder, the friction folder knives can be found since the antic times. But let’s not forget: what we call the handle was considered in that times has a attached sheath. So the cutting were made by holding the knife by the blade, like a barber with a razor. With this new batch of Couteaux des Sorgues, you can grasp the handles and cut with full power.
The construction is über solid and work is precise and reliable. Easy to carry in a Denim watch pocket and easy to pull and retrieve, you got here a great alternative to “tactical” folders.
This knife is made at Thiers by Claude Dozorme and the steel used is Xr50.
The factory edge is gently stropped and convexed which is an incredible attention for such a bargain.
Le Couteau Des Sorgues III is a great folding bushcrafter and it can be enjoyed in the UK.

Mine can be found there:
http://www.couteaux.kingeshop.com/Couteau-des-Sorgues—Olivier–cbbacaaca.asp
(Knife pictured on the link is a previous version as there is no choil!)