Silky Saw POCKETBOY Folding Hand Saw
Sharpness
Cutting Effiency
Safety
Lightweight
Versatility
Highly Recommended
Compact lightweight folding saw with 6-3/4-inch blade that will take up very little room in your pocket or backpack. Nicknamed as "Little Giant" due to its extraordinary cutting capacity. This sleek saw features rust-resistant, hard chrome-plated, taper-ground blade with an impulse-hardened non-set tooth design for greater cutting efficiency.
The Silky Saw POCKETBOY is a compact folding hand saw that is ideal for campfire prep on backpacking trips when you want to process small branches for kindling or fuel. It folds up tiny and comes with a plastic protective belt case that ix worth carrying if only to avoid losing the saw when you put it down in the forest.
Silky Saw blades have a well-deserved reputation for being very sharp, and it’s true, they go through wood like butter. Made in Japan, the blade cuts on the pull stroke, not on the push, which requires less energy to saw and gives you more control over the blade.
I already own several much larger Silky Saws, mainly for trail maintenance, but they can be a bit much to bring on backpacking trips. Weighing just 6.2 ounces, the POCKETBOY is the smallest and an easy-to-justify weight to carry that provides an impressive “bite” for campfire wood collection, sawing through 3-4″ branches like butter. It opens to two positions and locks in place, still, you might want to consider wearing it with gloves because the blade is wicked sharp.
When folded, the POCKETBOY fits easily in your pocket, but the plastic case only weighs another 1.7 ounces (for a total of 7.9 oz) and is worth carrying since you can secure it to your belt. The saw does rattle a bit in the case, so be advised because it can ruin your stealth.
If you already own a larger Silky Saw (they’re easy to collect), you may find the POCKETBOY to be underwhelming, given its shorter 5.1″ length. But it’s made with the same premium steel as the other members of the Silky Saw family and just as capable, but on a smaller scale with smaller diameter branches and trees.
If you’ve never owned a Silky Saw, your first saw is unlikely to be your last.
Disclosure: Silky provided the author with a sample saw for this review.
See Also:
- Silky Saw’s BIGBOY Folding Saw for Trail Maintenance
- Some Basic Bushcraft Skills for Backpackers (Silky Saw GOMBOY 240)
Compare 2 Prices
- Amazon US
$48.99$42.99ViewAmazon.com Price: $42.99 (as of 03/28/2024 09:52 GMT-0400) Details
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.com at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
- REI$57.00View
I sometimes pack a Bahco Laplander Saw, which appears to be similar to this Silky saw in construction and capability. For its small size I was surprised at how well this saw worked; certainly enough for a small campfire, on trips where you are so inclined. The only downside is that it requires more effort than the folding buck saw that I used to pack.
Amazon’s price of $22.95 is only for a spare saw blade, not the entire saw.
Silky blades stay sharp for a long long time if you only cut wood with them and clean/dry them after use.
I just looked at Amazon and they have the Pocketboy for $25 and it sure looks to be the entire saw with case, not just the blade.
I’ve got the Silky Super Accel 21 that I take on camping trips (not backpacking) and when doing trail maintenance with Scouts. It’s almost 10 years old and seems as sharp as when it was new, even with scouts hacking the occasional nail or whatever. I’m sort of surprised at the weight of the POCKETBOY, as mine is 210 mm/8.25″ blade and only 7.05 oz (just weighed it), seems like the smaller one should be less than 6.2…
I carry an inexpensive folding saw I bought at WalMart for $7. Weighs 6 oz and is very sharp. It’s an essential piece of gear in my kit and use it to prep wood for my Solo woodstove and/or campfires, and occasional clearing of blowdown hanging across the trail.
Agreed. These little saws can be worth there weight in gold. I keep my Laplander in my car when not hiking. I once found a downed tree across a fire road that was about 5 inches in diameter and it made quick work of it. It’s as sharp today as when my wife bought it for me 10 years ago. Great piece of kit.