All around survival knife, whats your pick?

[mattw]

I've been wanting to get a one-knife-fits-all survival/utility knife for a while now.

I've been looking at the SOG Seal Knife 2000 and the good ole' USMC Ka-Bar.
They both seem to have good heavy blades capable of holding an edge with the Ka-Bar having proven it self for generations as a go-to, do-all, being used for everything from a pry bar to a bone saw with success.

So what are the best features to look for in a knife like this. What are your reccomendations?

 

[rustymaggot]

the first one.

 

[hkenvy91]

i own a ka-bar and i am very pleased with it.plus its proven its self though the test of time and countless wars. and man she's sharp. i do think the modern sheaths that come with them arent all that, they could be made with better grade leather.

 

[sm]

http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showtopic.php?tid/771555/tp/1/

 

[sonofodin]

Cold Steel ODA or UWK. I have an ODA and if you hone the Carbon V a little it will take a rather sharp edge and hold it. I keep it close by whenever possible.

 

[hso]

Kinda depends upon the environment you intend to use it in. What environment are to selecting them for?

Regardless I wouldn't throw either into the lake if I found them in a crash, but they wouldn't be my first pick either. The blades are much longer than needed and make delicate tool making difficult.

 

[Kaylee]

I'm gonna (sorta) echo hso on this one.. the extra length of the Ka-bar pattern just seems useless to me. There's not enough weight out there to make it particularly good for chopping, but it's too long to use the point easily for finer work. That said, it's a wicked weapon.

I certainly see the appeal of the little fixed blades (say 3-4") and his little Blackjack is certainly a delight.

That said, this is what I purchased last fall or so:

As a general purpose woodland tool, I really like it. It's compact enough to carry, yet adequately serves in the role of small hatchet, woodworking tool, and general knife. No it's not as good as say a fixed blade scout knife and a woods axe and a folding saw and a hide scraper... but it'll do all those jobs well enough without having to carry around a toolbox.

I don't know as I'd recommend it outside of forested environments, since so much of its utility derives from what you can do with it on wood. Certainly I wouldn't recommend it as a weapon - the balance and grip are just all wrong for that.

edit -- oh yeah, I got it from this maker:
http://www.mtknives.com/wsk.html

 

[Soap]

I like this design although I do not own one personally:

http://www.barkriverknifetool.com/bushcraft/northstar/index.html

 

[Brian Williams]

Give me a Schrade/Old-timer barehead liner locking trapper with a Carbon blade from the original Schrade plant not from Taylor(chinese)Ltd.

 

['Card]

When I'm in the field I carry a SOG Hunter Revolver and a Leatherman Wave.

I figure whatever the problem is, if I can't handle it with one of those two knives I probably shouldn't be handling it.

 

[eden892]

I like the Buck nighthawk considering it's quality, availability, design,and price.

 

[Skofnung]

After years of trying stuff, I've settled on a ~4" Scandinavian style fixed blade. It does things bigger knives don't do as well such as carving a figure 4 trigger or whittling a wooden spoon. I've used a cheap Frosts Clipper to baton down saplings almost two inches in diameter with no damage to the knife. That is all thant need be asked of a survival knife... at least in my opinion.

I still carry my Ka-bar on occasion, but I find that I don't use it as much as the smaller knife.

 

[mattw]

Kinda depends upon the environment you intend to use it in.

It would be used primarily in woodland areas.

 

[mattw]

A couple relpies suggested that the blades of the Ka-Bar and the SEAL knife were a bit too long.

What do you think about the SEAL Pup?

4.75" blade instead of 7"

 

[p35]

Mora knives are standard issue at a lot of survival schools. I tend to agree that a big knife isn't that useful for the weight.

 

[Skofnung]

What do you think about the SEAL Pup?

Just from the looks of it, (I've never handled one) here is my critique.

The first thing that I see that I don't like is a serrated blade. I find serrated blades to be of very limited utility. I can't think of anything that a serrated blade will do that a sharp plain edge won't.

The next thing that would limit its utility is the double guard. Much fine work is accomplished by putting your thumb on the spine of the blade and pushing it through the material. It can be done with a double guard in the way, but it is uncomfortable after a short while.

The choil has no place on a woods knife in my opinion. That fingers breadth open space in front of the guard is wasted space. There should be edge there.

Again, this is from just looking at the picture, but it looks as if the blade is quite thick. This is a disadvantge in a working knife in that it makes slicing harder. I am of the school of thought that thick blades are best left to axes and that knives are for cutting, not prying.

In my opinion, this is an ideal woods knife for the belt:

I don't own one of these yet, but I will soon. I've been using a less expensive version of this style of knife for some time now and I find it to be ideal.

www.ragweedforge.com
Get thee hence and look around. They are not tactical, but for use in the woods they are ideal.

As always, the above is just my opinion. I hope it helps.

 

[hso]

I agree with everything that Skofung says except for this -

The choil has no place on a woods knife in my opinion. That fingers breadth open space in front of the guard is wasted space. There should be edge there.

I've found the choil to be very handy for moving up on the blade for finer work.

I'd also add that a flat spine that you can baton is very much preferable to the pseudo double edge look that has no real practical function.

 

[CWL]

mattw,
I think that it would help if you definied where you will likely need this knife. Do you live in woods, what kind? Mountains? Desert? Snow? Are you a solo boater? Knives may differ greatly depending on where you will need it.

I have owned a SOG II (the original version of the SOG knife below) for close to 20 years. I have found it too big for regular carry, also the edge is too thick for general or detail work (It cannot notch sticks for trapmaking), also the handle came loose after a few years. I never even consider it whenever I go into the Sierras or overseas.

I mostly prefer Scandinavian knives in the 4-5" range nowadays. They have been used as survival knives in the Arctic zone for centuries so have proved themselves to be totally functional and devoid of useless features. I love my Kellam Wolverine as well as my Helle Eggen knives. You may also want to investigate the Bark River series of knives like the Highland Special & Bushcraft knives (although I feel that the handle is too small in the Highland Special & Fox River knives for my taste).

 

[Max Power]

You can't go wrong with a mora and the price is very good.
The Seal pup is all right but I am not a fan of serrations(they won't hurt anything though) and SOG sometimes uses crappy steel.

The Buck 119 is a good knife for the price and the hollow gring lets it cut like a thinner knife.

The Fallkniven forest knife is near perfect and a ripping good deal at the price.

I carry my scrapyard SS4 but it is hard to find.

Bowhunters like the Sog revolver becuase they use the saw blade to clear site lanes. The saw would be usefull in a survival situation.

Cold Steel carbon V knives are exellent but they don't make them any more.
The CS bushman is another 20$ super value. There are films on the net showing the bushman handling incredible abuse. It is on my must buy list
with a laminated steel mora and the Hattori fighter.

 

[mattw]

I think that it would help if you definied where you will likely need this knife. Do you live in woods, what kind? Mountains? Desert? Snow? Are you a solo boater?

I live in south mississippi (lots of pine forrests with a few hardwoods mixed in, very humid and somewhat marsh-like). I spend alot of time at the river in the summers and it may see some light utility duty as a truck knife.

But I would like to have something that would be capable in a woodland survival situation because I do some camping.

 

[plexreticle]

gerber multi pliers if that counts.

 

[Zero_DgZ]

Ontario Knife machete and a decent multi tool like a Gerber Legend or Leatherman Wave/Surge.

 

[bubbygator]

Becker!

http://www.camillusknives.com/1mainframe.htm?bkt/index.shtml~main

 

[mattw]

What do you guys think about Kizlyar? They are Russian, is it good steel?

I was looking at the Sterh

 

[Skofnung]

I live in south mississippi (lots of pine forrests with a few hardwoods mixed in, very humid and somewhat marsh-like). I spend alot of time at the river in the summers and it may see some light utility duty as a truck knife.

Sounds like you are in an environment much like mine. Most of my woods time is spent in and around the Apalachicola National Forest here in Northern Florida. I've tried everything under the sun in terms of cutlery (all <$100, I've yet to break the C note mark, that will change soon...) and it seems that I always go back to a Scandinavian style knife for general use.

Try this. Go ahead and get a big knife (6" blade or longer) and a Frosts Mora Carbon Steel Clipper. After one year of toting them both around in the woods, ask yourself which one you used most often. Were I a betting man, I'd bet that you find the Mora much more useful.