OKkaps....nice gerber. Ilike the serrated blade also.
I bought a couple no-name M1 Carbine bayonets for $15 each from the CMP for exactly this purpose.
Tough as nails, and I won't care if they sit in a vehicle or BOB without being cared for, or if they get beat up when I use them rough.
Tough as nails, and I won't care if they sit in a vehicle or BOB without being cared for, or if they get beat up when I use them rough.
I like Moras and other Scandinavian style knives.
I'd suggest you do more research before buying. There are alot of choices out there, and alot of philosophies/opinions.
Personally, I like the ESEE knives. I understand that Ontario Knife Co is similar and maybe a little better value, but ESEE seems to have better sheath systems.
Personally, I like the ESEE knives. I understand that Ontario Knife Co is similar and maybe a little better value, but ESEE seems to have better sheath systems.
Probably one or two of these
http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Steel-Handle-Concealex-Sheath/dp/B000BSZDNK
Though somebody had a pack of some knives similar to this. I think it was in the Budk catalog, I meant to look more closely at them.
http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Steel-Handle-Concealex-Sheath/dp/B000BSZDNK
Though somebody had a pack of some knives similar to this. I think it was in the Budk catalog, I meant to look more closely at them.
I recommend the SOG SEAL Pup Elite. Good size, sharp, tough as hell.
I am still in Hawaii, but will be in OK soon. I was bow hunting a few weeks back with a buddy and shot a boar from our blind WAY to early in the hunt. He ran about 30 feet in to a rock/thicket mess and took up camp. I didn't want to wait on him to stop making racket, so I took a backhand swipe at his neck with said knife when he stuck his head up at me, opened him up clean to the bone all the way across the neck and he was pretty much dead (and most importantly, quiet) right there. Knife blade hit the lava rock on the follow through and it didn't scuff it. Still razor sharp.
I think after using this knife in many different situations over the past couple of years, that I can and would trust it as my only fixed blade.
*edit* I have the half serratted version.
I am still in Hawaii, but will be in OK soon. I was bow hunting a few weeks back with a buddy and shot a boar from our blind WAY to early in the hunt. He ran about 30 feet in to a rock/thicket mess and took up camp. I didn't want to wait on him to stop making racket, so I took a backhand swipe at his neck with said knife when he stuck his head up at me, opened him up clean to the bone all the way across the neck and he was pretty much dead (and most importantly, quiet) right there. Knife blade hit the lava rock on the follow through and it didn't scuff it. Still razor sharp.
I think after using this knife in many different situations over the past couple of years, that I can and would trust it as my only fixed blade.
*edit* I have the half serratted version.
Nice solid blade, great price!
http://www.amazon.com/Condor-5-25-I...=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1328101093&sr=1-2
http://www.amazon.com/Condor-5-25-I...=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1328101093&sr=1-2
This is what I have..tough as crap, great sheath w/ built in sharpener:
I have this exact knife...great knife, solid plus it attaches to either a belt, molle or leg or calf. The butt of the knife is designed to be used for hammering if needed.
I have place where I can get these for about $60.
Not talking trash to anyone's knife preference, but I had a Gerber LMF-II (same design as several of their others including the Bear Grylls). It's made from very soft AUS-8 steel and loses it's edge quickly when using it for anything serious. The included ceramic sharpener will restore the edge somewhat, but not completely, so you have even less time with the edge than you did when it was actually sharp.
The serrations are ok (I'm not a fan of scallops, but these weren't terrible). I don't personally like combo-edge blades, even for survival, but serrations out-perform a plain-edge in some areas (see the below quote from MountainManJim over at Bladeforums - it's actually pretty informative). FYI, any pull-through design sharpener is not going to perform that well (avoid the carbide versions like the plague!).
Gerber's design is one that doesn't utilize a full-tang construction - meaning the blade stops in the top of the handle, and there isn't anything but their polymer/plastic between the blade-tang and the glass-breaker/fighting-pommel . Gerber touts several advantages to this design (electrical isolation, shock-dampner, etc.), but it's not ideal for doing things like batoning, driving into wood with a makeshift-hammer, or even heavy chopping.
There are more than a few tests (and real-life situations) documented out there that have resulted in broken handles (though to be fair, it actually held up pretty well to Nos' test over on knifetests.com). A broken handle on a knife without full-tang construction (especially one that's molded into a polymer handle) renders it almost useless.
The advantage of AUS8 is that it's pretty stainless - I don't recommend an ESEE knife (or other 1095) knife for a BOB that you're going to put away and forget about until Break-Out-Bag time get's here unless you're going to take some precautionary steps to prevent rust.
I've also ruined two Ka-Bar USMC knives with their tiny-tang and leather-handle construction. They're good for cutting, but don't try and baton with them - you'll bend the hilt or the tang in a hurry.
For survival, you want to think about what you'll actually do with it (and not just get the biggest Rambo knife out there like so many folks want to). Bigger is better for some things, but one knife won't do everything well. Honestly, a machete will do way more than a larger knife will.
Machetes are the swiss army knives of choppers. They don't excel at any one particular thing necessarily, but are unmatched in their versatility. For instance, an axe does much better than a machete for dedicated felling or splitting tasks...but how well does it clear brush or brambles? I have done just about everything with a machete that I could with an axe or knife (large OR small) and while the other tools might have been able to do individual tasks better than the machete, none of those tools could have performed ALL of the tasks that the machete did.
If you're dead-set on a knife over an axe or machete, then figure out what specific tasks you want to do with it (push-cutting, tip-digging, slicing, chopping, batoning, shaving, etc.) and choose a knife of a mid-range size to all of those tasks if you want to use one knife for the smaller jobs as well; if not, put a small slicer in the BOB and a larger chopper and you're good to go.
Get a good design - full-tang construction is designed to handle abuse. A thicker tip/spine is good for some things, but not so good for intricate work or slicing. Good quality handle materials are a must (most polymers/plastics will do fine), and make sure they're fastened to the tang in a way that won't come loose - otherwise you're duct-taping or para-cording in the field to protect your hand.
Get the right steel for what you need (won't start the religious steel-debate here). What I mean is if you can maintain a high-carbon steel blade, then get one. If you just won't do it (I'm lazy, so I don't have high carbon blades for everything I do), then get something stainless, but make sure it has decent edge-retention and is also within your ability to sharpen.
I like a plain drop-point or leaf-point shape, but there are plenty out there with positives/negatives.
Here's some info on blade-shape, handle-material, and grind:
http://www.spyderco.com/edge-u-cation/knifeanatomy.php
Here's the quote about serrations vs. plain-edge:
Good luck with your purchase no matter what you get!
The serrations are ok (I'm not a fan of scallops, but these weren't terrible). I don't personally like combo-edge blades, even for survival, but serrations out-perform a plain-edge in some areas (see the below quote from MountainManJim over at Bladeforums - it's actually pretty informative). FYI, any pull-through design sharpener is not going to perform that well (avoid the carbide versions like the plague!).
Gerber's design is one that doesn't utilize a full-tang construction - meaning the blade stops in the top of the handle, and there isn't anything but their polymer/plastic between the blade-tang and the glass-breaker/fighting-pommel . Gerber touts several advantages to this design (electrical isolation, shock-dampner, etc.), but it's not ideal for doing things like batoning, driving into wood with a makeshift-hammer, or even heavy chopping.
There are more than a few tests (and real-life situations) documented out there that have resulted in broken handles (though to be fair, it actually held up pretty well to Nos' test over on knifetests.com). A broken handle on a knife without full-tang construction (especially one that's molded into a polymer handle) renders it almost useless.
The advantage of AUS8 is that it's pretty stainless - I don't recommend an ESEE knife (or other 1095) knife for a BOB that you're going to put away and forget about until Break-Out-Bag time get's here unless you're going to take some precautionary steps to prevent rust.
I've also ruined two Ka-Bar USMC knives with their tiny-tang and leather-handle construction. They're good for cutting, but don't try and baton with them - you'll bend the hilt or the tang in a hurry.
For survival, you want to think about what you'll actually do with it (and not just get the biggest Rambo knife out there like so many folks want to). Bigger is better for some things, but one knife won't do everything well. Honestly, a machete will do way more than a larger knife will.
Machetes are the swiss army knives of choppers. They don't excel at any one particular thing necessarily, but are unmatched in their versatility. For instance, an axe does much better than a machete for dedicated felling or splitting tasks...but how well does it clear brush or brambles? I have done just about everything with a machete that I could with an axe or knife (large OR small) and while the other tools might have been able to do individual tasks better than the machete, none of those tools could have performed ALL of the tasks that the machete did.
If you're dead-set on a knife over an axe or machete, then figure out what specific tasks you want to do with it (push-cutting, tip-digging, slicing, chopping, batoning, shaving, etc.) and choose a knife of a mid-range size to all of those tasks if you want to use one knife for the smaller jobs as well; if not, put a small slicer in the BOB and a larger chopper and you're good to go.
Get a good design - full-tang construction is designed to handle abuse. A thicker tip/spine is good for some things, but not so good for intricate work or slicing. Good quality handle materials are a must (most polymers/plastics will do fine), and make sure they're fastened to the tang in a way that won't come loose - otherwise you're duct-taping or para-cording in the field to protect your hand.
Get the right steel for what you need (won't start the religious steel-debate here). What I mean is if you can maintain a high-carbon steel blade, then get one. If you just won't do it (I'm lazy, so I don't have high carbon blades for everything I do), then get something stainless, but make sure it has decent edge-retention and is also within your ability to sharpen.
I like a plain drop-point or leaf-point shape, but there are plenty out there with positives/negatives.
Here's some info on blade-shape, handle-material, and grind:
http://www.spyderco.com/edge-u-cation/knifeanatomy.php
Here's the quote about serrations vs. plain-edge:
MountainManJim said:
Good luck with your purchase no matter what you get!
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