5" or 7" fixed blade?

oh Liam I cant agree with ya more, A nice double bit would be awsome. Unfortunatly, like you the only ones I've found were, well,.. piceces of crap, so, Back to the old wetterlings and a nice fixed for me ;)
 
Liam Ryan said:
I fail to see the contradiction, myself.

And why didn't they just crawl out the broken window?
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Because their bodies wouldn't fit thru the window, since the roof had caved in.

The contradiction is:

And as for breaking my smaller knife - why would I break it? If in a survival situation I would make sure that anything I did was well within the limits of my knife.
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Rolled Jeep story aside, my point is that you very well may not have the luxury of "choosing" what task you'll require your knife to perform. As previously stated, a survival situation is one you didn't plan, so always assuming you'll be able to call ALL the shots is simply naive.

My other example of the guy having to use his knife as a piton to climb up and out was unplanned. But without a knife stout enough to hold his bodyweight, he might not have made it. (I'm sure if he could've carved out a ladder or other tools to use instead I'm sure he would've done so........:rolleyes:)
 
In emergency situations, our most valuable tool, is our mind, not the knife that we have with us. Because we will be thrown into a variety of situations during an emergency, as part of our preparedness training, we should learn various techniques to perform the same task, with and without tools. ie; Lacking a large blade, instead of using a SAK to try and chop/batan a long limb for the fire, place it in a Y, or between a couple of trees and use force to break it. Or better yet, lay the long limb in the fire and let it burn, feeding fresh sections of the limb into the fire as needed. It'll save precious calories and energy that may be needed later on.
 
Codger_64 said:
This is my knife of choice, albeit this one is 440 stainless and mine is 1095HC.



Do I think it should be the knife of choice for everyone? Of course not. I have used this pattern so long that I have "tactile memory" of it. I know what it's shape is in the dark. I processed twelve deer with it this year alone, cut fireboards and bows and spindles, dressed catfish, bream, sauger, and bass. I cut river cane for fishing poles. In all the years I have owned this pattern, I've never chipped the edge or broken the tip. The bladestock is full tanged and nearly 3/16" thick. I have used this knife year in and year out, and there is no noticable blade loss from my honing. In short, the knife works for me.

I realize that many people these days are eaten up with "Rambo-itus", and think that only high dollar big knives are worth having. Likewise, people think that only big caliber guns are worth having, "Dirty Harry-itus". If that is what floats your boat, fine. I bought my knife of choice before "Rambo" hit the big screen, and Stalone was either making porn movies or hopping around Europe. Eastwood hadn't advanced beyond spaghetti westerns. And this knife has worked for me all this time.

If you are a fan of shorter knives, that is fine too. I've used a 3 1/2" knife many times and never felt unprepared for the tasks I undertook. Familiarity with a knife far outweighs many other factors such as blade length, IMHO. Someone who belittles people because they don't choose their particular knife of choice is foolish, IMHO. Unless it is one of those "SAK-o-whackos".

Codger
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What knife is this exactly? Looks like a Schrade but what model?
 
That picture is the second production run of the Uncle Henry 165UH Prospector. The first production has thumb grooves on the top of the choil.

This is the 165OT Woodsman, the Old Timer version I prefer.


Codger

Edit: This is the Fibron wood handled sample I bought after the factory closing. It is from the last production run around 2000-2001 and has a hollow ground stainless blade instead of the standard sabre grind.
 
WOW this is quite the debate going on here. I'll give my 2 cents now. I have grown up in the woods and spent time in the ARMY. I love knives and always carry more than a few when in the field. When I was in the army I always had a BMF strapped to my pack and a small folder in my pocket. As I mature I never carry my large knives anymore I feel that they are only good for hacking. You have little control when cutting. I think a 4" max knife is ideal, for hiking,hunting,camping.
On a side note I cant imagine chopping a tree in chunks and then battoning it into kindling to start a fire. Maybe for fun but not in a serious situation, the amount of energy expended would be crazy. My father taught me when I was a child how to start a fire with collecting tinder from your surrounding's. He always would give me and my brothers one match each to start a fire when we were young and I never resorted to battoning.
On a side note I am no expert and I dont know were you live or what kind of terrain you hike in, but in Canada all serious outdoorsman carry a Hatchet.
Cheers fro the Great White North
 
MONKEYAZZ said:
On a side note I am no expert and I dont know were you live or what kind of terrain you hike in, but in Canada all serious outdoorsman carry a Hatchet.
Cheers fro the Great White North
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No they dont, they carry an axe.

that said when out and about in the bush miles from any road one does not want to carry an axe or hatchet diue to weight and comfort. But one may want something that can deal with most wood chores.
this is where a large blade comes in. Lighter too.

Skam
 
skammer said:
No they dont, they carry an axe.

that said when out and about in the bush miles from any road one does not want to carry an axe or hatchet diue to weight and comfort.

Skam
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This is where a canoe or snowmobile comes in!:D
 
codger;

i too have the the old timer, schrade woodsman for a long time now. it is a stout knife, full tang and is very sharp. it holds an edge well and has served me well. good choice.
 
Codger_64 said:
This is where a canoe or snowmobile comes in!:D
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If there were any friggin snow here :rolleyes: :D .

Where I go (and many lost others apparently) on SAR ops there is no access except on foot and I ain't lugging 10 blades and an axe.

My SAR gear weighs enough.:eek:

Skam
 
Bumping this to ask a quick question about steel,
I am going to order the RAT 5 and a BK7 from e-bay, should I bother getting the RAT in D2? I don't know very much about this steel, but I do like 1095 a lot. I guess it holds an edge very well, but its a pain to sharpen?
Is it worth the extra 15 bucks?
 
Wow, good question.

For D2, plan on using a diamond sharpener. it'll hold the edge longer than 1095, but it may not be as nice an edge. That's all I've ever heard.

I would imagine that there are good shapeners out there that could maintain it, and even make it a good one, but, I am sticking with 1095 and similar steels.
 
I think thats what I decided. I have heard D2s big plus is corrosion resistance, which has never been an issue with me. I will stick with good old carbon steel.
 
My newly acquired RAT-7 in D2 is awesome. It has chopped up a pressure treated 4x4 & a fubared SpongeBob DVD player quite nicely, while retaining its decent out of the box edge. It is just the right size and feel. Buy it! You know you want to!


 
I just ordered my RAT5 in 1095, but I do hope to try this steel out in the near future, possibly in a smaller fixed blade.
 
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