7" Blade...Pointless?

W

Wyoming762

Joined
Feb 24, 2016
Messages
21
I'm having a hard time figuring what point 7" blades serve in wilderness, survival, or camping situations. A 4-5" inch blade is good because it can clean animals and do detailed work. And while I have always prefer a hatchet along with my smaller fixed blade, a 10" blade is good because it can do most of what a hatchet can, and can still do a lot of what smaller blades can do. In my mind at least, if you can't have a detailed work knife and a chopping tool but have to chose one blade, it would make sense to choose a 10" because it can do what a hatchet can do but still clean things and what not if you have to.
But then along comes the 7" blade as some sort of compromise. But it really can't do anything good. Of course it can cut smaller branches and be batoned better than the 4-5" blades, but you don't get much in the way of what a bigger knife can do. So you sacrifice the small knife's qualities without getting many of the bigger knife's qualities. I'll concede that if you are carrying a 7" knife it's okay, but if you, intelligently, decide to carry more than one cutting tool in the bush, it makes absolutely no sense to me to have a 7 incher paired with anything.
Maybe I'm ignorant to a lot of things regarding stuff I just said, so those who disagree with the above please correct me. I'm not interested in trying to prove a point, I'm trying to start a dialogue that I can learn from.
 
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Depends on the knife. I have scrapyard 711 and it's a good chopper. The reason is that it has a hidden tang so it's blade heavy. It's not going to out chop a 10 inch busse but it's a heckuva lot lighter and chops pretty well. It really comes into its own with prying stumps and bark and it's great as a froe. It's definitely a compromise but did I mention it's a lot lighter. :)
 
If you don't like big knives, which I do (relevant knife discussion quota met)...
Why don't you go play with the other liberals trying to control our knives, guns, lives and all else we hold dear.
What do you expect posting such a comment on a pro knife board?
Instigator, is all you are. I mean it appears like... To each his own.
I just hate to smell the beginning of "regulation". Enough of that already.
Can you learn from that dialogue?
Probably not...
I did find out I have about 10 knives with at least a 7 inch blade...
Including my TGLB, Randall 14-7, my two CS Recon Scouts, Becker, a couple Spec-ops...
I'll include my Zombie Tools Vakra, some less expensive, S&W Tanto, Ontario Bayonet, Bagwell Bowie...
Yikes, I'm low on knives with at least 7 inch blades!!
Lookout exchange forum, here I come!!
For now,
Pysyko out...:cool:
 
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7" in kind of the no man's land in sizes.

Just using Beckers as an example - because that's what I can relate to, I really like my BK-9 and the Tweeners (BK15, 16 &17) but the BK-7 just doesn't seem to get out much.
 
Depends on what you do with a knife outdoors. Knives that size are often still agile enough to notch and carve with, but the extra length can be very helpful when cutting thicker rope, prepping food while camping and battoning to split wood. I don't typically clean any game while camping, and I rarely do much chopping, so it doesn't make a ton of sense for me to carry a blade optimized for those tasks. Full disclosure, I still prefer knives in the 4-6" range, but there are plenty of 7" knives I would carry without feeling a ton of need for something bigger or smaller.
 
I see what your saying, and i also carry a 9"+ blade and a 5" blade myself when I go out in the woods. I think the 7" market imo is for if you are carrying one blade. They can chop pretty well depending on the thickness, and do detailed work (i skinned a deer with one and small prep for fires and food prep). Also has a place in the tactical market. If i could carry one it would preferably a 7" blade.
 
I kind of have an unpopular opinion, I think that 6-10" blades are very useful for larger tasks but I find that 4-6" are almost useless. A 3.5 inch will do all of the small stuff and a 8-9" will do all of the bigger stuff better than a medium knife. At least in terms of wilderness stuff.
 
I'm trying to figure out if 6850 is being serious or not, but if so I don't understand how I'm being left wing or trying to control knives when my point is that a bigger knife (10") is better than a smaller one (7").
I'm not instigating anything, the reason I was thinking about this is because I was trying to find a good use or purpose for my Buck Thug, to no avail.
 
6850 said:
If you don't like big knives, which I do (relevant knife discussion quota met)...
Why don't you go play with the other liberals trying to control our knives, guns, lives and all else we hold dear.
What do you expect posting such a comment on a pro knife board?
Instigator, is all you are. I mean it appears like... To each his own.
I just hate to smell the beginning of "regulation". Enough of that already.
Can you learn from that dialogue?
Probably not...
I did find out I have about 10 knives with at least a 7 inch blade...
Including my TGLB, Randall 14-7, my two CS Recon Scouts, Becker, a couple Spec-ops...
I'll include my Zombie Tools Vakra, some less expensive, S&W Tanto, Ontario Bayonet, Bagwell Bowie...
Yikes, I'm low on knives with at least 7 inch blades!!
Lookout exchange forum, here I come!!
For now,
Pysyko out...:cool:
Click to expand...

You didn't edit out enough of the "unnecessary roughing" - as you put it in the comment explaining the reason for your edit.

Go back and read the OP. While sober. He is CLEARLY not against large blades. Did you not read where he said:

"a 10" blade is good because it can do most of what a hatchet can, and can still do a lot of what smaller blades can do. In my mind at least, if you can't have a detailed work knife and a chopping tool but have to chose one blade, it would make sense to choose a 10" because it can do what a hatchet can do but still clean things and what not if you have to?"

Again, he has nothing against larger blades - if anything he is saying 7" is not enough for a lot of tasks, and he prefers a 10 inch blade. He is not remotely proposing "regulating" ANYTHING!

IMO, you should just delete your post and apologize.
 
It depends,, some 7" knives are thick and heavy enough to chop, but have a nice hollow grind making them great slicers as well (TGLB).

Some knives in that size though can tend to be jack of all trades, masters of none

Also, stating "X " or "Y" length knives are "this or that" doesn't say much.
The BK2 and Bradley Bowie are both about the same length with wildly different geometries and thicknesses
 
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Now that 6850 has edited his comment adding in all of the stuff about regulation, let me comment again.
No doubt what you're having a hissy fit over is my use of the term "civilian world." The reason I used that term was because, well I had camping and survival situations in mind, and also because I had the Kabar fight knife in mind, and as it distinguished itself in World War II as an excellent military knife l didn't want to be seen as perhaps ridiculing the weapon. Like I said, 7 inchers are decent if they are the only thing you can have (but not the best in my opinion), and perhaps excellent combat knives. But I wasn't talking about combat or any other situation where you might need to stab somebody, I was talking out wilderness. And my point is that in wilderness there are better choices (in my opinion) if you are only going to carry one knife, and certainly better choices if you are carrying two.
And just to make you happy, I'll edit may above post to remove anything that I think you might say "smells of regulation," at least until we all grow up, anyway.
 
Now, back on the OP . . .

I disagree.

In general, a 7" blade may be better than a 10" for "cleaning animals and doing detailed work" and a lot better than a 4-5" blade for clearing brush and chipping away at wood..

If I am only going to carry one knife with me, maybe I would prefer to carry a jack-of-all-trades that is at least functional for a LOT of tasks rather than a specialty tool that does one thing really, really well, but is kind of impractical or borderline-useless for a lot of other things.

JMO.
 
And remember, I'm not trying to prove that 7" blades suck. I have less knife knowledge than many here have in their pinky, I'm interested in learning and having my mistakes corrected above all else.
 
Wyoming 762,
My apologies sir...
That came off much too strong.
i often carry big fixed blades, we can't carry handguns in Canada, or Alberta.
And lately after another stabbing the cry of banning knives is heard!
I think some of you in the U.S. Already have such laws re blade length etc.
You are right, many jobs don't require a large blade...
And most chores a
Can be handled by a reasonable length blade, be it 4" or 7".
I guess my paranoia led me to post before thinking thoroughly.
I did stick hogs for 5 years with an Old Hickory sticking knife, provided by the company.
That was in 1984, today that same knife costs $12 yup,,12 bucks.
No guard, no nothing, including no edge out of the box. And by the time they would give us a new knife, the blade looked like a 4" Arkansas toothpick.
But after all that, knowing I can kill 10 pigs a minute for 9 1/2 hours with a $5 knife...
I still chose to carry a big fixed blade.
Maybe I'm compensating? Who knows.
But I feel more comfortable with too much knife, than not enough.
Even making me look worse, I also carry two folders all the time... Why?
Probably because the fixed blade is too long for most chores...
Again, I'm sorry I got my back up over nothing...
Peace Wyoming 762, I hope.
E
 
I didn't want to look like a chicken and delete my post.
Once I had my wits back, I have responded to Wyoming 762.
I jumped the gun & I know it.
Deleting my post would leave others wondering why I flew off the handle.
I will take my lumps as a man.
I'm sorry to all I offended,
A real apology, not one of our fake Canadian sorrys.
 
6850 said:
Wyoming 762,
My apologies sir...
That came off much too strong.
i often carry big fixed blades, we can't carry handguns in Canada, or Alberta.
And lately after another stabbing the cry of banning knives is heard!
I think some of you in the U.S. Already have such laws re blade length etc.
You are right, many jobs don't require a large blade...
And most chores a
Can be handled by a reasonable length blade, be it 4" or 7".
I guess my paranoia led me to post before thinking thoroughly.
I did stick hogs for 5 years with an Old Hickory sticking knife, provided by the company.
That was in 1984, today that same knife costs $12 yup,,12 bucks.
No guard, no nothing, including no edge out of the box. And by the time they would give us a new knife, the blade looked like a 4" Arkansas toothpick.
But after all that, knowing I can kill 10 pigs a minute for 9 1/2 hours with a $5 knife...
I still chose to carry a big fixed blade.
Maybe I'm compensating? Who knows.
But I feel more comfortable with too much knife, than not enough.
Even making me look worse, I also carry two folders all the time... Why?
Probably because the fixed blade is too long for most chores...
Again, I'm sorry I got my back up over nothing...
Peace Wyoming 762, I hope.
E
Click to expand...

Good show!
 
I have a BK-9 because it was offered up in trade, but a BK-7 would do the same job for me. The 9" has more reach, but in my area there's not much material with a diameter of more than 4-5" so the extra length doesn't generally benefit me.
 
Hello Mr Wyoming 762.
There is no reason for you to edit your thread. It's your thread!
I am admitting I was wrong.
I do not want to be at odds with your nor anyone else.
I explained I left my idiotic post up, so I could take responsibility for not thinking before I typed.
And if I had just counted to ten, I believe we would have similar opinions.
I'd rather have a 10" blade in combat, than a 7" blade.
I would rather have a 4" blade to gut a deer, or peel potatoes.
Maybe now I'm even questioning why I carry a 7" blade?
However I do... It's habit now, done it forever.
In the sense of learning from the thread, I would like to say that for the
small increase in weight, there is no reason not to pack a couple of knives at least.
If you are fortunate enough to afford extras, I understand that some folks may have to settle for
1 knife. I was in that very situation as a younger man.
Having two + knives may also be handy if you lose a knife.
Could be inconvienant, could be life threatening.
Alright, i am now going to hide and try not cause any more dissent.
I like Wyoming, I like .308's. You contributions have been friendly, and I am admitting I was wrong.
I hope you can forgive my outburst sir.
I would rather be friends with a fellow knife enthusiast, outdoorsman, rural man with a 7.62 than not.
RJ
 
Dont see that much on the forums. Good for you 6850 for having some class and doing the right thing. And sorry for hearing about all the bull crap politics that you all up there are going through right now.
And to add to the op, i do think 7" blades always tend to look the best. They are generally what i tend to collect in the fixed blade area, so i do carry them along with my other blades in the woods. Although i prefer a smaller and a larger blade instead. I do find it to be more fun using a 7" knife. So i guess that is another reason, is that just liking or having fun with the knife.
 
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