An old debate revisited !!!!!

my main focus has shifted from hiking to going out strictly to perform bushcraft related tasks...Most of the time you could get away with a sak or an opinel but personally I like a 4 inch fixed blade for most tasks..
 
For me, my Swamp Rat Bandicoot is just right, which I think is right at 4 inches. Any smaller, and I'd just use a SAK.
 
I prefer around the 4.5 to 5 inch blade myself. Four inches is plenty, but I prefer to have just the little bit of extra length, just in case.
 
Fonly said:
Sure fuzzies recquire finesse. But I also dont carry one knife.

This thing about more knowledge means less steel is crap in my eyes, when it comes to gear yes, but your choice of knife doesn't allways reflect your level of skill, that is an unfair biased opinion.

If you were to drop me in the woods with on 4" knife and a firestarter I would get to work and have a camp set-up in a day or two, thats a fire pit, shelter, utensils all the good stuff.
Click to expand...

Hi,

I think you misunderstand me. I didn't say more skill means less knife. Or that people who carry bigger blades somehow have less skill. What I meant was, if you have the skills needed, then you can get by with a knife that is less than "perfect." If you don't, then the best blade on the planet won't help you. And I in no way meant to infer that you shouldn't carry what you like and are comfortable with.

I personally, don't like carrying large knives. I don't like the weight, the awkwardness of movement for me, and the limited amount of actual use that I get from them. And I've found over the years that I can get by without them quite nicely. Your milage is different from mine and that's OK.

As with most things in life, it's less about your tools, and more about what you know and the skills in your hands.

dalee
 
I'll add another variable to the pot. There is lots of discussion on length, but not on blade thickness. In the case of small knives (<4"), I see thickness as a variable that is highly function specific.

For example, I have two 3.5" knives (Breeden kat's) and my shorter (2.5") JK kit knife that are made of thinner stock (3/32") that excel at slicing and work amazing well paired with a bigger/thicker knife. I love these blades when used under these circumstances, but I have less faith in them as survival knives. Mind you, they will work in a crunch, but I wouldn't really go out with them as my only knife as a preferred option.

For a "need to rely on it" blade, I prefer something that is at least 1/8" thick. I think I can get buy with a smaller blade length of 2.5" as present with my Jimi Wade necker. I'd feel much more comfortable with the RC-3 however.

I have come to the conclusion that my Canadian Micra is just too small in length (1.5") for use as a general utility. It is awesome for urban pocket carry and again will pair up nicely with a bigger knife. The grip on this little blade is great and it is a wide blade at 0.15" thick :eek: But there simply isn't enough real estate to work with on its own.

Okay Pitdog - I know you like to pry with your blade, you like to dig in those cedars and pull yourself out a nice piece of fatwood. With a small blade, prying is how you will approach this, not chopping. So I recommend a blade that is 1/8" or thicker. While 1/8" isn't thick on a long knife, on a small blade that produces a really stout blade. I suppose it is possible to bend a 3" x 1/8" thick knife by hand, but you couldn't apply that much force without thinking in your head - "this is a stupid thing to do".

While you guys have seen all my knives to death.......Reply to a post is just an excuse to whore out another picture :D :D

DSC_0069-8.jpg


DSC_0071-5.jpg
 
This question is driving me crazy right now. I'm making my own knives and can't decide what sizes to make them. My little 1x42 machine doesn't have the capacity for me to do much trial error, so I try to get everything ideal before I grind. And every time I grind one, I think of something new. I'm already out of steel, need to order some more.
 
pitdog said:
The question is " How much knife is enough ?"

I'm aiming this question at those like myself whose main knife usage is usually during day hikes and may involve shaving Fatwood, making fuzz sticks, maybe a little food prep etc.

I love using my big knives but in all honesty they are usually overkill for what I need ( this opinion will likely change in a few days or when the wind direction changes :D) and I'm now wondering just what the minimum size would be that I could get away with.

Two such knives that I'm looking at are the Bark River Imp and the Bark River Pro scalpel II.....the Imp in particular.
The most important factor with smaller blades for me is the handle, they still have to have enough handle for me to get and maintain a good hold of !

I could likely get away with a folder but for some unknown deep seated reason I just don't trust them and always prefer a fixed blade !

Thoughts please !!!!;)
Click to expand...

For day hikes, I don't even need a knife. I have a couple but I don't need them. I don't do food prep on a day hike. If I thought I would be hungry I'd buy a sub and take it with me. I don't do fuzz sticks, in fact, in 62 years, I've never needed any. I don't light fires on day hikes. This is not a critique of what anybody else does, just what I do.

However, day hikes are usually more than day hikes, for me. I might be out foraging, collecting shoots for arrow shafts, wood for drills and hearths, practising trap/snare set ups, etc. To this end I would always have a FB with me. Used to be a Mora, now Bravo-1 (4-1/4" blade). It's small enough to be easily carried, yet sturdy enough to baton, carve, whatever. Did I mention I love this knife? :confused:

Pitdog, if I lived where you do, I would be carrying something more substantial than an Imp. Lesseee,...... bears, cougars, old chicks looking for boy toys........... On a day when nothing goes wrong, you don't even need a knife, but if it does...................:eek:

Well you get the idea. The only way to know what's enough, is when the cards are dealt and you come up short. :( , so at least a 4" blade (just like my Bravo-1's :D)

Just my 2 cents worth of rambling thought.............

Doc
 
The more and more I do, the thinner knife I prefer. 1/8" is my max thickness, with 3/32" or so being very nice.

Those thicknesses just do the tasks I ALWAYS do extremely well. Couple that with a good handle (which is hard to come by) and you are good to go.

Thin knives can take much more of a beating that you realize. Bryan Breeden has probably done the most "thin knife beating" that I know of on his own O1 with excellent results.

It seems most thin knife failures to beatings are associated with the handle, and not a problem with a full-tang type design.

The old rule of thumb is if you can cleanly take a thin slice off a tomato with your knife, you have a good woods knife.

Just my thoughts.

B
 
hmmm...

like many others on here, i agree that on a dayhike where my focus is to get out and walk and perhaps reach a local summit or other destination...i really don't need a knife, and hardly use one.

but if my dayhike is more focused on bushcraft tasks, with only a short walk for the sake of reaching a place to practice, then a knife is much more important to me...

that being said, (and i've said it plenty around here before) my EDC blade for quite some time has been my large Case stockman, which has worked great for me on impromptu bushcraft sessions. things like taking an unexpected walk in the woods with some friends and showing off some traps or the like...or like strolling out back to take care of the chickens and enjoying the good weather for a few minutes by sitting down and whittling on a stick...

for a dedicated overnight trip though, my beefiest knife is typically my 1/8" thick, stick-tang, puukko style blade.

i think that instead of looking at blade length or thickness or width as individual factors, perhaps it would be better to look at these as they affect eachother. what i mean is that perhaps we should be looking at the stiffness of a blade. for example, my main fixed blade, though only 1/8" thick, is very stiff because it is only about 7/8" wide and a little under 4" long. it also has a scandi grind, which leaves the blade fairly thick down the width of the blade.

if i had a blade 12" long that was 1/8" thick it would more flexible, and feel less "stout". likewise, if my blade above that is shy of 4" was made 3/32" or 1/16", it would be far more flexible and less sturdy feeling.

i like a stiff blade for my bushcrafty tasks, since it lends itself to alot of control.

geometry also plays a huge role in cutting ability, and thickness can't really be compared without also comparing the geometry of the cutting edge...but that is perhaps for another thread.
 
For about my ten most active non military years in the outdoors, Camping, hunting and fishing, I used two knives exclusively. A Buck 110 folder and a Buck Folding Fillet knives with a 6 inch blade. I never found myself wanting for more knife.

I guess one exception is for meat processing, I had a couple longer boning knives. I also always had my Vic Explorer but used it mostly at work.
 
DOC-CANADA said:
For day hikes, I don't even need a knife....


...On a day when nothing goes wrong, you don't even need a knife, but if it does...................:eek:

Well you get the idea. The only way to know what's enough, is when the cards are dealt and you come up short. :( , so at least a 4" blade (just like my Bravo-1's :D)
Click to expand...


Doc makes a good point.

It is wise to keep in mind that a “Day Hike” is only one day long if things go the way you planned,

…many day hikers have ended up spending more time in the woods then they would have liked.


Always plan accordingly.




"If you're not living on the edge, …you're taking up too much space."

Big Mike
 
Brian Andrews said:
The more and more I do, the thinner knife I prefer. 1/8" is my max thickness, with 3/32" or so being very nice.

Those thicknesses just do the tasks I ALWAYS do extremely well. Couple that with a good handle (which is hard to come by) and you are good to go.

Thin knives can take much more of a beating that you realize. Bryan Breeden has probably done the most "thin knife beating" that I know of on his own O1 with excellent results.

It seems most thin knife failures to beatings are associated with the handle, and not a problem with a full-tang type design.

The old rule of thumb is if you can cleanly take a thin slice off a tomato with your knife, you have a good woods knife.

Just my thoughts.

B
Click to expand...
speaking of tomatos
thick knives can be used for "fine" tasks too...depends on the edge geometry

.215

MallorysWedding086.jpg


MallorysWedding085.jpg


:D
 
Big Mike said:
Doc makes a good point.

It is wise to keep in mind that a “Day Hike” is only one day long if things go the way you planned,

…many day hikers have ended up spending more time in the woods then they would have liked.


Always plan accordingly.
Click to expand...

+1 :thumbup:, that's what I said too. I think always having a "better" tool at hand, even if you don't need it for most normal tasks while dayhiking, helps tilts the odds in your favor if you ever find yourself in a bad situation. At minimum, I always carry a 4-5" because it can do everything a smaller knife can do. But a smaller/less robust blade can't do everything a bigger blade can do (or at least do them as efficiently).
 
i get by pretty well with my buck 102(4 inches?). i do carry others occasionally, but find they are not really needed.
 
i love big knives. Becker 7's, BK9's, Machetes, Khukuris, heavy bowies.

Sure i could do the exact same things with a 3 - 5" blade, but when it comes to it, i prefer to chop 4 - 8" logs with a bigger knife. WHY? because it takes LESS physical energy and time than it does with a small blade. You might enjoy having to swing a little blade 100's of times to make one cut in a log. I prefer to swing a larger blade 10 - 20 times to make that cut, and then move on to the next cut.

My hikes (dayhike or longer) are centered around the blade. I dont go out to just hike, i hike out so i can use my blades. I plan my destinations based on what fallen logs are in the area and accessible for chopping splitting peeling etc. Go for a hike to see pretty falls? yea thats nice too, but i would rather spend the day chopping and making stuff! My large baldes prep food just like my small blades too!

YMMV, and thats great.
 
Also much depends on what your hikes are. If you go to hike in the wild, your needs would be much different that one who hikes in the Park or across town. There are hikes and there are woods outings.
 
I currently have been nothing but satisfied with a Mora I bought off of udtjim (don't remember the model) or my Roach Belly. As others have stated, I don't baton, so I don't need something that can handle it. I also usually carry a Coast folding saw, a Farmer now, and either my machete or my hatchet. I usually only go out for day hikes or overnighters, so the extra weight of carrying the right tool doesn't bother me. I'm not into the whole ultralight thing...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top