Batonning...the eternal argument

[RPZIP]

Wise to know how, like making shavings and fire sticks. Depending on where you live, and or intend to go. Some places have an abundance of everything from the finest dead wood tinder to kindling. Other places you may have to break down your own with the tool(s) you have.

 

[GrumpySoreOldBastard]

Few things get me to up the view speed faster on a YT knife revue clip than the obligatory batoning, feather stick and firesteel sequence.
Low hanging fruit content filler IMO.

 

[smith357]

I don't think I would be willing to bet my survival on that, I'm all about the engineering, but too many failure points for my liking. For a small handy lightweight tote around axe I use a Tomahawk. Easy to break down, and if needed you can make a new haft with a stick.

 

[Hammer67]

Are there really still people debating about batonning?

Are these the same people who lay awake at 2am thinking, "Hmm....firesteel or waterproof matches?"

 

[edgelion]

Maybe some people want there to be an argument. I must've missed it. Fine with me.

 

[stabman]

Are there really still people debating about batonning?

Are these the same people who lay awake at 2am thinking, "Hmm....firesteel or waterproof matches?"

The original ESEE ferro rod has a tinder compartment in the handle...you could put waterproof matches in there...

 

[Eliteone2383]

I know many wont believe me but the griptillian is one of the best batoning folders out there. Ive even used a griptillian to baton and shave 2x4s for fitting ( proper tools were hundreds of yards away and I didn't have time for all that)

 

[stabman]

I know many wont believe me but the griptillian is one of the best batoning folders out there. Ive even used a griptillian to baton and shave 2x4s for fitting ( proper tools were hundreds of yards away and I didn't have time for all that)

For cross-grain batonning, I could believe it would work just fine.
I've seen Griptilians beaten all to hell over the years. At the original price-point, they were a very affordable knife for what you got, so lots of people bought them and used them in ways they might have hesitated to with a more expensive knife.

 

[kylemiller]

Considering how easy it is to pack my RTAK2 in my kit, I don't see a reason to not carry or flex another tool into its role.

 

[DeadPineKnives]

As someone who originally comes from the bushcraft world, I'll give my potentially worthless opinion.

Batoning is a good way to do a lot of things, but most people only use it to split wood. If you're gonna split wood, it has to be with your "bushcraft knife" which means that your "bushcraft knife" has to be "bulletproof" so you don't break it, and everyone knows that if you're a professional bushcrafter you have to baton, so you also need a bulletproof knife, and clearly if you baton, you have to whale on it like a gorilla, or like a machinist who's having a really bad day and just can't seem to get his parts seated on a set of mismatched parallels.

There you have it. That's why edges are thicker, stock is heavier, steel is softer, and toughness is more important than edge retention or cutting ability for, you know, a cutting tool.

God forbid you baton carefully or carve some wedges, or give any thought toward preservation.

Bushcraft kind of ruined everything.

That being said, I fully endorse batoning, just not the consequences of its popularity.

 

[Spirch]

i do this every 2-3 days to start my woodstove fire

dry small branch cut to length and easy to "split", got nearly unlimited supply of that

 

[fuyume]

My kit for surviving off-grid, year-round in the Vermont woods, where I have experienced temperatures as low as -25°F and wind chills as low as -50°F, When you literally live or die by the quality of your tools, you don't F around, or you WILL "find out".

Vintage (early 1990s) Gerber Pro-Guide II Drop Point Hunter, which has batonned its way through more kindling than I care to remember.
early 2000s Gränsfors Bruks Mini Belt Hatchet (designed and forged by Lennart Pettersson)
Fanno Saw Works 30" crosscut log saw
Stanley 20-221 Sharptooth Mini Utility Saw
Husqvarna (Hults Bruks) 26" Multipurpose Forest Axe

 

[David Mary]

I baton with a hatchet now.

 

[R.Russell]

 

[eveled]

How my daughter batons wood.

 

[Gossman Knives]

I've batoned a lot over the years. Mainly for knife testing but also for firewood prep. Some was extreme testing like this testing with Z Tuff steel and elm wood.