Best fixed blade

I would have said my Simonich Talonite [from Les] but I am a little cautious about the possibilty of rolling the edge in hard use like chopping. Still the best around saltwater, though.
I would have said my Hayes camp knife in 52100, but it will corrode and it's a bit too precious to beat the hell out of, if I have to. And it's huge.
All things considered, my choice is my Busse Steelheart II, and that's my mainstay now, replacing my old Trailmaster. It's a little more versatile than the Battlemistress.
 
is it truly SURVIVAL backpacking? like the middle of the alaskan wilderness? then I also vote for a busse steelheart.If it's the backpacking you're hoping to survive,the talon! it'll cut what needs cutting and you'll not mind the weight. ounces count if you're covering a lot of ground.
 
What Brent said. If this is a trip where you need to build a shelter and have an open fire to keep warm, my big blade would be a Gransfors Bruks Small Forest Axe. Lacking that, a Busse Battle Mistress.

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
Busse knives definately have the reputation and testing stats to prove a worthwhile knife. I would have to agree that it is and would be a worthewhile choice.

I am going to have to get my hands on a Busse knife and give it a spin in the woods...
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Greg Davenport
Simply Survival's Wilderness Survival Forum
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I'm sure Busse makes a good knife, but I have a difficult time parting with over $100.00 for a knife thats going to get beat up. I think I'd be inclined (and I am inclined) to look at the Becker series from Camillus. Those are good to great knives at a fair price. I'm especially inclined towards the Bush Hog, which is supposed to be released by the end of the month.

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It's not the pace of life that concerns me, It's the sudden stop at the end.
 
Most people go light when backpacking and take only a SAK or small lockback. But I love big blades. I have strapped a Busse BM, or MMHW Large Camp Knife on the side of my pack for many trips. I guess it depends on what you like, and how much extra weight you are willing to carry. At the least, my Mean Street is my constant companion. Too bad they are discontinuing it, it is my favorite small fixed blade.
 
I, too had a hard time coughing up over 100.00 that I would basically destroy through hard use. I went with a Becker Campanion and I have absolutely thrilled with it. Just last night, I took a road killed deer out to the back of my acreage as coyote bait, and my buddy noticed a small antler. I handed him my Becker and he chopped it off. Later at the house, I just ran it down the steel about a dozen times, then shaved all the hair off my arm! This is one tough knife that deserves a look.
 
I have been very impressed with the Becker Companion. I took it out for a 10 day winter warfare exercise and it did extremely well. Good investment but not nearly as much as the Busse Combat. My thoughts

Jeff in Canada
 
Another vote for the Steel Heart. Read back to July 96 American Survival Guide. It will provide some guidance.

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Run and you only die tired....
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I would probably carry the kukri type knife that I made last year. I have used it for digging, chopping, hammering, making shelter and so on.
The only thing that I think that it would not be good for is skinning game but a sharp piece of rock will do that.

Knifesmith
 
Small knife: Fallkniven F1
Medium knife: Fallkniven A1, Cold Steel SRK, or SOG SEAL 2000
Large knife: Livesay RTAK or Spec Plus Survival Bowie
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Well for my choice it would have to be a Busse, it is a Battle Mistress E Variant with Egyptian Tip, it is the only one in the world, I am ordering it from Jerry Busse, and when I get it the first thing I am going to do with it is chop down a tree, hmmmm, a Redwood tree to be exact, but I also am ordering a Lean Mean Street, so I think that you should go with a Busse to, there is so many good comments about them, the warranty is the best, you cant go wrong, thanks, and take care.

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blademan_007
 
I have to admit I bought a BM and have yet to use it. I paid $350 for it and since it's a straight BM which is no longer made, it will probably be worth a lot more later. I've already been offered $450.

I use my Becker Companion and Magnum Camp a lot though. But neither is the chopper that the BM is. The BM is just a lot more massive. I think a more comparable piece might be the Becker Brute. Still, I love my Companion and Magnum Camp for light to medium chopping, but if I had to do a LOT of chopping, like in shelter building, I'd want something bigger.


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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
I understand that Les Robertson will be offering a Simonich with a talonite blade in the 6" range as part of the Vanguard series. That should be a fabulous knife for everything except perhaps heavy duty chopping. A bit expensive to use hard, perhaps. Has anyone used a big talonite or stellite blade for heavy work and how did it hold up?



[This message has been edited by HJK (edited 02-20-2001).]
 
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by blademan_007:
Well for my choice it would have to be a Busse, it is a Battle Mistress E Variant with Egyptian Tip</font>
Click to expand...

Blademan, please tell me what an "Egyptian Tip" is?

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The most affectionate creature in the world is a wet dog. - Ambrose Bierce
Most dog owners are at length able to teach themselves to obey their dog. - Robert Morley

iktomi
 
The Chris Reeve Project, is the one I've used for years. Its about as much knife I can handle when carrying weight.

Weight is important: too much and you will leave it at home one day. A light machette has its place where foilage is dence; but otherwise any good hunting type knife would do. Ray Mears, a serious survival researcher, carries an Alan Wood 4 1/2 flat ground utility (he also carries an axe). There are a lot of good knives out there which don't cost the earth. In a survival situation where you need to get back to civilisation fast, there is no time/need to build a wood cabin. When building a shelter there is little stuff that needs to be cut, as most materials can be found on the ground.

Save your energy and don't go too big.
 
GREENJACKET,
I was wondering what knife he was carrying. It looked flat ground to me. The one thing that surprises me is that the one I saw was a bone handle. Seems like for durability, a micarta handle would be preferred. And do you know what axe he carries? The one I saw looked like a Gransfors Bruks small forest axe.


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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM
 
If you can only have 1, then how about the H.I. 15" Ang Khola with the Kharda piggyback and very sharp.
I just tried whittling with my 18" UBE Khukuri and you can do some fairly fine work with a large Kuk if you are careful.

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Ron,
Bremerton, Washington
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