Recommendation? Best Survival Knife

ThePeacent said:
If that's really what you're looking for, I'll throw the odd one out here (based on the other recommendations I see) and tell you to get an Spyderco Aqua Salt. Here's why:

· H1 steel won't ever rust, no matter what. Leave it in the rain, cross a river with it, use it as a kitchen knife and leave it wet and dirty for days...

· H1 steel won't chip, it might bend but you won't be taking out chunks of it, no matter if you baton with it, stab or pry.

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· Serrated blade makes H1 extremely tough and holds a sharp and nice edge for long, while being easy to resharpen even though the serrated pattern (croc sticks, sharpmaker, tapered rocks...)
· Coated/non coated versions can be found

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· Grip is excellent, thin (for inconspicuous and easy carry on belt, IWB or wherever) but has an excellent pattern for maximum purchase even when wet, with or without gloves, and has a lanyard hole
· It's nimble, fast and lightweight, with a partial but sturdy tang and very solid construction
· Sheath has great retention, diverse mounting options and multiple carry positions, clips easy to any belt or bag and is barely noticeable, making it ideal for day-long carry, sitting etc. in my experience

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all from one of the best companies out there, under $100 in some stores and dealers and most importantly a blade that's easy to get used to and soon carries comfortably and nicely so that it can be always by your side when needed
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Yep, that looks like one good knife for under $100!
 
Mr. Peacent, I usually don't pick at somebodies choice of a knife, but my one roadblock with serrated knives is this....let's say I'm out in the wild blue yonder and I've lost or separated from all my sharpening doodads. I can find a nice flat stone and grind out a fairly decent edge on any of the knives I carry. Please take this as debate, but how would you doctor up your edge?
 
Finally got me a few more very high end handmade knives...I now own Andy Wood handmade FIRST BLOOD movie knife, Andy Wood handmade RAMBO MISSION movie knife, Bill Sanders Custom Timberline SA3 with custom S30V steel 9" blade, and a Vaughn Keeley handmade Timberline SA9 9" 440C steel blade lnife.

But The Best Is Last....I also bought me my Handmade Gil Hibben R3 aka RAMBO 3 movie knife. I ordered it about a month ago. Soon I will own Another Andy Wood handmade FIRST BLOOD movie knife, #3 of the 13 Original ones created by Jimmy Lile for the movie and recreated by Andy Wood.

I will also soon own #003 Handmade Vaughn Neeley FIRST BLOOD movie and 003 RAMBO MISSION knife set AND THE 003 Gents Folder!!

Yes, I have recently been very Blessed!!
 
A Rambo knife and a survival knife can be the same if its the one on you. If its well made then even better. Can't see me carrying one though. The most likelihood my survival knife will be a penknife as thats my EDC.
I put my input earlier in the thread.
 
BAMA1ST said:
Finally got me a few more very high end handmade knives...I now own Andy Wood handmade FIRST BLOOD movie knife, Andy Wood handmade RAMBO MISSION movie knife, Bill Sanders Custom Timberline SA3 with custom S30V steel 9" blade, and a Vaughn Keeley handmade Timberline SA9 9" 440C steel blade lnife.

But The Best Is Last....I also bought me my Handmade Gil Hibben R3 aka RAMBO 3 movie knife. I ordered it about a month ago. Soon I will own Another Andy Wood handmade FIRST BLOOD movie knife, #3 of the 13 Original ones created by Jimmy Lile for the movie and recreated by Andy Wood.

I will also soon own #003 Handmade Vaughn Neeley FIRST BLOOD movie and 003 RAMBO MISSION knife set AND THE 003 Gents Folder!!

Yes, I have recently been very Blessed!!
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;) Welcome Bama ! Sounds like you'll be ready fer pret' near anythin' . :rolleyes:
 
Kootaga13 said:
Mr. Peacent, I usually don't pick at somebodies choice of a knife, but my one roadblock with serrated knives is this....let's say I'm out in the wild blue yonder and I've lost or separated from all my sharpening doodads. I can find a nice flat stone and grind out a fairly decent edge on any of the knives I carry. Please take this as debate, but how would you doctor up your edge?
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:eek: Most people will probably be dead long before they have worn down those serrations to uselessness . If you've lasted that long in the wild w/o gear except your knife , you could grind out the serrations on your flat rock . Or maybe make a nice stone knife with your flint napping skills ? :rolleyes:

;) Nah ! Seriously , I much prefer a plain edge for hard use even with access to all my sharpening doodads . I especially hate trying to sharpen those Cold Steel type . Spyderco is easier to sharpen . I wouldn't want to try to chop with a SE either . Too easy to damage . But nothing beats a sharp SE for SD and emergency belt , rope , strap etc cutting . :cool:
 
Point taken but....I'd better, "bone up" on my napping skills.
The only napping skills I currently possess seem to want to occur around 1400 every afternoon. :)
 
If your survival situation is car related then a serrated seat belt cutter is a good choice. If you are dangling on the end of a climbing rope then a serrated edge can't be beat.
For in the woods or jungle then not the best choice.
Most survival is getting back to civilisation, so anything is better than nothing.

For bushcraft serrations are pretty limiting.
 
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My Handmade FIRST BLOOD knife and my brand new handmade Hibben RAMBO 3 knife. Also in this pic are the First Blood and RAMBO 3 Collector's Edition Hardback Books and also 2 of the 3 prequel books that begin telling the story of John Rambo...Written by Wallace Lee. These 2 books can Only be published by using a private printing company.
 
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Here are just a Handful of my knife collection:

Handmade Knives by: Hibben, Wood, Neeley, Sanders, Matton, Schiller, Martin, Clifford...

More photos to come and more knives coming...Including Beautiful Vaughn Keeley handmade set of FIRST BLOOD, RAMBO MISSION, And Gents Folder...And a 2nd FIRST BLOOD knife by Andy Wood... His #03 recreation of #03 of the first 13 FIRST BLOOD movie knives that Jimmy Lile made and was used in the movie, FIRST BLOOD...Recreated by Andy Wood and 100%.Accurate!!!
 
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Well Bama1st it looks like you win, nice collection and I'm sure a lot of time and $$ invested rounding them all up. Congrats, Hey if you want I do offer a free of charge testing of saw teeth survival knives, you know to see how they hold up to some hard use. :D
 
91bravo said:
The best survival knife is the one you have on you at the time you need to survive!
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And the best hiking boots if your car breaks down are the house slippers you were wearing. :rolleyes:

Besides even if this silly aphorism was true, and it's not, it would spoil all the fun of discussing/testing/researching what's a better knife.

The tools you have access to when you need them are the tools you have access to. So chose wisely.


Next week, "One is none and two is one." (So two is none.)
 
Thomas Linton said:
And the best hiking boots if your car breaks down are the house slippers you were wearing. :rolleyes:

Besides even if this silly aphorism was true, and it's not, it would spoil all the fun of discussing/testing/researching what's a better knife.

The tools you have access to when you need them are the tools you have access to. So chose wisely.


Next week, "One is none and two is one." (So two is none.)
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True, but how many of use carry a survival knife with us all the time? Sure I have great fixed blades that could pass as a survival knife, but I do the daily M-F grind with kids, sports, and hobbies and my survival knife is not on my hip. I have a backpack that I carry with what I think are necessities in case an emergency arises, meds, my kids' meds etc, but nobody knows when the shit is going to hit the fan. That's why it's great to be prepared as best we can. I go to the store with flip flops all the time. So I guess if a survival situation arises in that time I'm gone to the store, I'll be surviving in my flip flops. So I go back to my statement of, the best survival knife you can have at the time of survival, is the one you have access to....

But yeah, if I need a survival knife, and I knew when an emergency was going to come, it would be one of my Beckers or Moras.
 
That is one fine collection of Rambo knives. Fabulous.

The OP asked what was the best survival knife. Well its unlikely to ever be a Rambo collectors knife. As the best film prop then The Rambo Knife has to be up there with The Light Sabre.
Joking aside, I fully understand the attraction to Rambo knives as some are beautifully made. But, as a utility tool for survival they have some real negatives as a design. Some are built too hard and so might fail when prying. I don't think they are really that good and I wouldn't put them up for "best survival knife".

For me I want my survival knife to be portable and un intrusive. Makes it more likely I'll wear it regularly.
I want it robust so even from abuse it won't fail. But at the same time be good at being a knife, so not overly built.
KISS design with few adornments like serrations.
Light and manoeuvrable enough to never be tiring so its easy to use for both small and bigger tasks.
I really don't need to cut anything more than 3" to build a shelter, make a fire, or build something. I don't need to carry much "knife" and too much is energy lost when carrying.
I'm not a believer of the "one tool option", and pretty anti the way its pushed by some as a good idea. Its not.

So enjoy your Rambo knives for what they are. A survival knife is what you have to hand be it on you or what you can find. I certainly don't live my life "fully loaded" for armageddon, nor probably do many.
Before doing a bushcraft course do a first aid course, as the latter is the most useful and might save a life. Best if you can do both.
 
If the best were what you happen to have, close the forum. Nothing to discuss.

A survival knife is what you have to hand be it on you or what you can find. I certainly don't live my life "fully loaded" for [Armageddon], nor probably do many.
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The reality is that what you have may not be the best. It may be awful. It's just what you have. You may have a broken piece of glass. So some judgment should go into what you do carry - or have in the glove compartment - especially when deliberately going where risks are higher and help less available. No "mulligans." ("Wait! I need to drive home and get my Survival Knife.")

And it's not a bad idea to practice to find the maximum utility of what you do carry. (If you can't baton, can you shave your way into the dry part of the wood with your less-than-stout folder?)
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And four is three. And three is two. And two is one. And one is none. You NEVER have enough. (Can I use that "logic" to explain my insanity in buying too 8i$#%^*& many knives?)
 
Now if I were a stranded in the ice storm of ATL, then I could survive out of my truck. My family could survive for at least a few days off of what I carry in my truck box. The thing that we fail to realize is that we can never anticipate when an emergency is going to happen. I always have a folder and a light in my pockets, which is pretty much nothing in a shit-hit-the-fan scenario, especially if you have to shelter-in-place for a few days. Sure I have stuff that can help my family and I survive for a few days, but if we are away from those items, on the road, in the mall, inside Burger King, or whatever, we would only be utilizing what we have on us at the current time. It's kind of like using a pistol to fight your way to a long gun....
 
My opinion is that in emergency situations, any knife that you have on hand is a survival knife! And if that is all that you have, then you will Not want to abuse it or "Put it to the point of breaking it" test!

Rather, you wl be protective of it...Your only piece for survival. If I'm in an extreme emergency I'm damn sure not gonna be picky of knives. Not gonna say, "Oh no, can't use that one...its serrated"... Or "Ah, that knife don't meet my desires...I'll just not choose it and make it without a knife!"

Would be kinda stupid, don't you think? For me, so don't care if it's a kitchen butter knife...If I'm in need and it's all I can grab, then I'm gonna grab it and Go! I'll deal with details later!

But that's just the way I look at it. Might be right...might be Not Right...Everyone is different! But this is what would work for me!
 
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