Recommendation? Christmas help with a Survival knife

Sorry didn’t read the entire thread, but the only logical reasonable answer is, get a CPK.
 
Tommy Taylor said:
It's not a true survival knife I'd say a good all around or Bushcraft knife it's for my oldest son who is 14 it will be for everything from skinning and gutting deer to something I started as a kid and go in a big block of woods with the basics and to snare or trap all your food for a week during the summer and a couple weekends during the fall and winter while working on a long-term shelter for training in case it actually ever happens
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Hmmm.

Well, now that I have more info, I'll go against the grain of most of the other posts and say that I wouldn't go with a Mora or one of the Scandinavian type/style knives. I'd opt for as better steel for bushcraft that will include skinning game. Deer hide (actually most animal hide) is tough on the edge of most knives and will dull one quickly. I'd recommend 3v or 1095 in the carbon steels or 01 tool steel. In stainless, I'd say S30V or S35VN unless you can find anything in a bushcraft knife in M390 or CPM-20CV. Overall best stainless for edge holding and ease of sharpening with just a rock would probably be 154CM.
I like and use the ESEE line of knives. Outstanding job of heat treat on the 1095 carbon steel and the best part is they are warrnted forever. Yes, forever. If he ever breaks (I doubt he can, and I speak from experience), they'll replasce it for free, forever.
I highly recommend the ESEE 4.
 
schwep said:
I would also second the Skrama and any of the other Varusteleka Terava blades (Jaakkaripuukko 110, 140, mini puukko or mini skrama etc.) for anyone looking for a sub-100 dollar blade that is tough, will do the job and more, but the OP seems to be in the USA and it's for Christmas which is less than 3 weeks. The Fins tend to be fast with international delivery, but it is a risk, which is why I suggested a Mora Kansbol, also a very good and affordable Scandinavian-made blade but one that can be found in the US (being in Europe I am not in the position to give any advice on US-made blades). For a 14-year old I think a Skrama would be a bit over the top. For his dad however... LOL. Especially if they have a lot of delimbing jobs around the place. I use mine a lot for that and always have to keep myself in check to not burst into evil laughter as branches fly off everywhere with a single stroke.
I did recently see a video on the Varusteleka FB page showing a visit to the Laurin Metalli factory where they were experimenting with a shorter one-handed version of the Skrama, with what seems to be a blade in the 8-inch range. Maybe worth keeping an eye out for if one is a Terava fan - I suppose I would qualify... ;-)
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I would like to see the above mentioned shorter version of the Skrama...
 
Hale Storm said:
Hmmm.

Well, now that I have more info, I'll go against the grain of most of the other posts and say that I wouldn't go with a Mora or one of the Scandinavian type/style knives. I'd opt for as better steel for bushcraft that will include skinning game. Deer hide (actually most animal hide) is tough on the edge of most knives and will dull one quickly. I'd recommend 3v or 1095 in the carbon steels or 01 tool steel. In stainless, I'd say S30V or S35VN unless you can find anything in a bushcraft knife in M390 or CPM-20CV. Overall best stainless for edge holding and ease of sharpening with just a rock would probably be 154CM.
I like and use the ESEE line of knives. Outstanding job of heat treat on the 1095 carbon steel and the best part is they are warrnted forever. Yes, forever. If he ever breaks (I doubt he can, and I speak from experience), they'll replasce it for free, forever.
I highly recommend the ESEE 4.
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Is 1095 particularly resistant to deer hide? My impression is 1095 is relatively poor on edge holding compared to the rest of the steel types you mentioned.

But ESEE warranty is a good reason.
 
hunter55 said:
I would like to see the above mentioned shorter version of the Skrama...
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here is the mini-skrama
440195c179d8e8240f.jpg
 
For a hundred bucks, pick up a Becker BK9. Sure other steels will skin deer longer, but deer hide is going to be tough on any blade. 1095 is easy to bring back to sharp. Skin, dull, sharpen, and skin some more. A perfect, large, survival knife!

WzjPhRH.jpg
 
Another +1 for the Terävä Jääkäripuukko. The 110 and 140 are both excellent. A Becker BK-16 is another very good option. And on the cheap a Mora Companion HD is a good choice.
 
I mostly use ESEE and Tops around my land. I have the Izula, Izula 2, 3,4, and 6. Best warranty in the business. Proven knives.

Tops I have a BOB, Backpackers Bowie, Cochise, and a Fieldcraft Folder. My only thing "against" Tops is that they have so many different models, its somewhat of an issue to find what I'm looking for and some of their designs IMO are gimmicky. Good quality knives though and I've been happy with everything I've owned of theirs.

Also, for an honorable mention, Check out the Gerber Strong-arm. I know Gerber catches a lot from the forum, but I have several Strong-arms I've bought and absolutely love the design and I carry them a ton. Great price ($60-$70 street). One of the most underrated fixed blade knives IMO.
 
superpog said:
Is 1095 particularly resistant to deer hide? My impression is 1095 is relatively poor on edge holding compared to the rest of the steel types you mentioned.

But ESEE warranty is a good reason.
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No, deer hide will dull any 1095, BUT, in the overall picture of what the knife will be used for (bushcrafting), 1095 is a good choice IMHO. If the budget were higher, I'd recommend a different knife (probably 3V), but for $100.00 or less, it's hard to beat the ESEE 4 for the OP's intended purpose. And again, that forever warranty is worth it's weight in gold.
Also, the deer would be once or twice a year and the bushcrafting would be much more frequent based on the OP's definitions.

On a side note, I have multiple mid tech and higher end knives like most of us. My go to skinning knife these days is a 1095 steel Old Hickory cabbage knife (FFG and very thin blade) that I shortened and modified the blade for skinning and added better handles. If you know how to skin a deer properly, you can minimize contact with the actual hair and get through a whole deer without the need for a touch up on the blade. I've skinned 2 deer and 5 hogs this year with that blade and it's awesome. I clean it after each animal, touch up the edge, and put on a light coat of mineral oil. I use that same knife in the kitchen alot now for food prep. 155.jpg 157.jpg 158.jpg
 
I saw a nice knife at a local sporting goods store. What do y'all think of the Buck open season Skinner with s30v steel
 
Tommy Taylor said:
Any book suggestions? He loves reading he reads for at least a couple hours a day more on rainy days
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Any by Nessmuk and Kepheart.
The gear and clothing may have changed somewhat over the last 100 plus years since they were active, but the skills needed have remained the same.
"Finesse beats brute force." is as true today as it was in pre-historic times, when "early man" was hunting (and being hunted by) dinosaurs for lunch.
 
I have bought mine the Ontario marine fighting knife for under 40. I also bought Lansky pucks for them to work with when field sharpening My son wanted a 7 Inch blade a leather washer handle. He really. Wanted my ka-bar dog head but I know he looses things. Daughter is getting one too. I like the 1095 as it can be touched up on just about any rock. Some of the other steels may be harder to sharpen in the field in a emergency situation.

I like the idea of the books. We could all learn more.
 
Camping and Woodcraft by Horace Kephart is a must own (books) for the outdoor enthusiast (especially if you live East of the Mississippi R).
 
Henry Beige said:
So buy a bunch of Moras and stash one every place you can think of so there is always one at hand. In your car, on your bike, at work, in your work room, in your kitchen. One in your pocket, or even on your belt if you can stand it.
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Almost what I did: every car, the shed, the cellar, workshop, next to the wood burner... Except on my belt. But I have a Mora HD hanging on the wall next to the garage door that I grab everytime I step out into the compound (donkeys, chickens, veggy garden, fruit trees, bales of hay, bags of animal fodder, always something to cut).
 
dirc said:
here is the mini-skrama
440195c179d8e8240f.jpg
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That's not it (although those minis are fun). The Varusteleka store, that designs and sell the Terava knives, have a video on their Facebook site of a recent visit to the Laurin Metalli factory where all their knives are made, and it showed a prototype of a one-handed version of the big Skrama they were experimenting with. The blade looked about 8 inches long, two inches shorter than the big one, which would make the knife a modern/skrama-ish version of a leuku. Still very early stage, it looked like they had cut up one of the long handles to take out the 'bump' in the middle and glued it back together again to put it on a prototype blade...
Should be a very handy, super strong multifunctional chopper/bush knife that would make a nice combo with one of the minis. I'd start leaving hints about anniversary/Christmas presents for late 2020... ;-)
 
Cold steel srk is a good option.

Les Stroud (survivorman) carries the srk. If that isn't a stellar mark of endorsement, I dont know what is
 
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