How many of you EDC a "survival" knife? Fixed? Folding?

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bored2deth

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Feb 27, 2011
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*I mean more along the lines of a heavy-duty knife, something tough.*

Mornin' folks,

I'm just waking up really, having some breakfast and orange juice. A thought popped into my head, "What do people usually EDC?" So, men and women of the Bladeforums, what do YOU EDC? Fixed? Folding? Multitool? Classic, tactical, or survival? Maybe weird and wonky? I know alot of you EDC at the very least a pocket knife. How many of you EDC your "survival" knife? Maybe you EDC a tough folding knife such as a Z or a Ka-bar Mule. Maybe you EDC a little big knife such as a Bk-11 (a personal favorite!), or something slightly larger such as a Bk-2 (Lil' Tank). Please share with us what you EDC and why and what you carry with it. Police, soldiers, please feel free to chime in as well. Pics are always a nice addition. :-)

Eating my breakfast,

:D
 
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I'm going to start muddying the water by saying that I, and probably a lot of others, regard any knife we carry with us as a "survival knife".

"Survival" can range from cutting a seatbelt to get yourself or another out of a crashed car at a downtown intersection, to finding wood and shelter to keep warm and dry in the middle of a million acres of forest.

"Survival" is what you do, not what you carry.

There are knives that are better suited to some of the situations in which you are going to need to cut things to stay alive, and the Micro Recon I have with me right now is not one of them.

But the 9" Kurki I have is.
 
I survive every day so far with a folder or two in my pocket. Sometimes a fixed blade on my belt as well.:D
 
If you don’t know what the general EDC habits are on this forum then you can’t have been here very long. It's one of the main subjects we talk about :p

That being said I usually EDC a medium sized tactical folder. Usually I carry my Spyderco Para-Military 2 or my Zero Tolerance 0560, both of which I have reground to have a mirror polished 17 degree edge for fine work. While neither of these would be my first choice in a survival situation, I still consider all my knives survival knives as I don't own a single knife that I wouldn’t be able to use for just about anything. Both of the folders I mentioned are fine enough for fine work but still tough enough that I could actually baton through small trees to make shelter if I had to. While I wouldn’t try to pry with the PM2 the ZT is one tough soab that simply will not break from any reasonable use. I imagine they would also serve me well in a self-defense situation, however unlikely that might be.

Still I would rather carry a good slab of INFI if shit really went down ;)
 
I EDC a Vic Classic, and I appear to be alive. So, yes, I guess I do.

By that reasoning I also EDC a "survival" Bic lighter, a "survival" Leatherman, a "survival" flashlight, and a "survival" charged up cell phone.
 
Good answers, good answers.. Although, I used the term "survival" loosely. Blah, reminds me of those old Rambo knives. One whack on a tree, and
PING! blade goes flying "Look out! Duck!"..hehe. I was actually hoping someone would chime in and say they carry a Bk-9 or a Dundee-knife just so I
could ask, "Are you for real? Seriously?" I agree, I hate the thought of vehicular accidents..was in one last year--was nearly killed. 18-wheeler side-swiped our car, nearly sent us reeling over a LONG, steep mountain side. My worst fear is being in a car accident and being trapped; either drowning in
submerged vehicle or bbq'ed. Yup, I agree with you, seventeen years of woodscraft and tracking on my belt, there's no tool in the world that can makeup for or cover lack of skills--none. A good knife helps though--alot.

By "survival" knife I meant more along the lines of say a Bk-11--a multi-function capable knife. "Survival" was just easier to type out and fit the space.
I'm wondering how many of you carry a knife that can serve a wide array of tasks. Yes, just about any knife can split wood or strike sparks, shave wood. I was wondering if any of you carry a Fox or a Becker, for example. A small or medium fixed, or a folder such as a Z--something heavy duty.

:-P Survival Bic...oh if I could photoshop lol. Nah, I meant heavy-duty. (and in that sense, I'd go with a zippo :-).) Ya, I've been around awhile, I'm not one for posting and prefer to ask questions for myself :-), although it tends to backfire and I get a good laugh out of it.
 
A Z..now that is one mean mamma jamma of a folder..too pricey for me though ;-). I put a Ka-bar Mule through much the same, lol..only broke it when
I got the thought, "If it can survive all that..how about this?"..hehe..but yeah, keeping the blade open I was able to split wood with it. Steel is steel, wood is wood--steel wins most of the time. And, yes, I DO know the average carry habits of this forum--highly varied ;-). Been around here for about 3 yrs. Don't post much. I love seeing how people react to the word "survival" in a knife context (glad to see I'm not the only one whom thinks it's marketing bs.) :-) Paint a butter-knife black and you got the Buttertac! Great for spreading butter on toast when you don't want to be seen eating your breakfast in the dark..:D
 
I generally carry a leatherman supertool 300 every single waking hour. I normally keep a one handed folder in my pocket for fast cuts at work. I normally carry a 10-13" khukuri on my hip as well. Sounds like overkill, but to khuk knuts a "little" 12" khuk is like a mousegun...the khuk you carry when you can't carry a khuk:D
 
A 3.25 blind horse knives bushbaby. It cuts my orange in the morning, and my dinner at night. In between I use it for whatever needs cutting during the day. Also, I like to whittle a bit and the scandi grind seems to do admirably well in that respect. Though I cringe a little when people ask to borrow it, might have to pick up a decent folder for lending out.
 
I always have a sturdy, one-hand, locking folder on me and most of the time a Vic SAK as well. If I was going with a lighter, thinner folder I would definitely always pair it up with a SAK.

I keep emergency non-knife use in mind when picking a knife, but not to the extreme where it's part shovel, pry bar, and knife. Heavy duty folders can't just have a 4mm thick blade slapped on there with crap geometry and given a thumbs up.
 
Seriously? A Kukri? Bought my friend one for christmas last year, he loved it...I just hope he doesn't miss and lose a leg..(not my fault if he doesn't
pay attention. lol.)

Ka-bar Mules to tend to be thick folders with a good grind, took a hell of a lot to break the one I had. Nightmare sharp.

Jac, you lend out your bushbaby? I'd cringe too..I'd get mental images of paint cans, screws, and the like. People don't often respect another man's knife.. Like a friend of mine, who borrowed a leatherman surge....and lost it in the drink...ugh...
 
I guess at some level, it's probably why I prefer heavy duty large lockblade folders, that "just in case" factor.

Got a Benchmade "Adamas" last week, that seems like a solid choice as a combination EDC/SHTF folder.
 
Always, always, always a Vic Super Tinker in my pocket. Most of the time an Ontario Rat-1 IWB. I carried a Becker BK-7 in my work bag for a while but it got kinda heavy so I 'downgraded' to a Fallkniven (Barkniven) F1. There's a BK-11 in there as well somewhere I think.
 
I'm sitting in my office right now, with a Bradley Alias in one pocket, a Byrd SE Hawkbill in the other pocket along with a Leatherman Juice, and I have a Cold Steel GI Tanto in my desk.

My EDC rotation contains a few knives that are tougher than the Alias.

I'm still toying with the idea of a short EDC fixed blade out of 1095 or similar that would serve for rougher duty use if necessary.
 
SERE! (Survival, evasion, resistance, escape) and my SAK Fieldmaster

Love carrying my Al Mar especially since I got it NIB for <$150 :)
 
bdmicarta said:
I'm sitting in my office right now, with a Bradley Alias in one pocket, a Byrd SE Hawkbill in the other pocket along with a Leatherman Juice, and I have a Cold Steel GI Tanto in my desk.

My EDC rotation contains a few knives that are tougher than the Alias.

I'm still toying with the idea of a short EDC fixed blade out of 1095 or similar that would serve for rougher duty use if necessary.
Click to expand...

Yea, I know what you mean.. Personally, I'm just about to the point where I don't want to carry anything at all anymore. From all I've read,
ranging from legalities, presumptions, people, etc--why bother?? Short is the way to go unless you're out in woods. My problem--I work in
both, so I'm back and forth. I'm trying to decide on a particular method, and maximum length. I'm reaching around to about..3 to 4 3/4 to
5 1/4 max. If you don't mind my suggesting a knife for you, I'd personally look at the Bk-16--1095 Cro-Van, drop-point, black or brown
handles, short.
 
I carry a balisong I made. It's comparable to a BM42 in size but double the weight. The balisong is an excellent knife for the urban survivalist.
 
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