How much knife for hiking

Hashishiin said:
Wait... I love Spyderco... and I also love older knives, especially ones designed from 1869-1929, like the Douk Douk, K55, all those, and those are like, one of my first-line EDC knives. But is this a serious question, what Spyderco is as durable or as slicy as a Douk-Douk?

A Chaparral? I got a dull Chap, and I thought it was sharp originally because of how slicy the profile was, it was working even though it was skipping off fingernail. A Manbug wharncliffe? Any thin ground blade with a good lock?
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my spydy gb2 has an amazing hollow flat grind, slicy as can be, nice cpm-m4 steel, its quite a performer
 
dirc said:
my spydy gb2 has an amazing hollow flat grind, slicy as can be, nice cpm-m4 steel, its quite a performer
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Funny you should comment to me about M4, was just posting my girl's M4 Sage 5, and was talking about how good the edge was and how it was corrosion resistant and how I just caved and bought one for myself, too (as well as my new old M4 Dodo). I just feel like the knife is better than the PM3 or the Native 5, what with the steel, the color, the comp-lock (favorite Spydie lock)

I have a few hollow-ground Spydercos, namely Yojimbo jumbo in 20CV and S30V, serrated G-2 Stainless Snap-It. They are very good cutters. Hear only good, good things about the GB2, is it on a comp lock or back lock?
 
My choice would be something that keeps the weight down, but is still useful. In Boy Scouts it was all about carrying the biggest knife the Scoutmaster would let you get away with. In the Army I learned that big = heavy and heavy = misery on long forced marches. If I were to go back today, I would really have to evaluate what needed cutting and what the minimum I could get away with and still have it be useful. This is my combination now, even though were more "glampers" now;)
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knivesnknucks said:
how can you say this after saying:
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What a dumb question. Saying "that's one fancy car" doesn't mean I don't also have a fancy car, or couldn't buy one if I wanted. Like I said in that thread, thanks to everyone who suggested those places, but I was shopping for a tool, not a display piece.
 
Just hiking, or hiking and camping? Also depends on where you’re hiking or camping. If you’re setting off hiking on a heavily traveled trail at a busy time of year you don’t need to plan on getting stranded and needing to survive for days or weeks on end so your typical EDC folder is just fine. If you head off into the true backcountry, then yes you may want something more capable of the worse case scenario. Basically you don’t need an ESEE Junglas to go for a few miles hike on a popular trail in cell phone range, and you don’t want to carry a BM Bugout as your only knife on a backcountry trail where your hours from cell service and civilization.

With that said I love the Benchmade Anonimus’s that I just got for my girlfriend and I. I have and have had a lot of fixed blade field/survival type knives and it’s the first one I’ve loved. Great for everything from batoning wood and starting fires to food prep. I liked it so much that I got us each one and then a third as a spare.
 

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craytab said:
I think a fine, small, light weight hiking fixed blade would be the Esee Izula in S35vn.
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I agree with this guy about the Izula! That's what I ended up buying myself and I really like it. But I recommend against S35vn if you're doing any overnighting or think you even might be. However if you do go that route, make sure you're always packing a small diamond sharpener or else you could end up with a dull blade that can't be sharpened in the field. Also don't do any prying with it (how you can avoid that in the field is beyond me though, so...)

But the Izula seems pretty perfect to me. I did a weekend with it and I build a debris hut and got into a termite nest and foraged and got into some pine cambium no problem with just the izula.
 
campandtravel said:
I agree with this guy about the Izula! That's what I ended up buying myself and I really like it. But I recommend against S35vn if you're doing any overnighting or think you even might be. However if you do go that route, make sure you're always packing a small diamond sharpener or else you could end up with a dull blade that can't be sharpened in the field. Also don't do any prying with it (how you can avoid that in the field is beyond me though, so...)

But the Izula seems pretty perfect to me. I did a weekend with it and I build a debris hut and got into a termite nest and foraged and got into some pine cambium no problem with just the izula.
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campandtravel said:
ESEE Izula. It's working well for me so far.
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Nice choice! I've got an Izula in 1095. I'd wager to guess I've had it for almost 10 years and it is holding up great. I will disagree about S35vn. It is a great all around premium stainless steel that was developed primarily to be easier to sharpen than S30V, tougher too. If one is "overnighting" in the "field" near the coast or in a rainy climate, a premium stainless like S35vn is just about perfect. Also, if you are prying stuff big enough to break an izula, you just might be using the wrong tool.
 
If you’re concerned about sharpening harder steels, the worksharp field sharpener is an amazing little tool for quick touch ups of any blade in the field. I keep one in my pack at all times since it’s very light and compact and can sharpen just about anything.
 
craytab said:
Nice choice! I've got an Izula in 1095. I'd wager to guess I've had it for almost 10 years and it is holding up great. I will disagree about S35vn. It is a great all around premium stainless steel that was developed primarily to be easier to sharpen than S30V, tougher too. If one is "overnighting" in the "field" near the coast or in a rainy climate, a premium stainless like S35vn is just about perfect. Also, if you are prying stuff big enough to break an izula, you just might be using the wrong tool.
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If you like the Izula, the White River backpacker is a great option. 3” blade with a comfortable handle.
But I like the shape of the Izula.
 
Redneckbmxer24 said:
If you’re concerned about sharpening harder steels, the worksharp field sharpener is an amazing little tool for quick touch ups of any blade in the field. I keep one in my pack at all times since it’s very light and compact and can sharpen just about anything.
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Thanks for the suggestion and OP should look into that but for me, carrying a sharpening kit into the field is not a good choice. Too heavy, and too many ways to sharpen good steel in the field. By "good steel" I mean NOT something that needs a diamond. There's a whole thread somewhere on here of people trying to convince me to live my life different but this works for me so I'll stick with 1095.
craytab said:
I will disagree about S35vn.
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I like 1095 for field use, and until someone is in the field for more than three weeks at a time then I figure they don't really have the same perspective on field use. But if you're just out for a hike or a weekend then S35vn is great.
craytab said:
Also, if you are prying stuff big enough to break an izula, you just might be using the wrong tool.
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This might be the most ridiculous thing anyone has ever said. People who say knives are not for prying as people who think knives are not for using. A knife is the original multitool and they have been used for prying since (I assume) the first day they were invented. Anyway if you're out in the field (not just for a few days) you'll learn that you need to pry if you want to eat etc. and you don't want to carry a separate prybar.
 
I would generally advise for 3-4 inch fixed blade that can be used for nearly everything including chopping and defense. Preferably thick high carbon steel blade and sabre or scandi grind. Some similar folder would do just okay, but it has moving parts. That's basically all you would ever need if you end up lost in woods or in case you will need to stay overnight. I would also bring some big combat/bowie/survival knife or machete if there are dangerous animals in your area with or without the smaller one.

If you are just going out for smaller hikes near area where you live, then SAK or anything like it will do just fine. I've heard of cheap 5 dollar knives surviving whole military career so everything is possible I guess :).
 
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