Ideal wilderness skills/bush knife features?

I like a good carbon steel blade , and a basic wood handle , a blade length of about 4 inches or so , give or take a bit .. Im not over fussed on full tang , I personaly do not believe it to be needed for my use , I havent broke a stick or partial tang yet ...

I like a drop point , but its not essential . Most important for me is the grip , I have big hands and find that using small knives for extended periods makes me cramp , annoying .

Also the sheath , its got to be easy and comfortable to carry or itll be left in favor of my folder .
 
longbow50 said:
If you are indeed young and without much experience, the knife should probably be one designed for a young user. Finger guard, a non-slip handle, 3"-4" easy sharpen blade with scandi grind, fairly thin stock for good slicing capability and lite weight, good sheath and well known company.

You asked not to mention company names, so I'll just show you a pic.:D
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d9/RovingArcher/Gear/martiini001.jpg
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For their stainless blades, Marttiini uses 420-series steel heat treated to the low-mid 50s hrc. Not something I'd ideally want in a relatively hard use knife. They have a few models with the better 'Carbinox-T508' steel (58hrc), though aside from the billhook model they all have quite small blades.
 
As I understand it the main reason for carbon steel is that you want to use it for the flint and steel thing. If I understand that correctly is because you use the flint stone to cut hot sparks out of the knife back. Get a firesteel instead.

I use a ferro rod/ firesteel / light my fire whatever they are called and my F1 and it sparks like a fire cracker. The reason is that the angle on the back is really sharp (think ice skates) and the steel is so hard that it carves lots of material from the rod, hence lots of sparks.

I have read in one place about making sparks with carbon knife and flint stone (one of Ray Mears survival books) but in every other book they show the mag block spark thing or swedish firesteel or similar things.

A carbon knife is more prone to corrosion or rust. One of the reasons they used SS in the F1. That knife was actually developed as a survival knife for the Swedish Air Force and became very popular with hunters, weekend warriors of all kinds, bushcraft people and such.

The Hokum knife is quite similar to the Fallkniven H1 but more expensive and not that fancy steel.

If you like the Fallkniven knives but not the handles you can buy the blade only and put your own handle on it. Just remember that you can not have just one Fallkniven... I have 24 last time I counted :)
 
A bush knife by definition needs to be a bit more robost than a folder or a skinning knife.
It should be easy to sharpen, preferably with a pocket stone on the sheath or similar.
Carbon steel works, but so does some s/s blades, tempering and grind makes it good.

I think a 4" to 5" blade is ok and even up to 7 inches depending where and how long in the "bush". Canadain woods is different than Florida brush. Handle needs to be very comfortable ergonomics. I think the grip will make or break the desirability of the knife.
There is no simple answer. I've used micarta, leather, stag, and ivory which is the most comfortable but the most fragile. The shape and fit in the hand is crucial. Not many makers succeed in this dept.

Did I help or confuse? :-)
 
I like hicarbon steel because its what I like to work with , , it sharpens better for me , I have broken a number of stainless blades and just do not trust stainless now as a result ... given a choice within my budget , I would much rather trust a knife with a carbon steel blade than a stainless one ...

this is just me and my limited budget tho .

I did recently buy a bunch of fero rods but striking them is not why I prefer hi carbon steel knives , they work with my little stainless folder as well as they do any of my other knives
 
I put a high premium on grip/handle shape. The ideal shape for a handle varies depending on what you are going to do a lot of. Lots of US outdoor knives have quite narrow handles which make them easier to use for game prep. The BarkRiver Northstar is such an example. I don't do a lot of field dressing, so I want a broader handle that spreads the load across more of my hand when carving wood. I have handled a lot of nice knives that were really uncomfortable when used to make feather sticks. I aim for a width of 3/4 of an inch or just a little less at the front of the handle.

I also like a knife that has a broad butt/pommel. Handles often feel nice when held in a sabre grip if they taper at the butt, but if you need to drive the point into something using the heel of your hand, that narrow pommel will hurt.

These days I tend to avoid wide ricassos or finger choils for my bush knives. I love how these features look, and on the right design they can give a nice secure grip when cleaning game or doing other close, light work. The downside is that they move the cutting edge away from my hand when I want to apply pressure, the leverage works against me.

Edge geometry is important, but there are few knives that cannot be modified, and not all that many that come from the factory such that they don't need that modification!
 
I prefer thick stainless blades without serrations, flat grind, 4"-5" and a handle that I can put pressure on without tearing up my hands. I own a Fallkniven F1, and for a folder, a Benchmade Griptilian. Bottom line, it needs to be tough, sharp, and there when you need it.
 
scpower said:
If only they were a good carbon steel...
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Peter at Fallkniven said they might be adding a mysterious new steel in 08'... We can only wait and see. :D

But besides that, I like vg-10 laminate, it works better than I could ever want. So I'm perfectly content.
 
DaleW said:
I prefer thick stainless blades without serrations, flat grind, 4"-5" and a handle that I can put pressure on without tearing up my hands. I own a Fallkniven F1, and for a folder, a Benchmade Griptilian. Bottom line, it needs to be tough, sharp, and there when you need it.
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Answers to this question are as varied as the individuals who might answer. Different environments, habits, skills, knowledge, life experiences, etc. No brands mentioned, eh?

I prefer thick 1095HC high carbon cutlery steel blades without serrations, sabre grind trailing point, 5 1/4" and a handle that is tough in most temperatures with good traction like textured Delrin and good ergonomics. Bottom line as Dale stated, it needs to be tough, sharp, and there when you need it.

Codger

I'm not looking for names brands, just features.

 
pitdog said:
Nice looking knife there Codger !
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Tanks! :D This is the pattern I have used forever. Well, since the early 1970's. It has served me well and I have tactile memory of it to the point that I can use it without seeing it. That is important underwater, inside an animal, in a dark tent, and in many other situations.

Codger
 
For me:

* Carbon steel

*3 1/2" to 4" blade length, but I lean more towards 3 1/2".

*3/32" to 1/8" thick steel, but I lean more towards 3/32".

*Scandi grind

*Drop point

*No guard

*Full tang, hidden or exposed.

*Wood or antler/stag handles. I guess I'm just old fashioned, I like natural materials.

*I prefer a thinner handle, for example, the blade and handle width should only be 3/4" to 1". It is rare that I hold it like a baseball bat, and a thinner handle is more comfortable for other ways of holding it.

*Aesthetically I prefer nickle silver hardware over brass.

*Last but not least, a nice simple leather pouch sheath. Not sure if that is what it's called, but I'm talking about the kind that is one piece and is folded over and sewn on one side.
 
stingray4540 said:
For me:

* Carbon steel

*3 1/2" to 4" blade length, but I lean more towards 3 1/2".

*3/32" to 1/8" thick steel, but I lean more towards 3/32".

*Scandi grind

*Drop point

*No guard

*Full tang, hidden or exposed.

*Wood or antler/stag handles. I guess I'm just old fashioned, I like natural materials.

*I prefer a thinner handle, for example, the blade and handle width should only be 3/4" to 1". It is rare that I hold it like a baseball bat, and a thinner handle is more comfortable for other ways of holding it.

*Aesthetically I prefer nickle silver hardware over brass.

*Last but not least, a nice simple leather pouch sheath. Not sure if that is what it's called, but I'm talking about the kind that is one piece and is folded over and sewn on one side.
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+1, My thoughts to a T
 
Moonshine, were you able to make it to the Exibition in middleton this year?
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Well i go out to watch, but my horse hurt himself doing somthing. So I didnt get to do as much as I would have hoped.

P.S the dumbass animal is making a full recovery
 
Codger, although the original poster asked that you not reveal the brands of knives, would you do so for me? I liked the looks of knife and your prior description. TIA!
 
2medicine said:
Codger, although the original poster asked that you not reveal the brands of knives, would you do so for me? I liked the looks of knife and your prior description. TIA!
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I'm not codger but it is a schrade old timer 165ot woodsman, they are no longer made made but gems of a knife. Here is my 15ot after playing with a bit of mustard.

Picture705.jpg


And my favorite the 13ot.

Picture743.jpg

Picture742.jpg
 
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