Knife "batoning" for camp/survival fire making

Morbidity and mortality in the wilderness.
R Montalvo, D L Wingard, M Bracker, and T M Davidson
Author information ► Copyright and License information ►
Abstract

The medical literature is limited regarding current wilderness morbidity and mortality statistics. Available studies concentrate on selected wilderness activities. This study retrospectively examines wilderness injuries, illnesses, and mortality based on case incident report files from eight National Park Service parks within California over a three-year period. Data were extracted regarding type of illness or injury, body area affected, age, gender, month in which the event occurred, and activity in which the victim was involved at the time of the event. The overall occurrence of nonfatal events was 9.2 people per 100,000 visits. More than 70% of all nonfatal events were related to musculoskeletal or soft-tissue injury. The most frequently involved body area was the lower limbs (38%). Seventy-eight mortalities occurred during the three years studied, resulting in an overall mortality rate of 0.26 deaths per 100,000 visits. Men accounted for 78% of the deaths. Heart disease, drowning and falls were the most common causes of death. The information and statistics on morbidity and mortality in California wilderness areas that this study provides may be used to guide future wilderness use, education, and management. A standardized, computerized database would greatly facilitate future evaluations, decisions, and policies.
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I baton with my small Scandi when I'm carving, to remove wood faster, and have cross-grain batoned wrist sized and smaller green wood for shelter building purposes (poles, roof , and bed material), but I draw the line there.
 
 
Yes, it's a useful way to split wood, particularly if you want/need to get to the drier wood inside, but I'm not sure there is a bushcraft skill more blown out of proportion, in relation to actual need and difficulty to master, than batoning. Why does batoning get so much attention?!? :rolleyes:
 
Smithhammer said:
Yes, it's a useful way to split wood, particularly if you want/need to get to the drier wood inside, but I'm not sure there is a bushcraft skill more blown out of proportion, in relation to actual need and difficulty to master, than batoning. Why does batoning get so much attention?!? :rolleyes:
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Hype my friend, hype.

Anyone who can hold a knife in one hand can "baton" (though maybe not properly). It just seems so Rambo-ish and scratches that "one tool for everything" ideal which "real mountain men" were perceived of implementing and thus what the un-initiated long for.

On the other hand, it truly is a very useful skill (?) and something I've done as "needed" since the 70's when our family burned wood for heat. We made kindling with whatever was handy/easiest to use. At home this was usually a hatchet, but for making campfires where everything had to be carried), kindling was made with whatever tool was close by. Sometimes this was a hatchet and sometimes a hunting knife. Hunting knives were often used to whittle tinder/shave off bark and then as a matter of convenience, split bigger kindling into smaller pieces. It really was that simple.

I think the use of batoning is much the same as soccer-moms who drive big, 4WD Suburbans/Exeditions/Pick-up trucks (but never drive off of concrete streets) or folks who wear top-brand mountaineering boots/shoes/clothing around town, but *never* (or rarely....) use them as intended (though maybe on the annual ski-vacation when/where they bought said garment from the previous year).

It's all about projecting an image of whatever their value is - be it the "rugged survival/mountain man" or the "hard-core, Grade-V Mixed/Alpine climbing dirt-bag alpinist" (wearing the latest $500 softshell....).

We used to call 'em "Posers". Now, I realize everyone was a poser at one time or another - myself included. Everyone started out pursuing an ideal of some type or another with the idea to build a skill set or to become an accomplished _________. Some skills are easier to master than others and batoning seems easy enough. Except when doing it incorrectly and we break our $$$ knife (and could *never* admit we did something wrong - no way that's gonna happen!!!).
 
Smithhammer said:
Yes, it's a useful way to split wood, particularly if you want/need to get to the drier wood inside, but I'm not sure there is a bushcraft skill more blown out of proportion, in relation to actual need and difficulty to master, than batoning. Why does batoning get so much attention?!? :rolleyes:
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I think it's people who have never done this method seeing overweight guys try to split 10" diameter logs with a knife on the youtubes. From that it looks absolutely foolish to them because it is. What they very rarely see is a guy like me who splits small diameter sticks into kindling to just get the fire going. I'm not splitting up entire trees or claiming that you need a knife to feed your wood stove. I think it's also a matter of where people live. In SoCal or other places that have little to no rain fall, batoning is really not necessary. Even where I live there's a few months in the summer where batoning is just being done for fun rather then for any need.
 
We are into bushcraft because its fun! I enjoy batoning wood, I enjoy making nice thick long shavings with my knives too!

I mostly enjoy the end result, after the sun has gone down, it's nice and calm, and your nice hot fire is providing enough light to read and you go to bed warm and smelling of fresh Hickory smoke. I had a night like that last night, although it was a bit wet out.
 
Smithhammer said:
Yes, it's a useful way to split wood, particularly if you want/need to get to the drier wood inside, but I'm not sure there is a bushcraft skill more blown out of proportion, in relation to actual need and difficulty to master, than batoning. Why does batoning get so much attention?!? :rolleyes:
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I've never even really considered it a skill.

It's useful sometimes. It's also fun. That's the start and finish of it for me.
 
Skrapmetal said:
It's useful sometimes. It's also fun. That's the start and finish of it for me.
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That sums it up.

I'm just continually amazed at the number of YouTube videos, forum threads, etc devoted to discussing it at length. But whatever floats the boat...
 
After going in full circle of never even hearing about batoning, to batoning everything I could find, to now I'd say that it has it's place. If I were to baton it would be to get a groove started and then finish off with a wedge if possible.
 
Something I have recently become aware of is chopping is far harder on your knife and is much more likely to cause the blade to snap in half. Batoning is a much better choice, even for cutting down small trees. I became aware of this watching chopping videos in which blades made of great chopping steel broke in two. It's has to do with the same theory that causes heat treated 1095 to snap when thrown, but chopping causes it to happen much quicker. I seen a brand new out of the box 1/4" thick blade snap the first day it was used for chopping...Which the manufactures rep standing there watching. If you research it you find quite a few broken blades due to chopping and very few broken due to batoning. Even the lowly Mora Companion is almost impossible to break while batoning. There are thousands of video of people trying and not succeeding. Heck they even hammer them into trees and stand on them trying to break them.
 
Im not hiking 7 miles uphill with a splitting axe in my pack. To me that is a waste of energy and space. I hike with a light saw and a 9+ inch blade...I have many sykcos are my favorite. Did it 5 times last year. .once I had to get at dry wood after a heavy rain...I had 7, 18 inch logs and a stack if kindling in just over 30 min. I bring a axe when truck camping but still prefer to batton the pre cut logs I drove in.... battoning I can do easily, cleanly, next to the fire. Less effort and for me safer especially with a group of people....battoning is more precise than splitting with axe
 
I don't normally get involved in a...discussion...like this, but WTH,
Personally I don't believe in batoning unless you really are in a survival situation and your knife really is all you have. I don't think this should ever happen, but that's just my opinion. In order to do it correctly you need to practice. But don't depend on it all the time, carry the proper gear.

Dave Canterbury isn't my go-to for information (in fact he's usually the last in line). He teaches batoning in his classes. But I think he provides a useful perspective in this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyL-j3p7VHk
 
olybears57 said:
Well, from my persons experience in search and rescue, the vast majority of deaths we come across are from exposure. I could see in the front country falls and drownings would be more common... But if we are talking real backcountry wilderness, exposure is generally what gets them.
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Yep; that's been my experience as well in the past twenty-some years of back-country SAR...

Have personally found batoning to work well for me: better control/safety in the sometimes tight quarters of SAR scenes, improvised shelters, etc., and my knife is easier to pack than an ax/hatchet, and seemingly more multi-purpose... But that's just me.

Aside from that; the entertainment value of these threads is tough to beat!
In fact this pic was staged just because of the odd controversy:

troybaton.jpg


Off for another overnight SAR training this weekend - can guarantee there will be (reasonable) batoning :eek:...!!

Best to all,
8
 
It's steel vs. wood! Steel should always win. Now, if it's steel vs. water... then that's an entirely different contest.
 
aktrekker said:
But don't depend on it all the time, carry the proper gear.
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That's the debate in a nutshell. People like me think that a knife IS the proper gear for some situations including the making of kindling. For me hatchets have a place but it's more for the chopping chores. I'd take a knife over a hatchet for splitting as I find it easier, quicker and safer.
 
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