Knives for cold weather

I like my 7' Leuku as my base knife paired with an Izula or RC3. Maybe a Fallkniven F1 if I owned one.
 
Try a Marttiini Martef Skinner, this has a very tough rubberised handle that is dishwasher proof and good to -50c that should be enough.....Like most Finnish or Scandi knives it has a very safe practical dangler pouch that is designed for use in extreme cold.Anything with wood or rubberised grips is desirable in the cold as you MAY have to take your mitts off! I also note that these Nordic knives/puukkot are almost always hidden tang and with good reason.Centuries of experience has shown you don't want to be touching any metal in the cold and if you must baton, use a hatchet!
 
Justin over at ranger knives should be able to hook you up with all your needs. Fixed blades are what your looking for my friend. folders should not come into play in a sub zero enviornment for the simply fact that moisture can freeze the locking mechanism. it happens to car locks and house locks and you simply dont want to deal with it even if it is just an inconveinience. of course this is just my opinion :)

oh and inner tubing over a knife handle taped up will cover any exposed tang and should be durable enough:)
 
For a folder I would recommend a Buck Strider with ATS34 blade. It's been my experience over the last 30 years that no other knife, save one, is made for use with gloves on - and at 0 Degrees, you must be able to use it with gloves on.

The Strider designed folder was designed explicitly for duty use with gloved hands - the droppoint, flatground utility blade has an oversized oval for opening, and G10 scales to reduce cold soak on finger tips, grooved back and butt to retain grip, a linerlock to resist dirt or snow and stay locked up. The choiled blade allows a choke grip to work fine details without slicing up a good pair of gloves, and the thumb rest is also grooved to maintain grip. The basic construction is overbuilt and rugged for field use, which is required in cold temps.

The only better knife would be an actual Strider SnG - but that doesn't meet your budget. The Spyderco Military would do - if you can trust yourself not to snap off the thin tip working frozen wood.
 
My wife bought me a Spyderco Military for my birthday last month (She saw me researching them :))
I've been using it on our family snowshoeing weekends ever since I got it. Works great with gloves, huge knife. Last year I was using my small Sebenza and always had to take my gloves off.
For a fixed blade I carry a Busse ASHI.
Can't go wrong with a Mora though, hey, $10. :)
 
The handle is crucial in cold conditions. Some that have worked well for me in -40, wearing thick rubber gloves, are Cold Steel's Kraton grip on my Master Hunter and SRK, and the big Arctic Birch handle on my Roselli erapukko.
 
einsteinjon said:
This intrigues me...I did a quick google of it and saw 154CM. How does this hold up to your uses? Does the handle feel like it gets brittle at all?

I hadn't really thought much about using a folder with gloves. It usually ends up staying warm enough in my pocket and I use it for little things when I get indoors, but I'm sure it's not exactly 98.6 degrees F in my pocket when it's 0 F outside. This ZT interests me cuz it'd be possible to use outdoors then.

As far as the Spydercos go, I'm a fan. I have a couple as it is, 2 Endura 4s and a Native. Never really thought about being able to use the hole when I have gloves on though! One of them has a white handle, so that'd be out of the question for use around snow, but that gives me an excuse to get another one if I go that route.
Click to expand...

I've been very impressed with the blade on this knife. It must have something to do with the heat-treat. I have used it to cut bark and rotten sections (some chopping and prying involved) off of ironwood and rosewood with no chipping. It also takes a very nice edge.

There is little stress on the G10 scales, they're mostly there for grip. I wouldn't worry about cracking or breaking them. Even if they did, it wouldn't affect performance too much (and Kershaw would fix it right up). The handles underneath are 7071 aluminum and very strong.

The handles are also larger than most, making them very easy to use with gloves on. This knife can be completely operated with one hand even with my biggest gloves on. This would be impossible with most lock types.

Phillip
 
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