Knives used to cut barge ropes quickly

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xxman

Joined
Dec 25, 2006
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354
What kind of line knives are out there designed to be used on the river to quickly cut barge lines. Preferably a folder?
Help me please.
 
The Spyderco Mariner, Rescue and Assist all spring to mind. All three are available fully serrated for rope work, all are sheepsfoot to minimize the risk of stabbing yourself when you are in a hurry. The Mariner Salt is even made of H-1, so it won't rust even if you drop it in a bilge full of brine for a few days.
 
As already posted, a Meyerchin or Spyderco fully serrated blade.

A hacksaw will work too.
 
Thanks !! I've had several people ask me to recommend a knife for cutting lines used to hold a barge and I had mentioned spyderco, and had even showed them some.
Thanks for your help guys!!
 
Spyderco Tasman Salt would probably be best. Any other one of the serrated Salt series will also work great. Bottom line any fully serrated hawk bill design is probably your best bet as they were supposedly designed for net and line work.
 
I was thinking a Cold Steel Vaquero Grande.

As to folders, mine won the hanging rope (1-inch manila) cutting "contest" in comparison to my other folders - and beat out most of my fixed bladed knives, too.
 
Forgot about the Vaquero series. They are great cutters and would work very well also.
 
Some of those barge ropes can be very thick- 3" in some cases. I don't see how a 4" or smaller knife would cut one quickly, serrations or not. Yes, it can be sawed through, but the question called for "quickly".
I would recommend a larger blade, at least 6". A decent quality combat style fixed blade blade, or a machete.
 
The marine industry is moving toward smaller diameter synthetic lines.
Ironically many crewmen prefer sharp PE blades or PS over fully serrated.
Sometimes serrations hang up in the fibers.

Even an 8" diameter hawser will cut like butter under strain.
Hopefully you'll never have to do that.

Try something comfortable & strong , like a BM D2 710 or 806 or even a Cold Steel.

-Ron
 
Lines under pressure may cut easier with a SE than a PE. The Vaquero comes in a 5 or 6" version which will work well. A PE would work better with slack line, but if you must cut barge lines in a hurry chances are that they will not be slack. I had to cut a 3" nylon line from a 1300 ton barge of scrap metal due to an unusually high tide caused by incoming storms. The line was singing like a guitar string ready to rip the tie down (I forget the proper term, it is mushroom shaped) from the barge. I had a 5" Vaquero that went through it like butter. I think under that much tension any sharp knife, PE or SE, would have done the same. Forgot all about that. A long time ago, seems like a different life.
 
SOLEIL said:
Spyderco Tasman Salt would probably be best. Any other one of the serrated Salt series will also work great. Bottom line any fully serrated hawk bill design is probably your best bet as they were supposedly designed for net and line work.
Click to expand...

Harpy works well too.:)
Bet my Civilian would work great as well.:D
 
Cannon916 said:
Some of those barge ropes can be very thick- 3" in some cases. I don't see how a 4" or smaller knife would cut one quickly, serrations or not. Yes, it can be sawed through, but the question called for "quickly".
I would recommend a larger blade, at least 6". A decent quality combat style fixed blade blade, or a machete.
Click to expand...

When was the last time you heard of a mariner packing a machete? Or even a large "combat knife"?:confused:
Perhaps the OP needs to define "quickly" before any further progress can be made with the recommendations.
 
Yuh. Sorry. Hawser ties to the cleat, but a loop or a clove hitch goes around the big mushroom thingie.
 
I know you mentioned folders but we always kept a hatchet near by for just such an emergency when I worked aboard.
 
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