Military/Survival knife

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W.T. Beck

Joined
Jul 9, 2001
Messages
1,411
I am interested in buying a military/survival knife with a blade length around seven or eight inches. If money were no object, I would choose a Randall Model 14 or a Chris Reeves Project II. However, I am on a tight budget so I have narrowed my choice to two less expensive alternatives: the Cold Steel Recon Scout and the SOG Recon Scout.
Which would you choose, and is there another I have overlooked? One absolute must is that the knife has a metal double guard.
 
Basic and cheap? The old standby, a Kabar or similar copy. Something more stain/ corrosion resistant, a Fallkniven A1 (6" blade) perhaps. Those scouts are pretty thick, heavy blades. More conducive to chopping and hacking rather than general utility such as whittling, skinning, food prep, and medical emergencies. An SAK/ multi tool of sorts or a folder is definitely needed for smaller chores.

Nakano
 
Cold Steel Recon Scout is really thick and well balanced. I would choose that. What about a Becker Magnum Camp?
 
The Cold Steel is a great value for the $$, a nice hefty carbon steel blade.
 
Folk's who make a living instructing survival think a LOT of the
Camillus Pilot suvival knife and it only has a 5" blade. That an
SAK with a saw will get you out of lots of tight spots. If you
subscribe to Tactiacl Knives look up an artical by Jeff Randall
from awhile back in his survival column. Real food for thought.
 
I have a Pilot Survival knife, and the Becker Magnum Camp as well. I am wanting something with a longer blade than the Pilot Survival knife. As for the Magnum Camp, after I cut my finger with the damned thing I have retired it until I can figure out how to install a guard on it. Whatever I get MUST have a DOUBLE guard on it. And it MUST be a METAL (steel or brass) guard - not some extension of a plastic or rubber handle. This rules out the Fallknivens, Busse Basics, Livesay, etc.
I have been leaning toward the Cold Steel knife. The only negative comment I have read about the CS Recon Scout is Mr. Stamp's observation that the Kraton handles wear quickly. However I would like to know if the SK-5 steel and edge geometry on the SOG knife is any better than Carbon V and the CS edge geometry. Anybody have thoughts on those aspects?
 
Oops! I got the name of the SOG knife wrong. The one I am considering is called the "Recon Bowie", not "Recon Scout".
 
With those two to choose from, I would go with the Cold Steel Recon Scout.
The Recon Scout is, of course, a smaller version of the CS Trailmaster. A very good all around knife if a 9"+ Bowie is too big to haul around.
 
Thanks for the advice. Once I got the name right, I was able to find information on the SOG Recon Bowie. It seems to be a good knife, but there were some comments about it being hard to sharpen and the blued finish wearing off easily.
So I decided to order the Cold Steel Recon Scout. I've seen alot of comments about this knife, and with the one exception of the criticism of Kraton handles, all of the comments have been positive.
I had to rule out alot of otherwise good knives, due to the lack of double metal guards on many survival knives. The Fallkniven A1 gets rave reviews as a survival knife, but it has only a small single guard integral to the handle. IMO a knife which might be needed for self-defense should have a double, metal guard. If you look at the current issue knives for the U.S. Military they all have double metal guards.
 
W.T.Beck:

Take that "issue" thing lightly. A lot of special troops get issued blades that have either no guard, or a half guard of plastic! Or rubber too. SEALS have been issued things like Cold Steel Recon Tantos in the past.

As far as your choice, good job. Take care of the carbon steel and it will take care of you. If after a while you hate the kraton, there are a lot of makers who could remove that handle and put on some micarta, g-10, figured wood, etc. In fact, there is a forumite here (I forget which one) who just does re-handling of knives, especially Cold Steel. Enjoy your knife.
 
W.T. Beck,

You have made a wise choice in the CS Recon Scout. If you have not had the chance to hold one in your hand yet, you will be in for a very nice experience when the one that you ordered arrives. (And you will be suprised at just how STOUT these knives are!:).).
 
Crayola,
When I said "issue" knives I meant the most common issue knives of the US military. These are often seen in surplus stores and gun shows here. The issue Army and Marine knife I have seen is the Kabar style with a long, straight double guard. The Air Force Pilot Survival Knife also has a long, straight double guard, and so does the Navy Mark "something" (I forget the number). I was aware that special forces groups get different knives.
I personally swore off knives without guards or inadequate guards after cutting myself with two different Becker knives. While holding them with the blades pointed up, the knives slipped from my grip and easily slid over my hand owing to the rounded, slick guards that are part of the plastic handles. I prefer straight guards because they are more likely to catch on one's hand than a rounded one, especially if the guard is short and slippery.
I have gone as far as to improvise my own guard on my Becker machette. I found a wall hanger that was made of a loop of metal with a screw in the center for mounting. I cut the screw off and bent the metal loop to make a guard I could slide over the blade, and then tied it on with wire and electical tape. You will never see an uglier guard, but IMO it looks better than blood gushing out of my finger.
 
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