Most functionally versatile woods knife???

[Big Mike]

Great question!

I think most people's decisions will be based mostly on where they are located and what they're comfortable with.

I carry mostly a small 4"-5" fixed blade and a saw...

I couln't say it better myself. :thumbup: :thumbup:



Though I'm know as a big blade kind of guy,

...I carry and use a 4" to 5" blade more then any other.














A knife is this size range handles most tasks short of chopping.




Big Mike

 

[mymindisamob]

4"-5", I carry my Busse BATAC all the time in the woods. I have been thinking about getting one of their huge knives though. If I could figure out how to break smaller, more useable (for me) knives off of a chunk of INFI I'm all over it.

 

[baldtaco-II]

You do bring up a good point here. This would even go for me too I guess. I LOVE my ESEE-3, it is my go to knife for most things. Lately tho it has been being accompanied with my Condor 14" El Salvador machete. But come to think of it, if it came right down to only one I think I would stick with the Condor just 'cause I am getting very comfortable with it. Now granted this is a WORST CASE scenario and really depends on the environment because it would really suck to have to clean a deer or a fish with only that thing. Lets just leave it at that I really wouldn't want to get stuck with just that one. I'd much rather have my pair, or make it my preferred trio and toss in my LM Wave, but now I'm just getting greedy.

I'd rather have at least two cutting tools too. And in reality for anywhere I go with any regularity a little 4” would far more likely be retained over anything big. For this game though, with the rule being “regardless of setting” I had to go machete. Matching every possible scenario I can think of against all possible blade lengths that makes the most sense to me. I bet it would be a real PITA to process a seal or a reindeer with but much less of a hardship that what I think is the worst case...swinging a little 4” when what is required is a machete in some dense and hostile vegetation. I'm certain I'd rather cover that base than cover the bases of “a machete would be a drag to lug around The Alps or down a pothole”.

 

[PayetteRucker]

Living off of whales and reindeer is alot different than living off of rice, bananas, coconuts, you name it... It seems like most primative cultures have some sort of large blade, which is one of the reasons there are so many machete designs around today. I was talking to a buddy who was in Ethiopia recently and he said all the tribal men he saw were carrying what looked like three foot long khukris-big forward swept recurves that they carried flat on their shoulders all day. Though if I were to have one knife for any situation, it'd be a 4.5 inch puuko style blade I think...

 

[Cpl Punishment]

And that's the trouble with the "just one" questions.

Since the beginning of time, humans carried a big and a small tool for general purpose, and maybe some special purpose tools as gravy.

Jeff Randall talks about in central and south America people all have a machete, their secondary blade often being a 4" or so kitchen knife. Hell, even Oetzi the ice man had an axe (close in size and shape to a CS trail hawk), and a small flint knife. The Nepali have a spot for a small knife (and a sharpening steel) in their kukri sheaths.

The two-tool system is as old as time, and for an all-purpose setup, you really need to ask "What tool SET would you choose?", not "Which one tool?"

 

[Mannlicher]

on the edge

So what length do you folks feel would make the most functionally versatile woods knife and why???

I'd say somewhere between an inch and maybe 11 inches. Why? 'Cause that is what works best.

 

[wildmike]

I spent several years in harsh survival conditions.

While I could have survived with just a 5" blade. Having my H.I. M-43 kukri made it possible for me to thrive.

Most native cultures which have developed into metal using cultures have combined a large chopper with a smaller utility blade for the fine stuff.

 

[on_the_edge]

Since the beginning of time, humans carried a big and a small tool for general purpose, and maybe some special purpose tools as gravy.

Well going back to the Stone Age, I am not aware of any cutting tool with an edge greater than about 6" max. That tool would be perhaps an axe or hatchet-like tool. But I don't think there were any stone tools with something akin to a 15" edge, AFAIK anyway. What I have seen are a lot of smaller tools that can easily be held and used with just one hand--essentially some type of hand-held stone or mineral with a sharp edge.

I also am not very familiar with the preferred tools of cultures that live in or around jungles, but it seems like I always seem them with only a larger golok, khuk, or machete type blade that they use for everything that might require a cutting edge, even the finer stuff.

I guess my sense is that given enough time and opportunity, folks can become adept at using a larger blade for even the smallest of tasks, but using a smaller blade for larger tasks is actually more difficult if not impossible. For example, if you had just one blade to clean 3 large fish and then cut through a 2-3" diameter branch to provide fuel for a fire to stay warm, as between a larger blade and a smaller blade, generally speaking, I think the larger blade will accomplish the tasks more quickly and easily. Do you folks agree?

 

[Cpl Punishment]

I never said they always picked a LONG BLADE, just a big tool.

Stone age, yep, the axe was king. Still is king in northern survival. Not a long blade, but is still the big tool.

In jungles, they usually do use a machete (of whatever sub type) but often have a smaller knife, even if it's just for eating. But by far, prefer their machete.

I think the major difference between those people and most of us, and why there is such a disconnect between our way of thinking and theirs, is most here carry knives when backpacking or camping. Those people LIVE in the wilderness. There is a big difference between the two.

If you're bringing all your ancillary gear for a few days in the woods, you may not ever need a big tool. If you LIVE in the woods, the big tool is your bread and butter.

 

[RescueRiley]

I like a 7 -8 inch blade for an all rounder.. it takes some getting used tobut with some practice I find it capable of heavy and detailed wrok though not ideal for either.

 

[militant x]

A 4" +/- blade works best for me, but I have to agree with Cpl P.

The two-tool system is as old as time, and for an all-purpose setup, you really need to ask "What tool SET would you choose?", not "Which one tool?"

Based on that I'ld add a multi-tool or SAK and an ax or machete depending on the situation.

 

[Shotgun]

For everything I think I'd go with a machete. For where I live, I wouldn't even choose a knife. I'd take my GB mini or my CS Trail Hawk if I was told I could only bring one tool. I went camping last weekend and my knife didn't even leave it's sheath but the Hawk was used for fire chores. But, like has been said, 2 blades is the way to go.

 

[on_the_edge]

...2 blades is the way to go.

I won't dispute that, nor do I think anyone else will. I was just trying to get opinions on what blade length would be the most versatile.

Even if you could only take one metal blade, I think it would be easier to take a longer blade and make a small secondary edge (say out of flint or obsidian) rather than take a smaller blade and make something larger out of stone or maybe even some kind of junk (scrap) metal.

Thanks for the continued input folks. I think it's good to brainstorm about these things from time to time. :thumbup:

 

[not-too-sharp]

Never just one for me. An ESEE3 and ESEE6 or Junglas
There's no true jack of all blades, so to speak.
But if I had to take JUST one it would be an ESEE5 with a paracord wrap handle.
Lots of versatility in that knife.
But anything that can chop, baton,clean game, and build shelter is a good bet in my book.

 

[Kismet]

Take your pick. Mine would be the second one in from the left, a H.I. 12"-overall villager AK, if I were limited to one.

Were the unexpected to occur, most likely, I'd have either the third from the left, an HI SARGE, or one of the knives in my sig line, on my belt at the time.

So much of threads like this is conjecture, though...moderately seasoned with a bit of fantasy. We have so many options...more options than opportunities to use edged tools. In non-"developed" countries, what is used is what can be afforded, what works, and what is available.

Just be safe.

 

[pitdog]

From cutting apples and other food:

To making spears and such like :

My Booshway is an easy to carry all round tool !

But then again I'd be quite happy with just my Knatchet for most tasks I can think of !

 

[Kirk_Ferentz]

Perhaps depends on the environment and what survival will require in that environment, but if I don't know the answer to either of these questions, I would go with a machete over any other single blade. A machete, chopweiler sized chopper, and a smaller 3-5 inch like my howling rat would be a lot better though.

 

[Loosearrow]

I couln't say it better myself. :thumbup: :thumbup:



Though I'm know as a big blade kind of guy,

...I carry and use a 4" to 5" blade more then any other.














A knife is this size range handles most tasks short of chopping.




Big Mike

Nice pics.

 

[Loosearrow]

Early Blackjack Trailguide

 

[vchacon]

If it had to be just one I would be hard pressed to pick between the Bravo-1, ESEE-4, or ESEE-5. I would probably go Bravo-1, ESEE-5, ESEE-4 in that order. So, I supposed I'm in the 4"-5" club.

Althrough, I would also like the CS Cabon-V Khukri