Need some help deciding

L

Lunarzero

Joined
Jul 23, 2010
Messages
14
Hi all,

I need some help deciding what knife to bring to a camping trip in two weeks. I will be heading to a camp site that is near the sea and will also be fishing. So I'm looking for a knife that has fairly good rust resistance. After this camping trip, I will probably head to the woods so the knife doesn't need extreme rust resistance like the H2O and Salt. I do put oil on all my knives. I'm looking for both a folder and fixed blade. I've looked in to the FK F1, Esee, Benchmade H2O and Spyderco Salt series.

Thank you so much!
 
can't go wrong with the fallkniven f1 when it comes to water. here's my s1 - it's my goto knife for wet weather. the handle just grips and grips...did i forget to say grip? it actually grips more when wet it seems. you can see the steam rising from the camp fire - we got drenched that day.

046_048.jpg



with that said, salt water is a whole different ball game though. i'd probably keep a folder (even if it has a stainless blade) in a ziplock bag since sure you can wipe the blade dry but the pivot might not stay dry...or thoroughly rinse it out to make sure no salt water remains in the nooks and crannies.
 
+1 on the F1, its my goto if there is a remote possibility of a lot of water.

pmGI2It.jpg


That in mind, I've also had much success with my becker bk24 in D2... that stuff is pretty corrosive resistant.

For a folder I would stick with what works and use a Salt series Spyderco.
 
Take a Salt or two. They are very lightweight. I almost always have one with me.

What are your planned/possible uses/needs?
 
Thanks for the responses!

F1 is definitely in my list. Though I would prefer to get something that is made in USA.

I'm planning to do food chores, fishing work, and the occasional light wood work.

Would D2 be a good choice for this kind of tasks? I noticed on my Benchmade 710 that I get slight rust spots.
 
Honestly I would opt with a stainless Mora knife for the following reasons; 1. Is's stainless. 2. Being scandi ground, it is easy to maintain its keen edge. this is important as the edge which may not be as noticeable as on the flats or bevel is where the corrosion will affect a FB knife the most. 3. It is very inexpensive so if you lose it, say off a dock or side of a boat, you wont cry as much. 4. Although they are inexpensive, they are good quality and reliable. 5. Also, they have plastic handles, good for around the sea.
 
Marcelo Cantu said:
Honestly I would opt with a stainless Mora knife for the following reasons; 1. Is's stainless. 2. Being scandi ground, it is easy to maintain its keen edge. this is important as the edge which may not be as noticeable as on the flats or bevel is where the corrosion will affect a FB knife the most. 3. It is very inexpensive so if you lose it, say off a dock or side of a boat, you wont cry as much. 4. Although they are inexpensive, they are good quality and reliable. 5. Also, they have plastic handles, good for around the sea.
Click to expand...

IMHO a Mora would be a great choice. Carbon steel or Stainless should be fine with just a little reasonable care. Two of my favorites are the 511 and the High Q All-around. I would add a sak to, just pick your flavor, their all good. My 2 cents. Enjoy your trip and take lots of pictures.:thumbup:
Jim
 
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From those you mention I'd have an F1, although the F2 is probably a better choice for what you have in mind. It's worth noting that ESEE have an upgraded version of their 4 available in 440C. If you want a USA made knife that might be a good design for you.
 
Lunarzero said:
Thanks for the responses!

F1 is definitely in my list. Though I would prefer to get something that is made in USA.

I'm planning to do food chores, fishing work, and the occasional light wood work.

Would D2 be a good choice for this kind of tasks? I noticed on my Benchmade 710 that I get slight rust spots.
Click to expand...

Certainly not the best choice, however I've had better results with D2's resistance in a fixed blade vs a folder seeing as there are less areas where water/salt could sit and damage it.

My bk24 has come kayaking with me regularly this year in both fresh water and salt (I keep it mounted on the front deck)..... I've yet to have any issues with staining or rust.
 
Thanks for all of your inputs!
I'm looking to get the f1 and a spyderco Pacific salt.
I was wondering if there is a steel that had good rust resistance and won't chip as easily as vg10
 
Living in Florida, my knives are around water, both salt and fresh, often. I don't have a rust problem at all. Quick wipe with a lightly oiled cloth (I keep one in a baggie), and my knives are protected.
Carbon steel blades are my favored ones, but I do enjoy using S30V and 154CM blades as well.
 
Lunarzero said:
Thanks for all of your inputs!
I'm looking to get the f1 and a spyderco Pacific salt.
I was wondering if there is a steel that had good rust resistance and won't chip as easily as vg10
Click to expand...
S35VN has a high rust resistance, as does S30V &154cm.
I think you would find the F1 doesn't chip easily. It is ground totally differently to VG10 kitchen knives.
 
Is this possible? A thread with... good suggestions... and an OP who... takes the suggestions? Wow. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
The salt water isn't going to come up and eat your knife.
Really.
:D

I used to keep a carbon steel Schrade Sharpfinger as my fishing knife.
On the dock and on the boat.
Cleaned a small mountain of Bluefish over the course of 10 summers with it as well.
Wiped on my jeans after each use and washed after cleaning fish.
Then oiled once I got home. It only (orange) rusted once... a fine powder of orange, when I was too beer baked & sunburnt to remember my cleaning duties. WD40 and 0000 steel wool cleaned it up, no problem.

It patina'd up nicely and looked like an old hammer.

Below is my surf knife.
A Frosts Swedish Army Knife.

It rides on my surf belt and I'm out there in the ocean waves.

That photo was taken after 5 days in the surf and one or two nights wet in the cooler (wet sandy gear comes home in the fishbox)
before it got any attention or freshwater at all.
That little bit of rust is where the air got in from the drain hole.
It cleaned up in moments with some 0000 steel wool.

Folders can be tricky because they can stay in a wet or damp pocket and easily get forgotten.

The marine environment can be rough, but a little maintenance is all it takes :)
 
Hi All,

Just got back from my trip and wanted to give you all some updates.

First of all, this knife is fantastic. Took care of food preparation with ease and gutted fish effortlessly.

Something did catch my eye, hopefully some one on the forum could give me some feed back/tips. When fishing, I would quickly wiped down the knife after each fish but when I got back home (around 6 hours later) to finally give the knife a good cleaning (rinse with water/soap, give it some oil and good wiping). I did notice some spotting on the knife when I got back from the trip.


Here are some pictures:

hzQKKXn.jpg
Eza5MBP.jpg
l84ASxo.jpg
 
IMHO, if a person wants their knife, any knife, to remain new looking and pristine... they should leave it in the box and not use it. I am a professional tool user and have used a variety of knives in the outdoors and in daily life at home and work for more than half a century and I do take care to maintain them all. But I accept the fact that if a knife/tool is used, it will eventually look used. There is no harm in that. But, as said, if a person is bothered by it, leave it in the box. Or buy a second piece and leave that in the box.
 
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