Needing advice for choosing a knife

G

GigantDude

Joined
Apr 21, 2016
Messages
4
Hello users of Bladeforums,

Im completly new to the entire sector with knives and such.
I wanted to buy my first knife but I`m not quite sure that`s why I ask advice from the experts.

I want to use the knife for 'survival', The knife needs to be able to cut/sharpen wood.

I have requirements for the knife.
- My budget is max €130($146).
- The maintenance needs to be easy since i`m new.

So what would you guys recommend? Put a comment down below and I`ll be happy to read it.

Yours sincerly,

GigantDude

My english isn`t very good, sorry for that
 
What I suggest is but one of the cheap ones under $10 and use it to practice sharpening. What size wood are you thinking of? Becker bk knives are highly recommended here


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I see that you led with a euro sign, try out Moras for incredibly valued fixed blades and fallkniven for more expensive but refined knives. A lot of forum members choose knives that are Scandi ground if they will be working with wood. Also for your price range check out Kosa a custom knife builder on the forum from Poland. He makes great fixies in Elmax steel. If you are not great at sharpening I would start with a mora though. They will run you maybe 20 euros.

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Mora or one of Schrade's inexpensive 1095 models to start. You could honestly probably get either and simply be happy with it, but if you want to continue down the rabbit hole, it will give you a better idea of your preferences.
 
Great advice so far. I think you need to take this plunge slowly to get a better feel for what you might be using a knife for in the woods. The Mora's are a great place to start. More refined and in my opinion much better are the Fallknivens. They are much more expensive. The Schrade suggestion is also a good one. Another is to look at the Kabar Becker line. The 4 inch BK-16 is a favorite or if you want something larger, perhaps the BK-7 or BK-9. All of these are good blades in 1095 steel.

If they sell the Condor line in your region, take a look at those as well. I like them, and most are pretty cost effective in comparison to other choices.
 
Personally, I would start of cheap until you get a good idea of what you want in a blade because there are a lot of features/aspects that are in a blade that'll make or break a knife. Mora and Conder make some pretty decent cheap ones that will give you a good idea of what you'd like.

Steel. Very personal choice but 1095 is a very easy steel to sharpen, but it also rusts very easy. People like 5160, 3V, O1, A2, D2 etc. However, you can't go wrong with 1095 or O2
Grind. Scandi grinds are very easy to maintain but they chip fairly easy. Convex tend to be high performers but I've never been fond of sharpening them. Then theres saber/full flat grinds which is what you commonly see. They're more difficult to sharpen than a scandi, but they're fairly easy to.
Length. Some people like the 5-8 inch knives as a "one tool" option. But I'd rather stick with a 4-4.5inch blade with an ax/10in chopper. Large blades can be harder to control but you can also baton larger wood.
Handle ergos. I'll take a nice, fat "woodlore" or a puukko handle over slab-sided handle any day. If it doesn't feel right in your hand, I'd send it back.
 
I am guessing since you listed your fund requirements in Euros that you are somewhere in that region. You might want to check out Mora knives, an Enzo Trapper, or the Casstrom #10. If you have access to the US market the Schrade SCHF42D, Schrade SCHF55, and Becker BK16 are all great options.
 
There are a ton of ways to go here.
Option 1: Check out some value (not cheap) blades.
- Maybe check out a Mora. It excels at cutting/slicing.
- Schrade and Condor make some nice value bushcraft knives.

Option 2: Mid level knive
- ESEE knives, Ka-Bar/Becker knives, etc

Option 3: Higher end
- Falknieven, Bark River, etc

So many options, but maybe start with the value knives and see if they do what you need. They are quite capable knives for outdoor tasks. For the price you can get a backup or two.
 
Thanks for all the advice and suggestions! Ill use them for sure

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I've been loving my Opinel No 8 knives recently. Cheap, easy to maintain and sharpen. I used to carry my big buck knives but I'm really digging the Opinels. Another good knife is the Spyderco inexpensive models. Can't go wrong with those.
 
Okay you want a 'survival' type knife. For the amount you want to spend I'd recomend a Vic Soldier knife. It's the actual knife issued to the Swiss army and has a 3.9 inch blade. If you don't want serrated you can get the Trekker in non serrated, same as soldier's knife. You'll have a few bucks left over now. You could get a Gerber StrongArm. It's a full tang knife that got tested in a series of reviews called Gauntlet and did very well, especially for the price. You're wanting a survival and most people means survival is beating the hell out of a knife against some hunks of wood and calling it processing. Once you get that out of your system, get a lightweight hatchet, the proper tool for wood.
In all seriousness, a SAK is a must have. If you get a conventional style like a Farmer or like my Explorer Plus, there probably won't be any trouble keeping it in your pocket. Even where there are tight knife carrying rules, a SAK gets a pass. Keeping a knife on you is good so its handy when opputunities appear to use it. Get used to using a knife, get a few nicks and cuts, and you'll develop some decent skills. Just using a knife to open mail will teach you how differint angles and such work. Good Luck with whatever you choose to get.
 
The Mora knives are hard to beat for the money and they are easy to sharpen. Also, there are still some AUS8 Cold Steel Mini Recon 1 knives out there going cheap since they have changed the steel. A clip or spear point would give you a very rugged folder you can sharpen easily.
CS27TMS.1.jpg


The SRK is a great knife for survival, too, if you want a fixed blade. These are not expensive (far below your budget) but no knives are tougher. I am not a fan boy, but I have to admit a good product when it truly is.
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Gigant dude...

Welcome to BF and the wonderful world of sharp things. You're English is fine. I have a couple of questions. First, "survival"means different things to different people. From the rest of your post, I'm guessing that you're looking for an all-around camp and woods knife. Something that can cut / shave / whittle wood; that can be used for food prep; that can be used for rougher tasks like light prying or batoning wood, or any reasonable "emergency" situation.

Ease of maintenance should be high on your list of priorities at this point. The Cold Steel combination shown above is very good. Essee knives are also very good and easy to maintain. I prefer a two-knife combination when I'm out in the woods for any length of time. I carry a folder and a fixed blade. This combination has worked well for me for years. The fixed blade has about a 3" blade. I haven't found a need for a larger FB even though I have one or two. The folder I carry in the woods will usually have a 3.5" to 4" blade and a secure lock.

Steels like AUS-8, 1095, 154CM, or A2 are going to be easy to sharpen and relatively tough. That's another high priority for an outdoors knife. 1095 and A2 are not stainless so they'll need extra care to prevent corrosion. Many maker like to coat these steels. I prefer them uncoated but I know how to care for them.

I may be off base with my second question. I'm just trying to get a sense of what you know from your OP. If you're an experienced hiker / camper, ignore the rest of my post. My second question is a little more personal. Do you know what you're doing in the woods with a knife? I ask because you said in your OP that this would be your first knife. You're making the right choice to go into the woods prepared with the right kit, but having the gear is only part of being prepared. You've got to know what your kit will and won't do, and how to make it do what you need in the woods. An outdoor trip can sometimes go from "fun" to "fatal" in a hurry.

If you're not experienced in the woods, I'd suggest going with some experienced campers the first few times, or take a wilderness survival course (they can be a lot of fun themselves with the right instructor) before setting off on your own.

Have fun searching for the right gear and hope you enjoy using it out in nature. Be safe.
 
First of, thanks for all the advice and suggestions they`re really helpful.
I`ll definitely check the Cold Steel line out, they already got my interest.

About your second question, no I don't have any experience at all. I am indeed going to look for an experienced hiker / camper so I can learn how to 'survive' in the woods. Can you also give me some advice on how to "take care of my knife", I like to have a bit more of personal advice instead of looking on the internet.

And of course I will enjoy my time in the nature, except there is not a lot of here in the Netherlands.
 
dalefuller said:
Gigant dude...

Welcome to BF and the wonderful world of sharp things. You're English is fine. I have a couple of questions. First, "survival"means different things to different people. From the rest of your post, I'm guessing that you're looking for an all-around camp and woods knife. Something that can cut / shave / whittle wood; that can be used for food prep; that can be used for rougher tasks like light prying or batoning wood, or any reasonable "emergency" situation.

Ease of maintenance should be high on your list of priorities at this point. The Cold Steel combination shown above is very good. Essee knives are also very good and easy to maintain. I prefer a two-knife combination when I'm out in the woods for any length of time. I carry a folder and a fixed blade. This combination has worked well for me for years. The fixed blade has about a 3" blade. I haven't found a need for a larger FB even though I have one or two. The folder I carry in the woods will usually have a 3.5" to 4" blade and a secure lock.

Steels like AUS-8, 1095, 154CM, or A2 are going to be easy to sharpen and relatively tough. That's another high priority for an outdoors knife. 1095 and A2 are not stainless so they'll need extra care to prevent corrosion. Many maker like to coat these steels. I prefer them uncoated but I know how to care for them.

I may be off base with my second question. I'm just trying to get a sense of what you know from your OP. If you're an experienced hiker / camper, ignore the rest of my post. My second question is a little more personal. Do you know what you're doing in the woods with a knife? I ask because you said in your OP that this would be your first knife. You're making the right choice to go into the woods prepared with the right kit, but having the gear is only part of being prepared. You've got to know what your kit will and won't do, and how to make it do what you need in the woods. An outdoor trip can sometimes go from "fun" to "fatal" in a hurry.

If you're not experienced in the woods, I'd suggest going with some experienced campers the first few times, or take a wilderness survival course (they can be a lot of fun themselves with the right instructor) before setting off on your own.

Have fun searching for the right gear and hope you enjoy using it out in nature. Be safe.
Click to expand...

Look my post up here, It somehow didnt quote your post.
 
GigantDude said:
And of course I will enjoy my time in the nature, except there is not a lot of here in the Netherlands.
Click to expand...

Welcome brother! I just got back from my first trip over to the Netherlands a few weeks ago. We stayed in Leiden.. what a beautiful place. Can't wait to get back.
 
If I had to survive in the woods I would want a combination of tools, an axe, saw and knife.
 
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