Parry Blade: Survival Knife

That's a bit too much knife imho for a survival knife (whatever the price). A Mora or Fallkniven would serve you better imo. For those who would scoff at 420HC. Check these pics out.

I broke the irreplaceable switchblade spring in this POS knife last summer so I fired a 6 round clip of 9mm fmj ammo at the cutting edge from my Kahr PM9. Distance about 15 feet and firing directly into the cutting edge. Don't know how I did it but scored 4 hits into the blade edge. This CCC 440 said "bring it on!" :eek:

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The steel and the price really have little to do with each other. $300 for 420HC is no worse than $7,000 for 440C, and collectors do that. For $300, it should be a better knife regardless of alloy. The primary and edge grinds on that thing are some of the most uneven and sloppy I've seen.
 
hardheart said:
The steel and the price really have little to do with each other. $300 for 420HC is no worse than $7,000 for 440C, and collectors do that. For $300, it should be a better knife regardless of alloy. The primary and edge grinds on that thing are some of the most uneven and sloppy I've seen.
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There's a difference between a user and a work of art, this knife is a user (it sure as hell ain't pretty), so yes the price should either be lower or the steel be better.

-sh00ter
 
sh00ter01 said:
We're not bashing 420HC, we're bashing a piece of 420HC for $300+. For that price it ought to be something better.

-sh00ter
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I don't think the steel on the hunk of CCC could be much tougher. I wish I had it in a better knife after seeing what I did and saw the results with my own eyes. :)
 
I know this topic died months ago but I had some questions and concerns. I completely agree that the parry blade is way over priced.

What I'm looking for is a great survival knife. Something that has multiple functions without reducing it's usability/durability. Not a gimmick or show piece. Something that I can put through hell for years without having to worry about it breaking or failing.

Maybe that's asking too much.

The problem I have with the parry blade is it's price and the stark contrast between opinions on it. What I mean by that is people either laud it as the best thing since sliced bread or call it a complete waste of money/time/etc. There doesn't seem to be any in between on this issue. That leads me to think that survivalcache (first place I saw it) and other sites like it are only hyping it to sell it.

My question would be, what knife would be a direct comparison for the parry blade without costing an ungodly amount? I did a quick search on the Muela that was mentioned but it did not look to be the same. Maybe I didn't see the right ones or something. It just seemed that the shape was too different. Didn't look like it would be as effective at chopping and didn't look safe to use as an impromptu hammer. The saw portion looked different but not in any significant way.

Someone else mentioned getting two different blades for chopping/cutting and sawing. Survivalists typically look for a single tool for multiple functions (reduces the amount of weight carried) so that isn't an option in my mind.

I hate to even say it but compared to some of the Muela blades I saw I'd rather go with that Bear Grylls knife. It may be branded all to hell but it has a ton of really good reviews and I haven't seen anything really negative about it. Plus it's made by Gerber which, from what I've heard, is supposed to be really good stuff.

Any help in finding a great survival knife would be appreciated. I just don't feel I know enough to make a good decision on this one.
 
get a becker. for the price they ask for that thing, you can buy almost the whole becker lineup...
 
Did you have a specific one in mind? Didn't see any that resembled what I'm looking for with a quick google search.
 
Look at the BK9, its the most similar in size to the thing posted up above. And yes, the thing up above is basically just being marketed to people that don't know much about knives, because for the price you can get much more knife for the money. Anyone can write cool ads and take photos, but the real test of knives is getting out into the hands of the users and reviewers. If they don't like it, you'll know about it.

The BK9 is a great large camp or "survival" knife. It out chops my hatchet, and is more useful as well (does knife work like a billion times better than my hatchet), and only costs around ~$80. Now, it doesn't have any useless serrations on the back, or a gigantic double sided and jimped choil, or the weird hammer thing, but it has for sure been tested in the field and will not fail you. If for some reason I had to choose to take only one knife into the woods and survive, this would be the one that I would take.

If you want something with serrations on the reverse edge for some reason (they just kind of get in the way, except for certain specific uses), you should go with the KaBar Big Brother. The Big Brother was created in collaboration with some foreign military unit (can't remember off the top of my head which one), and is basically a larger KaBar USMC with a serrated spine. Might be just what you're looking for.

Good luck :).
 
Of the two I do like the BK9 better. Looks like I could easily remove the handle and wrap it with paracord. Not having a serrated edge isn't a big enough negative for me to discard it as an option. Something about the Big Brother's handle doesn't seem like I'd like wielding it.

Maybe I should abandon the whole "one tool for multiple jobs" thing for this one. A saber cut is small and light weight for any sawing I'd need and I could always just find a big friggen rock if I need to hammer something...

Going to keep looking for more options but for now the BK9 looks like the front runner. Now if I can just find a good E Tool...
 
I don't know these "survivalists" you are listening to, but here are a couple things I hear consistently from people around here who spend a LOT of time outdoors:

1) Don't wrap a knife handle in paracord. Its gonna rip up your hands and attact gunk (which will further rip up your hands). Wrap the paracord around something...anything...else.
2) The weight of a folding saw is negligible compared to its functionality.

That over with, maybe you can answer a couple questions that might help people suggest a knife for you:
1) What do you want to spend? What amount is, as you say, "ungodly"?
2) What do you mean by "survival"? Are you driving out for the weekend with your buddies and a case of beer to practice "survival"? Other people do "survival" by getting 2 cases of beer and going into the woods and beating the bejeebus outta stuff. Or do you want a knife to have on you at all times in case the apocalypse goes down, or you find yourself somehow in the middle of the woods? It's all good....just that each calls for different knives.

(Glad to hear you thought of the "I can use a rock as a hammer!" thing. That's actual survival thinking.)
 
You could easily wrap the handle with paracord, its true, but It is much more comfortable with the Grivory or Micarta scales on there. And both are tremendously durable. I think I've only seen one pair of grivory broken, but that was intentional (took them off, laid them on the ground, and hit them with a monkey wrench). So if you're worried about the handles breaking, I wouldn't really worry about it.

The BK9 does have a pommel extension for pounding with, but its more for pounding the BK9 INTO things rather than pounding things WITH if that helps any.

Also, what do you mean by "A saber cut is small and light weight for any sawing I'd need"?

If I were you, and was trying to find something to head out into the woods with, I would probably use the BK9 as the tool on the pack, a BK 17 as my belt knife (or the Condor Bushlore, I really like that actually), and a folding saw, or a SAK with a folding saw on it (like the Farmer). With those, I would feel ready to go.

Good luck :D.
 
Ideally I'd like to keep it within $50 but I'll spend whatever it takes as long as it's worth it. If the parry blade was worth it I would have spent the ~$325 for it. As for #2, I'd be in the latter group. My wife thinks I'm obsessed with TEOTW but I just want to be prepared for worst case. I live in Southwestern Indiana so there is always the threat of another massive earth quake that could take everything around here down for a good long time.

A survival knife is just one of the tools I'm thinking will be a great asset. Just tough to find the right one when I'm not that familiar with all of the varieties, manufacturers, and resources that would be necessary to make the best choice for myself.

Thanks, everyone, for all of the help so far. :)
 
I was looking at the knife from the OP and I noticed it had a finger gaurd...but then a top AND bottom choil? And then the choil had jimping...wtf!?
 
merzikain said:
As for #2, I'd be in the latter group. My wife thinks I'm obsessed with TEOTW but I just want to be prepared for worst case. I live in Southwestern Indiana so there is always the threat of another massive earth quake that could take everything around here down for a good long time.
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I certainly understand. If you survival plan entails getting home and hunkering down, something like a good multitool and a bombproof smasher/basher/chopper in the trunk (like the Ontario Ranger RD 7 or 9) would be a good choice, in my book. So would replacing the smasher/basher/chopper with a smasher/basher/pry-er like a Stanley Fubar.

If you want an "almost do-it-all" fixed blade (and who doesn't...they are darn fun/cool), then it would be hard to beat the Becker BK2 of Fallkniven F1 in my opinion. I'm partial to the Fallkniven.
 
I've been thinking of getting a Fubar for a while now but haven't pulled the trigger yet.

I definitely like all of the suggested blades so now I just need to decide which one to get.

ocnLogan said:
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Also, what do you mean by "A saber cut is small and light weight for any sawing I'd need"?
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I meant for any heavy duty sawing I'd use the saber cut I have (hand chain saw). It's light weight and folds up nice and compact. Wouldn't use it for anything small like I'd use a serrated knife for. And if I needed to get something smaller cut off I'd probably resort to chopping in most cases anyway. But I can also definitely see the benefit in having a dedicated folding saw.

So now trying to figure out which folding saw to get. I'm looking at these three right now:

Corona Clipper 10-inch Curved Blade Folding Razor Tooth Saw RS 7265
Snap-on Industrial Brand BAHCO 396-LAP 8 Inch Laplander Folding Saw
Felco F-600 Classic Folding Saw with Pull-Stroke Action

Leaning toward the Corona for it's curved blade. Seems like it would be a little more efficient than the other two but I could just be thinking wrong.
 
Oh, and this caught my eye earlier today, but I'm not sure if it's too gimmicky or if it would actually be handy.

Gerber 22-41420 Gator Combo Axe II
 
merzikain said:
I've been thinking of getting a Fubar for a while now but haven't pulled the trigger yet.
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Same here. I really should pull the trigger too before that Mayan calendar runs out! :D Dead On Tools makes a pretty nice similar tool.
 
Yeah I saw that after I made that last post. I'm going to have to get at least one of those before I start working on rebuilding my deck. That will be one thing I buy that my wife won't make a joke about since it gets her a new deck. heh.
 
merzikain said:
I've been thinking of getting a Fubar for a while now but haven't pulled the trigger yet.

I definitely like all of the suggested blades so now I just need to decide which one to get.

I meant for any heavy duty sawing I'd use the saber cut I have (hand chain saw). It's light weight and folds up nice and compact. Wouldn't use it for anything small like I'd use a serrated knife for. And if I needed to get something smaller cut off I'd probably resort to chopping in most cases anyway. But I can also definitely see the benefit in having a dedicated folding saw.

So now trying to figure out which folding saw to get. I'm looking at these three right now:

Corona Clipper 10-inch Curved Blade Folding Razor Tooth Saw RS 7265
Snap-on Industrial Brand BAHCO 396-LAP 8 Inch Laplander Folding Saw
Felco F-600 Classic Folding Saw with Pull-Stroke Action

Leaning toward the Corona for it's curved blade. Seems like it would be a little more efficient than the other two but I could just be thinking wrong.
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Got it.

I have the 10in Corona, and it does work well, but I also hear good things about the others. The 10in is pretty large though. It might be what you're looking for, but if you are going to carry it around on your person, you likely don't need quite that large.

I went with the 10in because I am also into offroading, and usually only camp from the jeep. If the trail is blocked by something, the 10in would be better able to handle it, and the jeep doesn't care about the extra few oz of weight. But for normal camping and stuff, I can't really see where you'd need to saw something that large. Just something to think about.

Also, the main problem is that there really isn't a solid definition of what a "survival" knife is, so it usually takes some digging to get what people are actually looking for in their "survival" knife.

In terms of helping you get up to speed, the main things that most people who "know" about knives look for in things are actually pretty simple:

1) Steel used. Different steels have different properties, and there are better choices for certain applications. For outdoor style fixed blades, carbon steels are most common, and best suited for that purpose. They do rust though if left unmaintained, so be aware of that.

2) Heat Treat. The Heat Treat is the huge difference between knives of good quality and of poor quality. You want it not too hard, but not too soft. Too hard and the blade will chip or break under hard use, while too soft and is like trying to cut with a limp noodle that won't hold an edge. Quality manufacturers are know for their good HT, which is why people frequently recommend them.

3) Fit and finish. Less "functional" than the others in my opinion, but still something that many people look for.

Thats basically it in terms of just the knife. For things like what you're looking at, I would say that Kabar, Becker, ESEE, Ontario, SYKC and SwampRat are the most common recommendations, and for good reason, they are pretty darn well established.

I would also do some searching around here for a "Large hard use fixed blade" or a "chopper", or maybe "large camp knife" and see what comes up as the recommendations, then go from there if anything piques your interest.

:D.
 
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