survival/camping fixed blade

I would suggest something reasonably priced first - evaluate your needs then.

Besides the ones below, consider the Buck 119 'Special' - available everywhere, it's a real bargain at WallyWorld - $34! It's 420HC, a SS that really comes sharp and stays sharp pretty well. The edge is long bevel with a hollowground body - great slicer, so-so chopper/baton target. Les Stroud used one on several of his Discovery TV's 'Survivorman' episodes.

The knives below range from $55-$70, except the RAT Cutlery RC-5 - it's $135 or so. The second one down is a Gerber LMFII my son gave me - I'd never buy it as I don't like serrations - I have saws - I want knives to be knives! The top one is a classic - a KaBar USMC 'Fighting Knife'. The USN 'Utility Knife' variant is identical, except for it's unsharpened secondary bevel - which I'd prefer. The coating protects the 1095 carbon steel blade body - not the edge, so keep it dry & clean. My first camping knife was my Dad's old WWII USN version - it was more than sufficient when paired with a Buck 110 or SAK for finer duties. Below the Gerber is a RAT Cutlery RC-5 - my new favorite. Not the best slicer, but a great cutter and fantastic chopper and baton target. It should be - that 5" blade of 1095 carbon steel is .25" thick, convex edged, and sharp. It's the most expensive. The bottom one is a beefier version of the Buck 119 - the Buck 650 Nighthawk. It's all work - not much of a looker. The padded grip helps chopping, but the thin edge/hollow ground blade body, combined with the short spine, makes for not so great a baton target. Everything is US made - with the exception of the sheaths, other than the RAT - they use all US-made goodies. Good luck.

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Stainz
 
I have been getting good results from my Ontario RAT-7. I carry a smaller RC 3 on my pack just in case.
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srmd22 said:
Wow. Lots of great suggestions. This is not going to be easy.

I am thinking Rat Cutlery might be a good intro for me, particularly the RC-6, mentioned above. I guess I would be doing mostly light batoning, to answer bladekillers point-- to be honest, I haven't done much backwoods camping to date, so I am not sure what my needs will be as I get more into it.

Regarding the Rats and the Ka-bars-- as the Rats are about double the price, which I imagine relates to the quality in some fashion: what exactly are the differences? Is it balance, materials/durability, steel type? Would I notice a big difference were I to opt for the Rat instead of one of the ka-bars of a similar size?
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Jake Bauer's response to you was quite good here and I concur with what he said. Price point is a very difficult thing to wrap you head around from a beginner's perspective. As mentioned, there is the buck 119 which is a very capable knife at $40 and then the kabar Beckers that give you every bit of knife you need at $60-80. They are as robust and as effective as the higher cost RC-products.

You won't really notice a difference in performance between the RC-6 and say the BK-7. They are both excellent utility blades. The differences between the two are more about little things. The handle material on the RC-6 is mircata compared to a type of plastic on the Becker. Mircata is one of the premiere synthetic handles, arguably the best there is for comfort, grip and ability to withstand any kind of punishment. You can get mircata upgrade scales for the Beckers, however, as a factory spec'ed replacement scales they are not mated to the knife you buy (neither are the plastic ones that come with your knife) and therefore will not fit perfectly like an RC one will.

As mentioned by Jake Bauer, the fit and finish on the RC-knife is flawless. As somebody new to knives, the reality is you might not yet have an eye for picking out little details, like scales not being perfectly even with the tang, indents and tool marks on the blade and spine visible from beneath the coating etc. These traits are mostly cosmetic and bear no impact on the use of the knife. If you really just simply view your knife as a utility tool than get the cheaper Becker. It will perform well.

One difference between the two is the handle on the Beckers is a lot thicker than the RC-handles. Some prefer the Beckers and others prefer the RC-6. The RC-6 scales are much thicker and longer than on the RC-4 (some folks complain that the scales are too small on the RC-4). Personally, I like the RC-6 handle comfort much better than my BK-7. I removed the scales on the BK-7 and came up with different option because I felt they are too thick. Handle comfort is something unique to each person, so what fits my hand may not translate to what fits yours.

The RC-6 sheath is excellent and very well thought out compared to the BK-7 sheath. However, some people really don't like the RC-6 sheaths and the fact that they are meant for clipping to molle webbing, don't come with a belt loop (you use paracord tied between the rivot holds to form a belt loop) and are made of moulded plastic.

srmd22 said:
Also, asided from batoning, does a much larger size blade impart other advantages? The RC-6 is about 6 1/2 in. Would that be significantly more functional then an RC 3 or 4? Or might there actually be an advantage (besides, of course weight and packability, which certainly counts) in a smaller size?
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Batoning is something where size helps but it really is a matter of the wood you process. You can do most things with a 4" knife. If you are willing to make wooden wedges to facilitate your batoning, you can pretty much split any size wood with your 4" blade. However, this requires time and skill and it is much easier to split a piece of wood with a knife whose length extends it past the cross section of the wood. This way you can bang on the tip after the spine has sunk into the wood.

While some folks have recommended even longer knives, like 9"-10" or longer, I personally don't see the value of such very long knives. Sure, they make batoning easy because you have a large amount of knife tip sticking out of the wood to baton, but are you really going to be splitting 8" rounds with a knife? Basically, it amounts to the type of wood you think you are going to be splitting. When I'm splitting the big stuff, I generally have an axe. However, I don't really use the big stuff for making a little camp fire. A lot of folks argue that you don't even need to split wood for campfire prep, you just gather fallen dead wood and break or leverage it apart using trees or your knees etc. Again, it is a matter of the type of wood you are using, the conditions you find yourself in when gathering wood and what nature is providing you. If you car camp frequently and buy your wood e.g. from the camp store, it is usually pre-split into half and quarter rounds. A 6" knife will be all the length you need to pair down one of those pieces for making your kindling.

The one area where long knives, 9" or so, do have a major advantage at is chopping. No 9 or 10" knife will out chop a good axe, but they certainly are much more efficient than chopping with a smaller knife. The BK-7, because of its length, makes a better chopper than the RC-6. In testing the two together, this amounts to 3 or 4 fewer chops to get through a 2" piece of wood. Again, on a performance basis you say one wins, but the reality is that the performance is pretty close. A 9" knife might get you throw in 6-10 fewer chops compared to the 6-7" ones.

The other area where length comes into handy is food prep and kitchen type duties. This seems incredibly unexciting, yet when you think about it, food prep is something where you use your knives the most. If you are cutting onions, potatoes, other veggies or melons, the extra length afforded by a 6" comes in handy.

The disadvantages to carrying a longer blade are weight of carry, the length and real estate it takes up on your belt. In some cases the negative perceptions that other people may come to upon seeing a large blade on your person may also make a difference. The later seems silly when we are talking legal carry options, but the reality is that it is important to many people and even influences my decision frequently on what I carry and where. On this basis, I generally find a 9" blade just too big to comfortably wear on my belt. It slaps your leg while walking and is heavy and awkward.

A 6-7" blade is better but you still know that the knife is there on your hip. One reason I like the RC-6's sheath is that with the paracord loops, it rides tight and high on your belt. This makes it feel like a smaller knife when carrying it by belt. However, the mode of carry does interfere with a pack belt and you might want to consider a dangler attachment to drop the knife down under your pack belt. In that case, I usually just lash the knife to my pack and keep a smaller fixed blade, like the Izula or RC-3, on my person.

Sorry - this was so long winded. Just trying to give you my perspective of camp knives. If I were routinely backpacking, I would definitely go the 4" route.
 
Very helpful info from all, and thanks for the detailed analysis, kgd. Gives me a lot to think about. Essentially, there are many good choices. I am not sure yet which model, but I will pick up at least an RC-6 in terms of size to try out, maybe bigger, and see how that works. I am sort of tempted by the USMC because of it's history. But I am attracted to the reports of awesome fit/finish and warrentee of the Rat.
 
For me over the years including when I was in the Military I found that between 6" and 8" to be ideal for a general use field knife as long as it's strong and sharp. I have used a lot of knives over the years, some worked better than others.

When in the Military I carried a K-Bar most of the time, but I had to buy more than one because they just can't take really hard use for long. I think I went through like 10 of them in the 4 years I was in. This was back in the early 80's when really good knives were hard to find other than custom makers and Busse and Cold Steel were just starting out. The choices were slim lets just say.

Today we have tons of choices and really good ones too from some very good makers and many different price points too. :thumbup:

So in general I like to carry a Large chopper like my Busse CGFBM when I know I will be doing a lot of heavy chopping and splitting or just a smaller Fixed blade like my current Busse Tank Buster (6 1/4" blade) as it will handle anything needed as well as splitting. With the 1/4" thick sabre grind blade it slices very well and splits wood very easy.




 
Excellent job KGD!

srmd22- My first real camping knife was the USMC KABAR for the exact reason you're tempted. I was enthralled with the history. I was not disappointed with it in the least. I'm still not. It's taken anything I've ever thrown at it.
 
I would say either a RC-6 or 7" USMC KaBar. I've put my KaBar through hell in the field when I was active and it never failed me. But I think the RC-6 would be a little more versitle.
 
Well, I went with the Ka-bar USMC, as a nice, affordable starter, that is mean-looking and at the same time functional. Plus I am jazzed about it's history.

I am sure I will expand my collection in due time. I could see owning a few ka-bars, given their price/quality ratio.

I was very tempted, btw, to go with the cold steel trailmaster san mai-- impressive looking beast. Saw some mixed reviews on cold steel, and the ceo, not sure what to make of it.

Any other opinions on the cold steel? It is pretty $$ in the san mai version-- 2x the Rat-6 for example.

Thanks for all the wonderful advice.
 
srmd22 said:
Well, I went with the Ka-bar USMC, as a nice, affordable starter, that is mean-looking and at the same time functional. Plus I am jazzed about it's history.

I am sure I will expand my collection in due time. I could see owning a few ka-bars, given their price/quality ratio.

I was very tempted, btw, to go with the cold steel trailmaster san mai-- impressive looking beast. Saw some mixed reviews on cold steel, and the ceo, not sure what to make of it.

Any other opinions on the cold steel? It is pretty $$ in the san mai version-- 2x the Rat-6 for example.

Thanks for all the wonderful advice.
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The Carbon Steel vers of the Trail Master is hard to beat for the money, with a 9 1/2" blade it chops very well.
 
I'm a fan of the Trailmaster. Lovely balance and feels great in the hand. The new SK-5 polished is a nice knife for the dough. The San Mai is sweeet!

Otherwise take a look at the new SK-5 Kukri. You will NOT go wrong with a kuk. I have a CS Mini Kuk (no longer made) and it is a great performer.

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srmd22 said:
Any other opinions on the cold steel? It is pretty $$ in the san mai version-- 2x the Rat-6 for example.

Thanks for all the wonderful advice.
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Be careful with the kabar, i've broken two of them batoning, which is what led me to busse combat. They're great knives though for the price.
 
Oh, hell, now ya tell me! Lol, that's ok, I'll be careful. I am sure to add a few more to the collection-- including something maybe a little more camping specific (the USMC sort of seems like a bit of a fighter/camper). I'm going to look into the busse's. I also still sort of want a trailmaster and a rat anyway. I'll see after I hack a bit o' wood with the USMC.
 
srmd22 said:
Oh, hell, now ya tell me! Lol, that's ok, I'll be careful. I am sure to add a few more to the collection-- including something maybe a little more camping specific (the USMC sort of seems like a bit of a fighter/camper). I'm going to look into the busse's. I also still sort of want a trailmaster and a rat anyway. I'll see after I hack a bit o' wood with the USMC.
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They work fine as long as you don't really beat on them hard. ;)
 
Dont worry about it man, the KABAR is a fine knife. I've never battoned with it because I've never had to. Personally I think Batonning is rarely necessary.
 
There's a reason the old Ka-Bar has been going strong for over seventy years: it works. If you simply remember that it's a field knife, and not a pry bar, it should last you a lifetime.
 
Ok, I got the foliage green kabar fighter-- and I love it. It is just cool. However, I have decided--- not big enough. I mean, it may be big enough for camping purposes. But, well, I just want a bigger one to wave around in front of the mirror.

I think I need at least a 9.5 or 10 in blade. I don't know why. Really, it is some sort of impulse. I am sure I will go out in the yard and hack some branches, and then retire the thing, but, nevertheless, I must have it. So I am going to pick up either a kabar kukri, ontario sp10 marine raider (very mean looking, I am sure it will baton the heck out of any wood out there) or an ontario RTAK II. Also looking at the Kabar Becker Combat Bowie (9in blade)

These are the lesser expensive of what is out there, but I need to get this hankering for a BIG blade out of my system, without breaking the bank.
 
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Well, before posting I had to grab my Kabar Kukri and wave it around in the mirror a little bit:p. For waving around in front of the mirror, the Kabar kukri is your best choice, and it chops well too. ;)

Of course a $20 machete might be worth considering:) and I am sure the RTAK 2 would bring lots of enjoyment (as well as utility).
 
srmd22 said:
Ok, I got the foliage green kabar fighter-- and I love it. It is just cool. However, I have decided--- not big enough. I mean, it may be big enough for camping purposes. But, well, I just want a bigger one to wave around in front of the mirror.

I think I need at least a 9.5 or 10 in blade. I don't know why. Really, it is some sort of impulse. I am sure I will go out in the yard and hack some branches, and then retire the thing, but, nevertheless, I must have it. So I am going to pick up either a kabar kukri, ontario sp10 marine raider (very mean looking, I am sure it will baton the heck out of any wood out there) or an ontario RTAK II. Also looking at the Kabar Becker Combat Bowie (9in blade)

These are the lesser expensive of what is out there, but I need to get this hankering for a BIG blade out of my system, without breaking the bank.
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Well, for waving around in front of the mirror and as a practical chopper/camp knife, you can't go wrong with the Becker BK-9. Outstanding knife (and you'll look good using it, too).
 
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