The Perfect Knife !!!

Fiddleback said:
I know my line was a cliche, bUT, its true in every sense of the line. As Elen has said, there is no CATCHALL knife that is perfectly suited for all tasks. Even infi steel won't turn a knife into such a tool.

Your knife is your personal choice. But if its not carryable then its worthless, regardless of its cost.

If carrying your Battle Mistress on trails makes you uncomfortable, and you walk off without a knife on you, then you've just realized a BIG flaw with that knife. Its back at camp.

Lets say your knife is uncomfortable on your belt, so you leave it at home. Then your truck gets stuck in a snow embankment, and you're stranded, then that knife is worthless.



I guess this kinda relates to what I'm asking.....a knife might be able to fell a large tree in a single swipe and skin 10 deer without a re-sharpen but if it's so big that you never take it , there is it's flaw !!!!
Maybe I should have asked if you have found your perfect HIKING knife as that is when we are most likely to fall prey to a survival situation and need our trusty blade the most !!!!
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This is why most all of my fixed blades are compact, yet rugged. They are of the perfect size and weight so that there is no excuse not to have at least one on me at all times in the field. And they are all pretty perfect in my eye!
 
tknife said:
This is why most all of my fixed blades are compact, yet rugged. They are of the perfect size and weight so that there is no excuse not to have at least one on me at all times in the field. And they are all pretty perfect in my eye!
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So your perfect knife size would be ?

And if pushed to pick ONE from your collection, it would be ?
 
as to the original question, i'd have to say, "nope." Secretly that's a lie, my perfect knife is my Matt Lamey custom -- but if i allow myself to admit that i have found the perfect blade, i might lose the desire to keep getting more knives, which although less than perfect are still fun to use... I can't think of anyhing my "perfect" Lamey couldn't do that any of my other knives could though, truth be told. Though true perfection may not exist in reality, my Lamey is better than perfect -- just as the ancient greek architects intentionally built imperfections into their designs, the imperfections are what lend beauty to something that would otherwise be sterile and fake... or maybe i have just had too much Caol Ila single malt scotch....
 
I'm hoping the Koster Nessmuk I have coming is my perfect knife. If not, well, then damn it I'll just have to keep trying :) :)
 
I have a ton of knives because I kept looking for that perfeck knife. Going with the one you have with you,( which is true as hell ) Mine would have to be the Victorinox Explorer and the Kershaw Blackout. They are with me at all times.

Strangely enough if I could only have one knife, I would draw it from the hat which would contain the Mora Carbon Clipper and the SOG Northwest Ranger.
 
The perfect knife does not exsits. All knives have there strenght and weakness. The trick is is to find a knife that does most thing well. I found my "perfect" knife in the Sere 2000. For a everyday folder it is hard to beat.
 
I have been looking for the perfect knife for years , about 7 year ago now , when I did a bit of wandering around outback , I narrowed down my criteria

I wanted about a 4 inch blade , a knife that could be carried very easily , strong enough blade for some prying and levering as in opening beach almonds and oysters , not in opening car doors , something that would hold a dam good edge , but not be so hard it would snap the tip off or chip out the blade , I wanted lightness too , but not at cost of strength ...

I ended up with an Okapi
 
No... =(

But I'm happy to keep searching!

I think I'm pretty well suited on fixed blades, for now...

I'm looking for that perfect folder. Frame lock, thick blade that can pry and slice like my Shun pairing knife, and a bottle opener on the bottom. Plus it has to look sheeple friendly while being a 4 inch blade. Ideally not S30V as I seem to chip that with some frequency.

Maybe a Scott Cook or Chris Reeves will fit that bill someday, or an X-18. Right now its a combination of a little Spyderco, a Strider, an emerson framelock, and Busse Game Warden.
 
My scrapyard knife company "Scrapper 6" is the closest to perfect knife I have ever come across. It's handle is comfortable but tough. The blade is big enough for field chores, but not overly large. It takes an edge easily and holds it. It is well sized for carry. If for some bizarre reason I had to leave home immediately and survive under adverse and hostile conditions, I would take my Scrapper 6. I have mine set up in the factory nylon sheath, carrying a waterproof container of strike anywhere matches, some cotton stuffed into sealed plastic straws, about 30 feet of 550 cord in a tight noose like bundle on the side, and a ceramic sharpening rod, and also a nylon utility strap so I can wear it over my shoulder as opposed to wearing it on my waist.
I always find myself reaching for my Scrapper 6 !
 
My spending is almost done, but the search will continue. My perfect knife at this point in my life is a BRK&T Bravo 1. Just a little over 4" blade, thick enough to pry many things, razor sharp convex grind, almost indestructible orange g10 handles, great balance and great feeling in the hand.

My last knife purchase for a long while is the Koster bushcraft knife and I think that one is going to be an extremely great product and I can't wait to get my hands on it.
 
IH8U said:
My spending is almost done, but the search will continue. My perfect knife at this point in my life is a BRK&T Bravo 1. Just a little over 4" blade, thick enough to pry many things, razor sharp convex grind, almost indestructible orange g10 handles, great balance and great feeling in the hand.

My last knife purchase for a long while is the Koster bushcraft knife and I think that one is going to be an extremely great product and I can't wait to get my hands on it.
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I can hear that nagging voice already though bro " Is the Bravo a little too thick or is the Koster Bushcraft a little too thin, maybe Carbon steel is wrong full stop maybe I should go for a Stainless number " And so it goes on !!!!!:D
 
pitdog said:
I can hear that nagging voice already though bro " Is the Bravo a little too thick or is the Koster Bushcraft a little too thin, maybe Carbon steel is wrong full stop maybe I should go for a Stainless number " And so it goes on !!!!!:D
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Damn, you read my mind! I was going to post something about the thickness of the bravo 1 and then state something like: the new gameskeeper II is hitting dealers very soon and that is a bit thinner that the bravo 1 with a 5" blade. If I was wealthier I'd own the whole BRK&T line up. Plus, I have been eyeballing the fallkniven line as well ever since I saw noss's destruction test.

Damn this sickness all to hell.:foot:
 
A man after my own heart !!!

I have always been an adamant Carbon steel guy but even I now keep looking at the F1 !!!
 
pitdog said:
So your perfect knife size would be ?

And if pushed to pick ONE from your collection, it would be ?
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I agree with most everyone else that there is no one perfect knife.. for everyone.

There is one knife that I settled on more than thirty years ago that has been my companion on many adventures over the years and has done everything I have asked of it. It is certainly no drawer queen, but is really none the worse for the wear. In fact, compared to an exact copy NIB in my collection, except for a few scratches and a well earned patina, I can hardly tell the difference if it were not for the serial numbers being different. Yes, I have more than one of them. More like twenty counting the varients and SFO's I have collected. But I have that one user.

It is high carbon cutlery steel, 1095HC and a production knife. It is not a "superknife" made with steel designed for stelth bombers, or firing pins on smart bombs. The handle is molded Delrin slabs, nicely textured and neither too hot nor too cold for comfort. The serpentine shape fits my hand perfectly. And after so many years of use, I have tactile memory of the 5 1/4" sabre ground trailing point blade. I can use it in the dark, underwater, or inside an animal without cutting myself. It handles gutting, skinning and butchering chores and light chopping as well. I've even used it to cook with over a campfire as a fork and spatula.

But it is not for everyone. The design is mid 1960's as are the materials. Brass guard and nickle silver pins and shield. 1095 steel and Delrin. Definately not a "modern" knife. Yet it is my favorite and always at hand when I am out and about camping, canoing, fishing and hunting.

I still enjoy buying and trying new knives. Two arrived today which were within my budget, $15 for the pair. One is an ebony handled W.H. Morley Fishing Knife from the early 1900's made in Germany and sold here by Adolph Kastor (Camillus). I believe this one to be a copy of the Marble's knife of the same pattern, and predecessor to the Schrade Sharpfinger, another favorite of mine (around twenty five, thanks for asking!). The second was a "gimme" that came in the deal, a Russell Green River Works boning knife circa 1920-1930. I suppose that I am now near a thousand knives to the good in my collection. But that doesn't stop me from buying ..just...one...more to try.

Codger
 
I've been looking for "THE KNIFE" just about all my life. I haven't found it yet. Part of the reason I wanted to make knives is to make myself "THE KNIFE". Problem is...I like so many different features from so many knives, building "THE KNIFE" would be impossible for me. If I ever do build "THE KNIFE", I'll be so old I won't need it anymore! :D -Matt-
 
pitdog said:
Maybe I should have asked if you have found your perfect HIKING knife as that is when we are most likely to fall prey to a survival situation and need our trusty blade the most !!!!
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Yeah, I have a number of those. Without a shadow of doubt my two top favourites are a good hand-made Tommipuukko, and the Fällkniven F1. Both the right size, which is compact, and good at all the traditional knife tasks - chopping and such I would normally leave to other tools. Below these two guys in my hierarchy of perfect blades for hiking are a lot of good blades, such as the Busse Game Warden, which would be near to perfect if it did not have that absolutely pointless choil on it. I favour, usually, the small to medium sized knives. The big knives are a lot of fun, and very useful for certain things, but they wouldn't be my choice if I had to take only one knife.
 
If open carry wasn't an issue for me my perfect knife would be the f1... that thing is dynamite....since it is an issue however I'd have to say that my brkt mini-canadian comes close...(still afraid of rust) my favorite folder for the woods is my vic farmer and my favorite edc is my crkt mt shasta... I don't know why but I love that thing....
 
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