What do Real Military Men/Women Carry

17 year veteran still serving Oregon Army National Guard i,ve carried different
knives at different times but mostly Spyderco Endura,sak huntsman,leatherman
wave,as field knives go,I,ve carried Kabar,Cold Steel tanto,Garcia survival knife,
Cold Steel recon,as folders go benchmade,Spydercos and various one hand openers none of my units ever issued knives even bayonets were kept locked up we always bought are own.as an electrician in the civilian world i carriy a paladin 525 a delica

tyrantblade
 
I'd love to know what Mr. Strider carried when he was active.....now be honest, you did carry a knife right?

My first post & I've probably already pissed off 1/2 the peaple here. BTW, as soon as I have the cash, I'm gonna git me one of those Striders to go with my BM & EKI (+ the 275 other sharp things I hardly ever use anymore).
 
When I was in I like most everybody else carried a Buck 110 bought out of pocket. I also carried an original A.G. Russell Sting.

U.S. Army 1977-1984
 
I'd be interested to know if the US military has any restrictions on what knives and how many you can carry if you are paying for them yourself?

As others who have served in various armies have noted, you don't want to lug any more heavy clobber with you than needed. But would the military allow soldiers to walk about with gift weapons on their belts or does this infringe dress rules?
 
I own about 50 knives. My top carry choices right now when not in the suckare: SOG powerlock multi(must have as a Seabee), RATmodel 1 folder(easy to sharpen takes a great edge),SAK farmer(those who have one know why), RAT 3( because it can handle about 99.9% of all the cutting tasks that the avaerage military person has). Ok that RAT3 usually stays in my truck when I'm not in uniform, but the rest are always on me no matter what I wear.
 
I was a Naval Aviator (SH-60B Seahawks) on active duty during Desert Storm. All I carried then was that worthless Pilot Survival Knife that I have trashed numerous times on this forum. While in the reserves (retired a year or so ago), I carried a Chris Reeve Shadow III in an Okuden boot sheath (Brian was kind enough to design one special for me) and a Large Sebenza in my pocket. If I were to deploy in the future and had time to prepare (despite the retirement papers, I am still a fit 41 year old), I would put a Dozier Arkansas Toothpick in my boot, the Chris Reeve Shadow III in my survival vest, and maybe a Busse Badger or Natural Outlaw somewhere immediately accessable - like right next to my sidearm. And I would probably carry my Small Sebenza nowdays because I find picking out splinters easier with it than the Large version. Ask me next week, and I will probably answer differently.

Oh, and I always carried a multitool of some sort. Leatherman usually.
 
I got a question that is pretty related to this thread and feel most people on here can answer it without hijacking this thread too much.
My friend just got back from basic training with the marines this weekend. I was lucky enough to be able to come home and see him. I gave him my spyderco delica wave. It was probably the best knife i own, or at least my favorite. Just wondering how well u guys think this will serve him. Dont know how often a folder will come in more handy than a fixed blade. Is the wave feature going to come in handy at all.
Im just honored that hell carry something i gave him while in service and im hoping it comes in as handy for him as it did for me.
 
All men go through mandatory military service here in Finland. Surprisingly though, the knives used in the FDF (Finnish Defense Forces) are in my experience much less varied than in some other militaries. Most men use a Finnish puukko of factory manufacture. A lot use a mora - very affordable but also good. Some use the M.95 J-P Peltonen sissipuukko, which I have to say is pretty good, although not a traditional Finnish puukko at all.
 
He will probably use the delica more because unlike a bulky fixed blade this one will be les likely to be left in the tent or not carried because of a weight issue. Plus with the added bonus of the wave feature he will be able to deploy the blade just as fast as drawing a fixed blade.
 
Lt Col, USAF, AFSC: 11R3 (U-2 pilot), 18 years active duty.
Most recent deployments in 2004 and 2005. Issued knives were the classic Pilot's Survival Bolt Knife and Camillus silver US folder in the seat kit plus the orange auto parachute hook knife on person. Neither would be used unless worst case scenario, and luckily neither happened. Personal carry on long solo missions over lots of nowhere and lots of hostile land was a Spyderco Military. I own several Spydercos and aside from the Mili being a favorite, it just felt right to fly those missions with that knife! Never punched out, so never needed it in the worst way. But it got lots of use around camp. Nothing like what one day in the Army would have required I'm sure, still it worked for me. I daily carry it still today, but only in civvies because mili is too big for comfort in a Flight Suit. Plus, everything I need a knife for on base is satisfied with the BladeTech Mouse, clip removed, in a pocket with my coins and lunch money.

Blaze
 
What is common here is what the PX sells. You mostly see CRKT, Gerber, and Cold Steel. Anyone carrying Benchmade, Spyderco, other, etc. would probably had ordered it on line. You might be able to find a different brand at a different AAFES in another base. I personally carry a Benchmade 630 Blackwood Skirmish.
 
I spent a lot of years on Active Duty in the U.S. Army. I was in a combat arms branch and quite a bit of time was in the field. It was simple. My field knife was whatever I could find the cheapest at the local PX or whatever outdoor goods store was nearby. Must military chores are mundane, simple cutting tasks. If I did have a nice folder, it did not go to the field. The cheapies did the work. Most soldiers could care less. Most soldiers are not "knife people". Whatever is available and cheap was bought. In my last 12 years stateside, I didn't come across anyone carrying a high dollar knife into the field. During those years I bought some nice knives. Some were custom made. I would never have thought of taking them to the field to use. Now that is just me. I know of no one who anticipated using a high dollar "tactical" knife in some extreme survival or hand to hand combat situation. If I found myself in a combat zone, I had my side arm. Civilian cops have far greater chances of being in an armed confrontation than most soldiers. As far as "extreme survival situations" lost hikers in the Rockies have more of a need for equipment of that type. Soldiers usually are not lost, alone, and living off the land. Opening MRE's is not extreme use.
 
When I was in the military I used a Gerber folding knife and a Victrinox pocket knife. As an E-3 I could not afford a $300-$400 knife even if I wanted one. For those that talk about priorities and stuff a wife and two kids had priority over a $300-$400 knife and we had just enough money to purchase food and pay rent and we had no expensive stereo or video game.


edit: Just because the military issues something does not mean it is the best.
 
The Dogman said:
As far as "extreme survival situations" lost hikers in the Rockies have more of a need for equipment of that type. Soldiers usually are not lost, alone, and living off the land. Opening MRE's is not extreme use.
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I agree with the above as it applies to ground combat personel. An infantryman is very unlikely to end up in a true survival situation - alone and without support. On the other hand, aircrewmen are either in their aircraft (happy) or on the ground (very alone and scared). Pilots (at least Navy pilots) are trained to clear the datum IMMEDIATELY and then hide and survive until rescue. Under those circumstances, a knife would most likely be needed for survival tasks and not combat. When I young, I didn't really understand the extreme shortcomings of the survival knife I was provided. If I could go back in time, I would take something expensive and sturdy. And I would take a couple (and maybe even a small folder in my pocket) just in case something got lost on egress from the aircraft.
 
Okay, here goes my assessment. 90% of soldiers will buy what is sold at the PX, including crap knives sold in booths between the permanent stores, and be fine with that. For the most part, this amounts to Cold Steel SRKs, CRKT and Spyderco folders, Ka-Bars (including that strange-but-interestingly angled tactical knife) and a rather broad assortment of multi-tools. Five percent won't even buy those knives and consistently piss of their battle buddies by always borrowing a knife to open MREs and then talking aobut how they don't need a knife.

The last five percent will buy quality knives. I put word out about the Randall deal where they will make you a knife on a compressed timeline if you are active duty, especially deployed, and got a lot of interest back. I count eight or so people in my company as "a lot." One of my corporals carries a Strider folder that he bought at Quantico Tactical just off post. He has been deployed for three of his five years in the Army and just wanted a "sweet" knife. I bought my SLs and PSG Benchmades and had their name, rank and call sign engraved on each. Of the four of them, only one would have bought a knife that nice with his own money, so I made Christmas/pre-deployment presents out of them and got one for myself. Espirit de corps.

Can a single soldier of any rank afford a custom or semi-custom fixed blade? Hell yes. If you have ever been around a soldier, you know that they are sometimes ridiculously loose with their money, especially immediately before and after deployments. The problem is that most soldiers spend impulsively, and the local businesses make a killing on it. My corporal probably paid a hundred dollars more to buy his Strider from Quantico than he would online, but he got instant gratification and he is happy with it.

That is how most soldiers work: they don't bargain shop or plan their spending in advance. Look at the businesses located off post and you will see that there is a killing to be made taking advantage of this fact. If a high-end knife dealer set up shop outside Fort Riley, he would make a killing. Gun dealers make probably 80-100 percent mark-up around post, and guns are a hassle to own as a soldier. High-end knives you can carry every day. Enough said. A market is there if someone will make it.
 
When I was in Anbar province with the 15th MEU, I carried a Darrel ralph/Rick wilson Stilleto Auto. I still carrie it, but am upgrading to a Mercworx Shiva soon. Only about 40% of the Marines in my company carries a knife at all. Those that do stick with CRKT, or China Cheapies. 2 or 3 guys have benchmades.
 
Stiletto Raggio said:
Okay, here goes my assessment. 90% of soldiers will buy what is sold at the PX, including crap knives sold in booths between the permanent stores, and be fine with that. For the most part, this amounts to Cold Steel SRKs, CRKT and Spyderco folders, Ka-Bars (including that strange-but-interestingly angled tactical knife) and a rather broad assortment of multi-tools. Five percent won't even buy those knives and consistently piss of their battle buddies by always borrowing a knife to open MREs and then talking aobut how they don't need a knife.

The last five percent will buy quality knives. I put word out about the Randall deal where they will make you a knife on a compressed timeline if you are active duty, especially deployed, and got a lot of interest back. I count eight or so people in my company as "a lot." One of my corporals carries a Strider folder that he bought at Quantico Tactical just off post. He has been deployed for three of his five years in the Army and just wanted a "sweet" knife. I bought my SLs and PSG Benchmades and had their name, rank and call sign engraved on each. Of the four of them, only one would have bought a knife that nice with his own money, so I made Christmas/pre-deployment presents out of them and got one for myself. Espirit de corps.

Can a single soldier of any rank afford a custom or semi-custom fixed blade? Hell yes. If you have ever been around a soldier, you know that they are sometimes ridiculously loose with their money, especially immediately before and after deployments. The problem is that most soldiers spend impulsively, and the local businesses make a killing on it. My corporal probably paid a hundred dollars more to buy his Strider from Quantico than he would online, but he got instant gratification and he is happy with it.

That is how most soldiers work: they don't bargain shop or plan their spending in advance. Look at the businesses located off post and you will see that there is a killing to be made taking advantage of this fact. If a high-end knife dealer set up shop outside Fort Riley, he would make a killing. Gun dealers make probably 80-100 percent mark-up around post, and guns are a hassle to own as a soldier. High-end knives you can carry every day. Enough said. A market is there if someone will make it.
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Raggio is right on the money. I only run into a very small percentage of Soldiers that actually appreciate a good knife and will spend the money for one as well as take the time to maintain it and keep a good edge on it.

I'm one of the small percentages and have been carrying a nice blades for the past 15+ years. I currently carry a Mad Dog Pygmy ATAK, Emerson CQC-13, Spycerco Military and my Leatherman Charge. I have seen everything from drop leg-mounted Ka Bars to my Battalion Commander that has been carrying his small Gerber LST for the past several years (although he does have a few nice hunting knives). Of course there are several in my unit (Signal) that don't carry a knife at all. I would say that the most common tool is the multi-tool and they get used pretty hard.

Personally, a fixed blade is the safest knife to use. Most Soldiers abuse any blade they get, mostly due to ignorance. A small, stout fixed blade would be a good addition to any Soldiers kit. Bark River's Bravo-1 is a great example of a reasonble fixed blade that is big enough the majority of abusive chores, yet compact enough to wear in/around helo's and vehicles and on the belt or IBA.

It's still kind of rare to run into a knife enthusiast in the military as much as it is in the civilian sector.

Hey Raggio...you need to contact me; I still have a Novatac LED for you to try out. I only have a couple more months before I pop smoke...shoot me an email,

ROCK6
 
Most of the time I carried:
Garrison:
Benchmade CQC7/Spyderco Police + Some sort of multitool
Field:
same as above + SOG Bowie then later on Gerber MKII

Nothing fancy, sorry
 
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