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L.T

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Aug 13, 2005
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Im thinking of getting a knife that can be used for pretty much everything in the outdoors. Im thinking of a knife like the rambo one but i dont know? any suggestions? (price limit under 100.00)
 
What I would suggest is to move radically away from that style of knife and towards something like these :

http://www.bgoodeknives.com/images/Closeup.jpg

and

http://www.bgoodeknives.com/images/purpleheart.jpg

These are customs which you won't get for $100, but you can find similar attributes in decent productions. Look for :

-clean designs, no "speed holes"
-carbon steels, differentially hardned if possible
-nice gentle curves on the blade and handle, no sharp corners
-nice high flat grinds
-a decently pointy tip

Becker CU/7, Camp Tramp, flat ground RD7 are a decent blade to start for a large style knife.

Mora 2000, Deerhunter, and Howling Rat are solid working designs in smaller knives.

-Cliff
 
Cliff, normally I don't disagree with what you have to say, and yes, we all know that knives with funny angles and that crap can create stress lines, but I have a very hard time believing that the Lile rambo models suffers from premature stress fractures. The same could alse be held true of many other knives, including Reeve and randall sawback models, as well as the tracker.
 
The problem is, cheap copies of these good knives have all the faults of designs subject to unnecessary stresses and none of the good materials and manufacturing quality to counterbalance them.

You won't break a Dave Beck WSK because it has sawteeth, buit have you seen the Paratraxx?
 
Walking Man said:
Cliff, normally I don't disagree with what you have to say, and yes, we all know that knives with funny angles and that crap can create stress lines, but I have a very hard time believing that the Lile rambo models suffers from premature stress fractures. The same could alse be held true of many other knives, including Reeve and randall sawback models, as well as the tracker.
Click to expand...

You are missing the point that the original poster was making- he wants a knife for less than $100 or so, Thus the Lile Rambo knives wouldnt even be remotely attainable. I would think that he was looking at the United Cutlery ones- which are useless.
 
Walking Man said:
...Reeve and randall sawback models, as well as the tracker.
Click to expand...

Yeah I would avoid all of them, not really because of the main blade breaking in half but for other reasons I would prefer a blade ground similar to the above.

The teeth do weaken the blade, but Lile actually used steels I would not want for that tyle of blade anyway. My position would be similar to Chas's, he is just blunter, check rec.knives for details.

Reeve doesn't have the sawback, the design is cleaner, but it has issues with a round grip, shallow primary grind and a softer than optimal steel. I'd take a Project I over a Tracker though.

-Cliff
 
I stand corrected. BTW, look in the general knives discussion forum. Many people ask this same question, and you'll find lots of good stuff there.
 
For those curious, the paratraxx is a Tracker inspired design :

http://www.stircraz.cnc.net/paratraxx.html

I would avoid that for the same reasons I would avoid the Beck one, this one is additionally problematic because the "420 stainless steel" is fairly low end and the grinds look very shallow. I would also wonder about trying to use the sawteeth on a canted blade.

Throwing can be done with most knives, it is mainly an issue of can you get a smooth release from the handle and/or blade depending on your style. If you are doing it a lot, you want a knife which can take the repeated impacts which is a decent carbon steel

For around that price I would look at the CU/7, Bush Ranger or SRK, and even the Bushman which is a very nice introduction piece to bushcraft and general outdoor work I would also consider a multi-blade setup. A Mora 2000 + machete/axe.

A decente Martindale or Barteaux or GB wildlife / mini, can do a lot of work and then you have your fine smaller blade for most of the cutting. If you don't like the puukko style of the Mora 2000, then consider the Spyderco Temperance, A.G. Russell Deerhunter or Swamp Rat Howling Rat.

-Cliff
 
thanks for the help i willl most likely go with the mora 2000 and i might also get the paratraxx. thanks cliff
 
L.T said:
Thanks for all the help. Actually Cliff I was looking at a company called majorsurplusnsurvival.com

http://www.majorsurplusnsurvival.co...en=PROD&Product_Code=037629&Category_Code=231

But what about the paratraxx? I thinking a knife that can be used in the outdoors and also be thrown like the tom brown tracker knife would be nice except that one is to expensive.
Click to expand...

Any knife made from low quality stainless isnt going to be very good for much. It will dull quickly if you chop with it, or even cut with it. It might destroy the edge or even bend/break the blade if you throw it.
 
Indeed, throwing is likely to damage the wooden scales, bend/break the point, and chopping hard woods will induce damage into the primary grind on harder knots. I fooled with a Hibben Higlander bowie awhile back, very difficult to avoid damaging the edge on wood work.

-Cliff
 
so is the highlander a good or bad choice cliff? Is there any place i can get a customized knife for the right price.
 
LT if you are looking for some cutting tools that are going to be functional enough to really do all that needs to be done in the outdoors and not just something to play with and hang on the wall, I would suggest the following:

Victorinox Swiss Army Knife (SAK) with a wood saw such as the 91 mm Hiker, Camper or Alox Farmer or one of the larger 111 mm locking models such as the One hand Trekker.


Cold Steel Bushman – suitable for throwing and other hard use, cheap and easy to replace. Alternatives: Frosts Mora Clipper (excellent cutters, lightweight, but not suitable for much abuse), Camillus ArcLite (neck knife, handy for use when wearing a pack or in a canoe).


Gerber Sport saw with wood cutting blade.


18” Ontario D-guard machete with GI plastic scabbard. Alternatives: 12” Ontario or 18” Tramontina or Cold Steel Latin machete with homemade leather sheath.



You can get these four...SAK, Bushman, Sport saw & Machete for about $100 if you shop around.


Good luck with your selection.





- Frank
 
The Paratraxx is renowned for snapping off at the hilt under any stress at all. If you insist on a Tracker-style knife under $100, take a look at the "Pigs" of Spectre Products. Seriously.

I meant to endorse the previous post by Frank. A few different knives, each somewhat specialized, will give you tremendous flexibility and room for growth.

You really should get a Swiss Army Knife or multitool and a small fixed blade like a Mora so you can see how much you can do with these, and not necessarily need masses of excess metal with you all the time. The Mora 2000 is great -- except for that bilious green handle :D I find it makes a superior kitchen knife.
 
I was very surprised by the larger Cold Steel Bushman. If you are of modest budget, don't mind a knife with a handle like a shovel, and "what the heck is that?" comments, I'd start here. For less than 20 bucks including shipping, you'd still have a nice amount of cash for a SAK and maybe even a multi-tool. I found wrapping the Bushman handle with bicycle inner tube also makes it less slippery and eliminates the the shovel like clang when thrown. Another plus is a hollow handle to put extras in and you can cap it off with a PVC cap. It's taken the place of my 80's Trailmaster more and more these days.
 
The Bushman is a great knife for the trunk of a car. You can even dig yourself out of the ice in the winter with it! :D

You can stick it on a hiking staff to improvise a spear.
 
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