What is your knife/tool style or system in the out of doors?

[Shotgun]

I'm pleased to see how many of you guys carry an axe or a hatchet! Often times while reading this forum I get the impression that axes are always too heavy to be worth carrying. Meanwhile the guy posting that is carrying a 10" and .25" thick fixed blade! Hah.

Nice to see so many axes in this thread.

I had a Swamp Rat M6 that had a 6" by 1/4" thick blade that weighed 16ounces. My GB mini is lighter and actually works better as a knife IMO.

 

[Carolina River Rat]

Coastal SC. Lots of pine, cypress swamp, and salt marsh. My current setup, and one that I'll stick with for the forseeable future, is a 14-16" machete (currently a 15" Imacasa bolo), Fiskars folding saw, and a Vic Farmer. Used to carry some sort of fixed blade, but found that I seldom used it. Those three items cover all my needs in the woods around here.

 

[PDE]

Coastal SC. Lots of pine, cypress swamp, and salt marsh. My current setup, and one that I'll stick with for the forseeable future, is a 14-16" machete (currently a 15" Imacasa bolo), Fiskars folding saw, and a Vic Farmer. Used to carry some sort of fixed blade, but found that I seldom used it. Those three items cover all my needs in the woods around here.

Yea, down here that is all you really need. As much as I love
carrying a small forest axe, I rarely use an axe as much as
I would like to. I had a pretty cool fiskars brush tool,
the name escapes me at the moment that worked, but
broke on me. I still carry a larger fixed blade, small
fixed blade and an axe. Plus a vic and the same saw that
you have got. I am a little over prepared. They handle my
needs pretty well. I must say, I recently got a Lee Reeves double bit.
Not the best purchase on my part, too short to get enough
force down for splitting, can't batton with the double bit.
It is light, though, and goes into a pack with ease.

 

[Rockywolf]

Im in Minnesota. Always have a SAK hiker on me. Sometimes a LM wave, 3-4 inch fixed blade is in my jacket, larger blade in my pack with a small folding saw. Used to carry a hatchet but found a bigger knife handier.

 

[Cascade_mtn's]

Hard one to answer for me. Depends on where, what time of year, how far/long I may be going, and altitude is also a factor for my area.

On summer one two nighters it may just be this:

Silky Saw:

Vic Pioneer:

If I'm going for longer than a day or two, or further into the woods/elevation then I would add this for sure:

Tops Pasayten Lite Traveler:


If I'm shoe shoeing in during the winter months then I personal wouldn't be caught 10 feet from my truck without this:

BAHCO 19" camp axe:

 

[dialton]

North Texas. Like most, it depends on the type and duration of the outing as well as the time of year but for the most part it is a combination of these trying to not duplicate tasks too much.
One from each line below....
GB hatchet, a folding saw, or Busse Basic 9.
Multitool.....SAK or Leatherman Wave
4-6" fixed blade.

 

[Tyrkon Lawson]

My current set up. The Martindale is an excellent compact chopper so far, I just got the IZULA but can't wait to use it, and the LM Blast is a daily user no matter where I am. I need a saw now.

 

[mymindisamob]

Hard one to answer for me. Depends on where, what time of year, how far/long I may be going, and altitude is also a factor for my area.

On summer one two nighters it may just be this:

Silky Saw:

Vic Pioneer:

If I'm going for longer than a day or two, or further into the woods/elevation then I would add this for sure:

Tops Pasayten Lite Traveler:


If I'm shoe shoeing in during the winter months then I personal wouldn't be caught 10 feet from my truck without this:

BAHCO 19" camp axe:

Funny! We PNWers must think somewhat alike. Silky saws and Bahco hatchets and axes abound in my gear.:thumbup:

 

[Cascade_mtn's]

Funny! We PNWers must think somewhat alike. Silky saws and Bahco hatchets and axes abound in my gear.:thumbup:

Agreed. :thumbup: Live in an area where fickle weather is the norm and saws/axes become very useful when out in the woods.

I have wanted to buy one of those Gransfor axes (Scandinavian model I believe) for a long time. But for the money, my BAHCO just doesn't want to give up. I did sand all the clear crap off the handle, soak it in linseed oil for about 2 weeks, re-profiled the edge and a few areas on the bit that make it a bit sticky, but other than that it's a great axe for the $$$.

 

[sambo.]

well, the bushland around here could best be described as Mallee Scrub.

if i'm just out and about, i'll usually have a small fixed blade (Fallkniven WM1) on me.

if i'm out hunting, i'll have the following bladeware:

1: 16" Wetterlnigs hatchet
2: Leatherman Wave
3: Fallkniven WM1-3G
4: Fallkniven S1
5: 12x twin blade, single bevel, 125grain Outback Supreme broadheads and often a half dozen Varmint Buster blunts (they make a real mess out of bunnies).

for a total of ~33 blades.

 

[matilda]

In the past few years when I go trekking, I usually just carry a small folder and leatherman. I now have two small dogs so I will carry a Tibetan sword to protect them from cats. I've found that I seldom use or even need a knife. The main use is clearing a spot for my bivey bag. Thanks Walt

 

[Cascade_mtn's]

In the past few years when I go trekking, I usually just carry a small folder and leatherman. I now have two small dogs so I will carry a Tibetan sword to protect them from cats. I've found that I seldom use or even need a knife. The main use is clearing a spot for my bivey bag. Thanks Walt

Please forgive me as I'm on the lee side of the stone most of the time but...... are you kidding? Or do you really carry a sword to protect your dogs?

 

[matilda]

That's the best I can do. Not a gun person.

 

[Voltron]

I'm not a fan of big knives. Take up too much space and don't really do anything a smaller knife can't do. I usually have, for my cutter, a small slipjoint pocket knife or 2 layer SAK. I'll have a small ax as well. That's pretty much it. Honestly, though, I very rarely use my ax. Not much you can do with a big chopper that you can't accomplish with a small slippie. I like using whatever is in my pockets on an everyday basis as my cutter in any circumstance because it forces me to learn how to use it in any situation, should the need arise and I find my self in a SHTF scenerio (these usually creep up on you when you DON'T have the latest, greatest equipment money can buy. LOL).
Anyway, a die hard minimalist is I. Make do with what you got.

 

[ratamahatta]

izula
rc 4
machete........year round!!!!

 

[collecter]

Always the same system for me, Victorinox alox Pioneer or Farmer, USMC Kabar or BK2 and my felling axe or 12" machete depending on the landscape. Add a hunting knife during hunting season.

Nothing fancy and nothing too expensive that it can't easiliy be replaced.

 

[neeman]

I would hike or snowshoe in the New England.
I would always carry a stove and fuel, and a tent or a poncho.
The weight of a liter of gasoline is less then a big knife or an axe.
So I would not build fires at night for cooking or heat, or need to build shelters.
I would rather save the time in fire building or shelter building, and read a good book or write my diary

So I carried a Bucklite, a SAK Classic for first aid, and a small kitchen paring knife.
The paring knife got 99% of my use, and the Bucklite was an emergency backup.

In England in the mountains, there is nothing to cut...it is open landscape.
But I would still carry the same set up.

Here in Israel, the lack of wood and the danger of forest fires, I use a small propane gas stove.
I carry a larger folder for two legged wildlife.

 

[CM_Rick]

In the mountains of East Tennessee...

day hikes: hydro pack, 10 essentials and my tracker
one nighters: add a tent and a my sleeping bag
weekends: add a hatchet

when out practicing minimalist survival skills, I exchange the hydro pack for a canteen and cup system, fire steel, and tracker... I'm slowly getting to where I leave everything else.

 

[Flexxx]

Becker BK2/Bk7, Esee 6 with either a mapedition fatboy or falcon II..

 

[Bumppo]

Right now, I have a Victorinox spirit and a CRKT prowler in my edc bag, although I usually replace the Prowler with a Meyerchin rigging knife if I am going into the woods. As part of the "system", I also carry a sharpener with me as well.