What knife am I looking for?

M

Mabo

Joined
Jan 22, 2006
Messages
12
Hello Everyone,

This is my first post on BladeForums so please bear with me. I am looking for a good survival knife and I need your suggestions as to what fits my needs. I'll start off by telling you what is important to me.

1. Durability
2. Total length between 7-10 inches
3. Sheath needs to be included or an aftermarket sheath needs to be available (preferably kydex or something that doesn't hold water).

Now, here is what I will primarily be using it for:

1. Whittleing pieces of wood (making figure four traps, etc.)
2. Skining game
3. Chopping vegtables/fruit

I don't plan to use this knife for batoning or self defense. It also needs to be able to be sharpened in the field and I would prefer that it be somewhat light weight if possible. If there is anything else I need to describe please let me know, I need your wisdom to help find the perfect knife for me. Thanks for your help.
 
Price? What's your price range? A Cold Steel Bushman or almost any Busse would satisfy your highly general requirements. It all depends on what you want to spend.

I suggest you browse some websites and look at some knives. Cruise the boards here, too, to see what others are using.

My personal favoites:
Cold Steel Master Hunter
Anything from Mora, Sweden
Grohmann DH Russell models, particularily #1 and #4 with the flat grind
Anything from Becker Knife and Tool
 
Look at some of the becker knives, Ranger heck if ya got the money a busse but be prepared to wait for one ;)

The becker BK7 is a very nice knife, I love mine and use it lots. Have fun with the search :D
 
Cigar said:
Mora clipper, Good strong and cheap.
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Yep, any one of several knives from Mora Sweden would work. As would other scandi blades with a 3-4" blade. My preference is the M2K (Mora 2000) from Eriksson. Not the coolest looking blade, but it's one of the better working knives that I've used. Shown is the Mora 2000 and Frost 760. The sheaths shown are aftermarket and made by Eric from On/Scene Tactical.

M2K.jpg


P1020752.jpg
 
Price is not a concern so hit me with your best shot. I am interested in obtaining this/these knives soon however and it appears that places like Busse and SwampRat put out about one knife per year and I can't wait forever for them to make what I want.

Should I be looking for a particular type of steel, like carbon steel, or SR-101 (I just made that up, I have no idea if that is a type of steel.) I heard with brands like SwampRat and Busse you can hammer the knife into a tree and then stand on the handle, toughness like that interests me, but like I said I would like to buy the knife sooner rather than later.

And thank you for the pictures of those Mora's. I love those sheaths and the knives look great as well.
 
Mabo said:
I heard with brands like SwampRat and Busse you can hammer the knife into a tree and then stand on the handle, toughness like that interests me, but like I said I would like to buy the knife sooner rather than later.
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I must use my knives different from a lot of people, sharpened crowbars do not interest me in the least, and other than battle I fail to see their use. I would love to see someone peel an apple or cut their sausage and cheese with a lot of these knives I see. How did chopping and battoning get to be such a vital outdoor activity, I live outdoors and very rarely chop and almost never baton.

What do I do with my knives? Prepare food, to include cleaning game and fish, general cutting, strings, cloth, packaging and so on, whittling/shaving, and that is about it.

My choices: Tramontina machete, Mora and a SAK or Wave. Now you can buy a whole lot of different versions of the knives I named, made by a bunch of different makers and companys and pay a whole lot more money but the makers mark on the blade won't make them perform a damn bit better. Chris
 
runningboar said:
I must use my knives different from a lot of people, sharpened crowbars do not interest me in the least, and other than battle I fail to see their use. I would love to see someone peel an apple or cut their sausage and cheese with a lot of these knives I see. How did chopping and battoning get to be such a vital outdoor activity, I live outdoors and very rarely chop and almost never baton.

What do I do with my knives? Prepare food, to include cleaning game and fish, general cutting, strings, cloth, packaging and so on, whittling/shaving, and that is about it.

My choices Tramontina machete, Mora and a SAK or Wave. Now you can buy a whole lot of different versions of the knives I named, made by a bunch of different makers and companys and pay a whole lot more money but the makers mark on the blade won't make them perform a damn bit better. Chris
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Seems to me that it's not "either/or." There are knives that fall between "sharpened prybar" and MORA's (and I like my 2000 just fine).

IF (all caps) it's "vital" -- say in a wilderness survival situation -- to use a knife to open up wood or harvest poles or (God forbid) to dig, you may want something a little more Murphy-proof (as if :rolleyes: ) than a relatively thin slicer that works for 99% of what you typically do. I don't think of an BRKT Aurora (apx 9"x3/16" x 1"), for example, as a weapon. It cuts as well as I need.

You have that covered in your way. Others do it in their way.
 
Any of Ontario's RAT line, Ranger knives, or Becker knives would be a good place to look. Good designs and materials, not quite on par with Busse's, but way lower prices too.
 
Come on, you know good and well I was not talking about a BRKT Aurora, or any knife of that sort.
 
Thomas Linton said:
BRKT Aurora (apx 9"x3/16" x 1"), for example, as a weapon. It cuts as well as I need.
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I think a Mora would do just fine, but the BRKT did come to mind. Also you might want to look at the Fallkniven F1. Both are very good sturdy blades and would serve you well. Many here in W&S own one or both and actually use them:rolleyes:

Fallkniven F1
http://www.fallkniven.com/a1f1/f1_en.htm

Bark river Aurora
http://www.dlttradingcompany.com/index.php?cPath=24_302&osCsid=8b231799f0b070788837f5b3b38fba43
 
I agree with you runningboar in the sense that I would rather have a knife that peels apples than a knife that I can use to pry open a car door or something of that nature. I guess what I was trying to imply was that if there was a knife that could come close to doing both that would be the knife I am interested in. Something that can be used to cut up my vegtables but at the same time be used as a makeshift can opener if I needed it to. I will probably never use 90% of any knife's potential that I buy, but I take comfort in the fact that if I needed it to step up to the plate that it would not let me down.
 
Mabo said:
I agree with you runningboar in the sense that I would rather have a knife that peels apples than a knife that I can use to pry open a car door or something of that nature. I guess what I was trying to imply was that if there was a knife that could come close to doing both that would be the knife I am interested in. Something that can be used to cut up my vegtables but at the same time be used as a makeshift can opener if I needed it to. I will probably never use 90% of any knife's potential that I buy, but I take comfort in the fact that if I needed it to step up to the plate that it would not let me down.
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Mabo... do you have a knife now that you like/use. If no... start slow (cheap) and work your way up. I have used, handled, bought, sold, traded until I'm blue in the face and I still have not found the ONE. The fallkniven F1 comes very close for me (I do have the knife sickness to be sure) but I will look forward. Try something that appeals to you in a modest price range. Many knives fit what you are wanting them to do. The knowledge on how to use them only comes with time and practice:thumbup:
 
The only knife that I currently own is a locking blade knife made by Bear MGC. I don't have any experience in fixed blade knives (which is what I'm currently interested in).
 
tarmix101 said:
I have used, handled, bought, sold, traded until I'm blue in the face and I still have not found the ONE. :
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Me too, the closest to my ONE is a Schrade 13ot.

Mabo,
Maybe go to a store and handle a bunch of knives and buy the one that feels the best and has the qualities your looking for, shape, steel or whatever. Chris
 
tons of knives are capable of what you've specified so how bout your style? any sak will hold an edge whittling. for skinning game i'd like belly, for fruits and vegetables i'd want stainless. throw that all into a fixed knife and i'd go for a grohmann.
 
I don't know enough about knives though to make an informed decision. I would probably end up walking out of the store with some POS knife that just felt good to me. Seems a lot of people have suggested Mora's, Becker, and Ranger knifes. I'll start my search there and see if I can find one that matches my requirements:

1. Durability
2. Total length between 7-10 inches
3. Sheath needs to be included or an aftermarket sheath needs to be available (preferably kydex or something that doesn't hold water).

I'll assume that any of the above brands of knives can easily exceede the uses I will be putting them to:

1. Whittleing pieces of wood (making figure four traps, etc.)
2. Skining game
3. Chopping vegtables/fruit

Although I would still like one that I could chop up a 747 with and then peel my apple afterwards for a snack ;)
 
For a first fixed blade, getting a couple of moras makes a lot of sense to me. You can use the heck out of them, guilt free, and decide what features you really love or really hate, and which are worth paying for. You can always order the more expensive blades once you feel you've settled in on likes/dislikes.
 
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