Which survival knife should I buy ?

J

joyeuxlutin

Joined
Sep 21, 2009
Messages
16
Hey,
First of all, I'm new on this forum, so hi everybody ;)

I'd like to buy a knife, I'm french, so I need to be able to ship my knife to France.
I need something rock solid, the edge retention must be good.

I want a 3 - 6 inches knife.
I often go hicking, I camp and I like too cut wood sticks :rolleyes:
I've read a lot during the last two days, and here are the knives that caught my attention :

RAT RC-5
Benchmade Nim Cub II
Rangers knife : RD6
Busse Tank Buster Combat Grade


It seems that the last one is way stronger than the two others, It's way more expensive too. So I'd like to have your opinion about the one I should buy.


Thanks
Lutin


P.S : Sorry for bad english ; )
 
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Welcome to Blade Forums!

It really depends on preference, what you're going to use the knife for, and how much you're willing to spend. I dont have the luxury of spending $100+ on a knife but it looks like you could..

You cant really go wrong with a RAT Cutlery knife. RC3, RC4, RC5 and RC6 are all great knives. Plus, RAT's "no questions asked" warranty is great.

The Ranger and Busse knives are a little more expensive but at the same time a little nicer. If you like how they look, and can afford them, go for it.

You may also be interested in Fallkniven knives. Personally, I like the F1. The S1 is another popular choice.

I am pretty much new here, and I was also doing a lot of research on knives, for my upcoming camping trip. Because of my budget, I settled with a Cold Steel Kukri machete for some light chopping, and a Kabar Becker Necker for more delicate work around camp. I also bought a retractable diamond rod sharpener for touch ups when out in the field.

Hope this helps. Good luck
 
Hello, and welcome!

You have some great choices on your list, I also would recomend considering Falkniven for your needs and price range. But realy any of the knives mentioned would perform very well, so I think you should just go with the one that attracts you the most.
 
the difference between your dollars and our euros interresting for me.
That's why I can afford a busse, but if I do so, I'll have to give up on something else, so the price must really be worth it.

Falkniven S1 looks nice too, but it's stainless, is it a problem ?
Benchmade Nim Cub II and RD6 : I like the shape but I'm not sure about it's toughness.
Busse Tank Buster Combat Grade, I really like the look, and it seems quite resistant but really expensive.


Which one whould you buy ?
Let's say you have the money but you can spend it elsewhere too. I don't want to spend too much money in a knife that is just a little bit nicer.
 
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hands down the RC5. I bought mine about a month ago and it is the finest knife I have ever owned. benchmade nim cub is not strong enough to hold up to the abuses of field use. Fallkniven makes a very solid stainless blade and if I had to pick a stainless knife for survival it would be a Fallkniven. You may also want to check out the Bark River Bravo 1.
 
Yeah , the RC5 seems to be the best choice for me, good quality, not too expensive. Do you know some good cheap knife website that ships to Europe ?
 
IMO for the tasks at had I think you are picking the wrong knife. While the RC-5 is a great knife, a 1/4in thick saber ground blade ment for the extreme uses of military personal might not be the best choice.

Knives I would look at:
Bark river Bravo1 (or any other of their knives)
RC-4
Falkniven


In reality a mora and a SAK/multitool usually see the most use when I'm out.
 
Bonjour Lutin, Welcome to Blade forums.

I am going to echo the comments of the others, you have already picked some excellent candidates but I would also recommend considering the Fallkniven F1 or S1 for stainless, and possibly the Bark River Bravo 1, Gunny, or Fox River for carbon steel. (Bark river has probably at least another half dozen choices available in that blade range)

Good luck with your decision, and keep us posted on how you like whichever one you choose.

Here are a few samples to whet your whistle.

Fallkniven F1
FallknivenF13G-6.jpg

This one is 3G Steel - Thermorun Handles

FallknivenF1-IvoryMicarta-1.jpg

VG10 Steel - Ivory Micarta handles, also available in Maroon and older models in Black Micarta

Fallkniven S1
FallknivenS1-9.jpg


Fallkniven HK9 - 3G Steel
FallknivenHK9-7-1.jpg



Bark River Gunny
BRKT-4GunnySalute-3.jpg

Bark River Knives are available in a variety of handle materials including Wood/Burl, Micarta, G10, and Stag/Bone

Bark River Bravo 1
BRKT-Bravo1-DIBandTurquoise-5.jpg


Bark River Fox River
BRKT-FoxRiver-PurpleandGreenElder-1.jpg


Kevin
 
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The issue is that there are so many good choices!

There is the SAK/Mora School and then the heavier knife school of thought.

There also is the camp knife theme - which pushes more to thinner slicers. Look up the Nessmuk Trio - the baldes in these combinations are often of a different pattern.

Its up to you to choose what you want! Or more likely end up with all (like the rest of us)

Pesonally I am another fallkniven fan (F1 or S1) - tough laminated steel great edge. though there are times I'd go for the Mora. But if I had to go the distance on foot in the bush a version of the nessimuk trio would be the go - proably still with the Fallkniven S1

There are many views here is one on what makes a good knife
http://www.survivaltopics.com/survival/how-to-choose-a-survival-knife/
There are other threads there too - he prefers carbon steel but indicates that makes an exception for the fallkniven

My one advice is don't get a knife that is too big. In France I suspect you don't need a chopper (like here in Australia)
 
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THere are a lot of knives, both production and custom, that will take whatever you're likely to inflict on it. I'd say get the one that really blows your shorts off. That way you're less likely to fall out of love in short time.

If I ever win the lottery it's gonna be Fallkniven or Dozier (Lovelace). I've been trying to rationalize a Fallkniven TK1 or TK5 mainly because they're smaller, making a good edc, but since the US Dollar tanked, they are ridiculously expensive. 3G steel is getting a lot of press.

Here's what Mike Stewart, the owner owner of Bark River Knives said about the new Fallkniven on knifeforums.com

01/07/09 03:29 PM - Post#1729047
In response to Oreb

Since that Catalog is out I am going to put in My Two Cents.

That New HK 9 Hunting knife is Out of this World.

It feels great in the hand and the Steel is the most Edge Holdin' Stuff I have ever seen.

We have had one here for months and have used the Heck out of it and it is still sharp.

Great Job Peter.

I'm very Impressed with it.

Mike...............
 
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I would get the Busse. But then again I have several Busses already. Busses are pricey, but once you really abuse one, and I mean really beat on it, and you see how well it holds up, you'll probably never buy anything else.

Plus, if you end up not liking it, you can sell it and probably break even at the least.
 
Well first of all thank you for your anwers.

Ok, I wont take the benchmade.
I'vnt heard of bark river, I look into it when I'm home.
For the fallkniven, it's stainless and I've heard it's arder to sharpen, and the edge hasn't a very good durability, am I wrong ? Moreover I don't really like the shape of the Fallkniven handle.

3G steel is really good ? versus Infi for instance (edge retention, toughness) ...
I've read the Bravo's steel is A2, is it good ?



Are the rangers knives good? durable ? The warranty seems awesome, and the price is ok. I like de design of the rangers knives RAK especially, but the RD6 seems to be thicker.

For the busse, I mean, It seems to be the best steel out there, it's like twice my budget and I'm not sure it's worth it. When you want top quality, the price gets exponential.

Damn, there is so much choice

Btw there are lots forests in france too ;), anyway I want to spend one year in Canada next year, I need a good knife :cool:
 
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The RAT Cutlery RC-5 is pretty tough. The original sheath is in short supply, having been replaced by a still-US-made Kydex sheath. Some folks still have the old and new styles for the same ~$135 price. It's a stout 5" knife - .25" thick - nearly a pound-o-knife. I like US-made - and have a few Bark River knives, too - excellent knives - great 'bushcraft' and hunting knives. That RC-5 is more from the Busse school of knives, however - stout. Maybe Busse kindergarten... Busse's are stout - and beautifully made, even if you have to find your own sheath, but like they are from another planet. I guess that explains their astronomical prices.

IMG_3519.jpg


Stainz
 
I'd go with the rat rc-4 or the koster bushcraft (for a nice handmade knife). you can find koster in the makers part of the forum and he's got a sign up for his knife at a discount which you can customize to your liking:cool:
 
I would suggest you spend some time in the 'Makers' area and check out the fixed blades for sale there.

I think you will find something very quickly that will meet your needs and it will be a unique hand-made piece to boot.

And I think you will be pleasantly surprised by the prices. ;)
 
joyeuxlutin said:
Well first of all thank you for your anwers.

Ok, I wont take the benchmade.

For the fallkniven, it's stainless and I've heard it's arder to sharpen, and the edge hasn't a very good durability, am I wrong ? Moreover I don't really like the shape of the Fallkniven handle.

3G steel is really good ? versus Infi for instance (edge retention, toughness) ...
I'vnt heard of bark river, I look into it when I'm home.

Are the rangers knives good? durable ? The warranty seems awesome, and the price is ok. I like de design of the rangers knives RAK especially, but the RD6 seems to be thicker.

For the busse, I mean, It seems to be the best steel out there, it's like twice my budget and I'm not sure it's worth it. When you want top quality, the price gets exponential.



Btw there are lots forests in france too ;), anyway I want to spend one year in Canada next year, I need a good knife :cool:
Click to expand...


If you don't like the look/shape of Fallkniven handles then they may not be the right choice for you, especially if you aren't able to hold one before buying.

3G is Special Gold Powdered Steel (SGPS) laminated with 420J2 stainless. The VG10 and 3G steel that Fallkniven uses are both very durable and abrasion resistant. The high level of abrasion resistance means they can take a bit longer to sharpen, but it also means they hold their edge very well. This is my experience and I use several of their knives daily and when I'm outdoors.

I don't know what technique you use to sharpen, but, once you establish a good edge on a Fallkniven (or any knife) it is very easy to keep the edge maintaioned with a few passes with your choice of sharpening instrument.

VG10 and SGPS will micro chip on the edge rather than bend or roll. This is a characteristic of certain tool steels hardened to a high degree, they are tough but will chip rather than bend. I have dropped my Fallknivens on gravel and micro chipped the edges, I have also dropped my Bark Rivers and RAT on the gravel and rolled the edges.

In all cases the edge sustained minor damage that required a little extra time on the sharpener. Nothing that rendered the knife unusable, nothing that couldn't be easily refreshed, but the point is, any blade can sustain minor edge damage during hard use.

I have no problem recommending a Fallkniven or Bark River knife, I use both and know they are great, reliable knives. However, they are only two among many great reliable knife manufactures.

You are on the right track looking at excellent knives, go with your gut instinct on what you like best, you won't go wrong.

Kevin
 
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