Which survival/shtf knife?

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dudethatlikesblades

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Nov 6, 2014
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I'm looking for a general purpose survival/shtf/camping knife and I've come to a few decisions: The Gerber LMF 2, Gerber prodigy, sog seal pup elite. I want a good stainless blade that won't rust under $100. if you had to pick from the knives mentioned above which would you pick and why?Your advice would be much appreciated.
 
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I have the LMF 2, Prodigy and the "regular" (non-Elite) Seal Pup. My favorite of the three is the Prodigy, if for no other reason than it being one of my first "real" knives. All three have pretty commonplace steel (420HC vs. AUS8) but good examples of each. Look and feel being matters of personal taste, I prefer the Gerbers over the SOG, plus of course they're USA-made, so I suppose perceived value would be another deciding factor for me, another reason to go with the Prodigy. They can be found for $40 online, and I consider that to be quite a bargain for what you get.

That being said, I prefer the Buck Nighthawk over the three knives you mentioned, so that might be another one on your list. I also like the Zero Tolerance 0160 Shifter, which can be found under $100 now and then.
 
For under $100, I'd go get a condor moonstalker or crotalus.

Personally, I don't like Gerber since they sold out. They used to make high quality blades, but for the past 10 years or so their stuff has been highly lacking in comparison. You will have to sharpen the Condor stuff, but I can vouch for their ability to make 1075 work well. You will get a better sheath with the crotalus. The moonstalker sheath isn't that great, but it's about $60 anyhow, so you can go buy another sheath with that remaining $40 and still come out with a better blade. If you want the leather sheath, you can get the moonshiner for about $5 less than the stalker.

SOG makes some OK blades, but I've never been a fan of their designs or steels.
 
If your set on a stainless steel blade Cold Steel has the standard SRK which is made of AUS8 and can be found for under $100. Never used one but held a San Mai version in hand and it felt solid and had decent ergonomics for my medium/ large hands.
 
Of the 3 you mentioned I would go with the Seal Pup. I have one and like it. I also have a couple Prodogys stored away in go bags. I wouldn't get an LMF 2 because it is not full tang and the plastic they use on the handle is not high quality. There are plenty of examples on the interwebs of the plastic at the top of the handle breaking under hard use. For a hard use survival knife you want a full tang. All of this said, for my main SHTF blade I wouldn't pick any of the knives in your selection. For around $100 I would be looking at an Esee 3, 4, or 6. The six is my choice. I know they are not stainless but for a hard use knife you really should consider 1095 or another carbon steel. Much more tough.
 
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ka bar Becker, Esee fixed blades, seal pup would be a good back up knife to keep strapped to your vest/pack or something
 
Love my lmf. I know most people don't want to hear this, but IME that 420HC holds up just as good 1095. I wish the lmf came in plain edge. As others have mentioned, don't overlook kabar becker and cold steel.
 
It's a tough knife. There are others who share my opinion lol. But yeah, it sucks no plain edge
 
Cheap and awesome:

Mora1.jpg
 
I own the Prodigy and LMF and have grown out of them because of the serrations. I'd spend your money on something else.

My favorite knives under $100 in no particular order
-Mora Bushcraft Orange (stainless)
-Mora Bushcraft Black (carbon)
-Izulla II
-Ontario Sp 50
-Esee 4 can be had for just under $100
-KaBar
 
My Seal Pup (pre-elite) has really stood the test of time. I keep it more for sentimental value than anything else, since my Spyderco Schempp Rock can do everything it does and more.




Of the knives in the second picture, only the Seal Pup remains.
 
I would avoid the LMF II for a general use outdoors knife. It has a heavy thick blade that might great for chopping your way out of a crashed helicopter, but a blade that thick would not be my choice for whittling wood. Also, as far as I know, they are only offered in a partially serrated blade which I am not a fan of for two reasons. First, I don't find them as easy to sharpen and second I do no like the serrated section for making precision cuts in wood.

I can't comment on the other choices as I have never handled them.

Personally I would prefer a Mora Companion, and they make it in stainless since you want that. Spend the the leftover money on a good breathable rain suit.
 
I run into the same problem with the LMF. If you want to do cuts in wood you basically need another knife.
 
I would pick a 10 dollar Mora knife over every one of the knives listed.

I currently have a SOG seal pup in my collection. Not impressed. It is stabby but the cutting edge is too far away from the handle to provide good leverage in heavy cutting. It is also serrated so that is two strikes against it.

I have a few Gerber gator folders. About the only good thing I can say for them is they are stabby and have a very good grippy handle. They suck at actually cutting things though. The Gerber edge geometry just isn't up to it.
 
sideways said:
I would pick a 10 dollar Mora knife over every one of the knives listed.

I currently have a SOG seal pup in my collection. Not impressed. It is stabby but the cutting edge is too far away from the handle to provide good leverage in heavy cutting. It is also serrated so that is two strikes against it.

I have a few Gerber gator folders. About the only good thing I can say for them is they are stabby and have a very good grippy handle. They suck at actually cutting things though. The Gerber edge geometry just isn't up to it.
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Ding! Ding! Ding!
 
How about a Fallkniven F1? You can pick them up barely used for $80-$100. Brand new shipped to your door for $115-$120. There's a few pretty cool torture tests on Youtube and they're used by the Swedish pilots as a survival knife.
 
supertac916 said:
How about a Fallkniven F1? You can pick them up barely used for $80-$100. Brand new shipped to your door for $115-$120. There's a few pretty cool torture tests on Youtube and they're used by the Swedish pilots as a survival knife.
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Came to post this exactly! Just bought mine and this things awesome. I've done lots of research on stainless survival blades and always came back to the F1. Having handled both the zytel and leather sheaths, the leather looks nicer but the zytel is the better and more practical one of the two. Bought the zytel version.
 
supertac916 said:
How about a Fallkniven F1? You can pick them up barely used for $80-$100. Brand new shipped to your door for $115-$120. There's a few pretty cool torture tests on Youtube and they're used by the Swedish pilots as a survival knife.
Click to expand...

Thats my dream knife, but I didn't recommend it because it was out of his budget. I have wanted one for a long time, but can't talk myself into the price tag when my Moras do everything I ask of them.

I was a big Cody Lundin fan after I read his first book, and he carried a very old and worn Mora style knife. For $13 I figured what the heck, and have been impressed with the Moras ever since.

dudethatlikesblades I would also highly recommend the Mora Bushcraft if you are wanting a heavier duty knife.
 
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