Wilderness Survival System - Blades

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gunslinger226

Joined
Aug 15, 2011
Messages
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What is your best survival knife/axe system?

I'm not talking about when camping and your vehicle is close by as it kind of defeats the purpose, but rather when weight is an issue and its not feasible to carry multiple tools.

For me at the moment I am thinking along the lines of the 2 systems below and as a result am in the market for either a large knife (>=9" blade) or a hatchet/small axe.

System 1
- Ontario RAT-1 or Spyderco Endura FFG folder for food prep, small duties
- Ontario RAT-7 as main blade
- small axe

System 2
- Ontario RAT-1 or Spyderco Endura FFG folder for food prep, small duties
- ESEE-4 or Fallkniven F1
- Ka-Bar Heavy Bowie or similar

I ask as I'm am debating which to get out of the following (money necessitates choice of 1 around $100 - so no 'buy them all' comments :-D):

- Gransfors Bruks Small Forest Axe - circa $100, looks awesome!
- Estwing Sportsman Axe 14" - half the price
- Becker BK-9
- Ontario RTAK II
- Cold Steel Trail Master (gone off these since they are now made in Taiwan and are quite expensive)

Please don't mention the ESEE Junglas, I would prefer over all of the above but can't afford atm!
 
Personally I use the Fällkniven S1 combined with a GB Widlife Hatchet and I've come to realize after some use that I would have much preferred the smaller F1 and the larger Small Forest Axe. The S1 is just a tad too big for delicate tasks and the Wildlife Hatchet could be 3-5" longer to better suit my needs.

I can't really be of much help regarding the American brands as they are not readily available in vikingland where I currently reside.
 
I've carried machetes/hatchets while in the wilderness and though it seems like a good idea while packing i've never actually needed them. I've spent more than a month in harsh alaskan wilderness (kayaking) and i think i used a hatchet one or two times to break into the dry core of a log and i never touched the machete. I honestly could of used a 4-5 inch knife on the log instead of the hatchet and saved weight. It's fine and easy to strap some large blades to a kayak but i would never bother with them while backpacking/climbing or any other situation with the weight on my back (18+ oz or whatever the blades weigh can make a HUGE difference when you're carrying it for miles and miles). The esse-4 or falkniven F1 is all the knife you really need.

That being said, there are parts of the world where i would want a machete and there are situations in which i would pack one (if i was backpacking in a decent sized group and could spread the weight out between a number of people i would consider bringing tools like a hatchet, machete and a folding shovel). Among the tools you listed i would choose the Ontario RTAK II hands down. I think the bk9 is functional but personally i find it to be piss ugly. The axe looks good but i've never had a problem with a cheaper hatchet (i've found good ones used or at a military surplus store). I think the cold steel is ugly and overpriced. The length of the blade is in that awkward region where it's too big to be a good knife and too small to be used as a machete. I'm sure the cold steel is good for batoning but i don't see many other uses. The ontario RTAK II, on the other hand, is good looking, well made, durable and i think it would work quite well for tasks like breaking down wood and just fine as a machete.
 
Thanks for the replies. I've decided on the GB Small Forest Axe, $99.95 (Australia) on ebay with free P&H!

If you check out Ray Mears axe skills (with the GB small forest axe) it's just as good if not better at battening wood than a large fixed blade knife, plus you can use it to chop down small trees with a lot less effort than a large knife:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5W6r5U7yBE

So it's the GB axe and the ESEE-4/F1 all the way!
 
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