Bushcraft knives for beginners!

[KristianB93]

Hello everyone, this is my first post on here and will be the first of many!

I'm new to bushcraft, I love the outdoors and I'm extremely interested in learning as much survival skills as possible. I tend not to use forums to learn so this is very strange to me but I thought I'd give it a go!

I know a knife is probably one of the most important pieces of equipment you need in surviving, so my question to the experienced is, what knife would you recommend to a beginner? And what other bits of advice can you suggest with learning how to use the knife safely.

Please keep price in mind .

Kristian

 

[Big Stu 12]

A good starting place is a mora clipper.. or something like it... well liked in bushcraft, cheap, does what its designed to do, many longterm bushcrafters still use them even if they got a nice damascus one..

 

[Mesquite]

+1 for the mora clipper.

 

[ozzy1977]

I currently have the mora robust, the same as the clipper but with the thicker blade

 

[santaman2000]

Same advise I always give; Buck 110. Beginner, advanced, bushcraft, hunter, fishermen, or as a work knife.

 

[ammo]

Hello mate. Try YouTube.I put some plastic down and practice at home or the garden, once I've got it, i try to go put it into practice in the woods with the elements against me.

 

[KristianB93]

Thanks for your replies guys, I'll certainly take a look at all of those knives.

What activities could you suggest I do to practice my knife skills?

 

[Hibrion]

Get a stainless mora companion to begin with, it is a little less maintenance than the carbon version and will do everything you need. You should start by looking at the various grips used in knife skills (youtube will help you here). After that, try making basic things that will come in handy: feathering a stick, make a tent peg, make a pot hanger.

 

[maddave]

Brilliant starter knife for a fiver.......

http://www.heinnie.com/Knives/Hultafors-Knives/Craftsmans-Orange-Carbon/p-92-913-6867/

 

[Firebow Swagger]

I love the Hultafors knives , Ive got the heavy duty for abusing(its thicker and tough as hell) , the one below for removing the non edible bits from bunnies, the safety tip one for if I have a few beers. and a plumbers knife for carving as it has a file on the side

Nice little knives perfect for a noob to learn skills with. Especially sharpening, as you're not worrying about the price tag

they have nice holders too that you can chuck in the dishwasher when you get home ..Much like the Mora ( but I've not owned one of them yet )

Im a fully trained butcher and Im fussy about knives but I also know they wearout. So to avoid the heartache of throwing away an expensive knife we tend to hang on to them,for far too long and they become thicker and harder to sharpen which at the end of the day is just dangerous

Or as my Boss used to say "loose lips sink ships, blunt knives slit wrists"

If I was you I would go for a stainless version, as its lower maintenance for a beginner and won't go rusty. but its also harder to blunt/sharpen so its a bit of a trade off

 

[ArkAngel]

You need something cheap and cheerful for your first knife, any of the above will do.

as for practising your knife skills try a 'try' stick.

This is old thread on it and someone might be able to post a better link but you should get the idea!

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14284&highlight=try+stick

 

[shaggystu]

The Hultafors knives that have been recommended are fantastic knives, the orange handled one that maddave posted is my knife for probably 50% of jobs. The other 50% is a mixture of a #8 opinel, a swiss army knife (can't remember the model) and a mora 120. I use the mora 120 a lot more than the two folding knives, it's just about perfect as a carving knife IMO. Here's a link http://www.woodlandcraftsupplies.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=23 No affiliation, just the first thing google popped up.

A great resource for advice about starting out with knives is Ben Orford's youtube channel. Here's a link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-u6Kqmvs4TU

Kepis wrote a couple of good blogs about carving try sticks, which are a great way to develop your knife skills. Here's a link http://kepisbushcraft.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/mors-kochanski-try-stick.html

Be safe, and have a cuts kit handy

Cheers,

Stuart.

 

[Firebow Swagger]

your "try stick" posts made me pick up a lump of garden decking I'm using for kindling ..the wife wasn't too pleased about the wood chips on the floor . very good practice

It started off as a steak but I got carried away , Shame its pressure treated as its hard as hell to carve, Need to find something fresh



Oh introducing the safety tip Hultafors ..as my other knives are in the shed, its raining and I'm lazy

 

[Will_]

If I was you I would go for a stainless version, as its lower maintenance for a beginner and won't go rusty. but its also harder to blunt/sharpen so its a bit of a trade off

Do stainless blades hold their edge better? (I bolded the parts of the quote that were confusing me.)

 

[Firebow Swagger]

Yes as they are generally harder metal, so will keep an edge longer . however it also makes them a little bit harder to sharpen, especially out in the field.

Basicly if you look after your kit , love it,Clean it, oil it ,cuddle it, get a high carbon.

If you fall in the door after camping and throw your kitbag under the stairs till next time ...Get stainless

 

[OneGear]

Realistically any cheap kitchen paring knife will work for "bushcraft." After a bit of use you'll begin to look for specific features on your next knife.

It does seem I can get my high carbon blades sharper than my stainless blades. But maybe that's just me. I haven't found the edges on my high carbon blades to be a problem compared to the stainless knives.

 

[copper_head]

Brilliant starter knife for a fiver.......

http://www.heinnie.com/Knives/Hultafors-Knives/Craftsmans-Orange-Carbon/p-92-913-6867/

Posty dropped one of these through my letter box today (I really done need any more knives but for a fiver couldn't resist). Its very good , thanks for the heads up.

 

[Tadpole]

Thanks for your replies guys, I'll certainly take a look at all of those knives.

What activities could you suggest I do to practice my knife skills?

Try a "Try stick" It's a great way of practicing the cuts and the knife skills you'll need.

 

[ex-member BareThrills]

Do stainless blades hold their edge better? (I bolded the parts of the quote that were confusing me.)

Yes as they are generally harder metal, so will keep an edge longer . however it also makes them a little bit harder to sharpen, especially out in the field.

Basicly if you look after your kit , love it,Clean it, oil it ,cuddle it, get a high carbon.

If you fall in the door after camping and throw your kitbag under the stairs till next time ...Get stainless

Generally speaking the more carbon a steel contains, the harder it can be made. Its also a rule of thumb that high carbon is easier to sharpen and will hold an edge better

To the OP a mora or hulafors are both great. I still use a mora all the time even though i own more expensive knives

 

[rancid badger]

How old are you?

If you're over 18 follow these simple instructions:


Don't faff about, buy a "Cocraft" mora from Clahs Olsen for £4.95 (ish) it's a stainless Mora clipper, made for CO and apart from the colour, it's almost exactly the same as the knife you pay £10 plus for.

you can learn to use the knife, as well as learn to sharpen it and you'll need to learn to sharpen it, as the stainless it's made from is, or at least seems to be, pretty easy to blunt in use but just as easy to sharpen again.

I use one for all my sea fishing needs, including gutting, filleting,general chopping and the odd bit of whittling drift wood

Once you have built up your knife handling/care skills, then look at a carbon steel version of the Clipper and work on up from there.

failing that- buy a Hultafors as already suggested

Steve