Your knife and its priority

[sandbender]

"...So my question for you guys is this:
*Knife at hand only*

Do you prefer a larger length blade, smaller length blade, thicker, and what task do you require your knife for the most? Can you depend on it if it was your only tool at hand or do you have another tool that has a higher priority?

Some people will have different task based on their area but I want to know if you cut down and split logs for fires whenever you make them, and if you had only your knife would you rather it be longer?

"...I must be missing something (it's been said before of me ) but you seem to have several threads all asking variations on the same theme.

I'll ask you something - why chase the ideal/ultimate single knife issue down so vigorously ?..."

It is an oft repeated question on this and other forums. Why do some folks obsess about knife choice? I don't know.

In answer to the OP's original questions...

Do you prefer a larger length blade, smaller length blade?
I prefer a small blade.
thicker?
I sometimes like a thicker blade but often use a thinner one.
what task do you require your knife for the most?
When I'm out and about I mostly use my knife to prepare bits and pieces for my camp, pegs, pot hangers etc.
Can you depend on it if it was your only tool at hand?
It is never my only tool 'at hand' but most of my knives are as dependable as I need them to be.
do you have another tool that has a higher priority?
I'm not sure what you mean by 'priority', I have other tools yes.
I want to know if you cut down and split logs for fires whenever you make them?
I never cut down 'trees?', there is no shortage of usable wood of an appropriate size on the ground, if I need to make a much longer log shorter I'd use a saw.
I do split wood with my knife but I only split smaller logs with it.
if you had only your knife would you rather it be longer?
No I don't think I'd want a longer knife for day to day use, I quite fancy a leuku but not because I think I'd use it around here, I just want one.

 

[Everything Mac]

So my question for you guys is this:
*Knife at hand only* Do you prefer a larger length blade, smaller length blade, thicker, and what task do you require your knife for the most? Can you depend on it if it was your only tool at hand or do you have another tool that has a higher priority?

Some people will have different task based on their area but I want to know if you cut down and split logs for fires whenever you make them, and if you had only your knife would you rather it be longer?

Bushnoob - another what knife thread eh? surprise surprise.


The largest knife I own is a 10" kukri - I never take it out with me as there is very little point, when I can just take a saw or hatchet.

I carry in my pack almost daily a UK legal SAK.

When I go out for a hike with the dog I'll often take an opinel or similar small thin blade.

Most of my knives are around 100mm in length and up to 4mm thick for the largest of those. - Though generally 3mm.

My tasks revolve around slicing - often a suitable stick to serve as a walking stick should one be required and not available on the ground. Outside of that it will be used for cutting up my lunch. or creating feather sticks.

I rarely baton wood. And I also rarely cut down anything. The areas I camp in more often than not have a suitable supply of dead wood about the place. And if I do then I have the folding saw for that job. - quicker and cleaner.

Should I need to split anything then I'll use my hatchet. When used correctly it is quick and efficient and relatively safe.

Andy

 

[Bushnoob]

Thank you all for the responses and I know this is another knife themed topic, but I find it is a bit different.

I'm mainly looking at the people who carry other tools but with their knife it would be faster to just baton, chop, thatch, etc.... something on the spot, rather than reach for the axe or saw. This isn't so much of a thread asking what is your best knife and what size is most important, but I'm asking if your knifes priority is high or low. (How often do you reach for it and for what task?)

I understand the idea that a knife is a knife, not an axe, and even though it can be used as one, why would you if you already have an axe with you.

I forgot to include the fact that if I ever do baton wood than I make myself a nice simple wedge *One of my new favourite tools * This would be more suitable as a poll IMO. I just want to hear peoples opinions based on their areas and not what I think I should choose. I have summed up my kit and made a conclusion. Not set in stone o course but it is well determined.

If I was to make a poll I would just make it asking, Which Task Do You Use Your Knife For The Most??: Batoning, Chopping, Tent Pegs, Clearing Brush, Skinning, etc, etc.....

I know the area I am in is kind of marshy since it is down near the bottom of the forest so I do find myself requiring splitting/ batoning logs. My axe is much faster than my Enzo or the Rat-7 but I find the knife is much faster to grab since it is on my side. Therefore I don't mind a knife a bit longer than 4" when on hikes, but if I am settling on an area I won't normally put my axe back in its sheath so I don't mind using it. I can fasion a wedge out of a semi-thick branch at any time and I can carry it in my pocket if necessary so I still don't mind using a smaller knife like the enzo as long as it is of fair thickness.

 

[JonathanD]

Thank you all for the responses and I know this is another knife themed topic, but I find it is a bit different.

I'm mainly looking at the people who carry other tools but with their knife it would be faster to just baton, chop, thatch, etc.... something on the spot, rather than reach for the axe or saw. This isn't so much of a thread asking what is your best knife and what size is most important, but I'm asking if your knifes priority is high or low. (How often do you reach for it and for what task?)

I understand the idea that a knife is a knife, not an axe, and even though it can be used as one, why would you if you already have an axe with you.

I forgot to include the fact that if I ever do baton wood than I make myself a nice simple wedge *One of my new favourite tools * This would be more suitable as a poll IMO. I just want to hear peoples opinions based on their areas and not what I think I should choose. I have summed up my kit and made a conclusion. Not set in stone o course but it is well determined.

If I was to make a poll I would just make it asking, Which Task Do You Use Your Knife For The Most??: Batoning, Chopping, Tent Pegs, Clearing Brush, Skinning, etc, etc.....

I know the area I am in is kind of marshy since it is down near the bottom of the forest so I do find myself requiring splitting/ batoning logs. My axe is much faster than my Enzo or the Rat-7 but I find the knife is much faster to grab since it is on my side. Therefore I don't mind a knife a bit longer than 4" when on hikes, but if I am settling on an area I won't normally put my axe back in its sheath so I don't mind using it. I can fasion a wedge out of a semi-thick branch at any time and I can carry it in my pocket if necessary so I still don't mind using a smaller knife like the enzo as long as it is of fair thickness.

Most of us here carry a knife everytime they go out into the woods. We don't prioritise which activity we do most with it, we just do it. It will take longer to chop down a tree with a knife, so I'd rather reach over and pick up an axe, which takes what? two, three seconds? Five maybe if you have to get up and walk a few feet. I use my knife most for cutting stuff. I think that the majority here would answer with that too. If you find that reaching over into your pack for an axe or saw, is more strenuous than spending five times the amount of time and energy doing a task 'cos you can't be bothered to get the axe, then you are just plain weird. I really don't see what you are trying to learn in your post there.

 

[Neumo]

I think this is partly a cultural thing. In the UK, where this forum is based, we tend to have shorter knives that we use for all the normal camp tasks plus lots of other things. I dont know about Canada but in the US it seems to be the norm to carry a much larger knife, i.e 8 inches plus.

Battoning wood is another knife topic that some people get obsessed about, for no apparent reason. It is one of the things that I do occasionally but most of the time I use a knife to CUT with, usually doing fairly small cuts & intricate stuff like carving. As has been said, there are better tools to split wood with if you need to. If you have a larger knife then it will batton well but, and it's a big but, having only a large knife makes it harder to most of the jobs that you would want to do in the woods, IMHO.

Battoning is not without it's dangers as well. I broke a Mora trying to batton a 5" bit of wood at last year's moot; which I now realise was too thick for the short knife. I then was handed a huge 10 inch custom knife to finish the job, which did a great job of splitting the wood but would be very poor for 99% of the things I would want a knife for when I am amongst the trees. As we say over here, its 'horses for courses'

 

[Trunks]

If I was to make a poll I would just make it asking, Which Task Do You Use Your Knife For The Most??: Batoning, Chopping, Tent Pegs, Clearing Brush, Skinning, etc, etc.....

Honestly, i think if you add another option "or all of the above". The majority would select that option.

 

[Xunil]

I think Trunks has hit it smack in the gold.

My knife priorities centre around what the knife IS and have nothing to do with what I can achieve with it, which is entirely down to me and would only be limited by the knife in cases of design extremes.

My knife priorities, in a nutshell, and in no particular order of importance:

Small (max of 4" blade, but prefer 3")
Thin (max of 4mm but prefer 2.5 or 3mm)
Sharp (prefer full flat ground with small secondary bevel or full conevx)
Easy to sharpen (strop)
Holds a good edge for a long time
Comfy handle in all holds
Safe sheath, for both me and the knife
Steel type - mainly an issue in extreme climates, so tends not to be an issue in day to day work

Everything else as far as tasks go is down to me, my abilities and skills, and how flexible and adaptable I am with my tools of choice.

I can do a lot of outdoorsy stuff with a Fallkniven F1 (which is a potentially great knife that can be made superb by regrinding it), or an Enzo, or any one of a number of customs or knives of my own make, or with an Opinel, or...

My Case Peanut or Muksrat is always there so I usually reach for it and it never fails. If I tried splitting firewood with it I'd be pretty disappointed pretty quickly though, so it only works in context. You could argue that provided I have an axe, machete or other heavy use tool (where/when one is required) then the Peanut or Muksrat is all I need in a knife.

I still usually have one of several multi-tools and/or a Swiss Army Knife, a folding saw and some other junk with me, which means axe work is done with an axe, quickly, safely and efficiently. Saw work is done by a saw quickly, safely and efficiently, while...

I don't make spoons, but if I did I'd pack a spoon knife or suitably shaped crooked knife with me. Not because you can't make a spoon with a normal knife, but because it is done more quickly, safely and efficiently with a small, lightweight and eminently suitable tool.

The cleanest job of butchering out an Elk I ever saw was done by a 90 pound (and very attractive as I recall) young lady using a very sharp Swiss Army knife who, it turns out, was a veterinary surgeon and it was entirely down to her skills and NOT the tool she used.

I was brought up with, among other things, a "maximum output from minimum input" mentality. My uncle would have lectured me from here to next week and back (and soundly clipped me round the ear) of he caught me faffing with a knife processing firewood when a perfectly suitable axe could have the job done twice as fast with a lot less effort. I'd have gotten into serious hot water if we'd gone out for a weekend with the intention of building a shelter and not brought one along at all. He taught me how to do it all without ANY tools, but he was a great believer in using the right ones, when the option was available to do so.

For the record I spent best part of 5 years off and on in Ontario and I still have a place out there which I visit a couple of times a year - I use the same selection of tools there as I do here in the UK, but there's a bit more axe work goes on over there and a bit less concern about the law and what any casual passers by might think...

The massive global popularity of the Buck 110 lock knife is a good indicator of the standard knife many people carry and use. For some it might even be the right tool for the job !

At the risk of repeating myself, knives are for slicing.

Learning how to do other stuff with your knife is useful, in case you ever need to for real. Choosing to do it that way all of the time is eventually going to cost you though.

 

[beenn]

For food prep i like a small blade so i have more controlover it, but for everything else a fixed blade knife with around a 4" blade- if that cant cut it i use a folding saw or a hatchet/axe

 

[Samon]

"The cleanest job of butchering out an Elk I ever saw was done by a 90 pound (and very attractive as I recall) young lady using a very sharp Swiss Army knife who, it turns out, was a veterinary surgeon and it was entirely down to her skills and NOT the tool she used."

It seems like skills have been somewhat back staged by a mass of quality tools these days, obviously we aren't all capable of clean butchery with our swiss army knives but it does seem like people don't even practice with a basic tool before jumping ahead of themselves with all sorts of 'top range' gear.

I've still got my first knife my dad gave me when I was Bout 6 that I used to make spears and all sorts with..then sharpening it on a hard rock like I was taught and over the years I've learned camp craft, throwing, skinning, whittling and all the things I use my knives for nowadays and I still don't own anything fancy but get by great with what I've got.

A few picks of my basic yet completely usable and reliable stuff.

I'm completely agree with knowing how to use what you have before buying more to compensate.

Hope this helps mate.

 

[bb07]

I'm not a fan of big blades. 4'' is about perfect for me but a little longer or shorter is fine. And I use it to cut whatever needs cutting. I like a thinner blade, maximum thickness about that of an Enzo trapper but thinner is better as I don't baton. When in the bush I always carry an axe or hatchet depending on the time of year.
If anyone here was seen splitting wood with a knife they'd get some pretty strange looks, then get handed an axe.
My most used tool is a SAK that's always with me, either a Tinker or Spartan, for more than thirty years.
This is what works for me.

Forgot to mention that I always have a Leatherman on my belt as well.

 

[Samon]

Never under estimate the power of the swiss army knife, I carry a Victorinox huntsman everyday and even today I cut 4.5" thick elder berry braches down for making pipes with the little razor sharp saw.

The poncey side to me would mention the soft steel but with most light work in mind I don't even take anything else these days due to my preference of a light weight pack.

 

[Xunil]

I'm not a fan of big blades. 4'' is about perfect for me but a little longer or shorter is fine. And I use it to cut whatever needs cutting. I like a thinner blade, maximum thickness about that of an Enzo trapper but thinner is better as I don't baton. When in the bush I always carry an axe or hatchet depending on the time of year.
If anyone here was seen splitting wood with a knife they'd get some pretty strange looks, then get handed an axe.
My most used tool is a SAK that's always with me, either a Tinker or Spartan, for more than thirty years.
This is what works for me.

And that about hits the nail right on the head

 

[Soundmixer]

How about this for a plan?
The next time you go out try leaving the "big" knife at home and take an axe and a saw with you instead. Also take a small (3" or less) folder with you for camp duties and see how you get on with that set up.

A small knife like a Sodbuster Jr, medium Stockman or the venerable Peanut should do you right for the small tasks like opening packets, cutting cordage etc.

Use the axe and saw instead of batoning and see how much easier it is to get firewood and chop down trees.
If, after a weekend without the big knife, you still want to go back to the old way, go ahead. At least you will have experienced different ways of doing what you currently do and you never know, it might just open your eyes.

One last thing. Go and read Woodcraft by Nessmuk, if you haven't already. If you have, read it again.
Small knife, big knife, AXE...

Most of all, just go and enjoy it and keep learning

 

[Toddy]

Y'see that sounds so reasonable, but the reality is that I wander quietly among local woodlands. I don't go burdened with a heavy pack. I don't lug an axe around just on spec.
I do carry, discreetly, a good sound knife, and sometimes a laplander folding saw. Usually there's a small pair of pruners in my pocket too.
That's it, and since those are the tools I'm familiar with, that I use constantly and effectively, those are the ones that I instinctively reach for.
I do have axes, and bowsaws, and billhooks and machetes, and parangs and sickle, and I do use them, but unless I'm camping, and in need of a 'big' fire, I find the knife can adequately cope for my needs on it's own.

We don't all need all of our tools, all the time.
I'd much rather go lightweight and have enough to be comfortable, that find myself so burdened with kit that I'm reluctant to travel, or fretting over putting it down while I forage.

Horses for courses, mine's a kind of palfrey or jennet I reckon

cheers,
M

 

[sandbender]

"..Horses for courses, mine's a kind of palfrey or jennet I reckon ..."

Mine's a Dzhabe.

 

[Soundmixer]

Toddy,
I couldn't agree more! I carry as little as possible and still make life comfortable.
I was hoping to get our young Canadian friend to move away from his "big" knife fixation and see what else is out there.
I have a feeling that he might eventually come over to the light(weight) side

 

[Toddy]

Sandbender, that's a beautiful beast

Soundmixer, sorry I got the wrong end of the stick
That said, some of the people I really like spending time with, Warthog1981 and Graham_S come to mind on this, really appreciate, and use effectively, big knives. Tbh though, they kind of use them like a small axe, but with the ability to be used (and they do, their knives are razor sharp) for feathersticks, shaping out blanks for carving, etc..
Still not something I'd lug around through the local woodlands though

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Indoorsout]

I prefer a small knife for many reasons, chief of which is I know what I'm doing with it, I can sharpen it myself, I can carry it without getting a bad back (which I'm prone to since the Tourettes) and I don't really 'do' the stuff that needs bigger.

The other reason is I've never learnt how to use an axe safely and I don't fancy the idea of serious injury in the middle of nowhere I do really like to have a saw along and TBH that and my 3" working knife and 1 1/2" carving knife plus my carving chisels are all I generally carry.

Also, all my gear is carried in my messenger bag and I really don't like to have too much with me. I'm not the fittest guy in the world and every pound I carry in is a pound I'm carrying for the whole walk!

 

[Siberianfury]

funnily enough Johnathon, i did think of your knife after writing that post

there is no one knife to do it all.

the only thing i cant do with a knife is saw, a knife is an Edged tool, so is an axe, billhook, parang ect. ive taken down some largeish trees with a knife and a batton, dug holes with parangs, ect.

 

[Indoorsout]

Hmm, just read mine again and there's a really good reason right there for me not carrying an axe! My Tourettes gives me very severe motor tics and simple vocal tics (not swearing - well not cause of the Tourettes ). The motor tics mostly whip my head round, often throwing my torso and arms out a bit too. Usually I can feel them coming on but not always, and swinging an axe and ticking just doesn't bear thinking about :O