BLADES: Because they can't run out of ammo or "die" during the Anomaly!

[thrasher1016]

Hello Everyone!

I've been getting more and more involved with my games recently, and that includes this one's forums here, so I thought I'd put a question out there!

TWO PARTS, answer one or both:

1. Within the context of the TLD's game world, if you could only carry one knife, what type, size, blade type, material, and finish would you want it to be?

2. NOT within TLD, what are your favorite knives, and why? What, if anything, draws you to bladed weapons like I am?

Have fun!

Thanks - T

[logang]

I don't know too much about knives, and I am sure you would want something that offered a lot of utility over a single purpose, I am also pretty sure something like a sword would be a bit ridiculous.

I used to carry a generic folding pocket knife when I was in the army, or a gerber multi tool. I can't currently carry a knife where I work now so I usually don't carry one at all.

[FalconHalo]

I am by no means an expert, but I'd definitely want two things in a survival knife: versatility, and durability.

First off, I don't need anything small enough to be concealed in a boot. I'm not trying to sneak a weapon past security, I'm trying to survive. I want something fairly large, but I agree with @LoganG in that a sword would be ridiculous. A sword is really useful only for killing. Maybe you could lop down low branches with it.

Second, I don't want a folding knife, or a switchblade, or one with a hollow hilt for storing matches and such, or anything other than what is essentially a blade with a handle.

A knife's strength comes from it's tang, which is in the hilt. You sacrifice the tang by making it a folding knife or some such thing, you sacrifice a lot of the blade's strength. You break your knife, which is arguably the single most important tool you have, you're going to have a much harder time of surviving.

As for versatility, it's my understanding that even a knife designed for killing is useful for much, much more. In any event, a hunting knife will probably suit you just fine if you can't get your hands on a survival knife.

Finally, material. Don't settle for anything less than the highest-quality steel and craftsmanship. I'm not sure how useful titanium would be in a survival knife, but steel works damn well, especially when the knife is made properly. A well-made knife should loyally serve you for a long time, if you take good care of it.

[TattooedMac]

This is the answer to question 1 & 2

There is only one knife, and thats the Ka-Bar USMC Knife. Best knife i have owned and still do. Keeps a edge, and can be abused beyond normal day use and still survives . . . I wouldn't pick anything else and would pay what ever i had to, to be able to get my hands on one in a survival situation . . . . . survivalsuppliesaustralia.com.au/products/ka-bar-usmc-knife.php

I have Hoochie Cord wrapped around the handle of mine, as well, 1 to protect the handle, and 2 its extra rope/string if needed, albeit a little grotty at the moment lol

[thrasher1016]

I love good, well thought out answers!

@TattooedMac - That blade has served many a man (and woman) well over the last ____ years (since its creation)!

I Have way too many to list of even begin to describe why, but since I'm a collector as well as bladed combat / defense enthusiast, I have whole categories of items that I own...

I have stuff that just looked snazzy, so I snatched one...

I have useful / wearable / concealable items.

I have some that are decorative or collector's items, and one or two that are a quite a bit older than the USA is, and are VERY safe where they are...

I have daily use knives and "tools" and those just stay safe where they can be useful.

Like I said in a different post once, I love bladed weapons, so much so that I have spent thousands of hours in dedicated training to learn to fight properly with many different types, and I've enjoyed every single minute of it!

I look forward to more in this discussion!

Thanks - T

[robdoar]

Good discussion here.

The vast majority of "survival" knives are too heavy and oversized.

Along with versatility and durability, you have to factor in its ability to take and keep an edge. A dull knife is worthless

Also, a big bowie knife might be inticing as a weapon, but you will use it 99.9% of the time as a tool, not a weapon.

I usually go out with a "Nessmuk Trinity" a razor sharp folder, a slicing/cutting blade 3-5 inches, and a small axe. Each tool perfect for its intended use.

If I HAD to take one, I would probably go with a USAF Survival knife or Gerber ASEK. Possibly a Becker BK2.

I hate tough choices!

[thrasher1016]

I know right?!

I know one thing, my best-case scenario - since in the fiction, our character doesn't have to keep things concealed - would be a full tang blade, most likely hand-wrapped with something local, or cordage of some type.

IRL, even my brand new Buck Hoodlum got the grip panels taken off, and some BEAUTIFUL paracord weaving done to it!

I'm a paracord prodigy, and I love it... I'll have to post some pics!

(My wife challenged me to weave her a bikini for beach season... O_o)

Thanks - T

[TattooedMac]

I'm a paracord prodigy, and I love it... I'll have to post some pics!

(My wife challenged me to weave her a bikini for beach season... O_o)

Yes Pics please O_O

Well i seem to have misplaced my Kabar now. Thats what you get for moving with Minimal room, and selling off a house hold worth of stuff . .

Im set to go bush on Sat, and been out looking for a nice knife to take bush, so i have just bought a

[elloco999]

I don't really know a lot about knives (yet), as I've only recently started looking into them.

I own a Victorinox folding knife, the model used by the Dutch Army a decade ago, that I love and have used a lot. But if I could only have one knife in a real survival situation I'd want a fixed blade. I like what I hear about Mora knives in general and the Mora Bushcraft in particular. I prefer the looks of the Bushcraft Black, so that's the one I'd choose.

[robdoar]

I always have a mora with me in the woods. It's cheap, can be easily sharpened, and takes a beating.

One thing many people complain about is rust. You HAVE to oil Carbon steel blades. (You should really oil any blade).

The MORA is a great knife, but has it's limitations. Its not full tang, which can pose a problem if it's your only knife, and you need to process wood, build shelter, ETC.

Depending on where you are in the world, it might be everything you need.

I live in the north woods, and a hatchet / axe is a necessity IMHO.

[elloco999]

I know the Mora Bushcraft is not full tang, but from what I've read about it it's virtually indestructible. And considering I have no experience with survival/ bushcraft knives I don't want to spend too much on my first knife. Mora knives have a reputation of being good quality knives for a below average price.

Seeing I have no experience using a survival/ buscraft knife (or experience with survival/ buscraft), I'm planning on taking a buscraft course with a local company, that has correctly and safely using and maintaining the knife as a part of the course. Not only will I be learning more about knives, I'll also learn the basics on building a shelter, starting fire, living of nature etc. And it should be good fun too.

[robdoar]

For the money, there's nothing better than a mora.

But it does have its limits.

I've got $10 knives, and $1000 knives, and can tell you there's no perfect knife for everyone. What you're doing with it, where you are, skill level, and gear preferences all come into play.

[Cosmoline]

I've got some nice custom carry knives in a puukko style. But for fish and other skinning I like to use these French made Opinel lockblades. They're razor sharp and really cheap, so it doesn't matter if they end up smelling funny. And if you lose one in the drink, no big deal. For larger stuff, I've been doing quite a bit of HEMA training with our local S&B and longsword groups. Here's my Albion I.33 trainer and a very nice Gus Trim "monarch" that's almost exactly the same dimensions. I haven't quite had the courage do do some of the tighter I.33 rotations with that long razor.

[thrasher1016]

Nice!

My wife got her new hunting bow, so as a reward, I finally get to start back into SCA here in Orlando, and the nice thing is the local barony allows partial RP and no-RP combat leagues in their events!

CAN'T WAIT. Did LARP combat back in the day back in Colorado, and I want to vent some frustration really badly...

Thanks - T

[Jeremy JPOW Powell]

I want this...

[Lux]

Personally I'd want to have one of these but the A2 variant.

http://www.missionknives.com/shop/index ... duct_id=19

[Hillbilly]

I got a few fixed blades knives, a few folding knives

I only buy full tang, at least a 4.5 inch blade and much prefer 1095 carbon steel,, a bit more work to keep it from rusting, but takes and maintains an edge better than any other steel I know

I want the Halibus SRT (self reliance tool) Awesome looking tool

[Erich]

I prefer my self forged cable damascus knife.Simple,forged,carbon steel, V-edge type ,easy for sharpening,the handle is from an european yew tree.Once,it will serve my children.The blade is good for most things that a hunter need.

[Boston123]

I have a Mora (specifically, the Mora Heavy Duty Companion), and I don't really understand why people say "it has its limits".

The thing is practically indestructible, half-tang or not. I've batoned firewood, cut through saplings, and constructed shelters with mine, with no issues.

Most of the time, a half-tang knife will fail because you are doing something stupid with it, like trying to pry with the blade. The fix is easy: don't do that Use the knife for its "intended purpose" (aka slicing, slashing and stabbing), and 99.9% of the time, the blade/tang won't fail

[elloco999]

The reason people say you shouldn't get a non-full tang knife is because they break more easily than a full tang knife. And that makes sense if you think about it. Mora's have a rat tang so the piece of metal in the handle is smaller than if it was full tang so it will break sooner than if it was full tang.

That said, Mora's do have a reputation for being nearly indestructible knives despite not being full tang. Somehow Mora has managed to make their knives almost as sturdy as a full tang knife certainly sturdier than many other non-full tang knives out there. Almost all bushcrafters and survivalists will tell you to get a full tang knife. Many of them will tell you to get a Mora if you can't get a full tang knife.

I own three Mora's myself, two Companion MG's and a Bushcraft Black and I'm very happy with those. I will probably get myself a full tang knife some day, but I decided I didn't want to pay top dollar for an expensive bushcraft knife when I just started bushcrafting. I wanted to be sure it was something I was going to stick with So far the Mora's have held up to every (ab)use I have put them through remarkably well and I would certainly recommend them to anyone.

But if I had only 1 knife that would need to last me the rest of my life in a serious SHTF situation, I would prefer to have a full tang knife.

[SteveP]

I carry two Swiss army knives in my pocket all the time.

When I'm camping I also carry a Schrade lock-blade on my belt. It's for cooking and cleaning fish or other purposes.

For heavier work and if I were going out with only a limited amount of tools, I'd take the machete. It's primary purpose is hacking up wood but it also works good for deterring unwanted attention by wild life.

[Aduron]

Hey thanks everyone for the great discussion in here! After reading through this and doing a bit of research online, I decided to get myself the Mora Bushcraft Black. Looking forward to it! I previously would only take a Swiss army knife backpacking, and it always felt a little underwhelming and finicky.

[thrasher1016]

Well, it has been FOREVER since I've been in here (the Forum period), but I thought I'd come back in here and post some.

I have a decently large collection of bladed weapons, in the range of about 500-550 items total.

Most are folders, by about 55%, 35% are fixed blade, and the remainder are swords, machetes, other types like that...

I have trained extensively with small blades, and wish I had more long blade training (over 12in.) but it's just never been an issue, frankly.

I also wish I had more thrown training. I try to get time for that in the yard, but with tons of kids, not very often. I use old archery targets that are too warn to stop my wife and I's arrows anymore, but will still stop a slower knife or 'hawk.

Thanks - T

[pyropyrope]

I don't even know what I would carry survival-wise. I'm big on multi tools (see below) so id naturally go for something foldable, but i'd also have to take strenght and stuff into concideation. nothing too big though, I'm tiny af and wouldnt be able to properly control a machete or something like that. also that rainbow finish because if i die im going to do it in style.

My favorite knife has to be the one on my leatherman because its the one i use the most. I'm a theater tech at my school and its the best for what I need it to do: cut tieline, open things, sharpen pencils, get a weird lump off of someones stupid textured paint mess. I have the sidekick and I really like that one because its small enough to fit in a tiny pocket in my backpack where no ones gonna see it, since I'm really not supposed to have a knife at school because it is a "weapon" and could be a "danger" to other students.

[akodo1]

I have a J Martiini just like this except there is checkering on the wooden handle on one side, and logo and a bit of decoration on the other side for good grip.

I like that it is just a hare over 4 inch blade, I find bigger blades are harder to control. I like the full skinner belly. Speaking of belly... it comes with a dangle style sheath, so it hangs lower than most traditional belt sheath knives. This is good for guys like me with a belly.

I like wood handle, but I guess if I was being 100% practical OMG REAL DEAL WORLD IS ENDING BUT I GET ONE KNIFER I'd get the same thing except with the rubberized handle for slightly improved grip.