Recommendations for "Bushcraft" Knives

[Hatchetman]

I've several Esees and think they are a good choice. My Becker Machax is bigger than I like to tote around, but an absolute chopping machine. Have a Habilis Bush Tool that's more knife than I like to carry backpacking, but is probably the blade I'd grab if a day of bushcraft was in the cards.

With that said, I think the best bang for the buck going would be something like a small Mora and a 12 to 18 inch machete. I've had good luck with Salvadoran machetes, but there are plenty to choose from that will set you back less than $30. They chop great, carry easy, can be used as a spatula to pull things out or the fire, rehone quickly with a file, and the first time you chop through something and hit a rock you won't cry about it. It's what I hang from my pack whenever I'm out in the woods.

[SLG]

Value for the money is definitely Mora. Right up until you push it past its limit. An expert like Mors would not push it that far but the rest of us might.

Best knife period? Skookum Bush Tool or the slightly lighter Carver. When ever I say "best" please take it with a grain of salt as everyone's preferences will be different. However, no bushcraft knife is built better, tougher, or more ergonomically. I have medium sized hands (some would say small) and I find that 95% of the knives out there have handles that are too small for serious work. By serious, I mean able to work correctly with the knife on wood for an hour straight or more. Most handles will fatigue you prematurely and give you blisters. Not the Skookum.

[SeriousStudent]

Great minds.....

....often drink the same Bourbons.

I'm kinda weird on the bushcraft thing. I like using a inexpensive Mora, and keep oodles of them stashed everywhere. You can use them to baton wood, but nothing beats an axe for chopping.

Therefore, I went to the opposite extreme, and have a pair of Granfors Bruks axes, and a Hults Bruks hatchet. Plus an S.A. Wetterlings hatchet someplace, I have not seen it in ages. It's probably in a pack or duffel somewhere.

ETA: I wish I still had the goluk I bought on a deployment to Thailand. The thing was sweet. Made from an old truck leaf spring from the Crimean War, probably. Polished buffalo horn handles, and a water buffalo hide sheath. You could chop your way through some serious jungle with one.

[MDS]

Details and preferences aside, I think there are a whole lot of good choices out there. A few of the ones mentioned, like the Spydie Bushcrafter and the Esee variants, I can vouch for. The Spydie has a very ergonomic handle for some people, though this is a somewhat personal thing since everyone's hands are different. Some buddies and I recently got together to do a little 'crafting and of course we all brought a ton of sharps to compare and try out. I left most of my sharps at home, but it's still funny that 5 people brought this much cutting capacity to an overnight camp-out. If you look close you might see an official PTC folder by Zero Tolerance:



I would be fine with any of the fixed-blade knives in that picture. I deliberately went though a lot of knives in the last year or so. Again, which knife is "best" is a bit of a personal decision, but my favorite right now is the Sargent M3 with a fat handle. SLG speaks the truth about most handles out there being (inexplicably) small. I love the looks and toughness of Adventure Sworn knives, for example, but can't work for 10 minutes without undue fatigue. Mora's have that same shortcoming about a small handle, BTW, though I've put like 6 ranger bands on one to make it better, and for the money you can't beat them with a stick. Or a baton.

I've only held a Skookum once for a minute. My hands might be bigger than SLG's, because the handle still felt a little small for me. But the ergo's were solid, and as SLG says, the thing's a tank - other than the handle size and the fact that my Sargent has no pommel plate, the two seem pretty similar - granted that I've never actually used the bushtool. Maybe I need to visit SLG and we can compare sharps.



I'll stop now. I've finally gotten my bush knife fetish under control and I can't afford to fall off the wagon right now!

[NETim]

The Herter's line of cutlery. Nothing else comes close.

http://www.rmurphyknives.com/store/m...og-Page_83.pdf

[SLG]

MDS's get togethers look at lot like my get togethers...that's some nice steel on display.

The M3 looks like a beautiful piece. I'll have to keep an eye out for one to handle. Very reminiscent of a Skookum's lines.

The Skookum Bush Tool is a tank, but in a good way. Not in the sharpened prybar way. Nonetheless, I usually take the Carver instead, which is thinner stock and a drop smaller with no pommel plate. I view the SBT as a true survival knife in that I can take care of all my survival needs with it and it is basically unbreakable. Its in my pack everyday, just in case. The Carver usually has a GB ax and a good saw to back it up, so I don't feel like I need the absolute toughness of the SBT.

[Clay]

These are my recommendations -

http://www.amazon.com/Morakniv-Compa.../dp/B00EF2RX2C

http://www.amazon.com/Pilot-Survival...=fallkniven+f1

[Tamara]

I have a McCann Puffin Magnum I've been using for years. I like it.

[Patrick Taylor]

ESEE , I have several of them.

[Isaac]

My bro-in law is taking my for my 1st deer hunt next week when we visit Michigan. As a thank you gift, I'd like to get him a blade.

Are bushcraft blades generally accepted as skinning tools too? Or should a skinner have that little hook on the non edge side?

Thanks


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