Survive! Knives GSO 4.7 or 4.5
Bradford Guardian 5.5
Benchmade Leuku
Other (please list)
You’re crazy for spending that cash to make a campfire
If you just want a nice knife I would second the Bark River Aurora for the reasons MSA mentioned.
I would agree that knives are poor tools for firewood processing. A Fiskars or Gerber hatchet depending on weight requirements and a small hand plane with disposable blades will get you much further.
Fiskars lack soul compared to the Nordic hatchets/axes mentioned, but then again so do Glocks. Sometimes utility has a quality all its own.
Originally Posted by JHC
I am a fan of this style axe. Look at Hudson Bay cruiser axe. I also really like the estwing hatchets. If you just want it for kindling try an estwing hatchet. Do not forget a saw.
"Knowledge is good." Emil Faber, date unknown.
I have a Survive GSO 4.something, can't remember which. It's 3V, bombproof, sharp AF, comes with a great sheath (found someone making leather dangler and grabbed one), and I enjoy the ergos, but the preorder and wait process was horrific. This was 7ish years ago, but I doubt they've gotten better. They pissed off a lot of people, some of which waited well over a year longer than promised. In the end, I really like the knife, and use it, but I wouldn't suggest you "order" one. Find one in stock if possible or purchase secondhand on Bladeforums. Last I checked, they were still fetching a premium, but it's been a few years since I kept up with such things.
IMO/E, a good general woods knife, like the Survive GSO 4.anything or similar, makes a poor wood processing knife. I use a Gransfors Bruk Small Forest Axe these days unless kids are around, then I use a knife + baton. The best knife I have for this purpose has been an ESEE Junglas. There are still better wood processing knife options, particularly for northern hardwoods, but I live in FL so the Junglas fills my "big camp knife" roll quite well. I keep it in my truck because "you never know".
Plenty of great knives will process wood for less (like Becker), but buy what you want and enjoy. It's "a knife thing", I get it.
ETA: That being said, the hilarious boys at Dutch Bushcraft Knives just did their standard "review" of the Survive GSO 5.1 in Magnacut and the thing was an absolute beast. Gives me a case of the wantsies, and gets my poll vote under "other".
Last edited by StraitR; 09-13-2022 at 08:51 PM.
I'm not a big knife guy but I happened to click on this thread right after I had followed this link.
https://www.gunbroker.com/All/search...ellers=2112108
Scroll clear down to the bottom of the page past the revolvers.
Being really real right now about camp knives, general hard-use outdoor knives, etc, I’m gonna talk knife geek steel, blade geometry, edge geometry, and temper.
Steel type isn’t as important as what the maker does with it. 1095 can make great knives - I wouldn’t discount a blade because it’s 1095, but for a chopper, I want more toughness than hardness, so 1095 isn’t my favorite carbon steel for that. I’m looking at 1060, 1075, L6, and 5160. Maybe O1, 1095, or W2, but they aren’t my favorites for that. They can work well, though. The more mid-level carbon content tool steels take a good temper (respond well to competent heat treating, in other words), take and hold a good edge when tempered properly, but are way tougher than a hard 1% or higher carbon basic steel alloy. The highest carbon alloy I’m going to look at is a contradiction to what I just said - 52100 - but that’s because of the rest of the alloying elements. I like D2, A1 and A2, and other alloys, but for this job, don’t want them. Toughness beats hardness and ultra wear resistance. At least in my head.
Tough basic steels make great outdoors knives. They will stain with use, and rust when not cleaned, dried, and oiled. More modern steels (including the super steels) can make great outdoors knives, too, but the heat treating is usually bit more involved and costs more. They are also usually optimized at a hardness level that can make field maintenance more challenging.
Geometry: for chopping, some folks want a thick heavy blade. I’m more in the Moran/Fowler camp knife side of things: sure, you need some mass, but a good heat treat (some heat treating is a good thing to look for, but not a deal breaker) and a distal taper with a convex (not perfectly flat and definitely not hollow ground) blade and edge geometry. This gives you something that will chop and slice and not get stuck in the material you are cutting.
Most of what I’m talking about is going to come from custom makers. You aren’t going to get that for the price you mentioned from most ABS Master bladesmiths, but there will be an apprentice or journeyman you can hook up with who will make you a blade you will be happy with.
There are factory blades that do some of that stuff. Bark River, ESEE, and so forth. They will usually cost a bit less than a newer knife maker, and a lot less than an experienced one.
Agree with everything @Duelist has to say, and he is very knowledgeable.
My only quibble would be including Bark River in the equation. The integrity of the owner and even the blades and steels has been called into question by many in the knife community over the past decades.
There's nothing civil about this war.
Not that familiar with that brand - I’ve just liked some of the products I’ve looked at
Where my post says “some heat treating” should say “zone heat treating”. I should not have typed this on my phone.
Apologies if I missed it but I’ll throw In the White River Firecraft series. I got a FC7 off a fellow Marine for a price that I couldn’t refuse. I wish it was a 5” since I’m built like a Hobbit and it might be confused for a sword. I haven’t really tested it (Dutch Bushcraft Knives testing standards) but it’s my gateway drug to the rest of the shenanigans in the knife world.
Even though ESEE was not an option from the OP, I know a lot of my fellow Jarheads carried ESEE knives on deployment and I haven’t heard any complaints (sample size of Me). I’ll also throw down on the TOPS Tom Brown Tracker 3. I believe they had a 154CM and S35Vn (25th Anniversary).
Best of luck on the search and let us know how it holds up.
Watching that video and the LT Wright modcast with Primary and Secondary is what kindled this thread! The 5.1 is just a tad larger than what I was thinking; looking at the 4.7 as well. I’ve been wanting the Guardian 3.5 since they came out (still may get the tanto version) but have enough EDC knives. After that video and the damage done to my only fixed blade (4.5 Benchmade Protagonist) I thought I had an excuse to get a Guardian. Little did I know it would lead me down the Axe trail…
@blues, @JHC, et al, any thoughts on the Council tool axes? Specifically interested in the 19 in Wood Craft pack axe and the 24 in Velvicut Hudson Bay. They are located about 45 minutes from me. And an opportunity to stay USA….but I’m concerned no one has brought them up for a reason.
ETA P&S with LT Wright and Esee.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-LbdVQwGOo4
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