So, What Is A 'Survival' Knife...??

[spike.t]

Yep, that'll work!!!
Just not sure it'll be very comfortable to hang off my belt every day!

can just see you wandering around ndola with that strapped to your belt........

 

[PeteG]

can just see you wandering around ndola with that strapped to your belt........

Ha ha ha. That my machete and the 357 should make for tighter belts and less hassles!!!

 

[observe]

Is this big "survival" knife really more practical and helpful than this smaller multi-purpose type lockblade "pocket" knife for the avarage guy going out there camping or hunting?

 

[observe]

I want to make a bold (controversial ?) statement :

THERE IS NO SUCH A THING AS A SO CALLED COMMERSIAL SURVIVOR KNIFE !!

Off course you can survive with any knife -that is different.

Throughout history different people has survived very different survival situations with a diverse amount of knives types.

The ONE thing all of these knives have in common , is not their looks or reputation or sales pitch as being the "best" survival knife under the sun, but the fact that the suvivor had it mostly EDC on his / her person when the crises situation arised...

Do you recognize this cheap EDC (survival) butchers knife, or know about the role it played about a 100 odd years ago in one of the most epic survival stories in South Africa's history?

 

[Art Lambart II]

Nope but I'd like to read the story

 

[observe]

Art , a facinating true survival story that you can google, about the first game ranger (Harry Wolhuter) in the Kruger national park,and his solo encounter with a lion and that same knife that is on display in the museum....

 

[spike.t]

Do you recognize this cheap EDC (survival) butchers knife, or know about the role it played about a 100 odd years ago in one of the most epic survival stories in South Africa's history?

yup

 

[BC.Pat]

If I remember the story correctly he exchanged his knife for the knife in the adventure at a cheese shop? I laughed and it stuck with me for some reason.

 

[Wheels]

Art , a facinating true survival story that you can google, about the first game ranger (Harry Wolhuter) in the Kruger national park,and his solo encounter with a lion and that same knife that is on display in the museum....

Willem,

I believe Simon, @Traditional Mozambique Safaris is a relative of the legendary Harry Wolhuter. He will correct me if I am wrong.

 

[siml]

@Wheels, my great grandfather was friends with Harry, Harold Trollope, Harry killed a lioness with that knife, Harold also killed a lioness with his knife.

 

[ArmyGrunt]

That's pretty cool! Truly life and death survival situation.

I'm a couple of days from killing a dangerous animal with a knife myself. Gator hunt in Florida!

 

[observe]

Wow Simon,I would love to hear that story about Harolds lioness!

 

[Wheels]

@Wheels, my great grandfather was friends with Harry, Harold Trollope, Harry killed a lioness with that knife, Harold also killed a lioness with his knife.

Thanks for correcting me Simon. I knew there was a connection there somewhere. It just wasn't where I thought it was.

Dementia is a bummer.

 

[rinehart0050]

I want to make a bold (controversial ?) statement :

THERE IS NO SUCH A THING AS A SO CALLED COMMERSIAL SURVIVOR KNIFE !!

Off course you can survive with any knife -that is different.

Throughout history different people has survived very different survival situations with a diverse amount of knives types.

The ONE thing all of these knives have in common , is not their looks or reputation or sales pitch as being the "best" survival knife under the sun, but the fact that the suvivor had it mostly EDC on his / her person when the crises situation arised...

View attachment 183245

Do you recognize this cheap EDC (survival) butchers knife, or know about the role it played about a 100 odd years ago in one of the most epic survival stories in South Africa's history?

@kudu1 had a replica made of this exact lion knife- looks really cool. Here's a link to the knife and it's story:

https://www.africahunting.com/threads/the-lion-knife.28385/#post-263366

 

[Art Lambart II]

Great story, so much for carrying a 4" knife in the bush

 

[curtism1234]

Survival in a first world industrial nation normally means for 2-3 days you stay in the same spot, try to stay warm and dry, eat your last candy bar, and maybe you have to find water --- a whole lot of sitting there twiddling your thumbs waiting for a search party. That really doesn't require much in the way of tools besides a multitool --- knife, saw, pliers.

Now of course there are exceptions

 

[observe]

Yep, an interesting topic ,once we can all agree we talk about the same thing. [survival situation during a 'normal' [EDC knife] day vs using a choice belt [?] knife to survive on a planned outdoor camping/hunting trip gone south]--

[I'm still stirring against some misleading media/commercial knife advertisements ...]
Lots of experienced guys with very valuable comments here...thanks!

Now here we have the two knives that tamed Africa!
The panga[type] bigger blade and the dirt cheap Okapi folder.
The Okapi skinned and processed more game [domestic-cows,sheep,chickens and wild animals] than the next 10 brand name knives together.

[The Okapi folder probably also killed more humans during drunken brawls and other confrontations than any other single knife in Africa!]

They were carried EDC and also used to 'survive'/camp for many -many years in the bush and on farms etc...

 

[Cousin Bongo]

I researched the subject of a serious utility/survival knife off and on for a couple of decades or so and have compiled what I think is a pretty good list of parameters. This is basically garnered from my limited experience where I used knives in the sticks a fair amount (Alaska & lower 48, Central & South America, Africa, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Iraq, Australia, New Zealand, etc), but it seems to correlate with the consensus of many highly skilled outdoorsmen, survival instructors and military operators. Remember, this is a survival/utility knife, not a fighting knife (for that take a look at a real bowie or Khukuri/Kukri)

>Fixed blade
>5" maximum length (4" to 4 1/2" seems to be what most, including me, consider about ideal)
>Extremely strong/as unbreakable as possible
>Continuous curvature cutting surface - i.e. continuous curve from tip to ricasso
>Sabre/Scandi grind
>Thin enough to be slightly flexible - 1/8" to 5/32" thick seems to be about ideal
>Full tang
>Flat pommel
>Straight spine out to point (I prefer no drop or clip point) for easier use with baton ("batoning")
>Hole (1/8" - 5/32" dia) in blade about 1/2" from tip just above the grind for shearing
>Unbreakable, non-slip, comfortable, ergonomic handle
>Two or three holes or so in handle for lashing
>Weight: 8 ounces or less
>Tough, durable sheath with good retention; ideally will have sharpening stone and flint/magnesium pouches/holders and a few tie down points integrated into it

Alloy choice is vast, but I like something that is easy to sharpen and which will spark readily and profusely; this means a carbon steel which isn't very corrosion resistant and is more maintenance, but l'm okay with that.

CB

 

[siml]

@Cousin Bongo, don't like the blade being flexible.

 

[Cousin Bongo]

Every quality knife blade has flex in it. If not, it will probably break under even not so heavy use. Some blades are "stiffer" than others, but stiffness comes down to mostly alloy, thickness and, to some extent, heat treatment. We're not talking fillet knives here, but rather a utility/survival knife blade of about 1/8" to 5/32" thickness which allows some manual flexibility. Blades thick enough that most people won't even know that the blade flexes even when using a baton, yet thin enough to flex when needed/wanted.

CB