What is the purpose of carrying a knife out in a safari..

[cwpayton]

MY CARRIES , depending on expectations BE PREPARED, knife fights happen be it a pesky candy bar wrapper or a blm, or a elk. also good for scratching out a plan in the sand. buck is a given, the 2 customs are hansen made from forged in fire, short swords are roman style spanish made.

 

[roverandbrew]

Generally I carry kit that could either save myself or others. I do not like relying on a single point of failure. I also plug way points into GPS and ask my PH what he might be allergic to, if so does he have medicine. I like knowing the commo and med plan. A vehicle rollover, mamba bite, or injury could end up putting you in charge.

 

[CBH Australia]

Like carrying a Leatherman you find you might reach for it if it's available.
I started carrying one hunting pigs simply to open them up attracting other pests to an accessible feed as bait or to see them rot as quickly as possible. .
It's part of the journey and an integral part of hunting. If you have some one doing the skinning that's great but if you have a knife you can reach for it if you need it.

 

[baxterb]

I don’t go to the bathroom without a knife - much less hunting anything or being in the outdoors.

 

[SStomcat]

MY CARRIES , depending on expectations BE PREPARED, knife fights happen be it a pesky candy bar wrapper or a blm, or a elk. also good for scratching out a plan in the sand. buck is a given, the 2 customs are hansen made from forged in fire, short swords are roman style spanish made.

Those long ones are for chopping the head off I guess, but what purpose will it have in an African safari, I really dont know.

 

[SStomcat]

We ae talking of carrying a hunting knife in the african bush and its utility over a general purpose swiss army and or a Leatherman.

 

[Mekaniks]

What steel does Von Gruff use, BTW?

It depends on the knife and what you want to use it for. He has access to most all of the modern steels that are available

 

[YancyW]

I carry a knife on a safari because I carry a knife every other place I go. Besides for cutting things, it is a hell of a lot better than a rolled up magazine if I need it for social work.

I carry something pretty close to what @Red Leg posted, I just had Gary give it a bit more of a upward tip. But generally the same concept.

 

[Doubleplay]

We ae talking of carrying a hunting knife in the african bush and its utility over a general purpose swiss army and or a Leatherman.

Yep... this thread is going wayside and pretty soon subject will be knife fighting

 

[Ridge Runner]

I carry a pocket knife, a multi tool primarily for the pliers and leather punch, and a good heavy blade shealth knife for anything heavy like cutting out or dressing up a bush blind or getting downed game that somehow managed to entangled itself in bush; ie my bushbuck.

My PH's knife was meant for the task, neither my tracker nor concession rep were carrying a knife.

 

[Mark Biggerstaff]

I carry a knife on safari just like I do every day of the week all year long. Usually a BenchMade or CobraTec folder of some kind. I feel naked without a knife in my pocket. Got to have one over there for biltong and opening snuff cans, digging thorns out.

 

[Red Leg]

Yep... this thread is going wayside and pretty soon subject will be knife fighting

I am pretty sure the question was "what is the purpose of carrying a knife out in a safari." I answered it with absolute accuracy.

 

[Joel Rouvaldt]

Nothing like cutting off the tail of your bull elephant with your own hunting knife!

 

[SFRanger7GP]

We ae talking of carrying a hunting knife in the african bush and its utility over a general purpose swiss army and or a Leatherman.

It is pretty clear. Those that carry knives as an everyday necessity definitely carry a “hunting knife” on safari. I think many have a different view of what defines a hunting knife. For me, if I am hunting, whatever knife I am carrying is a hunting knife.

On our last trip to Africa, I was the only one with a knife on hand. It was a Rigby large lock blade folder. We needed to gralloch and quarter Mama’s wildebeest to get it to the nearest road. PH and tracker had left their knives on the truck that was 8 miles away. It was the hunting knife at that moment.

Better question might be what knife(s) do people carry on safari.

What knife do you carry on safari or are you looking for ideas?

Safe hunting

 

[Just Gina]

I always carry a knife hunting or not…
However:

 

[SDPlinker]

I always carry a knife, the main reason, in case it needs to cut something!

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

I'm planning a small utility knife instead of a trademark hunting knife that I see many of you carry when out hunting. Just want to go light and my philosophy is to carry as less of a load specially around the waist as possible. Already feeling the weight of my 12 pound double on long walks. Am I missing something, please educate me..

I'm planning a small utility knife instead of a trademark hunting knife that I see many of you carry when out hunting. Just want to go light and my philosophy is to carry as less of a load specially around the waist as possible. Already feeling the weight of my 12 pound double on long walks. Am I missing something, please educate me..

As a PH the only knife I carry daily is my swiss army knife. The only time it is not in my pocket is when I am on a plane. One feature of the knife is the blade locks open.

By the way in Zimbabwe it is illegal to posses a folding knife that the blade LOCKS OPEN.

Lon

 

[Laniarius]

Capstick wrote the following, in line with some of the opinions already expressed here:

"There are two primary requirements of a knife on safari, if you are the client: cutting bites of biltong and looking authentic."

 

[Dewald]

Exactly. I carry a knife in Africa because I can't carry a handgun. With a bit of training it can be extremely useful in an automobile, hotel room, or any other close quarters.

And as @AimSmall suggests, I might want to cut something.

Gary and I designed and he built me a knife exactly for that purpose.

Fair point. Being a resident here i have the luxury of carrying a Glock19 for two leg menaces.

 

[SStomcat]

Fair point. Being a resident here i have the luxury of carrying a Glock19 for two leg menaces.

But then you also have your hunting rifle/shotgun unless you are bow hunting