# survival knife



## Randy (Oct 5, 2009)

I have had it with these cheap knives.  Recommend me a good, no great, survival knife.


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## Nicodemus (Oct 5, 2009)

Raleigh Tabor, Sharpeblades, right here on the forum.


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## redneckcamo (Oct 5, 2009)

...http://www.randallknives.com/


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## robinsonfam1 (Oct 6, 2009)

i dont use the type that have a compass, matches and all in them. my idea of survival knife it one that is full tang and indestructible in order to help me survive.

Spec Plus by Ontario Knives. 

Ive had it for over 10 years, beat on it, cut trees with it, pryed with it. never started to rust, easy to sharpen, and holds its edge too.
VERY affordable to top it off. i never go in the woods without it.


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## duckdawgdixie (Oct 6, 2009)

ka-bar ive had mine for about 5 years now i wouldnt take anything for it, ive hammered it into concrete walls and pryed doors open with it in the sandbox imo no better knife out there


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## Cornelia_Hiker (Oct 6, 2009)

duckdawgdixie said:


> ka-bar ive had mine for about 5 years now i wouldnt take anything for it, ive hammered it into concrete walls and pryed doors open with it in the sandbox imo no better knife out there



x2 Marine Kabar

Many several other similar threads already on the forum here.


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## thomasr (Oct 7, 2009)

Randy said:


> I have had it with these cheap knives.  Recommend me a good, no great, survival knife.



Hi Randy, that begs the question what do you require out of a survival knife.   Like somebody said, they don't want the matches and the compass, but that may be what makes a survival knife to somebody else.


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## Randy (Oct 7, 2009)

No I want a real full tang knife.  No "rambo" matches and compus in the handle.  I am thinking something like this:

http://www.militarygerber.com/index.php/product/id/63


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## Nicodemus (Oct 7, 2009)

Randy said:


> No I want a real full tang knife.  No "rambo" matches and compus in the handle.  I am thinking something like this:
> 
> http://www.militarygerber.com/index.php/product/id/63




I checked out the supplied link. Randy, you really need to get in touch with sharpeblades, tell him what you want, and let the man build you a custom knife, right down to your specifications. He knows what he`s doin` with a piece of steel.


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## marknga (Oct 8, 2009)

Randy
The Gerber LMF II is a great knife but as Nic said get with Sharpeblades and tell him what you want. He (and some other knifemakers on here) can fix you right up.
There is nothing like a custom made knife, you can feel the difference.
Let us know what you end up getting.

Mark


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## olchevy (Oct 8, 2009)

that gerber lmf is NOT a survival knife.....I repeat not a survival knife...it was designed as an emergency escape tool. it main function was for helocopter pilots over in the sandbox its but end was made to bust through fiberglass easy to help them get out the helo if they crashed. that knife is not full tang due the construction of that end cap also being a crappy sharpener and i quote the site"There is complete separation between the tang and butt cap". You want to see different kinds of great knives go to youtube and type in nutnfancy he has a whole section for fixed blades....and plus anyways on an average sized fixed blade you will not want serrations.


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## thomasr (Oct 8, 2009)

Old Bear Grylls seems really proud of his choice in survival knives.

http://www.bayleyknife.com/site/bear.aspx

At better than $600 USD it ought to be a good one!!!  I appreciate a good knife as well as the next guy, but $600!!!!


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## Miguel Cervantes (Oct 8, 2009)

I like my SOG Seal Pup for finesse work and my Gerber brush hook for bigger work.


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## Gaswamp (Oct 8, 2009)

Randy let me make a suggestion.  Tell Sharpeblades this and only this.  

"Raleigh, make me a survival knife the way you would make one for yourself"


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## tlong286 (Oct 12, 2009)

The Becker BK-7 by Kabar is the winner in my knife contest. The sheath has another small knife in it and yet another pocket in front for a multi -tool or SAK for everyday stuff. I put Micarta scales (handle slabs) on it and it's now #1 for-real survival knife.

Busse is the best but it's $450. Cold Steel handles are weird. Ontario SP are very nice for the money and the guys trust them. Rangers are good too. Becker BK-7 or its big bro BK-9 will serve you well for the money.

Oh and I love Tabor's (Sharpeblades) Survival Knife and sheath. It's the beauty queen of the collection and probably indestructable. If the handle was wider it would be # 1 user. So you see there are many ways to go but with these you cannot screw up.

The most famous of all is the Kabar Fighting knife with a leather stacked handle that more men "survived" on in US history.


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## FX Jenkins (Oct 13, 2009)

whatever keeps you from freakin out..i imagine a man could go a long time with a kitchen knife..ifn he kept his whits


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## JustUs4All (Oct 13, 2009)

I have had a Ka-Bar (USN) for over 40 years.  It has successfully cut or punched everything that I have tried it on.  It even cut down my Christmas tree in 1972.  I love that knife and trust it to do anything that a large knife can do. 

That said, I want one of Sharpeblades' survival knives really bad.


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## AR-Trvlr (Oct 16, 2009)

You might take a look at the RAT knives.  They make them in sizes from 3" to 7" (and larger), and all have good steel, full tangs, and a great warranty if you somehow manage to damage one...


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## ch035 (Oct 16, 2009)

buck 184 hands down awesome


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## CUTT'EM 76 (Oct 17, 2009)

olchevy said:


> that gerber lmf is NOT a survival knife.....I repeat not a survival knife...it was designed as an emergency escape tool. it main function was for helocopter pilots over in the sandbox its but end was made to bust through fiberglass easy to help them get out the helo if they crashed. that knife is not full tang due the construction of that end cap also being a crappy sharpener and i quote the site"There is complete separation between the tang and butt cap". You want to see different kinds of great knives go to youtube and type in nutnfancy he has a whole section for fixed blades....and plus anyways on an average sized fixed blade you will not want serrations.



So not having a full tang makes it NOT a survival knife?I own 2 and everything about it say's "survival knife" to me.Field and stream and another outdoor put this knife against several other survival type knives and it ranked #1 in both mags.They could'nt destoy it.


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## tlong286 (Oct 17, 2009)

*Gerber LMF*

It's built like that so it won't conduct electricity. There's an incident where a trooper cut a generator line with one to put his group back into darkness and saved them. 

The sheath is nice. It's a fine knife and can be found very reasonably priced. I like the forest green.


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## Stokes (Oct 21, 2009)

Nothing sharper out of the box or better in my opinion than the ColdSteel SRK..Skinned 5 deer with it so far,, and it still has a razor edge..If you ever screw up the edge. you can send it back free of charge and have the original edge ground back in..none in the industry stands behind their knifes like ColdSteel does..


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## george hancox (Oct 21, 2009)

contact razor blade here on the form and he'll make you what you need he is one of the best.


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## Randy (Oct 21, 2009)

I tried e-mailing sharpblades my sketch but it is not going through for some reason?  Until I can get one made, I purchsed a couple of factory blades.  A SOG Seal Pup and a Gerber Camp knife.  Not exactly what I want but they will work till I can get one made.


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## george hancox (Oct 21, 2009)

I like the seal pup but I'm not sure of the gerber.If you can't get hold of sharpblades give razor blade a shout I know him real well and he does some mighty fine work.I hope you get a good one either way.I make my own and change every year and a lot of what I know ,which is not much, I owe to razor.Good luck


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## BamaBart (Oct 31, 2009)

I like the Knives of Alask knives. I have the Alpha Wolf.
I heard that they are made in Texas.


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## olchevy (Oct 31, 2009)

CUTT'EM 76 said:


> So not having a full tang makes it NOT a survival knife?I own 2 and everything about it say's "survival knife" to me.Field and stream and another outdoor put this knife against several other survival type knives and it ranked #1 in both mags.They could'nt destoy it.




Sorry buddy they are pretty easily broken, go to youtube and type in Gerber LMF destruction test, It fails very quickly compared to other knives.


And technically a "survival knife" is one you would bet your life on so yeah a non full tang is not a surviavl knife. 

A survival knife should be able to do all of the following with no cracks damage chips or anything.

1) cut like a normall knife....Obvious I know but a lot of "S.K" are dull as ever.
2) Chop without undue strain on your hands
3) It Should be able to batton through hard woods with no blade warp or bendage.(this is where it failed it broke the blade in three pieces)
4) the blade steel shold be hard enough to keep a keen edge through use, However not hard enough to be brittle and cause chips in the edge(such as D2 steel great edge retention but you bump something hard and hello chip)
5) it should be light enough so as not to cause undue strain on your body, but heavy enough for chopping task if need be(chopping down small trees 3-6'')

And then the list goes on and on acording to your specific needs, but any " survival knife" should be able to do all of the above no questions asked, 100 degrese or -40*( a lot of blades get very brittle in low temps)


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## m booth (Jan 20, 2010)

*Survival knife*

Emerson knives i own 3 have skint deer ,squirrel still shave  #1 hard use knives in the world!!!


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## bullgator (Jan 20, 2010)

Fallkniven, Becker, and RAT are all great knives at reasonable prices......short of custom.


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## nkbigdog (Dec 11, 2012)

george hancox said:


> contact razor blade here on the form and he'll make you what you need he is one of the best.



He is one of the Best!! Scott made me one that I plan to hand down to my son..Way better than I expected and did lazer etching.


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## goastinstructor (Dec 28, 2012)

Cold Steels Bushman Bowie IMO hands down the best rough use knife on the market.  Under 30 bucks, soft steel that can be sharpened on just about any hard surface, solid full tang with a rolled steel handle.  I have personally put this knife through the ringer and can assure you it will hang with any of the knifes mentioned above.


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## Cavalry Scout (Dec 28, 2012)

Spec Plus by Ontario.  I have two since the mid 90's.  One has been to Iraq, Kuwait twice and on my web gear til I retired!  Very good blade and tough.  If your in the market for custom, there are some fine craftsman on here!


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## Randy (Dec 28, 2012)

I have Sharpblades build me one.


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## HermanMerman (Dec 28, 2012)

Bark River Bravo-1.


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## dawg2 (Dec 28, 2012)

Randy said:


> No I want a real full tang knife.  No "rambo" matches and compus in the handle.  I am thinking something like this:
> 
> http://www.militarygerber.com/index.php/product/id/63



I have this one and carry it hunting.  Very good knife and worth every penny.

http://www.gerbergear.com/Tactical/Knives/LMF-II-Knife_22-41629


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## cddogfan1 (Dec 28, 2012)

Contact Scott Gossman "Gossman Knives"
http://www.gossmanknives.com/
They are custom and cost more than factory knives but well worth the money.  He uses a convex grind.  Works with A2, O1, and some of the CPM steels


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## hunter rich (Dec 28, 2012)

thomasr said:


> Old Bear Grylls seems really proud of his choice in survival knives.
> 
> http://www.bayleyknife.com/site/bear.aspx
> 
> At better than $600 USD it ought to be a good one!!!  I appreciate a good knife as well as the next guy, but $600!!!!



The above red letters tell me it is not a knife I would want.


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## Harbuck (Dec 29, 2012)

*Becker*

Ka bar becker BK2 is a good one I love mine. and like the guy posted before stay away from survival knives with serrations they will get beat up making your blade less usefull.


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## BradMyers (Dec 29, 2012)

Randy said:


> I have Sharpblades build me one.


Nice, I'd like to see it when you get it Randy be sure to post some pic's.


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## JDBrown (Dec 29, 2012)

I agree with a few others in this thread, I've carried a Ontario  Marine Corp combat knife for years, it's done everything I've ever needed it to, from cutting small trees, splitting down firewood, to cleaning and skinning deer, and it really holds an edge. I would still like to get me one of Mr Tabor's survival knives one of these days though!


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## Artfuldodger (Jan 7, 2013)

redneckcamo said:


> ...http://www.randallknives.com/



You don't hear much about those any more. I would think most of our GON  Messer Macher's are equal to his quality. If I ever run across one at a thrift store, i'll seriously think about buying it.


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