I developed an interest in wilderness survival, preparedness, and Search and Rescue while in college in Arizona during the late 50's. One of my first sources of info was, and is,
The Survival Book,by Paul Nesbitt, Alonzo W. Pond, and William H. Allen, 1959. Sixty years old, and based heavily on data and experiences from WWII, some of its recommendations are no longer relevant, but much remains true today, especially the significance of the will to survive and knowledge to guide the use of various tools and techniques.
One looks in vain for an extended discussion of the ideal survival knife, a subject which scrambles many electrons on the internet these days.
Their section on "Axes and knives," mostly discusses the care needed in using axes and says this only about knives - "A machete can be sharpened with only a file... (p.38).
Finally, in appendix 2, pages 327-328 (the final pages of the work), we find the following:
"The basic survival tool is the knife, preferably a machete or other large knife with a blade about 12 inches long, and with the point of balance in the blade, not in the handle. Bowie knives and Gurkha knives are satisfactory. A machete type knife can be used in lieu of an axe, as a knife, as a digging tool, or as a weapon.
A Boy Scout knife, or Swiss army knife, is also useful, but is no substitute for a machete."
No discussion of blade configuration, type of steel, or other issues discussed endlessly these days! I once used a machete to whittle my way through an eight inch pine log in Oaxaca, soon praying for a decent ax.
One other thing - a bit later "Many survivors
recommend carrying a pair of side-cutter pliers" -An early prediction of leatherman tools???
I EDC some sort of knife, at least one, and typically one type or another of L tool. I try to keep them sharp, whatever kind of steel they may be, and I do have a machete, rarely carried these days. So far, I have always managed to cut it.
