If you are looking for a purpose designed general fighting/survival knife, of reasonable size, I suggest that you strongly consider a Gerber LMFII. Commercial production, good price, decent steel, reasonably HD, cut your meat, wood, cockpit canopy, hot wire, break tempered glass, hammer, etc. Built-in rough sharpener. I'd add a small nylon belt sheath to the main plastic sheath and insert a Leatherman Wave Tool, Fenix E-01 flashlight. I might add a fire steel and maybe a TOPS whistle. Thus equipped, you'd be ready for almost any emergency or camp task.

There is a reason that 'knife' rhymes with 'wife.' So I guess the next topic of discussion: who is the best girl to marry?

There is no need to discuss this issue because the best girl to marry is already married - to me (lucky dog that I am).

My knives are pretty good,, too......

Hikermor, thought you would have heard; Marilyn Monroe is dead.
Don't know about your knives though.

The traditional Ka-Bar comes with a seven-inch blade in 1095 carbon steel. There is a version with D2 steel. There are versions with leather or Kraton grips. There is a 5.25 inch version. You can drive yourself nuts without leaving the KaBar catalog.

One of the things I have noticed in these discussions-and there have been many-is that there are a few knives which everyone who has used them recommend with only a few minor complaints. Minor complaints such as how the grip fits the hand or sheath design are very personal.

The Gerber LMF is usually noted without complaints (besides size). The Fallkniven F1 as well. The Doug Ritter Mk3. (Most other knives made by Benchmade as well.) The Cold Steel SRK has its vehement fans-and some detractors.

When I was working at a cutlery store some years ago we had several folders with VG10 blades from a major manufacturer come back from customers with chipped blades. The general conclusion was that there had been a bad batch of heat treating, because it was neither a common or repeated problem.

I have been impressed with the VG10 alloy in my Emmerson knife. Darn that knife is sharp. When I am working with it ... I have to be careful and maintain good blade awareness - the blade can slice you up quite easily :-)

Robbie - here is what I would do if I were you. A basic K-Bar or an LMFII should be affordable. I would buy it, keep it for a couple of years, carry that around, use it as much as possible, and get very familiar with all the goods & bads.

After that, I would go back and buy one REALLY GOOD knife to last me a lifetime. My choice would be something from Fallkniven or a San Mai III blade from Cold Steel. Either choice is going to cost you a lot ... but this is a lifetime investment. Why these two selections? Because the blades from both companies are laminated. This means that there is an inner core of hard steel that provides the edge. And an outer layer of tough steel that provides good mechanical strength. It's a beautiful way to make a knife .... costs a bundle ... and produces a real keeper. After that - I would carry that knife and use it for all tasks. Like I said ... it's a lifetime investment.

You could also look at the Randall knives. They are also expensive and very popular. But I have heard that the Randall's have a very long delivery time - most of a year. They are not laminated steel - I think it's a tool steel. But they are still fine knives. I have never owned one.

And BTW I am not picking on Doug's knife in any way - looks like a nice knife. So as your starter knife one of the Ritter knives is also a good choice.


Pete2

Maybe someone can correct me on this, but it's not "hard steel" vs. "tough steel." Harder steel, which you need to hold an edge, is more brittle. Softer steel is less brittle (i.e., does not break), but cannot hold an edge as well. The laminated construction uses the hard steel for the edge, but softer steel is added to absorb the effects of percussion. So you get the best of both worlds.

Also, please keep in mind that you'll lose your knives. I lost my nice $250 Emerson knife on a trip. So I no longer use the fancy stuff. $100-$120 will do me. Maybe someone like Pete can hold on to his fancy sanmai knives, but not me.

I live about 3 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, so my hunting is typically for something that swims....my "go to " knives are a Grohmann #4 and Randall #10.... I paid a whopping $35 for the Randall

Thanks guys, helps out alot! Iv grew up in the woods and camping, but I always have just used the cheap-o flea market knifes and got by, but im really looking into a decent knife that wont break the bank! The Mora knifes seem to be a really good knife and pretty cheap too (may just buy one cause there too good to pass up).

What's "best" for one person may not be ideal for another. Lots of factors come into play. In what environment will the knife be used? How do you plan to use it? What is your skill level? What other tools will you be carrying? How do you plan to maintain the knife? Like I said, lots of factors!

The Fallkniven F1 is a great knife by any objective standard. It's very sharp OOTB and holds the edge well. It's very strong and ideally sized for a great variety of tasks.