Hi People

Tell my whatdo you think is the best survival knive one can use.

Paul

In my opinion, the best survival knife is a sturdy full tang fixed blade. The blade is 4 to 6 inches long. The knife shouldn’t be to wide and must have a sharp point when you want to make a hole or pierce something. The knives I am thinking of are for example the Fallkniven F1, S1, A1. Also the Cold Steel SRK is a fairly cheap and very strong knife. Knives like the Busse, Cold Steel Trailmaster or Becker Brute are of course much better for chopping but they are not well suited for detailed cutting. In optimal circumstances in addition to your knife you should carry a machete in desert or jungle environments and a axe in woodland. In arctic conditions a shovel is of great use.

Paul,

not to sound like a jerk but two things you should have done before asking:

a) search thru Dougs write up on different blades
b) search thru forums for "survival knife" topic

after that you will have at least an idea of what you want in the blade and what you don't. Than posting a question with some sort of description and purpose will generate better answers and replies.

The other answer you'll get is "the one you have with you".

The idea there is that it doesn't matter what kind of knife it is if it isn't with you when you find yourself "surviving".

If you read Doug Ritter's Bonus Survival Information that come with the Pocket Survival Pack, you will note that Doug recommends "A well-built, trustworthy folding (pocket) knife with a locking plade fore safety at least 2.5 inches in length" and "one-hand opening". While larger fixed blade knives are certainly more preferable, the point is that a good small folding knife in the hand is worth two in the bush (so to speak).

I myself carry a Leatherman Micra in my pocket, and ...

...when in the office a rittergrip in a "manbag"

...when in the field a rittergrip in a sheath on my belt and a Becker Crewman and/or Leatherman Charge Ti in my fannypack or daypack. When out with Scouts the Crewman has to stay home though.

By the way, the Becker Crewman is a much better slicer than the Brute, though it is still a pretty beefy knife.

A lot of opinions on this topic. Some say whatever blade you have on your person, which may be a Micra or bigger Leatherman, is your defacto best survival knife. I often carry one of my three tiny Chris Reeve Umfaans in my pocket. When I travel long distances in my car I have either a Chris Reeve Aviator or Mountaineer I in addition to a small Sebenza. Other people like to carry sword-like long knives; some like get a kick out of finding good cheap knives, while others gain a feeling of confidence by carrying expensive, exquisitely finished knives.

I found you can't determine what's the best knife for you without owning a few knives to find what you like or need.

Hi, thank you for the exelent replies and sorry about just plasing a topic I should have first searched (10 days without food in the rugget outback of the karoo South Africa) for myself as punishment, I will search next time for sure, the reason why I asked is we are presenting a military standard survival course in South Africa and our company wants to give each student a good knive he can take back home with him. Thanks again
Paul

Another South African!

Welcome to ETS Paul! Please PM me the details of your survival course. I will be very keen, as I have never heard of anything like this in SA.

Boy you sure opened a can of worms with a question like that. Everyone has their own idea of what a good knife is.
Outdoors-Magazine.com has lots of articles about different knives their strengths and weaknesses. You might find several other topics of interest there as well. Good luck with your upcoming class.
Outdoors-Magazine

If you're purchasing knifes for a give-away, then one of your concerns might be cost. As you read through this forum you'll hear a lot of good things said about Mora knives. Their cost to quality ratio is very good.

Check them out at http://www.ragweedforge.com/SwedishKnifeCatalog.html

The favorites seem to be:
#22 - I have this. Nice carbon blade knife though I wish the sheath was more secure. Also available in stainless. About $30.

#1 - The lowest cost knife - only $9. Still very good. Recommended by survival expert Cody Lundin.

#731 & #748 - Carbon & stainless blades with a nice more modern handle. $13 & $16. Doug Ritter lists these as good fixed blade selections.

#2000 - The Swedish survival knife. A much more robust blade. I wish the sheath didn't look so tacky - even if it was a simple black plastic. Great knife though. $30

#840 & #860 - Carbon & Stainless blades with a different plastic handle with rubbery grips. $10 & $12

When somebody asks me about a knife for survival I ask what they intend to survive. Your in South Africa. I don't think your immediate concern includes snow knives for building inuit igloos.The Okapi is the pocket working knife of SA. What do people carry outdoors in SA? What do they do with them when living 'rough?' Knowing what a piece of kit doesn't or shouldn't be expected to do is as telling as what you hope it will.