Looking for a good large blade knife(price doesnt matter,just a bigger blade than 11-inch) , ive heard good things on and the ontario rtak and rat-7or machetes/bowies.any good ones out there?

also im looking for a good headlight. i have a energizer one that works well,but im looking for another. any good ones?ive seen princeton tecs line but i would like to know how they perform.

thanks

Supermark.
Try Led Museum and Flashlight reviews these two sites should help.

Lee

cool. wish i knew about those along time ago.

For long-bladed knife, you might check out the 10+" RTAK by Ontario Knives.

For a headlamp, I strongly suggest the Princeton Tec EOS. Nice bright beam on high and a very useable lower beam when inside a tent or for up close work.

I concur with KenK's recommendations:

Ontario RTAK and Princeton Tec EOS - they have received great reviews out there and are the best bang for your buck.

Aloha supermark,

For a large blade, I am partial to a kukri. The Cold Steel LTC Kukri is pretty good. I have one of those and a military model kukri from the kuhkuri house.

My headlamp of choice is a Petzl Tikka XP. Has a bright spot with a diffuser to use as a flood and extremely long battery life. I like that the headlamp uses an LED so I don't have to worry about the bulb going out on me. I also have a bunch of Inova 24/7's that I like too. But they serve a different purpose.

My firend has a Princeton Tec headlamp and it uses an incandescent bulb so has a better throw. For me, the headlamp isn't for a long throw so the Tikka XP works. I carry a flashlight also for throw.

The Ontario blades are good, probably good enough for most uses.

If you want the best big knives in production, get a Busse or a Swamp Rat. You could not do any better than these two, and they make some truly wonderful big knives. You will pay for the quality, but it is well worth it. They are all the rave on Bladeforums, and I own one of each and am quite happy with the investment. They are excellent working blades and the steel alloys they are made from are probably the best in the business right now.

If you search the net as I did and do the research, I am sure you will reach the same conclusions. Anyone else I've talked to that's done their homework ends up there too.

As far as headlamps go. I bought a 1 watt LED by Dorcy at a Lowe's Hardware store three years ago. I've used it regularly from hiding out in Mortar bunkers in Iraq to caving in Washington to hunting in Colorado and it has not failed yet and has met all my performance needs. I think I paid a little over twenty bucks for it back then. It uses 3 AAA batteries.

What are you going to do with this big blade? That makes a little difference in what some might recommend. A good quality 12' machete is pretty handy, they even used to be called by some the "world wide survival tool." You have to be careful with hard woods, the blades are pretty soft, and the edge can roll on you, but any rolls or nicks can be easily corrected with a file. They can be easily sharpened to hair shaving sharpness, and will do just about anything one might ask of a blade. Best of all, they cost little, so you can have them stashed all over the place.

As for headlamps, there are a jillion out there. I have some of the Energizers too, but only use them for close up work (like reading in bed), they don't put out enough light for my old eyes to walk around with them. While bigger and heaver than many, the Petzel Duo is slick. It has multi-LED's to save the batteries, and a halogen bulb for long distance lighting. You will see them used by many SAR team members...

The Tracker knife is claimed to be an all-purpose survival knife. That means that it claims to be good for everything but is actually not very good for anything. Also, bring a wheelbarrow. You're going to need it to haul the cash that the thing costs. I'd rather have a RSK Mk 1 & a machete for less than half the money. For twice the cost, you could buy a PLB.