which kinife do u have i have a swiss advenger and a bill russlel sheaf what do u have

You have posted the most popular and persistant question on the forum ;O) Someday we will have to devote a third section to knives alone, with monks swing incense burners, a Cantor and 1,000 disposable lighters flickering in the shadows. The parameters of a good knife are explained in Doug's article. There are many good products that will satisfy everything from budget constraints, wonder steel of the week and that ephemeral quality of personal preference and the "Walter Mitty factor". Many people wind up with more than one knife. That said: my current core set is a Fallkniven forester and a Victorinox Hunter (I'm excluding multitools). I can accomplish everything I need to with this kit. I also have various blades for regional needs; a lueko-puukko-ulu combination for snow climes, a norwegian S/S sailors knife for the water, spyderco for horseback riding, Martindale machete for tropical climes , camillus A/f survival knife for sailplane lessons and finally a MOD4 to chase door to door solicitors away. All are subject to replacement when I attend knife shows and something shiny blinds my better judgement.

Chris,<br>can you tell me more about the horse knife and the sailing knife? A I do both of these sports too. I am looking for a knife/pouch that I can acces quickly when on a horse and things go wrong.<br>thanx

It depends entirely on the situation. For EDC I have a leatherman on my belt. In addition to that, I carry a kit that contains a CRKT Apache II folder and if I'm traveling I also have two fixed blade knives secured in the back of the truck. One is the Camillus USAF SK that has a home in my shoulder bag and the other a Becker C/U knife on a belt. I also have SAKs stashed here and there.

I use a spyderco with the sheepsfoot blade for riding. Your main concern is getting in a wreck ( on or off ) and having to cut a tie rope, girth/cinch, or reins free without stabbing yourself or the horse. J.Adams, who make the current MOD4 in G.B. also makes a small emergency fixed blade with a blunt tip and sharp edge that would work. Big sheath knives are a hazard riding. Your more likely to suffer blunt force trauma to a kidney falling against one than use it . Ever see the huge western Trophy buckles that rival hubcaps? I saw a girl lacerate her liver colliding with a cow :O( For sailing I used the superb Myerchin. The sheepsfoot blade is a social artifact from 19th century English and American ship's captains with violent crews. They could stitch a slashwound with a sail needle, but stabs were usually fatal. It became the practice to snap off the tips with a new crew. This led to the sheepsfoot. I realised I would more likely need a point than avoid a knife fight. My knife is a small S/S fixed blade with a lanyard made by Brusletto of Norway with an added marlinespike. If you are primarily sailing the myerchin is still a superb knife.

"My knife is a small S/S fixed blade ... with an added marlinespike."<br>Excellent! Unfortunately most people dont know what a marlinspike is for.

Lets not strain the search services of the internet. A marlinspike is a big version of a needle roughly pencil sized. It is used for opening the strands of stiff new line for braiding or knots that have become jammed or frozen. It's wooden counterpart is called a fid.

Chris,<br><br>You seem most familiar with the Myerchin knives, do you any experience with the "Lightknives" (the ones with the LED)? I've been looking hard at them, but have some concerns about the Zytel handle. I've owned Zytel handled knives before, one was ok, one was not. Even one the one that was ok, the material seemed to make the opening/closing sticky. Any thoughts?<br><br>Take care,<br><br>Andy

I haven't found any bad Myerchins. The company has a very good reputation for product service and warranty.

Chris,<br>Thanx for the detail. I have been thinking for quite a time how to make my knife quickly accessable when on horseback. My idea was to have a strap around my leg with a pouch wich opens/closes by velcro. I was thinking about the sailing knife from Buck (the "Bucklite serrated protege Flick It/ORC, 450FX") as you can open it with one hand and has a thermoplastic handle. The drawback is its serrated, which might be handy in other situations though. It also has a rather sharp point!<br>Talking about Buck saw some intersting/potential survival knifes in their catelogue. But more on that later.<br>Reinhardt