For background, I'm presuming we EDC a small pocketnife/ multitool/ folder or similar.

But when people add a tool for the outdoors, they tend to add a knife first, often a smaller, lighter blade like a Mora.

But I presume that if I find myself in the wilderness, then shelter and a fire are my priority. In which case wouldn't an ax or saw be my first choice to turn the available wood into shelter poles, firewood etc? My small folder will handle the little tasks, so a knife like a mora would be used for skinning, whittling etc. which are much lower priorities.

So should I rank a saw/ax or similar higher than a knife?

Depends on the type of outdoor adventuring you are doing. For example, I carry both a saw and a hatchet in my Jeep at all times. However, when I do not have the Jeep with me (hiking, backpacking, took a friends car, etc) I prefer to carry a sturdy fixed blade knife on my belt. Personally I find a hatchet and saw too big and bulky to carry comfortably on my person, and they do not fit well in my backpack. Also a sturdy fixed blade knife like a mora is more than capable of cutting the limbs needed to build a shelter.

"...I find a hatchet and saw too big and bulky to carry comfortably on my person, and they do not fit well in my backpack..."

I'm personally stuck in the middle of this issue, I like a fixed blade knive (some, like my ugly old British Mod 4, can do a pretty good job of chopping limbs, etc), I really like a saw over any chopper for limb sized wood, and I love a good hatchet. What to do. Take what is best for you I guess. There are some very small and lightweight hatchets available today, with metal handles and heads the same width as the hande, making them very easy to carry or pack, yet they do a pretty good job of chopping. There are also several brands of folding saws that pack very easily when folded, and of course there are always larger fixed blades available. So whatever turns you on, do it.

How was that for sitting on the fence???

When someone says "sturdy fixed blade knife" I do not think of a Mora.

My next tool beyond my EDC folder would be a something like a BK&T CU-7. It can chop and be battoned. Or mabe a BRKT Northstar/Fox River. The Northstar was designed with bushcraft in mind, but it doesn't have the flex that Moras have.

After that I'd probably go with a folding saw that would easily fit in my pack.

If my truck is anywhere close by, I'll have the BK-7, folding saw and axe. They're all in the back.

Pocket wire saw in my PSK
4" blade folder with me always
Heavy duty fixed blade (SealPup or Strider) on a serious hike
Hatchet and camp saw in the truck

Tool kits are properly 'layered' much like outdoor clothing. A PSK and folder are equal to your pocket rainparka, mittens and watch cap. The big knife/axe concept is more goosedown arctic parka. And if anyone has overheated in one of these or actually remained cold from poor layering beneath, you understand the potential outcome with a big knife or axe. A preplanned camp certainly goes up easier with a axe, assuming you are rested, uninjured and have lots of daylight. Your notches are pretty, ends nicely squared and everything looks geometrically perfect just like in the survival manual illustrations. But if your tired, sick or injured and it's dark an axe or even big chopping knife can turn on you. In a resource rich woodland scenario it's just not that difficult to break timber and throw a shelter up in short order. It may look like 'Faulty Towers' but thats not what we're striving for. If you are planning a wilderness trip and are familiar with axecraft by all means include one. If not, the various saws and proper knives niched in between Moras and Guillotines will suffice.

I carry a Laplander pruning saw by Bahco in my pack.

The pack string of Llamas have a 36" bow saw in their pack. They also carry a Spec Plus SP8 Machetti for light splitting, chopping and splitting elk, deer and bear

A chain saw, ax and shovel are on the ATV back at the trail head.

Did you train with Mors Kochanski by any chance? <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />
I hear he is a big big fan of Mora blades. (And the axe).

Hey check out this site I found yesterday - you can download this amateur's experimentation videos with survival. Being Swedish he is obviously a fan of the Mora as well.
http://bushcraft.se/

I was actually just considering posting on this. For the most part I don't really see that the added functionality out weighs the weight of carrying around a big knife. It doesn't chop very well, atleast compared to even a small hatchet or axe. The heavy pry bar type knives don't slice as well as a smaller lighter knife. I just bought a small tomahawk that weighs in at 14oz. Lighter then a lot of big knives, but because almost all of the weight is in the head it chops much better. I don't need to baton light branches and for heavy branches I can use it as a wedge anyway. As I pointed out in another post recently a lot of trees, especially pine which is prevalent here, don't burn with the bark on. So an axe to split logs beats out a saw.

Right now I carry a 3" mora knife as my daily carry and I'll add the tomahawk to that while out hiking or camping.

The most useful thing I've used in outdoor skills training has been a folding saw. Great to have just to be able to chop larger branches and so forth, and is REALLY useful to fell small dead trees. I agree that an ax is less useful given the size/weight consideration.

Big Red, You are on to something that the Indians, pioneers, and mountain men all knew. A chopping tool is indispensible in the wilderness. There is a reason why they all carried a light tomahawk as a minimum. Sure, you can use a baton and a heavy bladed knife for chopping, but that is a very poor substitute for even the lightest hatchet or tomahawk. If you do carry a tomahawk or hatchet, you can get by with a much lighter knife such as a Mora or a simple folder. I have numerous tomahawks, hatchets, and axes, but generally take my Cold Steel Trail Hawk on my lightweight excursions in the woods. Can't beat it for cutting poles for shelter, sharpening tent stakes, making a walking stick, cutting a fishing pole, splitting kindling, field dressing a deer (opening the pelvis and splitting the sternum), quartering big game for hauling, etc. Hard to do those tasks quickly and efficiently with a knife. Hawks are for chopping, knives are for finer cutting. A hatchet or a tomahawk with a poll can also be used for pounding, driving stakes, cracking hickory nuts, etc. Marooned in the wilderness and given a choice between a knife and a tomahawk, I would choose the tomahawk as the more versatile tool.

Don't leave home without them.

Carn't argue with that one.
You forgot the ferronium rod/matches/lighter/Ritter PSK <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I'm also one of those who believe in the hatchet over the "survival knife."

Let's face it, the large knives that are usually touted as survival tools are too big for doing things like cleaning small game, etc. If you have one of those behemoths, you still need a small utility knife. So, if you have to carry 2 implements anyhow, why not make the second one really extend the work envelope?

I've found that even the Gransfors Mini-Hatchet (often derided) is a better chopper than a much larger knife, and weighs less than a BK&T Companion.

Even the much larger GB Wildlife Hatchet is lighter than many knives I've seen in BOBs, and is worlds apart in chopping and splitting ability.

Of course, I grew up in the age when axe skills were considered essential to the wilderness experience, so I may be a bit behind the times!

-=[ Grant ]=-

I add a mora and a woodman's pal. The Pal does everything a hatchet can do, but a little easier (I think) and not much heaver, if at all. Also, it can be batoned for simple, controlled splitting tasks.

At least one pocketknife is a must.

But if you are planning on going out in the bush and can carry something more substantial than your EDC blade, either a machete or a tomahawk would be ideal, IMHO.

My EDC includes a multi-tool and a SAK. In my GHB I have another multi-tool, 4" Mora & a small hatchet.