Hmm, I wonder why it is that with all the issue KA-BARs, the SRKs were hot potatoing off the shelves at the PX in Baghdad and Taji so fast. Could it be that the GIs discovered something important about the difference between the two?

Well, whatever you choose, just remember that there is no knife that is ideal for all situations, but the one you have with you at any given time will get the job done usually if you do your part.

I've two SRKs, and they were with me all the time in Iraq. I had my reasons. I don't have them with me all the time now, yet I have to admit that I've been packing a Swamp Rat Desert Battle Rat, which is twice as big as the SRK, in my shoulder bag with me for the past 3 weeks. I also tend to carry a large folder when in Manhattan, the KA-BAR desert Mule to be specific. Of course, I also keep a SAK classic in my pocket every day, and have been known to regularly carry a Leatherman Wave on my belt back in the day when I did a lot more tech work and spent a lot less time at the desk. Variety is the spice of life I guess, or something like that.

I agree it's not the BEST knife but best bang for the buck.

For a lil more$ (ok 2x) I LOVE m Ontario Rat-7.

well I did get the k-bar and it was ok. Latter I got a trail master and an srk. And the truth is I like the trail master the best the facts are that it will do most everything I want rather well. I do tend too throw a wave or a sak rucksack in a pocket for smaller tasks

I have bought and tried a number of fixed blade knives. I like the Cold Steel SRK the best, so far. You can see I filed the top of the blade so I can put pressure on the spine while working on wood. I also made a sheath for it. Here are all the sharp pointy things I carry when I go hiking or camping.

Nice sheath. If you file the coating off farther back of the spine, it will probably throw even better sparks for you.

How do you keep your sharps so pristine? Especially the SRK with the coating. My LTC with the black coating looks different, probably after every use. I thought about sanding the coating off, but was too lazy. I figure it will be gone over time through use.

I found that for my F1, without coating, it cleans right up with some soapy water and a scrub brush.

And I just had to file out a bunch of nicks in my machete. It is definitely a user and doesn't get that much TLC.

Sounds like a euphemism for "that knife looks like it has NOT been used".

That picture was taken soon after I bought the SRK. It doesn't look that good now. There are spots where the epoxy paint is worn off. I have split wood with it, pried out fatwood, and made fire boards with it. The filed top allows me to put thumb pressure on the top of the blade for carving. The bottom (blade edge side) of the coil has a very sharp corner that is great for use with a ferro rod. I have thought that being carbon steel it will work to throw sparks for tinder. I don't want to make the spine rough if I don't have to.

If you look close you can see the Mora has the top of its blade filed near the handle. That makes for a sharp corner to scrape on a ferro rod. I also filed down the top of the plastic handle, near the blade, to get rid of the bump. I see the Mora as a loaner and fine cut knife. I have thrown sparks from the back of the Mora using a piece of quartz. It does rough up the back of the bade doing that. What do you think of using a carabiner to clip the Mora sheath to a belt loop? The Mora is well used and still looks pristine.

Thanks for the compliment on the sheath! I have made one for several of my knives.

Ikea has a scrub brush that cleans my knife like magic. My F1 was all gunked and scuffed up, and to my surprise, when I used that scrubbie thing for cleaning dishes (because that's all we had), the F1 looked like new again.

My LTC has a coating on it and it looks pretty had it. A friend of ours gave us one of those Ikea scrubbie cleaner brushes. I may try it out on the LTC or not.

I always thought the coating on a blade would make for not enough friction for good sparks. Not like I would really know. I never tried using my LTC to make fire, just cut and split wood.

Craig, do you sell sheathes too? Yours looks professional.

Oh you are a nice guy! Thanks! I wonder how much they would be worth.

There are as many best knifes as there are people and situations. It`s also a question of economy. A fixed blade will always be more solid unless you get a Darrel Ralph or, something like that.

The inexperienced(well the experienced too) will mostly do well with more than one knife. A small one for most stuff and a larger chopper where that`s more appropriate. It depends. A medium size one combined with a saw and/or axe might be more appropriate.

The personal thing is huge though. Some do everything with a huge ass bowie or tracker type thing.