Considering I am going camping, I know I need a knife. My friend told me one that would be like an ax. I am going to have to chop dry wood to build a fire.

What do you carry?

In the woods I carry one of these. How much are you willing to spend?

Sounds like you need a parang or kuhkri knife, that is if you want something to do it all. You could get a hatchet, which if it was actually cold weather you would probably need. A folding saw doesn't require skill, so always take one of those, too. Get a good fixed-blade knife to your liking, or if it is awkward to display, get a good heavy-duty locking folder. A cheaper locking folder that I like that takes alot of punishment -- I always have it in my car to whittle with -- is a rubber handled Buck Alpha Hunter liner-lock knife. It is too heavy for EDC. The weight and size of the handle is ridiculous when considering the amount of blade given. But it gives plenty of leverage for heavy duty work that some other folders I own cannot.

I just ordered the Doug Ritter Mini RSK MK1.

I just read an article of someone taking the RSK MK1 on a trip to cut wood. I wonder if the mini is good enough. I don't want to spend a lot. But as with all items I buy in life, I want to get the best bang for my buck.

Yep, I pack the RSK MkI as EDC, too. Just find something bigger like that Becker Norad showed for camping. It should do the job.

It would be hard to beat the Ritter. I mean that literally--I like mine too much to split wood with it, unless of course it was an emergency. In that case I'm sure it would do the job. But for everyday around-the-camp woodwork, get yourself a good fixed-blade as well. 5" to 6" ought to do it. Check out the section on survival knives elsewhere on this site. Some good recommendations there.

You live in THE WINDY CITY and your not aware of Nature's pruning service? Everybody wants to 'get away from it all' but leave a few more board feet of denuded forest monday morning in thanks. Think small fire sit close versus bonfire dance like nekkid druid in the moonlight. You can readilly gather wood from the ground and break dead and dry branches from trees without harm. You don't need an Alaskan Log Splitter, Viking broadaxe or a houstrained pet beaver to do that either. Any decent fixed blade knife such as discussed in Doug's section on sharps will give you more options than decent people deserve. Chances are you'll wind up opening up a can of beans because your P 38 got lost, cutting paracord for that broken shoelace and gripping it tightly at 3 A.M. when a field mouse runs across your camp and you have visions of Bart the Bear sniffing your toes. Axes, parangs and kukris wil just make you walk with a list to port and throw your compass off 5 degrees, which in the East just about cancels each other out. <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

If I was only going to carry one item, it would be my Leatherman Charge Ti. The tools probably would cover most needs on a camping trip plus the blade is of high enough quality for most EDC use. Plus the saw on the Leatherman would be better than using a large fixed blade for cutting wood. If you need an axe to obtain the wood, your fire is too big.

If you want to carry two items, the knife would be the RSK without the serrated blade (the charge Ti already has a serrated blade.)

So in laymans terms, stick to my Leatherman Wave and Mini RSK 1. I also just receive my INKA and SPACE pens. Man I'm thrilled today. My EDC is building.

All the knives/tools discussed are great! I will also echo the small fire comments, big fires are for ceremonies. And remember, DEAD and DOWN first then DEAD standing when gathering fire wood.

Personally, if I could only carry one knife in the field it would be a Leatherman Wave. While multi-tools blades aren’t as nice as the purpose built locking folders like the RSK, the added tools and capabilities make up for it.

When backpacking and going light I carry my Leatherman Wave and a full sized RSK. If weight isn’t as issue, I add a quality fixed blade knife, like a Benchmade Nimravus.

Any knife is better than none, but your setup of a Mini-RSK and a Leatherman Wave is a great way to go. You could add an inexpensive quality fixed blade knife like the Becker Crewman Norad linked, for $43 you can’t go wrong those are well built versatile knives!