FYI. Rockler.com has a new Super Knife. It's basically a folding box cutter. However, I would suspect that utility knife blades make very poor survival knives. To me they seem to dull quickly and are very brittle.

Hi Bill,<br><br>Checked out the site (thanks for providing the link). It appears to be a nice enough design, I'd be more comfortable being able to look at one in the hand versus on a monitor screen. <br> <br>Certainly a different method of handling the utility blades. Noted it does not appear to have storage for second blade and (IMHO) at approx. $25 + shipping, it may be bit pricey for what one gets, however others may have a much different feeling about it. <br><br>Thanks for sharing your find,<br>Comanche7

Here is the web site for another supplier of the Super Knife which gives a bit better view.<br><br>Unfortunately, my local Rockler store is out-of-stock. <br><br>I carry 2 utility knife blades in my mini PSK. A sturdy handle would certainly be an improvement.<br><br><br>

Nice site . . . they have an extensive listing of LED type flashlights and photos as well.

[url=http://www.rockler.com]Rockler is also where I bought my honing paper for my PSK per Chris' suggestion.

Now that folding box cutters have become more available, I have been carrying one for the past few months. Mine has been very useful for my everyday tasks in an urban setting: very sharp, easy to maintain, can be used for scraping glass and warn out automotive gaskets, remove slivers, cutting boxes, etc. However, I too have been wondering about how useful they would be in a survival situation. As mentioned before, they are great when they are sharp, but dull relatively fast and almost instantaneously loose their edge if they get wet. Another complaint I have about them is their usable blade length is quite short, only about 1 inch. Anyone else have any other ideas or comments on this subject?

Thanks,
Rio

I've taken to carrying a $0.50 box cutter for everyday use and therefore keeping my Benchmade folding knife sharp for when I really need it.

When you think about it, a single edge razor blade is on almost every list for necessary items in a survial kit. What the folding cutter, a box cutter or craft knife does is give you the same thing but allows a margain of safety( probably the most important thing in a survival incident).
With that in mind remember what you can use it for and don't try to make it do what a good sized lockback or fixed blade would normally do.

I have a folding cutter from Home Depot. It is bascally a folding knife. It is easy to use. Also, it has a belt or pocket clip.
I don't think you can store blades in it. It only cost about $8.75 and comes with some replacement blades. Very inexpensive and practical. You can go to home depot site and look for hand tools. The brand name is Husky and comes in different brilliant colors like red, and blue.

The local Walmart carries Gerbers version of the folding box cutter. It's much smaller and thinner than most I've seen and it can use the heavier grade blades. I've picked up a few to keep around the house and vehicles.

I have that Walmart Gerber boxcutter. Costs about $10. Really not bad. Very compact and pocketable linerlock.




I've since replaced the blade retaining screw with one slightly longer, which allows easier one handed opening.

I find that some utility blades aren't very good and some are quite good. However, it's sometimes to track down brands/manufacturers. In addition, they are usually very thin and tend to get much abuse. The result may make it seem that they are poorer quality than they really are. They are sharpenable, though, even if they are disposable, and I have occasionally sharpened them to find how feasible it would be.

I keep a Superknife handy for opening packages and breaking down boxes. The heavy duty coated blades last quite a while. Great little cutter.

shecky....
I've got one of those Gerber boxcutters and I like it alot. It's thin and compact, very easy to carry. Kinda reminds me of a money clip. I guess it could serve that purpose too.

smitty

Any chance one of you guys could post up the official name of your Gerber box cutter? I really like it but can't seem to find it online <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Currently I have one of the Husky ones but I like the Gerber better because the blade has a longer usable length.

Thanks,
Rio

I saw them at the local Walmart tonight, back in the knife counter. Just a picture but it did look cool. Might be able to take a look at one if you have a wally's local.
brad

The Gerber boxcutter is called the EAB. Don't know what it means. AFAIK, it's a Walmart-only item, at least so far. The box even has the display card number printed rather than a decal, suggesting the boxes were done for Walmart alone. Last I checked, Gerber's website had no info on the knife. They run about $10.

You are right that the blade has a longer usable length than the typical boxcutter using that type of blade. The knife itself is interestingly constructed, apparently of several stainless laminations bonded together. It's a rather clever design.

Rio....
Evidently this is a Wal-Mart only deal. I don't remember the name exactly but it was something like "E.A.B (Exchange A Blade) Utility Clip", or something like that. I do remember it said EAB on the packaging. I did see one on E-Bay, but they wanted an arm and leg for it. See the link below for some more information.

I got some new knives

smitty

I have one of these, its made by Husky isnt it? Pretty reliable but the mechanism holding the blade in place has become loose, however, not a huge deal.

That superknife, how is the blade held in place and does it have a tendency to fall out on its own?

A screw holds the blade, quite secuely in mine. It came with a small tool to remove the screw and adjust the tightness of the pivot.
Superknife

I've carried pocket knives every day since a small kid. I also use the utility knives regularly doing maintenance at rental properties. With years of use, the only times I've cut myself good is with the utility blades. I think they are just an inefficient design for anything except opening and cutting up boxes. Using them for other cutting chores forces you to use techniques that aren't safe. A SAK isn't any larger and much better design for general cutting chores.

True for most of them, but check out the ones made by Lenox: http://www.lenoxsaw.com/utility.htm
They're 0.025 inch thick (heavy duty) bimetal blades; a thin, high speed steel edge welded to a spring steel back. Just like bimetal "shatterproof" hacksaw blades. These are also edge coated with titanium (TiN), and have four notches instead of two, so they can stick out further than regular blades. They claim that these last three times longer than regular utility blades. You can find them at Home Depot for about 40 cents/blade in 50 packs. I think the 5 pack was $2.50 or $3.00. Better to try them out that way, than sending for the free sample they're offering if you reply to their survey. They want too much info for my taste. See the free offer at the bottom of the http://www.lenoxsaw.com/index.html homepage. But it shows a good picture of them, as well as a crazy photo of one of them bent by two Vise Grips WAY further than I'd ever bend a regular utility knife blade. They've shown them used this way to flush cut with a utility knife. I hope they used safety goggles! I like them, but then I'm not a drywall contractor that abuses blades, so YMMV.

Thanks for heads-up on this free offer. I think I will give them a try <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

I'm not a drywall guy either, but I have been very happy with the Lenox Gold blades.

I carry the same box cutter for urban edc. It does most of what I need to do. It is light and thin, so you hardly know it is in your pocket. I did tighten the handle to prevent the blade from coming out while in my pocket, and I wrapped the handle with a rubber band to prevent the cutter from falling out of my pocket. In an emergency, it would be excellent for making things out of cardboard, a common item in an urban environment.

Spud

We use the Lenox blades in the fire company. They are far better than any similar blade and are well worth it.
Much stronger, they don't shatter and, in the right handle, you can pry with the blade without it shattering.

I love my Husky.