Best Survival Folder

[steeltoe]

I would look for a folder which has at least 3,5 inches of blade, preferbly ffg, handle material is not that important but how the handle fills my hand is more important.

It should be a handle that fills my hand well so that I do not have to have a tight or clenched grip, it should not produce hot spots when working bare handed. The knife might be the only tool to help produce some kind of shelter or kindling for fire and getting blisters in your hands after five minutes of work in a survival situation is bad.

A good carbon steel would be nice, since you can pick up flint and get a spark of the back of the blade. I would like a steel that keeps its edge, is easy to sharpen, decently rust resistant VG-10, S30v, 154CM, perhaps even the 8CR13MOV tough it is in lower quality than the others.

The back of the blade should be decently smooth close to the handle and have a more square edge close to the tip, this is to help saving my fingers if I use a choke up on the blade, I have noticed that my RAT-1 shaved skin of my thumb before I rounded of the back of the blade. The square part is to help with throwing sparks from a ferro rod. Perhaps the inside of the spydiehole could help with this as well.

The spydie hole could perhaps be used as a pivot for a firedrill. Just a thought.

In Spydercos lineup I would chose between a Stretch 2 with FRN handles, Military, Paramilitary 2 perhaps Endura or Tenatious

I have a manix 2 which is a great knife tough I find the jimping on the "inside" being too agressive and I think that the jimping on the top will be as well and create blisters.

[The Mastiff]

The G10 Endura, Superleaf, Lil Temp leaf, original manix or mini. Even the VG 10 Perrin Bowie could do much more than just defensive work. It's a real cutter.

There are a bunch more that would do it. I like the bradley but some others have talked about hot spots. It's worth it for me. That M4 is some great stuff IMO.

Can I cheat and have the O-1 Bushcrafter? Problems pretty much solved there.

[blujaydad]

C95 Manix !!!!!!

[DMgangl]

If we are talking survival. I want a comfortable handle, and edge retention. For something like bushcraft its a different story. But Im lost in the wilderness and am trying to make it through the night/few days. I would go for M4 PM2 or Gayle Bradley. Very comfortable handle, strong lock, open construction to get dirt and debris out of the lock area, and excellent edge retention and will take a good beating.

DM

[Water Bug]

I'd go with the Spyderco Military and the Spyderco C95 Manix, both in PE.

[dsmegst]

M4 Manix 2

[vic]

an overbuilt back lock folder like the original manix or similar like the byrd cara cara g-10

if you think a military or a manix 2 would last 30 seconds being smacked through a log you are just kidding yourselves, sorry but they will break, quickly

[DaBird]

Out of the 70+ Spydercos I now have --- The Chinook 1 is BY FAR the most heavy duty BEAST of a knife out of them all --- I think you COULD hammer the spine with a rock and there would be no real damage done to it --- or if you didn't have a rock , you could use the Chinook 1 AS A ROCK :D

<a href="http://s19.photobucket.com/albums/b199/ ... inook1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b199/ ... inook1.jpg" border="0" alt="Chinook1"></a>

[Rhiney]

I always get a kick out of what people want in terms of "survival." I've done some batoning with my tenacious, for example, of 1-1.5" sticks for kindling. I've used it to carve a wedge for use with a baton to split bigger wood for a larger fire. I've used it to skin out a few squirrels and to clean a fish. I've used it to carve feather sticks and notches for traps (yes, the squirrels again...). I've used it to collect and prepare birch bark for lighting, and for cutting strips of bark and lengths of twine to make cord, which in turn I used to secure my shelter. If the tenacious does it, sure as heck my three millies will, or my c95 manix, or my sages, or...you get the picture. Would I rather use a nice big Hossam? Yes, it gives me more leeway. But if you know what you're doing, you can do a LOT of work with any well-made knife. Cheers!

[GEC]

an overbuilt back lock folder like the original manix or similar like the byrd cara cara g-10

if you think a military or a manix 2 would last 30 seconds being smacked through a log you are just kidding yourselves, sorry but they will break, quickly

I agree a folding knife will not be able to put up with the abuse of batoning. I have broken one FB knife just by hitting a good size knot I didn't see. Twisted it in all sorts of ways and bang. The blade snapped. Lessoned learned for me was not to get to comfortable in doing it all the time. There are other ways to process wood and finding dry stuff.
I would start by making a series of wedges and some sort of mallet (a smooth round stick). Make a small crack in the end with the folder by batoning maybe 1/4" deep. Wiggle out the blade and finish by using a series of wedges to keep it going till it splits.

Rhiney took the words right out of mouth. As a kid and even today. I still use either a multitool, SAK, or even my old Buck 110 for outdoor chores he mentioned.

[vic]

I agree a folding knife will not be able to put up with the abuse of batoning. I have broken one FB knife just by hitting a good size knot I didn't see. Twisted it in all sorts of ways and bang. The blade snapped. Lessoned learned for me was not to get to comfortable in doing it all the time. There are other ways to process wood and finding dry stuff.
I would start by making a series of wedges and some sort of mallet (a smooth round stick). Make a small crack in the end with the folder by batoning maybe 1/4" deep. Wiggle out the blade and finish by using a series of wedges to keep it going till it splits.

Rhiney took the words right out of mouth. As a kid and even today. I still use either a multitool, SAK, or even my old Buck 110 for outdoor chores he mentioned.

right

i only say that the byrd cara cara g-10 can take it because i have batoned it through some huge logs and hit it as hard as i possible can hundreds of times and it hasn't broken, it is damaged and has up and down play but with a tightened pivot it still works.

the 8cr13mov is perfect for this too, i only said the original manix as well because it has similar construction, i doubt the steel would take as much abuse, it's s30v right?

i really gets me when i see people saying something like a military, or any liner lock would be good for this, the military is a lovely knife and is probably a very strong liner lock but there is no way a liner lock like that could survive hard batoning, and s30v would hate it too. guys think a strong folder is a strong folder and that one lock can take as much abuse as another and they just won't, or they think that lightly batoning kindling proves absolute strength, there's batoning and there's batoning: hitting the knife as hard as you can, on the spine and on the handle many times, really hammering it and a liner lock (or most frame locks and other locks) are just not built to withstand that. lockbacks aren't either, but some of them just about can. i only used the byrd because i didn't have a fixed blade at the time and i was very surprised that i didn't break it, i thought it would bust in less than a minute: tough knife

[wongKI]

Where I'm at machetes are more useful than anything Spyderco makes, but one of those (10 dollars at the hardware store) paired with a Military will do any job.

[Rhiney]

Hi Vic,

I appreciate what you're saying but I think the point that both GEC and I are making is slightly different: in a survival situation batoning large logs isn't necessary. In fact, even if I had a big fixed blade I'd avoid batoning with it in a survival situation because I could dull or break my very important tool. As GEC and I both pointed out, carving a wedge and using it to split pieces larger than kindling works very well and is much easier on the knife.

If I end up in a survival situation (and I do a lot of solo backpacking in remote mountain terrain in British Columbia) I am using deadwood off the ground to build shelter (don't need to cut it), my tenacious or military or whatever spydie I have on me to split kindling (don't forget the tenacious is also a liner lock and I've split lots of kindling with it and had no problems which is why I say the millie would also work fine), and a carved wedge and baton to split larger fire fuel.

The idea that in a survival situation I'd be bashing my knife through logs with knots (as you say "hitting the knife as hard as you can...really hammering it) -- even my Hossam, Junglas, Chris Caine Survival Tool, Temp2 etc -- is something I'd never do. Do I do it for fun when I'm camping? Yes! Do I do it if I'm in remote country and am relying on my knife for the whole trip? No! Accordingly, do I need an overbuilt monster knife in a survival situation? Nice to have, but not essential.

I've really enjoyed this thread, it's nice to hear people's opinions. As always, I love this forum for its breadth and depth of knowledge and its courtesy. Thanks everyone!

[vic]

Hi Vic,

I appreciate what you're saying but I think the point that both GEC and I are making is slightly different: in a survival situation batoning large logs isn't necessary. In fact, even if I had a big fixed blade I'd avoid batoning with it in a survival situation because I could dull or break my very important tool. As GEC and I both pointed out, carving a wedge and using it to split pieces larger than kindling works very well and is much easier on the knife.

If I end up in a survival situation (and I do a lot of solo backpacking in remote mountain terrain in British Columbia) I am using deadwood off the ground to build shelter (don't need to cut it), my tenacious or military or whatever spydie I have on me to split kindling (don't forget the tenacious is also a liner lock and I've split lots of kindling with it and had no problems which is why I say the millie would also work fine), and a carved wedge and baton to split larger fire fuel.

The idea that in a survival situation I'd be bashing my knife through logs with knots (as you say "hitting the knife as hard as you can...really hammering it) -- even my Hossam, Junglas, Chris Caine Survival Tool, Temp2 etc -- is something I'd never do. Do I do it for fun when I'm camping? Yes! Do I do it if I'm in remote country and am relying on my knife for the whole trip? No! Accordingly, do I need an overbuilt monster knife in a survival situation? Nice to have, but not essential.

I've really enjoyed this thread, it's nice to hear people's opinions. As always, I love this forum for its breadth and depth of knowledge and its courtesy. Thanks everyone!

oh right i see what you mean about the wedge now and yeah you can baton kindling with anything, even a bug or a grasshopper it the wood's small enough

[defenestrate]

I keep breaking the cheaper machetes so I splurged on a nice Ontario 22" milspec machete and it is holding up well so far.

Re: a folder for emergency survival use, I think the Manix2 or GB are probably the ticket for currently produced knives.

[avoidspam]

Hi Vic,

I appreciate what you're saying but I think the point that both GEC and I are making is slightly different: in a survival situation batoning large logs isn't necessary. In fact, even if I had a big fixed blade I'd avoid batoning with it in a survival situation because I could dull or break my very important tool. As GEC and I both pointed out, carving a wedge and using it to split pieces larger than kindling works very well and is much easier on the knife.

If I end up in a survival situation (and I do a lot of solo backpacking in remote mountain terrain in British Columbia) I am using deadwood off the ground to build shelter (don't need to cut it), my tenacious or military or whatever spydie I have on me to split kindling (don't forget the tenacious is also a liner lock and I've split lots of kindling with it and had no problems which is why I say the millie would also work fine), and a carved wedge and baton to split larger fire fuel.

The idea that in a survival situation I'd be bashing my knife through logs with knots (as you say "hitting the knife as hard as you can...really hammering it) -- even my Hossam, Junglas, Chris Caine Survival Tool, Temp2 etc -- is something I'd never do. Do I do it for fun when I'm camping? Yes! Do I do it if I'm in remote country and am relying on my knife for the whole trip? No! Accordingly, do I need an overbuilt monster knife in a survival situation? Nice to have, but not essential.

I've really enjoyed this thread, it's nice to hear people's opinions. As always, I love this forum for its breadth and depth of knowledge and its courtesy. Thanks everyone!

Exactly!

I've never understood this obsession with batoning. I work in woodland and started working in woodland with my father when I was 12 and still do now. Part of my job involves building a fire to burn brash in all seasons and all weathers. you give yourself 20 minutes to pick deadwood off of the trees (much drier than on the ground), pick something like Honeysuckle or birch bark for tinder (in my case newspaper) start with tiny twigs and build up. I'm working with chainsaws so I have to be able to quickly get a fire to the point it will burn green wood quickly enough to keep up with the saw. I've never run out of dry material. i also enjoy camping in the woods and still haven't batoned anything except out of curiosity. Weird! :)

Knifewise I guess my concern with only having a Spyderco knife would be the micro bevel and how you maintain that edge on hard steel with what you have around you. I can't think of an ideal survival folder, again as has been said having a knife you are comfortable and familiar with counts for a lot. I would probably opt for a larger Opinel, easy to sharpen on anything, comfortable and simple. The draw back is it's fragile, thin carbon steel.

Just thoughts, nice to read everyone's :D

[Slash]

kinda pointless thread. anyone with half a brain is gonna bring a large fb if they are going out in wilderness of north america to "survive" for an extended period of time. espcially if you need to use it in harsh(very cold) climate.

hello Mr. Grizzly bear let me see if I can kill you with my folding spydie...

[chuck_roxas45]

hello Mr. Grizzly bear let me see if I can kill you with my folding spydie...

Even with a large fixed blade, good luck fighting off a grizzly.

[Blerv]

Even with a large fixed blade, good luck fighting off a grizzly.

Haha! No kidding. If you aren't running and losing control of your bodily functions you are either brave or stupid. No actually...just stupid. :p

[Slash]

Haha! No kidding. If you aren't running and losing control of your bodily functions you are either brave or stupid. No actually...just stupid. :p

running from a bear is the one thing you don't want to do...unless you're stupid?