OK--not a troll, but a post from my website blog:

I don't get the fascination with big knives for backpacking. For more than twenty years all I have carried is a little 3-inch Buck knife that has two blades. One is pointy and sharp, and does a good job cleaning fish. That's the only time it is ever used. The other blade is more rounded on the tip, and it gets used for everything else, which is usually limited to slicing salami and cheese, and occasionally cutting a piece of line for the tent.

So what's the deal with the JIm Bowie 11-inch machete blade? Or the USMC special Ops drop forged all black bayonet? I really do wonder what people use these knives to do. They certainly aren't backpacking where we go. Track down and hunt a mule deer? Create a bivouac out of a cedar tree? Those things would be illegal in a National Park--and unnecessary just about anywhere else.

Or are these knives for self-defense? Are they expecting to meet rebellious native peoples? Defend themselves from fellow campers? Give you a chance in an encounter with a furious bear? Good luck with that one. The bear will outweigh you by 200 pounds, have nine more knives (claws) than you do, and can rip open the door of a Ford 150 pickup. You take that knife...and run like hell when you see a bear.

Splitting wood? We make small fires from time to time...but I learned a long time ago (back when the only cooking we did was on an open fire) that smaller wood burns better, hotter, and more controllably, than big logs. And there is always more smaller wood on the ground than large logs that need splitting. I mean really--if you need a knife to split your firewood, maybe you are making the wrong kind of fire. Or camping in a group with twenty people, in which case your ex-wife's new boyfriend should carry the ax.

I suspect that these deadly looking blades appeal to the survivalist dreamer...the one who watches Man Vs. Wild and believes those idiotic capers are necessary. He'll spend two days trying to catch 200 calories worth of food. And he'll use his knife to cut up the vegetation to make a rope from lianas. It will take him most of the day. He wouldn't need the damn rope if he just hiked down the other side of the hill. Which would take about 45 mintes.

But then he couldn't justify that really cool looking black steel knife that he has carried for seven years, and never used except to spread peanut butter.

It's all just a bit too "Tom Sawyer" for me--I don't need to pretend there are pirates in the forest to have a good time. Some people do.

I suspect that there is a bit of "Walter Mitty" in many of the fans of big knives. I look at it as sort of a harmless affectation.

I have made and sold a lot of knives. The big ones consistently sold better than did the small, more useful knives. My personal favorite sheath knife has a 3 1/2" blade and a simple round mesquite handle without a bolster. I have used it for dressing and skinning deer and elk as well as whittling kindling. I find that small blades are much more controllable than are large ones.

I have a light-weight axe that I used when I was working as a timber cruiser. It serves me better for wood chopping, when I need to chop, than any of the so-called survival knives. It is only marginally heavier also. Actually, I prefer my lightweight pruning saw for most such chores.

For backpacking I carry a modest SAK Classic at 0.8 oz. I do keep it sharp though: Sorry Jimshaw!

I'll bet if you did a study you'd find that the more miles you are from the trailhead the fewer Rambo knives you'll see. I know the breed of dude that you describe and they're more the car-campin' sort than the dozen miles a day sort.

Knives can be something folks develop an emotional attachment to, and I understand that...to a point. 99% of my knife use is when cooking so I make sure I have one that works well for that, and that means something smallish and simple.

Cheers,

Rick
my knife collection stays at home safe in their drawer. besides my little gerber LST they are on my never used list.
Jim

For my particular style of backpacking a big knife is just dead weight........sharp or not

I am a mora fan. Smallish, easy to sharpen, easy to cut wood with, and the right price.

Would Freud have anything to say about the male fascination with long, big knives?

Unless it's sharp, it's just a stick??

Well, in the very least, he would have said something about man's fascination with large backpacks.

I've never been a fan of big knives either. The only one I've ever bought is a 9" fillet knife. It's useful when camping, but I don't bring it anymore. I have a tiny pocket knife I bring.

I did become fascinated with how machetes were used in Mexico and Belize. They cut brush, cinder block, hammered nails, and more with them.

I bought one and tried hacking my way through some thick bramble here but it just bent it over. Now it hangs on the wall in my garage.

I have watched hunters field dress deer with big knives made just for that and used properly they are a very good tool for the purpose.

Bill
Its funny that the big "huntin knives" are not what hunters really carry. A skinning knife, or as you allude to, a fillet knife,are pretty specialised and not a Bowie knife at all. You might carry a "huntin knife" to slit a deers throat, but most hunters have a gutting knife or Wyoming knife, which is a misnomer because it cuts the belly without cutting the guts, and a very rounded blade for actual skinning. My DH Russel dear skiiner is so specialised for skinning that it serves little utility for camping and has never been taken camping.
Jim

Jim,
Any possibility of a picture of that Russell skinner?
I'm a big fan of Russell knives. Functional works of art!

Tango61

PS - if it ever needs a new home, I could make it feel very welcome here in Texas.

Tango
its too curved to spread peanut butter. Bigfoot - yes its SHARP


one of my neighbors

Jim

I have tried alot of different knives and i have to say my favorite knife i use for every thing is a k-bar with a fairly small blade it is made of high quaity steel with stacked leather handle and leather sheath and is not only confortable but practicly indestructable ,best 85 bucks i ever spent.
Korea

I just use a leatherman micra for packing. I have nice big knives that are just not practical to carry. I hike with a guy that carries the big sheath knife, hatchet, and shovel, "just in case".

In case we have to fight off wild indians, fight a forest fire, or skin out a yeti...

I carry a puukko with a 3" blade. Sharp as hell and extremely useful for a wide array of chores around the campsite, but definitely NOTa "fightin" knife.

I carry an Ontario 499. I guess you could call it a "big knife" but it doesn't compare to anything like a Ka-Bar...

1095 Carbon steel, Full tang, Leather sheath and handle wrap. The pouch in the photo originally came with a small sharpening stone, but I replaced it with a magnesium fire starter block. I also keep about 10ft of para-chord wrapped neatly around the sheath.

I don't feel like i'm over doing it at all, its only a 5 inch blade. I can spread peanut butter, cut salami, clean a trout (i keep it razor sharp), and if need be, split wood for a fire or for making a shelter. I don't see what the issue is.

I can go on a day hike with just a water bottle and this knife on my belt and know that if need be I can build a shelter and start a fire with out having to bring anything else with me.

Did I mention its made in america and only costs 40$?

Hmmm, not sure on this, and I haven't been around enough serious backpackers to find out. I have had a trusty Gerber folding knife for a bit over a year now, and it has helped me while packing and in everyday life.

I had a really cheap fixed blade knife that was oversized as you describe. I used it to practice ceramic mug honing, and then I just left it at my mom's house and have never missed it.

Been contemplating getting a good fixed blade, as I sometimes worry about the locking mechanism on the Gerber, but I recently got a SOG S-60 powerlock, so I might delay that further.

Will admit it, I'd say I'm a bit of a minor knife addict and yeah some knives are bought for some of the cool factor/collection purpose than just strictly utility use on the trail.

As far as the big knives for backpacking, I'd say they're most useful for wood splitting as you can split faster and also thicker logs with a knife with a bit of size and heft. This would mostly come into play I think in wet conditions if you're needing to split bigger stuff to get to the dry wood. If it's dry, you probably can go with a smaller blade and be fine with firemaking.

Something of the 11 inch machete range, i would agree that's definately on the excessive side. My range of knives is pretty much a range of sizes and weights that I choose from depending on the trip. -Biggest/heaviest: Cold Steel recon scout (7.5" blade)
-Medium: kabar short (5.5" blade)
-small: cold steel roach belly or SAK
-even smaller: SOG Aegis, Leatherman Juice

I don't really see anything wrong with the slightly large variety of knives, Man vs. Wild guy uses a 5 inch blade I think? No doubt about it though there's knife enthusiasts such who'll consider buyin certain knives though just for fun anyways.

Cheers,

I carry a small folding knife rather than a large fixed-blade as that is what suits MY needs. That said, I find denigrating someone else's knife/pack/boot/stove/tent/etc. choices reminiscent of six year olds in a sand box.

If someone chooses to carry a smaller/larger or lighter/heavier version of what I do, that's their choice, and has no real impact on my enjoyment of the outdoors.

Many here would likely rant onward for many paragraphs about how much photo gear I carry into the mountains. However, it's MY back that's carrying it: don't get too fatigued worrying about someone else's gear list

I don't think that Man vs. Wild is a good reference for this board. The man deliberately looks for dangerous things to do so he can show you how clever he is to have brought one tool or another. And then solve the "should never have existed" problem.

It's smarter not to get into trouble, and you can't always pick the trouble you get into.

Nor the helicopter to rescue you when the film crew calls for help.

He's an idiot.

hmmm i have to disagree the point of the show is to show you techniques in extreme situations or as you put them never should have been existed...

i'll give you alot of the stuff on the show is avoidable but alot of it is interesting knowledge to have...and its entertainment!

the other show Survivorman is more reality based where he doesn't go to extremes...

i think its rather fitting for this board...and in actuality being a large fan of the show and the talent thats on it...i can tell you he rarely brings anything fixed...and they are often compact folders...and thats it...i honestly am racking my brain trying to think of other nifty tools he he has used...it was always a small to medium knife combined with a log for splitting wood/hammering


with that said i persoanlly bring a medium sized fixed blade...feels better to me than a folder...and i use it for a million other things...hammering a stake...digging in a fire...roasting a piece of fish etc....i use it dig my cat hole as well...stir my dinners...i cut n peel fruit nuts with it, and i also whittle with it at camp...honestly its an extension of me and goes with me on every expedition/day hike (i've had several over my tenure, but the SOG field pup series have lasted great for me, i do reccommend being able to maintain/repair an edge on any fixed blade...if its cheap the steel will be too and you'll end up spending the same on replacements...take the time and save up for a quailty piece of steel!)

i think with any piece of gear it comes to personal choice on the weight and the knowledge/expeirence with the gear and what to do it...i could probably skin a deer better with my sog field pup elite than a novice with his fancy skinning knife

Calling Bear an idiot is actually giving him a fair amount of credit. I have been amazed at the incredibly unsafe and hazardous stunts he performs on camera on the rare occasions when I have tuned in. It is understandable perhaps, because successful survival isn't very good fare for TV, being somewhat akin to watching paint dry.

I have often supposed that his televised antics, imitated by others, would kill someone some day. Apparently they have. Two young men drowned in the Zion Narrows recently, trying to float an improvised raft through the area. Their equipment consisted of a camcorder, and precious little else. According to the NPS report on the incident, they were recording their adventure for some sort of "Man vs Wild" competition.

Bear is at best a fraud.....

Agreed.

I will say that Bear has a lot of knowledge and it is an entertaining show to watch.

That being said, he does have a bit of fraudulent stuff on his show. It even carries a disclaimer now I believe.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-470155/How-Bear-Grylls-Born-Survivor-roughed--hotels.html

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/national/it...A13361862C2A6C1
Etc, etc.

It is a fun show to watch, I wouldn't recommend doing half of what he does.