Backpacking knife suggestions

[MichaelW2]

The point of my Buck has been worn down by serious abuse on DIY materials. Some people collect these, I use them.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Try Knives and Tools, they’re great. Something for every budget and style but be prepared to get carried away!

EDIT: Sorry, just remembered your in the US so there may be additional taxes. It’s still worth a look, even for ideas.

 

[Nigeyy]

Thanks for all the replies.... I'm ordering an Opinel No 6 (like I said, I don't need a bigger knife than that for a bit of wood whittling). Based on price, I'm also going for a MAM liner lock as well. It will be interesting to compare them. I was looking around and a Mercator K55K looks intriguing too.

Just following on from a couple of suggestions: I'm really open to be persuaded, but I just don't see a need for any multiple blades. I did have a genuine Swiss Army knife -though sadly one of the handle sides came off -and I realized that I never used anything except the big blade on it. I don't drink wine (and besides which I certainly wouldn't be lugging a bottle of the stuff in my backpack) so a corkscrew is a waste of time. Similarly, if I take a beer, I wouldn't be lugging glass bottles but rather cans with a pull tab (and even then, you can make a bottle opener out of a piece of wood anyway. And a screw driver? My tent doesn't have screws and neither does any of my equipment, so again, I just can't see the need for a backpacker.

I have various stoves, but my favourite is a Tomshoo little wood gasifier that I take a Bahco Laplander saw with so I don't need any kind of cutting function for wood from a folding knife. I soon have a series of wood hockey pucks for old branches burning nicely for a cup of tea. By the way, I can't recommend the Bahco Laplander enough; absolutely fantastic!

 

[Nigeyy]

Thanks, but I looked at Spiderco and the lower end knives are made in China. I'm trying to keep my budget to around 30-40 quid tops so didn't look at the more expensive ones.

Seeing a you're in the US, check out Spyderco. I have a few and they are superb design and quality... even their cheaper Byrd brand range

 

[Drago]

Regarding bears, stats show that bear-grade spray is more effective than anything else. I have camped on a mountainside with bears around and didnt get much sleep.

Thats only because the stats lump 'guns' in as one homogenous lump. Shoot a bear of any size with a .32 or .38 and you're very likely to be making up a large volume of his faeces for the next few days.

Use a more appropriate round and provided you get closeish to centre-mass you're good. Remember, the sprays are simply incapacitants, a secomdary control skill, not an actual weapon - a bear that is not behaving normally due to hunger, injury or illness is liable to be able to continue its attack, in much the same way that humans who are drunk, high or suffering an acute mental health episode are also able to continue their attack following the deployment of an incapacitant. A bear with a .45ACP hole in it is liable to be able to do nothing ever again, other than make a nice rug, albeit one with a big hole.

PS, sorry to go off topicish, but its a slow day and the OP has already sprted his knife question

 

[Pale Rider]

Thats only because the stats lump 'guns' in as one homogenous lump. Shoot a bear of any size with a .32 or .38 and you're very likely to be making up a large volume of his faeces for the next few days.

Use a more appropriate round and provided you get closeish to centre-mass you're good. Remember, the sprays are simply incapacitants, a secomdary control skill, not an actual weapon - a bear that is not behaving normally due to hunger, injury or illness is liable to be able to continue its attack, in much the same way that humans who are drunk, high or suffering an acute mental health episode are also able to continue their attack following the deployment of an incapacitant. A bear with a .45ACP hole in it is liable to be able to do nothing ever again, other than make a nice rug, albeit one with a big hole.

PS, sorry to go off topicish, but its a slow day and the OP has already sprted his knife question

Welcome to @Drago, the patron saint of killing things.

(Line nicked from a film in which Kentucky was described as the patron state of...)

 

[oldwheels]

Thats only because the stats lump 'guns' in as one homogenous lump. Shoot a bear of any size with a .32 or .38 and you're very likely to be making up a large volume of his faeces for the next few days.

Use a more appropriate round and provided you get closeish to centre-mass you're good. Remember, the sprays are simply incapacitants, a secomdary control skill, not an actual weapon - a bear that is not behaving normally due to hunger, injury or illness is liable to be able to continue its attack, in much the same way that humans who are drunk, high or suffering an acute mental health episode are also able to continue their attack following the deployment of an incapacitant. A bear with a .45ACP hole in it is liable to be able to do nothing ever again, other than make a nice rug, albeit one with a big hole.

PS, sorry to go off topicish, but its a slow day and the OP has already sprted his knife question

Friend of mine was in Canada in bear country. Before he was allowed out by the relatives he had to get tuition in a large bore pistol which he had to carry in the woods. He described it as about 2 inch bore and the recoil nearly knocked him on his back on his first trial shot. He is experienced with firearms because of his job but never met anything like that before.

 

[Gillstay]

For many years I have always used an Opinel and the Swiss army plastic credit card for carrying around. If someone nicks you stuff or your tent is washed out its no big deal.

 

[tribanjules]

One of the astronomy forums I frequent is based in the USA, and there's regular discussion on there about the best way to deal with bears when out in the wilds observing. Makes me relieved the worst I need to worry about is tripping over a hedgehog in the back garden.

And can the astronomers shed any light on what bears do in the woods ?

 

[Gillstay]

In the USA they always talked about what guns you needed, my son in Canada had a classmate rolled around by a bear as she played dead, they just thought it cool, and when riding through the woods near the Croatian border at dusk we were advised to go slow as if you collide with a bear you may annoy it. Says a lot about each nation.

 

[Nigeyy]

I bought the Opinel No 6 (olivewood handle) and the MAM 2137 (olivewood handle) to compare -they're hardly really expensive items, and I thought: why not? Well, then I saw a genuine Made in Sheffield British Army pocket knife and oh, let's not forget a small Czech pen knife and before I knew it, I had them all.....

 

[Nigeyy]

While I can't say the Rybicka knife is that suitable for a "proper" backpacking knife, at a price of $7 US, I just couldn't resist. It now resides on my keychain, and I love it for a little cheap knife I can keep close at hand. I'll not include it in my comments below, but wanted to show it. Apparently this little Czech knife is tradionally given to kids as a present. A bit more about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rybička_(knife)

 

[Nigeyy]

So onto the knives... each one of them has its strengths and weaknesses; here's my best attempt of what I found

Opinel No 6 (Made in France, $19 US) -the olivewood makes for an attractive handle, and for anyone who is a gramme counter, this is the best of bunch. The blade is sharp, and the handle comfortable. The locking mechanism is simple and feels positive. However, on the flip side, this knife seems to be the flimisiest of all the knives. While I think I'd be OK whittling wood with this to get shavings to start a fire, the more than flexible blade doesn't fill me with confidence. Another negative is that it did not come with a lanyard hole -I had to drill my own, though of course some people aren't bothered about lanyards, but I am!

 

[Nigeyy]

MAM 2137 (Made in Portugal, $14 US) -this is just a no frills knife. I admit there's something I just like about it -the linerlock gives a very pleasing -but quiet -metallic "pop" as it locks into place. The blade is noticeably more sturdy than the Opinel, and I have confidence with this blade. The handle again is just no frills but comfortable enough. On the negative: the olivewood handle isn't half as pleasing as the Opinel offering, and I do wonder about the longevity of the shorter metal collar compared to the Opinel. Also add in the fact the liner lock causes an ever so slight up and down wobble with the blade, something the "adjustability" of the virobloc can be prevented by. Another negative: again no lanyard hole (though I think you can buy some of these knives with that, but I couldn't find one with an olivewood handle which is what I wanted.

And some pics of the liner lock:

 

[Nigeyy]

Rogers British Army Knife (Made in Sheffield, England $22 US) -ahhh, here we have the "tank" of these knives. Of all the knives, this is the most solid, though it has to be said it weighs twice as much as the Opinel, so weight weenies, beware! While this knife is a pocket knife and doesn't have a lock, the spring mechanism is extremely firm, and gives confidence. Add this to the biggest blade thickness of all the knives here, and you have a knife that might -just might -be up to gentle battoning as opposed to not even thinking about it with the previous knives. And yes, it also has a lanyard loop! So the negatives? Well, it's the heaviest of the lot, and doesn't have a lock, and the knife is an all metal construction with no nice aesthetic woodwork. But then again, if you wanted a knife with a lock you wouldn't be buying this?