I own a Brakimo and after using it to chop down small branches and then afterwards process a huge elk it is by far my most favorite knife of all time. I’ve broken a few lower end knives attempting to get through the pelvis and sternum of elk, and this one took some beating and kept on ticking. So comfortable to hold, perfect scandi grind design, just the right blade length and weight. I never leave home without it. I also love my Esee 4 and usually take that one on deer hunts if I am trying to save even more weight.
I own a BK/Kabar 9. Great camp knife. The best knife I've ever used for batoning. The weight and length makes it a tad too much for body wear. I have mine attached by molle to the side of my pack. But, I have it high on the side so I can reach it and get it into action if need be. Holds an edge very well.
Agreed. One big-ass knife because I didn't bring an Axe. Or a Sword. And my little Gerber Paraframe that I carry all day every day. Plus I keep a P38 can opener in my wallet.
Agreed as well, Becker BK-7 and a folding Blazetech survival knife (with a ferro rod, flashlight, seatbelt cutting tool, glass breaker, and lol a bottle opener)'
John Davis Not sure what a Crunch is, but I’ve got more than a few “spare” knives for many uses. If you ask anyone, I’m usually carrying two on me at any time. I also have three different BOBs with at least three tools for each.
Because they are. Haven't broken an Old Hickory knife, they fit in the Kabar 7in sheath and they're about 12 bucks so they're great to start off with and if you thrash it, you're only out a few bucks.
One of the things I like about the 420HC is The ease to put a good edge back on it after it dulls. I'm not the best knife sharpener, but I can get my bucks and Gerber's shaving sharp easily. I have some 1095 steel knives but I haven't had the opportunity to sharpen them very much, but I hear they're easily sharpened as well. Not to mention they hold an edge decently. I bring this up because very rarely in a knife review. Does anybody talk about sharpening it. I don't think a lot of people think about that when they're buying a premium steel knife that you really need to know your stuff when it comes to sharpening.
I agree. I've have a Strongarm for about 3 years now. Every time I go out on the trail, I use it for battoning. So far, sharpened it maybe 4 times and still sharp enough to shave arm hairs.
yes. saber grind with a 2ndry bevel and a plastic sheath I have placed a small molle capable utility pouch with everything I need to start fires. I removed the inner scale material that are like baffles (including the center screw column) and have the items I need to touch up the blade in the field stored in there. I filled the unused center screw holes with epoxy. I rattle canned some non slip paint on the middle area to help cover where the holes were and to provide a some grip for my hands. my pommel lanyard has a small hex tool inside of it that allows me to remove the scales if needed. I guess as a female I like having my bells and whistles with the item. call me kooky. I do love her so.
LOVE the video guys! I just wanted to say I think a lot of people started hating on the Cold Steel SRK back when they did away with the Carbon V version. I have a made in America Carbon V SRK that I have had for about 20 years and while the newer ones do pale in comparison they are still great knives. When I say the new ones pale in comparison it's not because they are bad knives by any means. It's because the Carbon V version is just that good! I have seen used Carbon V SRKs that were EXTREMELY used and didn't even have a sheath sell for over $100.00. Lots of Cold Steel fans consider it one of the best knives Cold Steel ever made. That is quite a statement and those are some big shoes to fill. So I think a lot of people judge the newer SRKs unfairly if they are comparing them to the old Carbon V model. Just my 2 cents :)
You do not give Ka Bar the full credit it deserves. That is the most all purposes knife shown. It is strong and agile. It also keeps an edge like I have never seen. You can dig trench chop wood and then shave with it.
+True Blade - Excellent choice and value. Sheath itself is worth the price of the knife. The 110 and 140 are both amazing, not "pretty", working blades.
Ultimate Survival Tips probably won’t see this but, why in the name of science don’t you have a verification mark?!?!.. you are well over 100k subscribers when you’re supposed to get it!.. same goes for you E.T.V you should also have one!!.. total bs!..
Benchmade Arvensis, from Latin for "in the field." It has a 6.5 inch clip point 154CM blade, which is about as small as I would really go for any hard, abusive use or batoning. But it balances right at the top of the G10 handles, which makes it super lively and nimble in the hand. I was a little concerned that with as smooth as the scales for the handles are it would be slippery, but I field dressed a deer with it this season and even with my hands covered in mud, slush, and blood, I never had problems keeping control of the knife. It stayed sharp even after hacking through sternum and pelvis, and later boning the animal. I've used it for a dozen different every day chores since and it still takes hair off my arm. It handles like a smaller knife, is well made, and versatile. One minor complaint is the sheath is functional but not outstanding.
SOG Force is what you should have had in there. The first knife I ever bought was the Force after I watched your video on it. It is a great survival knife.
I hope this isn’t supposed to be the 10 best survival knives because I could easily make a list of 10 far superior survival knives...I mean,I’m not shitting on their collection,they have some pretty decent knives here but certainly not the best
Great video! I was carrying the TOPS Outpost Command (edc), but when I moved back to Texas, it was 1/8 inch too long. So I bought a Brakimo which was just under the maximum blade length. Now that the law has changed, and I can carry any size knife, I still carry the Brakimo. It has replaced every knife I own under six inch blade length.
You laughed about the extended tang on the Strong-arm; but it will absolutely "take out" a windshield, with a single blow. Years ago, I took out a perfect windshield, out of necessity; with a single blow of the steel butt end of my pocket knife. The thing is...that knife doesn't even have a "glass breaker" on it. When you hit one of the bottom corners of a windshield with a solid small object, with force...that thing will "spider" crack all the way across...and fall inward in tiny pieces. That's just a fact .
For a lightweight survival kit I recommend either of these knives: *Hultafors GK heavy duty construction workers knife* *Bahco curved blade Home Wrecker knife* Both are Japanese SK5 carbon steel at 58-60 HRC, Both have super strong hard cast solid polypropylene handles. Both knives are approved by the manufacturer to be hammered on with a steel hammer (or rock) on the back of the blade or on the pommel. Both knives have a scandi primary grind with a V secondary grind that should be convexed by the owner. Both knives also have cheap prices ($10-20) To go with them I recommend a *Swiss Army Trekker* knife and a *12 to 14 inch machete* that weighs 1 to 1.5 lb and a folding saw. You can buy all three of these knives for less than $100 on Amazon or Ebay.
420HC is a damn strong steel..I’ve beaten the living hell out of my Gerber Prodigy and Gerber StrongArm in an abusive manner and the held up to it all and are still ready for more..I broke both a ESEE 4 and a Becker BK16 and neither endured anywhere near the amount of abuse as my Prodigy and StrongArm..I’m not knocking 1095 at all because that ESEE 4 and BK16 stood up to a lot of abuse in their own right but I bought my Prodigy about a decade ago and used it hard regularly for 6 or 7 years before I bought my StrongArm.the ESEE 4 and BK16 broke on me in 3 to 5 years..I have a lot of knives in my collection but only a few that I think could handle the abuse my Prodigy and StrongArm have..I’ve never seen or heard of anyone breaking a Prodigy,StrongArm or LMF2.420HC definitely isn’t a high end steel by any means but it has earned my respect many times over.my only complaint with 420HC is the edge retention.its sharpens up easily,it’s a tough as nails and it has a pretty good resistance to corrosion.for a survival knife in this particular price range these knives are excellent options..with that being said,for wilderness survival Mora knives are an excellent option.I used a $8 Mora 511 as my main belt knife for a decade and it impressed me many times over.Ive seen people try to trash Mora because most of their knives aren’t full tang and because most of them have a thinner blade stock but it’s extremely impressive the level of abuse those knives will go through.what I like most about Mora knives is the thinner blade stock and the Scandi grind that make them excel in carving/whittling tasks,they will blow any of those big thick survival knives out of the water in most bushcraft..I tried to replace that old 511 many times over with something nicer but always found myself going back to the Mora.I couldn’t tell you how many times I bought a knife for $100 to $150 all the way up to $230 because I wanted to something nicer.I wanted something with a higher end steel,something with some nice micarta,G10,etc scales..something with a nice kydex sheath or a nice leather dangler but every time I did,that $8 Mora kept outperforming all those nicer,more premium higher end knives..I eventually retired that $8 511 and I now cycle between my S35VN ESEE 3,Cruwear Bradford Guardian 4.5,A2 L.T. Wright Genesis,Mora Garberg and my 3V Bark River Aurora Scandi which are all great knives but they costed much much more than that $8 511..I say all this to let anybody who is new to this know,regardless what a lot of people are gonna tell you,you don’t have to spend a lot of money on a knife.the Mora 511,Robust,Companion,Kansbol and Bushcraft Black are all excellent knives and everyone should have at least 1 or 2 in their collection
My dad as a foot long survival knife, the barrel is hollow with a compass and stitches and bandages inside the tube. One side is sharp the other side has a ridged side. There's so sheath or cover whatever which sucks.
I have several knives and just ordered a Schrade survival knife and is waiting to receive it. The only thing from Gerber which I have is their utility tool which I love and is better than anyone else's on the market. I have a Buck knife which I purchased at an air base in Southern California during the early 80's and love it for general purpose and the blade is long and American made. I also have a Japanese knife which is great, but it don't have a full tang blade. I also have the Chinese made survival knife sold by a German company which have a long blade on it too and have the compartment for storing fishing line in and it isn't a full tang knife though.
Re: SOG Seal Pup there is also a fine edge version, also the SOG North west ranger is also very good light weight companion blade and worth a good look. If you like the handle of the Cold Steel SRK but want a shorter blade the master hunter is FFG in San Mai 3 is worth a look. SRK in AUS8 is a good blade the current prodution is in SK5, i picked one up afew months ago as a beater knife while camping, takes a good edge keeps it just like the AUS8 version, just as easy to sharpen. SRK is also in VG1 and CPM 3V but at a price as with all things.
I have a BK7 in my bag but I've only used it once. For regular use my go to is a bolo (just under 10 usd here in the Philippines and made from truck leaf springs). For smaller tasks i use a mora.
Because these guys have no at all... unless you got lost with it, in no way is any 4" knife a survival knife. Should have seen Esse6 and not the 4, stopped watching right there.
+Jake S Hi Jake... Good question comment... as for trackers - I have Trackers here... I am still trying to love them... lots of folks do... and I'll probably review them... but for now... as a daily user... I'm trying to figure out how they are practical... lots of steel... look cool - but tough to do fine work... lots of weight... Maybe I'm missing something... maybe you can share your successes from using one? Do you have one? Please help me out. Thanks bro. -David
@Jake, I had the Ontario Pilot Survival with leather washer grip some 30 years ago. I was thinking about replacing it with a currently produced one, but after reading several dozen reviews, and half not good, I went with the KaBar Dogs Head and very pleased... the ASEK was beyond my means
@@baronedipiemonte3990 I have a pilot survival knife, it's ok. They really are a fighting knife. The best bet for an actual bushcraft knife is a Mora or Esee
I have several survival knives and love them, but my favorites are the two I have from Ka-bar, one Schrade, and one from Gerber. I have others which are not full tang which are nice, but not good for batonning with. Otherwise they are nice as backup knives, but I love my Buck knives I have as well.
Rowen is a manufacturing company that does all of ESEE's knives. Your clip point ESEE 4 is just another option. The sheath is an injection molded plastic, not kydex, scales are linen micarta. Same thing with the BK2 sheath, just plastic. BK2 is a saber grind as well, but would be cool if they made a FFG BK2! Good video non the less.
@@survivalofthefittest409 glad you brought it up. Scrolled for a long time before I seen someone mentioning Esee/Rowen and the sheath because I didn't want to be the dick lol. Rowen Manufacturing does the esee knives for Randall's Adventure Training since they pulled out of their partnership with OKC. And in my opinion you get a way better product with esee than with the Ontario RAT line. Also, the coating flattens down and loses its traction pretty quickly with use.
@@keithguitar8793 the 4 does a great job in the bush and I'd rather have that than a folder in a survival situation and I'd rather have a folder than nothing. Any knife can be a survival knife
For the SOG entry, I wouldn't put the Seal Pup as a survival knife. It is just far too light to be useful for lager tasks. A better SOG knife that I would choose as a survival knife would be the SOG Force. It is a thick and nearly indestructible knife.
to me, a survival knife is a broad spectrum do everything ok knife. something that may not be the best at any one task but can do all tasks within acceptable tolerances i.e. get out of crashed vehicle (cut seat belts, break window), make shelter, make hunting equipment (bow, spear,etc), process fire wood, dress game, emergency medical uses (improve scalpel, cut bandages, etc
Im actually in the traing pipeline for SERE is the air force and we use the ontario sp-1 through our training but most of the cadre and operational sere guys are using esee knives
@@EduardoGarcia-fj2uc 1095 holds an edge well and is by far the easiest steel to sharpen. I can sharpen my blade with a stone. Meanwhile you'll need a diamond file for just about every other steel.
Srk and the mora is the 2 I carry and man they make a unstoppable team. Srk throws sparks for days by the way. Its thick and tough and mora is small and nimble.
@Paulo Hernandez I had an ESEE 5 and it is good for batoning but was too thick to cut even like potatoes. It can chop. I have an ESEE 4 now it is perfect.
Hey David from Ultimate survival tips just want to say love your vid man a lot of great blades I've seen many on RU-vid though the one very little people know exist or have ever reviewed especially larger channels like yours is the Tops Surv tac 5. It's a discontinued model as well as the 7 inch version I'd really like to see it on a big channel even if the designer now has a bad rep for the blade itself seems fine there ore vids on the 7 inch blade version.
YOU PROBABLY MISSED A GOOD CHOICE---ONTARIO SP2 /// WITH THE KABAR 1216 SHEATH--YES IT FITS PERFECTLY--CLICKS IN !--I CUT MY SHEATH CAREFULLY AT MY DESIRED LENGTH--A WONDERFUL VERY REASONABLE --VERY TOUGH COMBO !---AN OVERLOOKED PRACTICAL PERFORMER !! MY PREFERRED CARRY---YES I HAVE TOO MANY OTHERS--BUT THIS IS MY FAV. COMBO .
Besides the Mora they all seem to be American made. I wish there would be more variety in there. The BK2 is full tang but the tang is skeletonized up to a point where I did see a video of the BK2 breaking inside the handle.
Yes it will. as it shows in video's. Even the Becker BK 2 broke. So what you say is that Becker sucks when it comes to heat treatment? I might agree on that one. ;)
Can you tell me which video? Cuz I'm not saying it cant ne broken but I've hard used mine for 3 years and it still rockin strong they could've just got a bad knife
Dutch Bushcraft generally Europe and America makes good knives. SOG knives are made in China and from AUS 8 steel, in which I believe it means austenite .8 percent carbon steel, I don’t know if it has any chromium or if it’s stainless, but I know it’s only a step up from ferrite (iron crystals) and this the blade is still pretty tough, but you will have to sharpen it up more than some other blades. That is, if my idea is correct. It won’t prevent me from picking one up though. I have the gerber strongarm, the mora robust, the mora bushcraft black, the Ontario sp1, the buck 119, (good hardened steel, still 420hc. Works well, but not for batoning. Carving, food prep and hunting is what it excels at. Has a rat tail tang. That is why you don’t want to baton with it because you might snap the blade. Other than that, it’s a great blade) and that Bear grylls knife. It’s decent. It does have a risk of snapping at the serrations or at the tip of the blade. You will have to resharpen every few days to keep a razor sharp edge if you continually use it. I’d recommend 240 grit then 500 if it’s dinged up, then a fine stone that’s 800 or above in grit, then strop it. You will get a razors edge but maybe not a mirror polish, if you want that I’d suggest 500 then 1000, then 2000 then strop. Those grits work for me. I use my mora when I’m out and sharpening the scandi grind is pretty easy. You will end up with a convex grind if you sharpen off hand with stones. Use a system for other more complex grinds, like v edges and flats. Unless your really good with knives off hand on stones.
Awesome video! I did just want to point out that Rowen is the manufacture that produces all ESEE knives that are made in the USA. They have manufacture other knives as well such as the DPx HEST. Also the sheaths for the ESEE 4 and BK2 are injection molded plastic and GFN rather than Kydex. And lastly the BK2 is a saber grind rather than a full flat grind even tho the specs on the website say it’s a flat grind. Other than that I loved the video and found it entertaining and informative to see all these awesome and iconic blades side by side.
Topic is survival knives doesn’t say under a certain length so if you needed a knife to for survival I wouldn’t choose a little knife but something big to do all. So for me my choice would be the K Bar or the Schrade. BK2 is good but the BK7 or BK9 would be better.
I just had a look at the MSK-1. Even though it’s an awesome knife, and probably the only one I would ever need, $516 is quite a price. It’s an innovative idea, and I love it, but I don’t have that kind of money, unfortunately. I wish I did.
I just have trouble wrapping my head around $500 for something as simple as a knife, do they really cost anywhere near that to produce? You can buy a nice gun for that price, and they're infinetly more complex and engineered. But hey, what do I know.
What is your opinion of the Chris Reeve' Neil Roberts Seal memorial Warrior knife? I have one for about 15 years. I own many fixed blade and folding knives. Picking one is tough.
I own several of these great knives but there's on knife that's not in this video that I really like to know if I should buy it. I'm talking about the sog super bowie. I can't find buy 2 reviews on YT. Any information would be appreciated. And Merry Xmas from Kentucky land between the lakes. The land no one enters without a great knife LOL
II have 4 of the knives the SRK, Brakimo ,lmf and a bunch of moras the Brakimo scales are just not a 5, the grind is a hollow grind with a micro bevel just took some getting used to its really good knife needs a 90 % top edge i gave the knife a 4.5 my grand son gives it a 5 , the moras are just great knives for the money And i really like the SRK i have lot more, Thanks for the video . I'm going have to the becker next
Customized my seal pups handle to secure it to a stick, living in bear country sometimes when your fishing alone its just a comforting feeling to have a trusted blade on a stick as a last ditch im fucked aways situation
flarexx.xx damn,that’s crazy as hell..if you live in an area where there are bears,mountain lions,etc you should be able to carry a gun.you never know when you might run into a wild animal that might start looking at you as it’s next meal..what if you had a conceal carry license?..I personally don’t think you should even need a CCL in an area like that but if that would make it possible it seems like it would be well worth investing in
@@garrettferrell6821 im in in canada mate, no conceal carry of any kind here, mind you pnly bears where i am are blacks, ans being a larger dude with loud music they tend to turn tail and book it when i come around
flarexx.xx ok,I was assuming you were in the US..yeah,black bears aren’t so bad.I didn’t know if you were dealing with grizzly bears or what..I live in the Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee,we have black bears too.while I can usually get loud and scare them off I still usually carry my Springfield 1911 45 just in case..while they are easier to deal with I have had one follow me closely all the way back to my truck when all I had was a big stick.I would yell at it and swing my stick back and forth trying to scare it off.I wasn’t able to scare him off but he was just curious,he never got too close but still plenty enough to have me edge
They are junk, pay 50-60 $ for a knife ,blades brittle break .send them back for repair ,buck charges you 10.00 because their blades are made in China..don't buy bucks.
Say Heah Dave, Nice choices, Infact I have about (5) out of that group, The Ka-Bar, O. K. C. Blackbird SK-5, Mora, S. R. K. But in the CarbonV, and the BK-2. You guys did good, Thanx You. But my Fav's is my Ratmandu, until I bought my Rodent 5 and I had my Rodent 6 modified, it looks now like a Ratmandu on steroids. Yup, I had the Top Guard taken off and thinned down, I love it, I prolly would say it's one of my Fav's hand down. Yup, with the Choil, I could carve a spoon with it, if I take my time. But in no time I can make a eating implement fast. Infact for the quality, steel, price, I can't find anything better, so, Yeah, I bought the complete recent line starting with the Rodent 3 to the Rodent Rucki. But because I like the 1095 CroVan Steel like in my CarbonV Knives, I also bought almost the complete line of BK's, same steel. I also like my INFI Steel, but these knives are a little more $$$. Infact, summer is history in The Buckeye Country. So I brought out one of my Fav's Combo's, which I Piggybacked with my Rodent 7 and Rodent 3. I also have another one my Rodent 9 and Rodent 4. If there is such a thing as a 1Knife Option, I think the Ratweiler is it, but aldo Piggybacked it with my Rodent Solution. They don't come with Sheath's, but what you get in a knife is worth every penny. Dilly, Dilly, (I stole that from a Budweiser commercial) heh heh heh.,,.p
Hi David, I am kind of new to this and i was looking for my first knife. I don't know the difference between serrated and no-serrated ones. Thanks and I love your videos
I'm so torn on what knife to get. I want one that I don't have to worry about breaking if I was in a situation I had to use it. I am between the strongarm and the Schrade Schf9.
