A knife is a very personal thing. Whether it is a pocket knife or a fixed blade bushcrafting knife it says a lot about the owner. The very shape and size give you a wealth of information regarding what kinds of tasks the owner accomplishes with the knife.
When choosing a bushcrafting knife one must keep practicality in mind at all times. Some knives are really cool looking but virtually useless when it comes to surviving effectively in the wilderness; they simply are not designed to complete the required tasks.
Environment has a great deal to do with knife choice.
In a jungle environment a large bladed, long knife or machete will be your choice because it is well suited to the kinds of hacking tasks in that climate. But bring that same machete to northern Canada and you will find survival a hard task to accomplish.
In the more temperate, mountain and arctic regions a smaller bladed knife (4"-6") will be the most effective. A blade in the Scandinavian style is perfectly suited to the tasks found in the average northern climate as all the hacking and heavy cutting tasks should be completed with an axe or hatchet.
It's all very well and good to have a huge blade on your knife that you can split logs with using a batton, but given the sheer volume of wood required to stay warm on a northern night a smaller, more nimble knife and an axe is a much better choice. Battoning/splitting wood with your knife is all very well and good and fun for the first few pieces, but good luck managing to survive that way!
The tip of the knife is another important point to consider. If you plan on skinning animals you will want to make certain that the knife has a good rounded tip, not much of a drop point. A more "dagger" like tip will tend to poke through the skin, potentially ruining a nice hide. Once again, the Scandinavian style blades or the Finnish Puukko is a good choice for such work.
The key with a good bushcrafting knife is it's cutting edge. A slightly convex edge to the blade will give strength to it, but it is harder to sharpen than a hollow ground blade (concave shape) or a flat Scandinavian ground blade. For ease of sharpening the Scandinavian Flat ground style is the best choice. It is not quite as durable an edge as the convex grind, but since this is a knife and not a prybar that shouldn't be an issue!
A good bushcrafting knife should have a full tang whenever possible. That means that the metal of the blade continues right through the handle making is less liable to break under heavy use. The tang may be hidden inside the handle (known as a stick tang), or you may be able to see it running up the sides of the handle when 2 pieces of wood or bone are used.
How to use your knife
Using a knife in a survival or bushcrafting sense is the same way a knife should be used on a daily basis.
So these few rules can be applied to your daily kitchen tasks equally as well as to your wilderness activities.
1) Always cut AWAY from your body, your hand.... yourself. NEVER cut towards yourself! Materials are unpredictable and one slip and ruin your day and send you to the hospital.
2) Keep your knife as sharp as you can. Sharp knives cut better. Sharp knives take less effort to use. Sharp knives are less liable to slip and injure the user.
3) Never put your knife away dirty. Always wipe the blade off at least, even after cutting plant materials. Most bushcrafting knives are made of carbon steel that will rust, so keep it clean.
4) Don't throw your knife! Especially if it is your only knife and you are counting on it.
5) Despite the popularity of "battoning" with knives to split wood I wouldn't suggest it ESPECIALLY if you are in a life and death survival situation. Your knife is your lifeline, and battoning is simply too risky, the blade is liable to loose it's keen edge or snap. In a situation like that, with no axe, it's better to simply break small trees and forest debitage with your hands or over your knee. Save your knife, you'll need it!
Essentially, exercise common sense. Look after your knife like it is gold. That is the core of your bushcrafting capabilities. DON'T USE IT AS A PRY-BAR!
When choosing a bushcrafting knife one must keep practicality in mind at all times. Some knives are really cool looking but virtually useless when it comes to surviving effectively in the wilderness; they simply are not designed to complete the required tasks.
Environment has a great deal to do with knife choice.
In a jungle environment a large bladed, long knife or machete will be your choice because it is well suited to the kinds of hacking tasks in that climate. But bring that same machete to northern Canada and you will find survival a hard task to accomplish.
In the more temperate, mountain and arctic regions a smaller bladed knife (4"-6") will be the most effective. A blade in the Scandinavian style is perfectly suited to the tasks found in the average northern climate as all the hacking and heavy cutting tasks should be completed with an axe or hatchet.
It's all very well and good to have a huge blade on your knife that you can split logs with using a batton, but given the sheer volume of wood required to stay warm on a northern night a smaller, more nimble knife and an axe is a much better choice. Battoning/splitting wood with your knife is all very well and good and fun for the first few pieces, but good luck managing to survive that way!
The tip of the knife is another important point to consider. If you plan on skinning animals you will want to make certain that the knife has a good rounded tip, not much of a drop point. A more "dagger" like tip will tend to poke through the skin, potentially ruining a nice hide. Once again, the Scandinavian style blades or the Finnish Puukko is a good choice for such work.
The key with a good bushcrafting knife is it's cutting edge. A slightly convex edge to the blade will give strength to it, but it is harder to sharpen than a hollow ground blade (concave shape) or a flat Scandinavian ground blade. For ease of sharpening the Scandinavian Flat ground style is the best choice. It is not quite as durable an edge as the convex grind, but since this is a knife and not a prybar that shouldn't be an issue!
A good bushcrafting knife should have a full tang whenever possible. That means that the metal of the blade continues right through the handle making is less liable to break under heavy use. The tang may be hidden inside the handle (known as a stick tang), or you may be able to see it running up the sides of the handle when 2 pieces of wood or bone are used.
How to use your knife
Using a knife in a survival or bushcrafting sense is the same way a knife should be used on a daily basis.
So these few rules can be applied to your daily kitchen tasks equally as well as to your wilderness activities.
1) Always cut AWAY from your body, your hand.... yourself. NEVER cut towards yourself! Materials are unpredictable and one slip and ruin your day and send you to the hospital.
2) Keep your knife as sharp as you can. Sharp knives cut better. Sharp knives take less effort to use. Sharp knives are less liable to slip and injure the user.
3) Never put your knife away dirty. Always wipe the blade off at least, even after cutting plant materials. Most bushcrafting knives are made of carbon steel that will rust, so keep it clean.
4) Don't throw your knife! Especially if it is your only knife and you are counting on it.
5) Despite the popularity of "battoning" with knives to split wood I wouldn't suggest it ESPECIALLY if you are in a life and death survival situation. Your knife is your lifeline, and battoning is simply too risky, the blade is liable to loose it's keen edge or snap. In a situation like that, with no axe, it's better to simply break small trees and forest debitage with your hands or over your knee. Save your knife, you'll need it!
Essentially, exercise common sense. Look after your knife like it is gold. That is the core of your bushcrafting capabilities. DON'T USE IT AS A PRY-BAR!
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