Getting annoying...knife I pick has something wrong!

K

kman300

Joined
Nov 29, 2010
Messages
18
So I started researching knives a while ago and thought I made up my mind. I ordered a Fallkniven F1. Then I do some more reading and find out that the tang is narrower and that the handle can break since it sits on top of the spine of the knife.

So I order a bravo 1 no ramp from the same place and then I find these threads about the ceo of the company ripping off people and also a series of youtube videos where the edge is folding and the knife didn't hold up very well.

So I spent ~$350 or so and I still don't have a knife people say is good.

Someone PLEASE tell me what knife to buy for <$200 that is a survival/bush knife. The shapes of both the bravo 1 and f1 were highly recommended for these tasks. The knife needs to also be able to take a deer apart. I have a Dozier YPS for skinning and a knife for deboning but this knife should be able to process an entire deer if I so choose ontop of being a survival knife.

I have spent way to many hours reading threads and watching youtube videos and I'm seriously not getting enough sleep. I need to get this done so I can forget about it and know that my knife will not FAIL using it for its intended purpose.

I don't know if I can still cancel my orders or ship them back. If not I will have to try and resell the knives and most likely lose some money.

HELP?
 
kman300 said:
So I started researching knives a while ago and thought I made up my mind. I ordered a Fallkniven F1. Then I do some more reading and find out that the tang is narrower and that the handle can break since it sits on top of the spine of the knife.

So I order a bravo 1 no ramp from the same place and then I find these threads about the ceo of the company ripping off people and also a series of youtube videos where the edge is folding and the knife didn't hold up very well.

So I spent ~$350 or so and I still don't have a knife people say is good.

Someone PLEASE tell me what knife to buy for <$200 that is a survival/bush knife. The shapes of both the bravo 1 and f1 were highly recommended for these tasks. The knife needs to also be able to take a deer apart. I have a Dozier YPS for skinning and a knife for deboning but this knife should be able to process an entire deer if I so choose ontop of being a survival knife.

I have spent way to many hours reading threads and watching youtube videos and I'm seriously not getting enough sleep. I need to get this done so I can forget about it and know that my knife will not FAIL using it for its intended purpose.

I don't know if I can still cancel my orders or ship them back. If not I will have to try and resell the knives and most likely lose some money.

HELP?
Click to expand...

First, welcome to bladeforums! I'm so sorry you came here in an aggravated state, but glad to see if we can help.

I'll say of the current knives, I own neither, but have heard good things about both. The nature of this community to is denigrate ANY knife for WHATEVER reasons we can. Everyone has a vested interest in ANOTHER knife they want to rationalize is better than others. So, one thing to keep in mind is unless you hear actual FAILING in a review HERE, and not in a knife destruction video, you should not take such "facts" so harshly.

Survival knife is a broad term depending on what you want to use it for. I don't baton myself, but probably could just fine with the knives I have. Many here will say a mora, a $15 knife, can function just fine as a survival blade, depending on what you need. Dressing a deer with one knife is not ideal, and will be slow. Not really been much involved in dressing, but from what I gather, you'll want a knife that won't roll or chip when hitting bone, so that is important- but it isn't an issue for me, so you'll need to ask others if they work well for those purposes.

Finally, may I ask: if you're not getting SLEEP because you need a survival knife, is a nuclear apocalypse approaching I should know about? If not, just relax, posting a thread is the best way to find out for YOUR purposes, as everyone has different needs.

Others should be along shortly to answer specifics, but I'm pretty sure no one will say either knife is one that WILL fail and KILL you as a result.

Also, if you want to cancel an order, why not email the company or check their website for their policies? ;)

Welcome again, I hope you'll stick around!

Zero
 
well....i cant really speak for the bravo 1. never handled one so im not going to even attempt to comment on it

but i can say from experience that the f1 is a helluva knife. ive used one extensively when camping( a friends not mine) and it held up great. sure not a uber strong tear down a house knife, but it is a fairly strong knife that i would have no reserves trusting my life to
 
The Bravo1 and the Fallkniven are both great knives. There may be instances where one is chipping or rolling, but I am sure Bark River and fallkniven will take care of you.
 
Welcome to the forums, we can help. If you already own one or both of those knives, I say run some test yourself on them. Baton, carve, whittle, strike steel, or do whatever you think you will be needing to do. But do it at home and take pics. We love pics.

For the money, there are several companies that make some great knives at inexpensive prices. Becker, ESEE, Kershaw, Mora, Kabar, are just a few. For less than $100, you can walk with a knife I know will cover your butt in a tough spot. Try looking there at those and see what you like and might fit.

If you are looking for a model of knife, you are going to get a ton of answers here, and they are all right. Most importantly, they may or may not be right for you.

What do you intend to do, build an entire deer camp for the season? Becker BK7, ESEE6, Mora Bushcraft Forest, Kershaw OutCast, Kabar Cutlass machete are a FEW choices. More in line with bushcrafting, BK2, ESEE4, Kabar 1217. There are many choices, but ask yourself, What do you want a knife to do, and start there.

I hope I have helped, and I hope you find a solution quickly, but buying a knife should be a joyous occasion, never a cause for stress.

Good luck

Moose
 
Never seen any evidence provided of an F1 that has broken in use. Utterly fantastic knives. The tang that goes throiugh the handle is very strong.

Bravo 1 Is a tremendous knife as well. I have seen em used abused and they keep going strong. As for Bark River they are extremely good at keeping their warranty.

Use both knives without any concern as botha re fantastic tools that hold up exceptionaly well in the field.
 
I'm going to give kman300 the benefit of the doubt (and extend a welcome! to the forums) and assume that the post is serious. But I'm also going to note that it could be read as an effective satirical commentary on Internet-based wilderness knife discussions ...

kman300, I have known a few people who have used an F1, and they have reported it to be a good outdoors knife. I would give it a chance. Take it out and get it dirty - process some wood, cut some food, start some fires, etc. See how well the shapes of the blade and the handle suit your needs. Check out the edge quality and retention. I think that you will learn more from that sort of hands-on work than you could from YouTube videos and forum reviews. At the very least, it will confirm or refute the points you have seen made by others. Then you will be in a better position to assess what you need in a survival knife.

Let us know how the knives turn out!

All the best,

- Mike
 
You've got two excellent knifes. Maybe you should stop the web research for awhile and try them out.
I've been very pleased with my Fallknivens, especially the F1 because it's so versatile.
5021176570_ebeb1aa932_z.jpg
 
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I would like this knife to do everything from going on a camping trip with the kids where I cut up a fish or put peanut butter on a sandwich for them. I would like it to make firewood and fuzz sticks, make a spoon and make a shelter if I have too. I want it to skin a deer/moose whatever and debone it if I have to pack it out. Basically I want this knife to do it all if it HAS to. I have a dedicated skinning knife (dozier) and a deboning knife but I want one knife that can do everything if needed and I realize it won't be perfect at everything but it has to be good enough at those tasks.

Basically one all around knife if there is such a thing.

ESEE-4 is that the old RC-4? There is also RAT-4? I find that all very confusing but the knife looks good and has a good sheath as well.

I don't ever enyoing buying hunting equipment because I have to know that I made the absolute best choice for myself so I'm not constantly second guessing myself when I do end up buying something. I litteraly spent a month reading about glass manufacturing and coating processess before I settled on what scopes to buy for my hunting rifles and don't even ask me how many months I spent deciding what my north american rifle battery should be.

I need to buy a knife that will do all I need it to for my lifetime that fits my budget and I can then stop spending rediculous amounts (a bit is fine but I spent over 20 hours this weekend alone reading threads and watching youtube videos) of time researching all this stuff.

I'm sure there is a name for my compulsions in the DSM but I don't have time to figure out what that is right now.

Thanks for your help.
 
kman300 said:
I have spent way to many hours reading threads and watching youtube videos and I'm seriously not getting enough sleep.
HELP?
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, you're a knife nut. You are in the right place though.

Truth is there are many choices out there and that's what makes choosing "the right knife" difficult. That's why most people here end up owing more than one. Oh, and there is no "perfect" knife.
In my experience, both the F1 and the B-1 are good knives. None will let you down.
My advise is to stick with the knife you ordered. Try it out, see how it performs. You can read all the reviews, but unless you try it out, you can't really tell if it's what you want or not. If it doesn't work out for you, pass it on to someone else and get another one. And so on. Eventually you'll find your favorite knife, regardless of other people reviews.
It's a hell of a journey. Enjoy it.
 
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Fair enough, kman300, but I would point out that there is no way that you will be able to determine what is the 'absolute best choice for yourself' using Internet resources alone. This community is extremely helpful when it comes to suggestions about wilderness cutlery, but there is no substitute for first-hand experience. After a few outings and a bit of practice, you will get a feel for the knife, and a sense of what works and what doesn't work for you - and after a certain point, it is all about personal preference.

No need to stress. See it as an opportunity for some quality time in the woods.

Best,

- Mike
 
kman300 said:
I would like this knife to do everything from going on a camping trip with the kids where I cut up a fish or put peanut butter on a sandwich for them. I would like it to make firewood and fuzz sticks, make a spoon and make a shelter if I have too. I want it to skin a deer/moose whatever and debone it if I have to pack it out. Basically I want this knife to do it all if it HAS to. I have a dedicated skinning knife (dozier) and a deboning knife but I want one knife that can do everything if needed and I realize it won't be perfect at everything but it has to be good enough at those tasks.

Basically one all around knife if there is such a thing.

ESEE-4 is that the old RC-4? There is also RAT-4? I find that all very confusing but the knife looks good and has a good sheath as well.

I don't ever enyoing buying hunting equipment because I have to know that I made the absolute best choice for myself so I'm not constantly second guessing myself when I do end up buying something. I litteraly spent a month reading about glass manufacturing and coating processess before I settled on what scopes to buy for my hunting rifles and don't even ask me how many months I spent deciding what my north american rifle battery should be.

I need to buy a knife that will do all I need it to for my lifetime that fits my budget and I can then stop spending rediculous amounts (a bit is fine but I spent over 20 hours this weekend alone reading threads and watching youtube videos) of time researching all this stuff.

I'm sure there is a name for my compulsions in the DSM but I don't have time to figure out what that is right now.

Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...

I get like that too, unfortunately. Best way to short-circuit is to do the research of what places know their stuff and have THEM recommend for you and your purposes. Aside from the wood thing- what do you mean by "make firewood"? Chopping a tree down, debarking it, cutting it into manageable sections, batoning until you have fireplace sized logs? Or are we talking finding a downed tree and then the rest of the steps? Defining what you're looking for specifically is important.

You also said "make a shelter". What kind of shelter are we talking? Simple lean-to with pine needles, or a pit with a cover so you can dig, or ???

There are knives that will "do it all"- in fact, lots. The question comes down to, which processes do you want it to be better at?

What part of the world are you in? Because necessities vary all over the world for things.

Zero
 
Both knives are good choices for the tasks you listed, mid-size knives with good track records in outdoor activities.

There are also good knives in that class that cost less.

Jeff Randall and Mike Perrin of Randall's Adventure & Training developed the original RAT-4 design manufactured by Ontario. When they started up their own knife company, they sold the same knife as the RC-4. Because of confusion with so many knife companies using "rat" in their names, they changed to ESEE, and the RAT-4/RC-4 came to be called ESEE-4. And not a bad choice for what you described.
 
i have a bravo 1 and it's a beast. not sure about them ripping off customers but i have abused mine with no problems. i would say if this post is for real you are taking life a bit to seriously. hunting and knifes are suppose to be fun. hell 20 years ago people didn't even where camo. they threw their wool sweaters and jeans on went out and put meat in the freezer. either knife will do what you want no problem. again sir welcome to the forums and i hope you find what you are looking for but in the process don't lose the enjoyment by over stressing it.
 
Welcome! I've never owned an F-1, but there are thousands of 'em out there with relatively few complaints. Same for the Bravo1. I do have a B1 and 4 other Bark River knives and they are all solid knives. Both companies have a splendid rep for customer service.

Any product made in large numbers is bound to have a stinker slip through now and again. Customer service is one of the things that makes a company great. Fallkniven and Bark River are both great.
 
Check out the new knife designed by Ethan Becker and Doug Ritter. It is available at Knifeworks.com and there are a limited number available. May not be what you are looking for but sounds like it should cover everything you have mentioned.
 
kman300 said:
I would like this knife to do everything from going on a camping trip with the kids where I cut up a fish or put peanut butter on a sandwich for them. I would like it to make firewood and fuzz sticks, make a spoon and make a shelter if I have too. I want it to skin a deer/moose whatever and debone it if I have to pack it out. Basically I want this knife to do it all if it HAS to. I have a dedicated skinning knife (dozier) and a deboning knife but I want one knife that can do everything if needed and I realize it won't be perfect at everything but it has to be good enough at those tasks.

Basically one all around knife if there is such a thing.

ESEE-4 is that the old RC-4? There is also RAT-4? I find that all very confusing but the knife looks good and has a good sheath as well.

I don't ever enyoing buying hunting equipment because I have to know that I made the absolute best choice for myself so I'm not constantly second guessing myself when I do end up buying something. I litteraly spent a month reading about glass manufacturing and coating processess before I settled on what scopes to buy for my hunting rifles and don't even ask me how many months I spent deciding what my north american rifle battery should be.

I need to buy a knife that will do all I need it to for my lifetime that fits my budget and I can then stop spending rediculous amounts (a bit is fine but I spent over 20 hours this weekend alone reading threads and watching youtube videos) of time researching all this stuff.

I'm sure there is a name for my compulsions in the DSM but I don't have time to figure out what that is right now.

Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...

Go to Wal Mart and buy butcher knife or any other knife for less than 20 bucks, for that matter just go into your kitchen and pick one out of the drawer. Go to the woods and learn to do all of the skills you listed without breaking it, then you can buy the fallkniven or Bark River and have complete confidence that it won't fail. Chris
 
Sleep on it, then have a cup of coffee, and then use the knives that you bought. Reserve judgement til you have put them to task, and can have your own personal conclusions. Welcome to Bladeforums, and have fun.
 
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