Survivors: other knives you like

Hard Knocks said:
Already looking forward to hitting the woods this weekend..........

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HK, I wouldn't have pegged you as one of those ultralight pansies, but to each their own ;):p:D

If you get a chance I'd love to see a written list of that sweet chairful of blades.
 
Silver Needle said:
HK, I wouldn't have pegged you as one of those ultralight pansies, but to each their own ;):p:D

If you get a chance I'd love to see a written list of that sweet chairful of blades.
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LOL! :D We are trailer camping/fishing/riding atvs this weekend. My girl just graduated HS and my boy is home from college for the summer, so we're going heavy :) I asked my son which blades he wanted to take, to which he repied, 'all of them!' :D I got him narrowed down to the ones in the chair plus the lionsteel t5 and trc splinter that I'm going to belt carry. Not pictured because it lives in the truck already, the GSO 10 :thumbsup:

The ones in the chair picture: Knife on top in the tan kryptek, a Swamprat Ratweiler thick version. Then bottom row L to R,

Scrapyard 1111 in the green buybrown
Fiddleback Camp in the halestorm kryptek
Swamprat RatMastiff in some of elof_alv's walkabout leather
Swamprat Chopweiler in chuddybear
Busse NuclearMeltdownFusionSteelHeart (NMFSH)

rcb2000 said:
So much awesome in one chair, take some pics while you're out!
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I'm sure going to try bud. It won't be as awesome as 'the tree of knife' ha! but it will be good fun I hope, with plenty of wood to gather and the opportunity for some fresh air which I'm greatly looking forward to :)
 
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Hard Knocks Hard Knocks thanks for taking the time to post the knives. I agree with Fancier, I didn't recognize the camp knife next to all those other monsters :eek::thumbsup::D

Very exciting about where your kids are at in life. Enjoy the time as a family and the time outdoors!
 
It does look small there now that you guys mention it. I like that knife, and it carries really well with the dangler. Even with all that conglomeration I've got stuck to it. I'll tell you this, it doesn't take a back seat to much (or maybe anything) in its size, and the usefulness of the handle is as good as anything I've tried.

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Hard Knocks said:
It does look small there now that you guys mention it. I like that knife, and it carries really well with the dangler. Even with all that conglomeration I've got stuck to it. I'll tell you this, it doesn't take a back seat to much (or maybe anything) in its size, and the usefulness of the handle is as good as anything I've tried.

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The m7 is a brute ,I didn't realize the camp knife was just as large. If you don't mind me asking which would you choose if you had to?
 
sfrigon1 said:
The m7 is a brute ,I didn't realize the camp knife was just as large. If you don't mind me asking which would you choose if you had to?
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Hard question here ^. These two blades are similar in size, but very different in design and feel. Both are well-built, quality steel for sure. Since the question is a one-blade-versus-another type scenario, I'm going to base my answer on if I had to choose one as a stand-alone blade, rather than a blade carried in conjunction with a smaller blade.

If I absolutely had to choose only one, I would keep the Camp Knife. It fits my need for a one-blade option better when I'm out and about due to the versatility of the handle. I can compensate for the absence of a choil by wrapping my thumb up over the forward section of the scale near the ricasso for finer work, then slide back behind the center flare for chopping or snap cuts. It also grips well if needing to work inverted/cutting edge up.

The M7 excels in hammer grip, and your description of it above is accurate IMO, a brute of blade. For those that haven't handled an M7....

...I love the rounded spine on the M7. That and the overall geometry should (I say should because I have less experience with it) make it a better battening blade than the Camp Knife. I have a love/hate relationship with choils, but the M7 is done right and I like it. I'm having a pretty good experience with the sleipner steel. It's not nearly as rust-prone as I thought it might be from what I've heard (Maybe I'm just used to naked SR101 though). I'm pretty impressed with it overall, enough that I'd try other blades in this steel, a skinner would be cool in it. The M7 feels substantial, like you could tackle hell with it in one hand and a bucket of water in the other.

Having said all of that, there are times I'd grab the M7 first, just more times that I'd grab the Camp Knife first. If I only had the need for wood processing/battening/chopping, etc. I'd be really happy with the M7 as a stand-alone. If there was a chance of needing to do some food prep or clean small or large game on top of the need for fire prep, the Camp Knife would win out. If a person likes to carry combos of large/small blade, the M7 would pair up well in the large blade role, and a lot of the above argument would go out the window. These blades are different enough (rounded spine vs square spine, choil vs no choil, one-piece handle vs two-piece handle, sleipner vs 3V, etc.) that someone who wants a blade in that size will most likely end up loving one of them.

tl/dr version: One-knife solution, the Camp Knife. Add a combo blade and it's neck and neck.


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Very well put Hardknocks. I love the look of both, it would not be easy to choose either without handling them extensively
 
Benson X said:
Thanks - maybe I will do that when I have some free time. It's a cell phone pic, and I added a "pop" filter to give it some contrast and pseudo-HDR boost. (using stock 'Photos' app)
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Filter looks great. Epic pic!

Long story short - just bought a new house with a ton of "potential" (things for me to fix :)). We took down (3) 15"+ Doug Firs and a 12"+ Silver Pine, and I used these 3 choppers exclusively to de-limb them. From little 1/2" branches to 8" thick limbs, the GSO10 continuously powered through it all. Four trees worth of limbs and branches processed.
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That is so awesome. Congratulations on the home ownership. Sounds like a really fun workout for those 3 knives.

The Junglas was a close second as far as blade performance, but I think the larger spine above the grind on the GSO10 and the perfectly contoured handle and finger grooves made it easier and less fatiguing to get a solid and accurate chop (almost) every time. I still love the Junglas for other camp/bushwacking chores, but I was surprised it wasn't consecutively getting as many deep cuts as the GSO10. Even more surprising still, the GSO10 is almost 4oz lighter than the Junglas, but (to me) it felt heftier due to the well-balanced proportioning of the blade and handles.
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I've never had a 10, but I know the handle design has been a big complaint for some. I'm really glad to hear the design works for you. It sounds like the 10 did well against a very reputable competitor.

Sadly, the BK20 was not as impressive as the others. The straight tang and hollow handles made it hard to get a solid, penetrating chop unless the wood was perfectly positioned. The sweet spot on that blade is right at the meatiest part of the belly. More than once I experienced what I can only describe as a "hollow hit" - if I would chop too far down on the blade, most of the shock impact would transfer right to my hand/wrist and result in the blade deflecting of the wood rather than chopping into it. I think I will be getting some thicker canvas micarta scales to improve the handling/comfort and see if that makes the Bundok perform any better; otherwise it will be sold and I'll stick with my trusty BK9 and BK10.
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That's too bad. I love beckers. How would you compare the 20 to the 9? My bk9 is currently the largest knife I own and I love it.

I'd LOVE to get my hands on some other big choppers to test out: CPK Light Chopper, DT Grizzly, GSO-12 etc.

HA! Yup - at least that's what I assumed happened. I didn't even notice at first, until the micarta started getting a little sticky. I think I got too hasty grabbing it from the stump in between cleanup and chopping - I got a nice little gash on my left index finger. I know I should have been wearing gloves, but gloves don't build calluses and calluses make stronger hands! :D


Hey now - I love that choil! :)

I don't fall into any one camp - some of my blades have thumb ramps, some have choils, some have jimping, some have ferro notches, some are completely nekkid. I try not to discriminate when it comes to knives ;)
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An open mind is a good thing, so you're a better man than I am. I've never had a choil I liked. For the grips I use and the types of things I do with knives, I've never felt a need for a choil and so I prefer knives with out.
 
Silver Needle said:
That's too bad. I love beckers. How would you compare the 20 to the 9? My bk9 is currently the largest knife I own and I love it.
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I'd say the 9 is more nimble and versatile than the 20, but still long and beefy enough to handle the same abuse and chopping chores as the 20. I got it with the sole intention of it being a heavy-duty chopper, so I was kind of surprised it didn't perform as well as I thought (or hoped) it would.

The bowie-esque clip point on the 20 is the one thing that I couldn't get used to; with the belly being the sweet-spot, and the taper down made it more difficult to effectively chop without making sure every hit was precise and well-placed. The BK9's straight spine and edge design (not counting the thumb ramp) is more forgiving in that sense, and seems to produce the same cutting performance no matter where the edge hits the wood.

Overall, I still like the 20 for what it is but I doubt it can replace my 9 or contend with the other choppers I have, so the odds are not in the favor to keep it in rotation as a regular user. I want to swap some better micarta scales on it before making a final 'Yay or Nay' decision.
 
Silver Needle said:
Filter looks great. Epic pic!


That is so awesome. Congratulations on the home ownership. Sounds like a really fun workout for those 3 knives.


I've never had a 10, but I know the handle design has been a big complaint for some. I'm really glad to hear the design works for you. It sounds like the 10 did well against a very reputable competitor.


That's too bad. I love beckers. How would you compare the 20 to the 9? My bk9 is currently the largest knife I own and I love it.


An open mind is a good thing, so you're a better man than I am. I've never had a choil I liked. For the grips I use and the types of things I do with knives, I've never felt a need for a choil and so I prefer knives with out.
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I felt the same way about choils until I got my hands on an m7!!!
 
Benson X Benson X Thanks for the thorough description. I was really excited to see the bk20 and then 29 get released, but it sounds like I don't need to rush out and replace my 9.

Very cool, S sfrigon1 . I'm wondering if a future, larger GSO will change my mind as well. Time will tell!
 
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