Looking for a small fixed blade for hiking that can also be used to start a fire.

A

Ailan22

Joined
Feb 3, 2024
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Hi everyone,

I’m pretty new here and this is my first post.
I’m a female and love the outdoors and love to go hiking and canoeing. I’m in search of a small fixed blade which can also throw sparks off its spine with a ferro rod.
Something along the lines of white river M1 backpacker, Bradford guardian 3.5, 3.2 or ESEE Izula II. Something with blade size 2.7-3.5”. Reading reviews I believe non of these knives can be used with a ferro rod?

Something light that I can carry on hikes (scout carry under my pack maybe). I would use it for food prep, light cutting and feathersticking. Bit of a Allrounder.

Any suggestions or ideas for me to check out?

Thanks for any help!
 
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3.2 oz, and waterproof storage and a compass and emergency line to boot. Available in a variety of colors.

WG31Bif.jpeg


Sam⚔️⚔️
 
It's usually not too hard to add a sharpened spine to knife, a very common mod.

On the budget side, the mora eldris is decent if the handle size works for you.

LT Wright makes a great sharpened spine and knife but they usually aren't particularly light.

On the more expensive side, I think searching "bushcraft knife" on a knife retailer's website might net good results. Blade HQ has a great search function.

If the small terava jaakaripuukko was available from varusteleka, I would reccomend that. I'm waiting for them to restock to get one. Or, there's the skrama 85.
 
I would also add that you can throw sparks from a victorinox. The saw spine is a good spot, many use the awl. Just a piece of redundancy for firestarting as SAKs are commonly used hiking for their versatility a lightweight. The camper or hiker models are among my favorite (only difference is corkscrew vs philips screwdriver on back).
 
Ailan22 said:
Hi everyone,

I’m pretty new here and this is my first post.
I’m a female and love the outdoors and love to go hiking and canoeing. I’m in search of a small fixed blade which can also throw sparks off its spine with a ferro rod.
Something along the lines of white river M1 backpacker, Bradford guardian 3.5, 3.2 or ESEE Izula II. Something with blade size 2.7-3.5”. Reading reviews I believe non of these knives can be used with a ferro rod?
Something light that I can carry on hikes (scout carry under my pack maybe).
Any suggestions or ideas for me to check out?

Thanks for any help!
Click to expand...
Any knife. Or any piece of metal at all will throw sparks off a ferro rod if there is a square edge to it.

Which is the back of a lot of knives.

Some knives round off that back edge to be easier on the thumb. And don't throw sparks.

But you can file a notch in the back pretty easy.

Flint apparently needs a carbon steel to throw sparks. A ferro rod is not flint.

I like the Mora Kransbol. Which is a light knife that is good for cutting because it is thin. And stainless so it doesn't rust easily. But it doesn't do some aggressive knife tasks that well. Like batoning.

It has a rig that I am pretty sure you can scout carry.

And has a very square back that throws ferro rod sparks well.
 
A Ailan22 what else are you looking to use the knife for, or what else are you looking for? How many have you tried so far and what did you like or dislike about them?

-So far, we have the desired blade length
-You want lightweight
-And it should have a 90-degree spine

That would help us narrow it down for you.
 
bikerector said:
A Ailan22 what else are you looking to use the knife for, or what else are you looking for? How many have you tried so far and what did you like or dislike about them?

-So far, we have the desired blade length
-You want lightweight
-And it should have a 90-degree spine

That would help us narrow it down for you.
Click to expand...
I would need it to food prep, cut things, feathersticking and starting a fire.
 
Ailan22 said:
Hi everyone,

I’m pretty new here and this is my first post.
I’m a female and love the outdoors and love to go hiking and canoeing. I’m in search of a small fixed blade which can also throw sparks off its spine with a ferro rod.
Something along the lines of white river M1 backpacker, Bradford guardian 3.5, 3.2 or ESEE Izula II. Something with blade size 2.7-3.5”. Reading reviews I believe non of these knives can be used with a ferro rod?

Something light that I can carry on hikes (scout carry under my pack maybe). I would use it for food prep, light cutting and feathersticking. Bit of a Allrounder.

Any suggestions or ideas for me to check out?

Thanks for any help!
Click to expand...
mora survival bushcraft knife. 6.5 oz including sheath, sharpening plate, rotating belt clip (but leaving out the included ferro rod), 4.2" blade, very grippy/ ergonomic orange rubber handle. If you prefer a more classic puukko style, Helle Temagami (same blade length) but the curly birch handle is more slippery and I feel less secure using it.
 
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ESEE-3:

esee3-1_1.png








esee-3s35v.png


Specs (basic 1095 version):

  • Overall Length: 8.31″ (Standard Model)
  • Overall Length: 8.19″ (Modified Pommel)
  • Cutting Edge Length: 3.38″
  • Overall Blade Length: 3.88″
  • Maximum Thickness: .125″
  • 1095 High Carbon Steel, 55 – 57 Rc.
  • Finish: Textured Powder Coat
  • Weight: 5.2 Ounces (Knife Only)
  • Weight: 9.3 Ounces (Knife w/ Sheath)
  • Handles: Micarta & G10
  • Sheath: Molded w/ Clip Plate (Color depends on model)
  • MOLLE Backs Available
  • Made in the U.S.A.
More info: https://eseeknives.com/product-category/esee-knives-0
 
Mora Robust Pro for the best value, if you're willing to file the spine. But you can really go so many different directions. Just spend some time reading posts. You will be overwhelmed.

Zieg
 
I uncoated the spine of my izula, and flattened it and now it's effective on a ferro rod. I had the tools at hand to do that, but any hard flat surface and some wet/dry sandpaper is all that is needed. a cheap course diamond hone works well also once the powder coat is removed.
There are a lot of good options so far. Mora's are great because at their price if they are not quite right there is no buyers remorse, they make good stash knives for car trunks and other emergency kits, or are good loaners. Great for learning what you do and don't like.
I like my ESEE-3 as a generalist, although where I am now, it's not ideal (Australian timber is on another level) but again, in it's price category I'd probably go for the 3 over the izula 2, and use it for everything. It's a good generalist knife. In that size, I'm also looking at a backpacker M1, but waiting for a different blade steel (just because the timber around me comes with it's own RC rating)
All that said, Mora's are a cheap education, get one, beat it to death and figure out what you did and didn't like, just like you're probably doing with backpacks and boots. The cool part is that it won't leave you high and dry like cheap boots or packs often will, (or low and wet like cheap tents). If some of the legends are willing to roll with a humble mora, (Cody Lundin and the late Mors Kochanski) then it's at least that good.
Read lots, you'll get a vibe for where people tend to trek and what style they are into, and then when you ask questions you'll be better able to add the specifics that matter to you.
 
Drop bear said:
Any knife. Or any piece of metal at all will throw sparks off a ferro rod if there is a square edge to it.

Which is the back of a lot of knives.

Some knives round off that back edge to be easier on the thumb. And don't throw sparks.

But you can file a notch in the back pretty easy.

Flint apparently needs a carbon steel to throw sparks. A ferro rod is not flint.

I like the Mora Kransbol. Which is a light knife that is good for cutting because it is thin. And stainless so it doesn't rust easily. But it doesn't do some aggressive knife tasks that well. Like batoning.

It has a rig that I am pretty sure you can scout carry.

And has a very square back that throws ferro rod sparks well.
Click to expand...
Oddly enough though, you can spark a ferro rod with a piece of flint.
 
Ailan22 said:
I’m in search of a small fixed blade which can also throw sparks off its spine with a ferro rod.

Something light that I can carry on hikes (scout carry under my pack maybe). I would use it for food prep, light cutting and feathersticking. Bit of a Allrounder.

Any suggestions or ideas for me to check out?
Click to expand...

What's your price range?

kvaughn said:
Oddly enough though, you can spark a ferro rod with a piece of flint.
Click to expand...

Any sufficiently rough surface or sharp edge will spark a ferro rod, as long as the material of your improvised striker isn't too soft. For example, you can use a piece of broken glass or the surface of a metal file.
 
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