Recommendation? The best survival / daily chef's knife?

D

DannyTheSwede

Joined
Sep 23, 2021
Messages
50
Hi everyone! New here.
I searched a long time for the best all-purpose knife, to finally decide on Esee-5. It was to me as all-around as I could find.
I noticed, however, that it was very prone to rusting, when it was used and washed daily (and yes, oiled) just for the first few days.

I am now looking for a non-rusting upgrade with the same criteria:
• stainless (used in the kitchen daily and washed without the need for oil)
• thick, baton-ready full-tang
• flat-edge food chopper (without a protruding guard that passes the edge and hinders a flat landing on a cutting board)
• stabbing point (for hunting)
• pointy glass-breaker

Grateful for any recommendations. Thank you! :)
 
Any of the Dexter Russel Sani Safe knives. Restaurant quality dishwasher safe

view
 
Last edited:
I think if you looked at the Nordic brands there would be something in a pukko a leuko or even a seax. And they tend to do fun things with stainless.

Just for fun. Here is the extreme ratio selvens. In stainless and stabby.

 
Last edited:
The ESEE 5 is an outdoor/camping/survival knife. As one who owns plenty of outdoor/survival knives, as well as plenty of kitchen knives, may I ask what exacty you are doing in the kitchen that call for the us of the ESEE 5?
I trust you realize that the required features of these two types of knives are contradictory when asking for "one knife" to do both.
 
bubbaskyjacker said:
View attachment 1646505
There is no one knife.

your asking for 2 different knives. A general aka camp knife and a kitchen knife.
Click to expand...
Totally agree !

Survival knife needs to be able to wedge , pry , baton and generally withstand abuse . Very tough and usually thick steel . Stainless not a priority .

Kitchen knife needs to be thinner and a good slicer . Stainless is desirable . Edge retention over toughness .
 
Let it patina. No rust with a patina.
Why you need a glass breaker on your camping/hunting knife?
If you want/have to baton, get a shingler's froe. They are designed for that. As an alternative, crave/whittle a daRn wedge, and baton that.
Do you honestly think that (for example) the fur traders/trapers/early explorers/"mountain man" who spent months or years afield without setting foot in a settlement battoned their knives?
They didn't. They had an axe or hatchet for splitting wood (and heavy bone, as needed).
A knife isn't a splitting tool. It is a cutting tool. Use the right tool for the job. It makes it a lot easier (and faster) fo you, and decreases the likelyhood of breaking your tool.

If you're a couple days away from our truck/car, what you going to do when (not "if") you break your knife from batoning it?
Broken knife = no knife.
BTW, most, if not all, knife manufacturers specifically say that if you baton with their knife, the warranty is void.
 
Last edited:
Your best bet is to talk to a custom maker who will make your design. Then you can specify your exact requirements.

If you're after stainless but tough, you would want AEB-L (stainless, very tough) or LC200N (almost stainproof, almost as tough as AEB-L). However, good luck affording a big knife in a 1/4" slab of LC200N. AEB-L would be your best bet, it's a lot cheaper.

My personal version of what you're after:

The 'Tactical kitchen knife' in LC200N by David Mary.

IMG-8188.jpg
 
The best kitchen knives are carbon steel and thin. They don't have bevels but are typically flat ground. Outdoors knives would need to be thicker. They do different things.

Perhaps you should look at some of the stainless Bark River knives which are convex ground and have no coatings. Maybe something in the bushcraft line would work for you.
 
You're not batoning with a chef's knife...I have a hard time batoning a Spyderco Waterway let alone a skinnier knife. But you can try the waterway, its skinny and pointy but not glass breaky (why????).

Maybe a Nessmuk? I like BRISA's, I owned one a long time ago and the big belly lends itself very well to less delicate kitchen tasks and hunting...12c27 is good tough stainless. It'll baton better, but not self defens-y and not glass breaky.

If you want a good cheap one, try the Silax from CJRB, it looks like what your looking for.

Some knives (I think TOPs makes some) come with a nutcracker/persuader pommel that I guess you can use to break glass? But they dont make good chef knives.

Too many wants = too many compromises.
 
Burt Foster Camp Knives
burtfoster.com

Spalted Seashell

This knife is a simple, almost elegantly simple shape. Long curving edge, sweeping clip point, smooth dropped handle. You could add a lot more to a knife like this, but it would be easy to lose something along the way. A few weeks before I made this knife, we were on the beach in the Outer...
burtfoster.com burtfoster.com
 
Flabbergasted by all the quick and kind tips in a day! Thank you so very much!
For me, saying there is no one knife, is to render this mission impossible.
My mindset does not allow the word impossible. As stated, I'm already close.
The mission is to find ONE knife to bring for any mission, in case there is no time to plan.

• Extrema Ratio Selvans 6,3mm, 31cm, N690.
Seems very much like a superb recommendation! Will study further.

• Sani-Safe: Stain-free, high-carbon steel blade.
Sounds to good to be true! Will have to dig for a flat model without the protruding guards in the picture. Any suggestions?

• "a pukko a leuko or even a seax"
I know of seaxes, but the point is usually not centerdrive, which takes away from optimal drilling / thrusting. I will however check out the other ones!

• Two types being contradictory:
Yes. I tend to do cardio, but also do resistance-training. I like an efficient all-around function.
Something that is always with me. I have many knives, that would be too heavy to bring at the same time. Y'all as well, I imagine. But for a sudden mission, I am already close to bringing a one-trick-pony. I just want to get closer.

• "Why you need a glass breaker":
Why not? Esee-5 does a great job using the real-estate fully. Why train MMA when you can just use boxing? And only one hand? Why upgrade anything?

• "AEB-L (stainless, very tough) or LC200N": I have found AEB-L, but only in smaller knives. Your recommendation of "Tactical kitchen knife" is very intriguing! I would have loved a bit hookier end for lower handle-grip chopping and slip-resistance. But still very interesting. Does anyone have a link for David Mary's Tactical kitchen knife with specs? Couldn't find it.

• "I think you want more than one knife..."
No. One knife is the sole purpose of this thread.

• "the stainless Bark River knives"
I have gone through their biggest ones, but not found anything that is in a tank build and stainless at the same time. The Crusader would otherwise be awesome. Suggestions?

• "Trace Rinaldi TTKK, CPM-30V steel, 60HRC."
Wow! Pure beauty! Very close. Pointy and good, but still an awesome belly for chopping groceries, and a good hook at the handle-bottom. Very nice. Is it stainless and can take a beating?

• "Spyderco Waterway let alone a skinnier knife"
Too little of a blade to be comfortable for anything I do. Protruding guard too. Point too weak. Spyderco Province would be closer. And skinnier? Even further from my goal.
- Brisa Nessmuk
To me, the lack of a protruding blade (lack of a choil-like index-grip) makes it a hazard when thrusting. Most bushcrafts have this problem for me. I will however look into 12c27. Thank you.
- The Silax from CJRB
Looks like an awesome chef's knife, but very risky in both thrusting and pulling away. And the tip seems not niku enough to be trusted for super-hard use. Will read up on AR-RPM9 though!
- TOPS
I have gone through Tops. I love the Operator 7. I love their designs. Espinoza et al. But it is not at all a daily driver unless you are only knife-fighting all the time :p
Is there something stainless and easier to clean from them?

• "TTKK Large 2"
Yes! Hot! The name talks my lingo! Didn't see the thickness. Does anyone know? The point might be on the pointy side for unknown tip-crash-material, but I don't trust theory, only a good video test will show. Will definitely research!

• "Spalted Seashell"
I don't see any specs. Seems more built like a piece of art in focus, rather than a tool. I hope I'm wrong. Fancy though :)

As you can see, I have a very specific goal. And I do appreciate all your answers!
Comments about giving up on the threads mission means simply not understanding the mission.

Right now, the favorites are, in no order:
Extrema Ratio Selvans
Sani-Safe (If anyone knows a specific model, that would be helpful. They have tonnes.)
David Mary Tactical kitchen knife
Trace Rinaldi TTKK
TTKK Large 2
I am also looking very much at Jeo-Tec N 37, 5mm, 30,7cm Molybdenum-Vanadium. Thoughts?

Please keep em coming! I do appreciate it!
 
I don't have one personally, though, I've been thinking of picking one up for the longest of time.

Sounds like the description of the Extrema Ratio "Shrapnel One."

• stainless (used in the kitchen daily and washed without the need for oil) ✅, made from N690 stainless steel
• thick, baton-ready full-tang ✅, .25" stock steel, full tang and batonable
• flat-edge food chopper (without a protruding guard that passes the edge and hinders a flat landing on a cutting board) ✅, edge below handle
• stabbing point (for hunting) ✅, really pointy tip with swedge
• pointy glass-breaker ✅, not pointy, however, protrusion at tang is for that purpose among other things

It certainly won't be as robust as the Selvans; however, it would be much better suited for kitchen duty. It practically looks like a basic chef's knife just made with 2-3x thicker stock steel than a "normal" kitchen knife.

Only downside is the base sheath is probably not the best and an upgrade would be beneficial.
 
Last edited:
Spears said:
I don't have one personally, though, I've been thinking of picking one up for the longest of time.

Sounds like the description of the Extrema Ratio "Shrapnel One."

• stainless (used in the kitchen daily and washed without the need for oil) ✅, made from N690 stainless steel
• thick, baton-ready full-tang ✅, .25" stock steel, full tang and batonable
• flat-edge food chopper (without a protruding guard that passes the edge and hinders a flat landing on a cutting board) ✅, edge below handle
• stabbing point (for hunting) ✅, really pointy tip with swedge
• pointy glass-breaker ✅, not pointy, however, protrusion at tang is for that purpose among other things

It certainly won't be as robust as the Selvans; however, it would be much better suited for kitchen duty. It practically looks like a basic chef's knife just made with 2-3x thicker stock steel than a "normal" kitchen knife.

Only downside is the base sheath is probably not the best and an upgrade would be beneficial.
Click to expand...
You must be a spy. I was just watching a review on the Shrapnel One. And then I got this notification! It seems by far to be the best suit yet.
But you beat me to it! Now this and Jeo-Tec 37 might be the biggest contenders. I'd like to see someone baton and tip-abuse the Shrapnel as they do the Esee-5 and Jeo-Tec 37.
It's hard to find field-tests of the TTKK and TTKK Large 2, unfortunately.
Anything that beats the Shrapnel? Any thoughts on Jeo-Tec 37? Same steel, but Italian or Spanish alternatives.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top