Re: Best survival knife for under $200??
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ToddM</div><div class="ubbcode-body">1095 is a great steel for abuse, two things come into play here, some knives are great cutters, take a great edge and hold it but they end up being "brittle" and are not good for "abuse" say chopping or prying.
Many of the cheaper 1095 knives give up some edge durability and sharpness retention but they will take a ton of chopping/prying without damage.
There's a huge split in the market here. Some of the knives like the Reeves have amazing edges, chop okay, but are not a knife to pry a door open with. I mention Reeve because they have taken some abuse from some reviews where their fixed blades did not stand up to heavy abuse. Others will take tons of abuse, but their slicing edge suffers a bit because of this.
Yes there are other factors, heat treating, blade geometry, edge angle etc. But they are all give and take, there is no magic heat treat no super amazing alien steel that many makers would have you believe. I've owned knives from just about every high end and low end company/maker out there. The gaps between them are not anywhere near the marketing would have you believe.
That said to me then there is a better solution to one single knife that has to do everything. That is get a larger knife out of a 1095 or other steel, thick blade, say 6-8" blade good heat treat, for chopping/prying/abuse. Bigger if you feel you will do a LOT of chopping because there is no replacement for size/length/weight when it comes to chopping. Then couple it with a small light fixed blade maybe 3.5-4" thin ats34/s30v etc. for your fine cutting needs, skinning, etc. where it's not going to be abused but the edge qualities are key.
You end up carrying only a couple more ounces, and not only now have redundant gear in having 2 knives, but you are much more prepared for all your cutting needs. Also as others mentioned handle ergonomics are huge, the knife is no good if it gives you blisters the first 10 minutes you use it hard. The same can be said for all metal handles if not at least cord wrapped, in cold temps you'll wish you had a handle on it even with gloves. </div></div>
IMO you are almost dead on track. In my original post I suggested a small fixed blade and a small hatchet.The small Gerbers are not much heavier then a big knife but your chopping power is greatly increased.They even make the small knife that fits in the handle. Barring the hatchet a 1095 7-9" is perfect and easy to sharpen.
Money is really not an object. I would prefer a $200 knife that per say is a "10" than a $70 knife that is an 8/10. All inputs appreciated.
