Date Published: 2015-04-27

How To Choose A Survival Knife

By Casey Tate

There are tons of survival knives out there—the good, the bad, and yes, the ugly! We’ve seen them all, used most of them, and arrived at a few key features that we look for in a quality survival knife. Obviously, the blade is paramount. In a good, quality survival knife, a hefty, thick, high-performance blade with a razor-sharp edge is critical. Full-tang construction is highly desirable, but there are still plenty of quality survival knives out there that feature half-tang construction but still have the oomph we’re talking about. Take, for instance, the new Timber Wolf Ultimate Survival Knife. It features a thick modified clip point blade with a sharp edge for slicing, piercing point for deep penetration, and powerful saw tooth serrations for light sawing applications. We also love the rubberized handle design, which provides a firm, slip-free grip even if your hands are wet. This is a great, quality knife, especially for the affordable price point. Other features that make this a good example of what we look for in a survival knife include the fire starter that is housed with the sheath. The addition of a fire starter saves you tons of time and energy that can be put to good use in emergency survival situations.

Another key feature that we love in a good survival knife is the addition of some type of paracord. Having paracord at your disposal during survival situations will afford you many options for use in lashing, building and even fishing. A great example of a survival knife that utilizes full-tang construction and incorporates paracord into the design is this popular Bear Grylls model from Gerber. This full-tang survival knife delivers a stout 3-1/4? blade with several feet of paracord woven through the handle. The ultra-durable full-tang construction allows this knife to take a beating and really stand up to hard use without snapping like cheap imitations. Also, the cord can be quickly unwound for a plethora of practical applications and utility. Use it for makeshift shelter building, fast attachments, or even a makeshift tourniquet if you are injured. Anything this survival knife may lack in terms of oversized presence is more than made up for with its willingness to work and high-performance abilities.

Schrade Extreme Survival Small Fixed Blade Knife

Another thing we seek out in survival knives is the incorporation of additional tools, as seen in the Schrade Extreme Survival fixed-blade knife. This particular model covers several of the top things we look for in a survival knife—a sharp, hefty blade; powerful full-tang construction; and a removable bit set. The bit set is conveniently stored in the handle, which features a water-tight seal to keep moisture out. The custom bit holder houses a star drive screw bit, hex key bit, slotted screw bits and a Phillips screw bit (seven pieces in total). The addition of this bit set makes this knife a great one to keep around for light repairs to virtually anything such as your car, truck, boat or all-terrain vehicles without having to carry an additional item. Or, take the Bushmaster Survival Knife. This one comes with just about everything but the kitchen sink. It includes a metal hand guard that houses a complete emergency first aid kit and survival kit in addition to rugged sawback serrations, which can handle heavier sawing needs. These are just a few of our offerings that incorporate additional survival items into the knife’s design, an element we really look for in survival knives.

These are just a few of the top elements we seek out in survival knives. Since we’re so crazy about knives, we don’t stress about having every single one of these qualities in one knife; we like having an entire collection of knives to meet our needs. The more the better is our motto when it comes to survival knives! Check out all of our survival knives today.

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