1. Outdoor folding knives
or straight knives
1. Advantages and disadvantages of straight knives
As the name suggests, straight knives It’s a knife that doesn’t fold. Therefore, a straight knife is different from a folding knife, it has no connection point, and the handle is one with the blade. It is for this reason that straight knives are much stronger than folding knives, especially straight knives with full keels.
The attachment point on the jackknife greatly reduces the robustness of the knife. And a sturdy straight knife can be used for outdoor tasks like back knocking, making fires, prying, hammering, and more. However, in terms of portability, straight knives do not have the advantages of folding knives. Straight knives require a strong and reliable scabbard to store the knives. Another disadvantage of straight knives is that they are heavier than folding knives.
2. Advantages and disadvantages of folding knives
The blade of the folding knife can be folded into the handle, so that the folding knife can be carried in a pocket. This approach reduces the size of the knife and also hides the sharp edge. However, the spindle link point in a folding knife also has the disadvantage that it can break when too much pressure is applied. That’s why you can’t use a jackknife for anything in the wild.
The main advantage of the folding knife is its portability and versatility. However, if it is outdoor survival, it is really not recommended to use a jackknife. Because the jackknife is not strong and reliable enough to be a primary survival tool.
So, for everyday use, a small fold is good. And for outdoor use, remember to use a straight knife, which is always the safer and stronger choice.
Second, how to choose an outdoor survival knife
1. Size selection
A straight knife suitable for outdoor survival, the ideal length of the blade should be 10-15 cm. The size of outdoor knives should not be too large. An overly long blade will cause the overall weight of the blade to be too heavy, it will take up physical strength to hold it in your hand, and it will take up space in a bag. Not too small. Although the palm knife is convenient to carry, it is not very useful. Cutting branches and cutting ropes are more laborious, and they are easy to break if you are not careful, which is very tasteless. In comparison, medium-length knives can do some relatively delicate work as well as some heavy tasks.
2. Knife type selection
A straight knife with a full keel, which is the best choice for outdoor knives. The blade of the folding knife can be folded into the handle, which is safer and easier to carry. But this biggest advantage is the biggest disadvantage for outdoor survival use. As we all know, as long as it is spliced, it must be more likely to cause damage. The hollow handle and folding shaft of the jackknife are obviously weak parts that are easily broken. The one-piece blade without moving parts is obviously more suitable for outdoor survival use. The straight knife with integrated keel has better fracture resistance, can withstand greater use strength, and the overall force is more balanced, and can withstand high-intensity use.
3. Blade selection
It is best to choose a blade without serrations. Although the serration on the blade looks very cool, this design is very bad for an outdoor knife. The toothed edge can certainly help a little in cutting the rope, but other than that, the design is very ‘sluggish’: if the toothed edge is dull, you need to use a specific sharpener to grind it groove by groove, Very cumbersome; at the same time, the utility of an outdoor knife with a toothed edge is greatly reduced, because the toothed edge can hardly do anything other than cut rope.
4. Handle selection
For the choice of the handle, please remember two words: non-slip, comfortable. The anti-skid of the handle of the outdoor knife is very important, so that no matter what environment you are in, you don’t have to worry about the knife in your hand suddenly slipping off. As for the grip comfort of the handle, you can only rely on your hands to try the feel when choosing a knife.
5. Material selection
Compared with other materials, the blade of Damascus steel is more rigid and flexible, and the blade retains better.