Discover What The Best Survival Knives Have In Common

A Survival Knife is one of the most important survival tools that you can take with you during an emergency situation. A survival knife is created specifically for surviving in a backwoods environment, and it is the primary tool for making it through an unexpected emergency scenario. It is the survival tool that you're going to get the most use from and for that reason it needs to be one of the most durable and reliable pieces of survival gear that you own.

Survival knives are available in two different versions: the fixed blade and the folding blade. Foldable knives are occasionally favored since they're smaller and therefore much easier to carry. However, since their tang is really small, they are generally weaker and much easier to break. The folding knives most popular types are lock-back folding and pocket knives.

Fixed bladed knives are typically a lot more rugged and dependable then folding knives. The best survival knife should have something that is known as a full tang, in which the blade runs the length of the handle of the knife. Fixed blade knives including the Bowie Knife, or perhaps a heavy duty hunting knife, are excellent examples of top quality fixed blade survival knives due to their exceptional steel blades and durable handles. Fixed blade knives, nevertheless, are usually thicker, heavier, and very dangerous if not stored and handled properly.

The survival knife is sometimes called a tactical knife; however the two are not the same thing. Both styles of knives can be used for a survival situation, but they are designed to handle different tasks. The benefit of the tactical blade is its usefulness in a number of applications, from hunting to protection, from chopping wood to make other tools like spears or bows and arrows. Another essential feature which a tactical knife offers, which makes it completely different from the common survival knife, is definitely the design of the blade. The tactical knife is often designed with a serrated edge that provides it with the capability to cut through materials of any strength. The tactical knife is multi-functional by design, assisting the camper in a wide range of survival and camping activities.

The type of steel used to make the knife is another important factor. The steel quality of the blade determines the durability of the knife, its strength, how simple it is to hone, and determines how long it's going to keep an edge. Your best option of steel for any survival knife will be choosing one which isn't too hard, which would make the blade very brittle and tough to sharpen. This would limit its usefulness while in an emergency situation. Steel for survival knives come in two types: Stainless steel and Carbon steel.

Carbon Steel knives can rust if used frequently without covering the steel with oil. Survival Knives with Carbon Steel generally have a tendency to maintain a sharper edge longer than stainless steel. Carbon steel blades can be sharpened to a razor-sharp edge and is better to use for splitting or chopping wood, and other heavy duty camping tasks.

Stainless steel is harder steel making it more brittle then carbon steel and the blade doesn't retain a sharp edge as long as carbon steel, however it doesn't rust as easily.
There are a few new blade designs which try to provide the very best of both worlds by either making a high carbon stainless steel, or sandwiching high carbon steel between two layers of stainless-steel. These knives offer the strength of high carbon steel and the ability to resist rust like stainless steel.

In conclusion, any person who needs to use a knife in a survival situation, where their life depends on it, would need one that is created to be difficult to break with heavy duty use, and yet stay sharp, and handle like an extension of your arm.


Article Source: Clint Engelage