So Just What is a Survival Knife?

A survival knife is among the first pieces of equipment that come to mind when most people think of bushcraft. The versatility of a survival knife as tool and weapon makes it one of those elite items no woods-wanderer should be without; many authorities consider it the single-most critical item of survival gear. A versatile and quality survival knife in the hand or on the belt alone serves as a critical confidence booster. A survival knife is the essential tool that can be used in the event you get lost in the wilderness or involved in some other extreme outdoor environment. In the event that you are lost in the wilderness the proper knife can truly be a life saver to help you build shelter, start a fire, hunt, prepare food, dig, clear paths, and so much more.

Since 1997 Randall’s Adventure & Training has designed no-nonsense, affordable field knives specifically targeted to military, law enforcement, and the special operations community. Many of their knives now serve in combat zones around the globe. The knives have a “no questions asked” lifetime warranty. ESEE Knives is also setting the standard for many local, state and federal law enforcement officers when it comes to high performance, compact sheath knives with multiple carry options. The NTOA scored the 3-inch fixed blade a 4.77 out of a possible 5. In addition to knives, ESEE also offers survival, land navigation, tracking and other training courses along with free survival information. >>5 Survival Skills Every Military Man Should Possess

SURVIVAL KNIFE USES

While the usefulness of a survival knife as a hunting or fishing spear or survival weapon is popularly known, this tool is invaluable for a staggering spectrum of situations.

1. Digging Tool: A well-constructed survival knife can serve well as a shovel for all kinds of tasks such as gathering edible tubers, excavating fire pits, disposing of human waste, and carving out distress signals in snow or dirt.
2. Weapon: In a situation requiring you to procure your own food, a survival knife can be used to harvest small game or even fish. With a little ingenuity the survival knife can be uses as the ultimate emergency weapon.
3. First Aid: While a clumsy, unpracticed hand can do as much damage as good with a knife in a medical emergency, the tool is as versatile in first-aid as in basic campsite routines. It’s useful for cutting improvised bandages, for example, or—with a sterilized tip—draining pernicious blisters.
4. Splitting Wood or Cutting Saplings: If you’re only accustomed to flimsy, cheaply made versions, you may have trouble envisioning a survival knife as a hatchet and axe substitute. However, a large, full-tang model with a flat edge to the blade back can be a formidable wood-splitting or cutting implement. The design allows you to use a piece of wood or mallet to pound the keen edge into a log or sapling. This is often called batoning.
5. Hammer: The butt end, or pommel, of the survival knife handle is its own hammering tool, handy for driving in stakes for shelters or snares.
6. Gear Adjustments: On an extended foray in the backcountry, you invariably need to make little adjustments to clothing and equipment in the interest of comfort and safety. A survival knife is the perfect tool for emergency modification of your gear.
7. Stake: In the absence of other materials, a survival knife can be driven into the ground to serve as a stake—as when anchoring an emergency shelter or a food bag balanced in the tree canopy out of a bear’s reach.
8. Tool-making: Some may think a knife in a wilderness emergency is simply a tool unto itself, but one of its chief purposes in a wilderness emergency is really the manufacture of other, more specialized survival gear. It’s essential for making a fire bow and drill, which is of utmost importance if you’re lacking other means of alighting tinder.
9. Fire: Speaking of fire-making, a survival knife allows you to flay out ribbons of inner bark from a branch to produce so-called “tinder”—invaluable when making a “birds nest” and igniting a fire in any condition. A survival knife can also be used to strike your ferrocerium rod (ferro rod) when igniting tinder.
10. Shelter-making: A knife blade serves handily to trim limbs in the event you must build a shelter. It can also be used to notch the limbs before lashing them together.

 

*From lifting simmering stew off the flames or to make your own tools, a survival knife is more than a whittling tool or a fish spear. Make one a permanent addition to your pack, and head into the woods with that much more peace of mind.

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ESEE 6P-B Plain Edge Fixed Blade

You take one look at the ESEE 6P and you know it means business.

The design is flawless, menacing even, with every little feature that can possibly make any difference taken care of.

The ESEE 6P-B is one of the best-selling models of survival knives that rule the market.

• The ESEE 6P-B survival knife is 11.75 inches long the blade runs above the handle for a good 6.5 inches. It features a Drop point blade style along with a full-flat grind and is comfortably weighted.
• The blade is made from one of the most coveted High-Carbon 1095 steel which remains sharp for a long time but need proper and continuous maintenance to avoid rusting and corrosion.
• The Full tang survival knife has two removable Lined Grey Micarta handle Slabs which are screwed in to provide for a textured and comfortable grip in the handle.
• The EESE 6P-B survival knife can be safely kept in a Black Molded Polymer Sheath that comes along with the knife. Also provided is a lanyard hole to string up your survival knife on your belt or around your neck for carrying it around safely.

 

The ESEE Model 6 was designed by Jeff Randall and Mike Perrin as their answer to the popular 6 to 7 inch blade range found on many military issue knives. The full flat grind and 3/16” thickness makes for an extremely efficient cutter in the wilderness or for utility chores. The 6.5” long 1095 high carbon steel blade is a monster and can handle equally monstrous tasks. Although all of the ESEE fixed blade knives have a full tang construction and is designed for the outdoors, the ESEE 6 is the one that you can get and depend on if you want the best quality knife out there. The large strong blade can handle pretty much anything you can think of an more. If you ever get into a life threatening situation in the wild, the ESEE 6 is what you would want to be strapped to your side.

As with other ESEE knives, the Model 6 has been put to the test many times by military, law enforcement and adventurers all over the world, whether in the Randall’s Adventure & Training jungle survival school, carried by special operations personnel in combat, or strapped to a hiker’s backpack. The sheer dependability and performance of the ESEE 6 makes it an ideal outdoor knife. If you’re an outdoorsman, soldier, or just simply like to collect quality, hard-use knives, then you’ll love the ergonomics, balance and cutting power of the ESEE-6. It has the same no fuss look that most ESEE knives have but make no mistake, the ESEE 6 means business. What it does have is the look and feel of a real outdoors knife that you can see and feel the first time you handle it. The second you hold the ESEE 6, you know that you have the real deal.

Pros:

• Perfect weight and balance, it just feels like top quality. Works great in the field, and you know that with care it will last you the rest of your days.
• Good knife for hiking, camping, food prep, and whatever other need that may arise. It is perfectly balanced and razor sharp.
• The steel stays strong for a long time even if the knife is used to chop through oak branches.

Cons:

• Not the best when using a ferro rod.
• The blade is susceptible to rust and it should be protected from moisture and rain (use a dry film rust inhibitor such as TUF-GLIDE or TUF-CLOTH).

 

Conclusion

The ESEE-6 survival knife is one of the prettiest knives because of its excellent and functional design. Its substantial 6 ½-inch blade length is sufficiently light in order for users to deftly chop wood and precisely slice meat. The flat ground bevel combined with the straight and long edge and the excellent sweep make the ESEE-6 a perfect mix between a “chopper” and a hunting knife. While this knife is good for hunting, it is better used as a processor of meats than for actual survival uses. In all, this ESEE-6 review gives a rating of 8.5/10 for the roughness of the Micarta handle.

Post by John Miler for PrepperUniverse.com

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